# Cytomel making hypo symptoms worse?



## Peanut1989 (Mar 2, 2018)

Hello everyone. I'm new to this forum and I need some advice/ideas/input. I've been researching on the internet and reading books on Thyroid and Autoimmunity but I'm a bit lost now&#8230; Sorry, it's a long story&#8230;

I was diagnosed with Hashimoto's about 9 years ago when I gained a ton of weight and was so tired that I couldn't get through any day without a nap. I was put on 75 mcg of Synthroid and have been on that dose ever since. For a good 6 years I felt great, on top of the world, I lost a ton of weight, had energy and everything was awesome until suddenly is wasn't anymore. About 3 years ago my job got a little stressful and I could feel the weight slowly creeping back on and energy levels plummeting. About half a year later I was exhausted. I would go to work for 8 hours, come home and pass out for about 3 hours every single day, have dinner and a shower and go back to bed. I stopped having a period, my hair started falling out and I had constant ear infections. I figured it was stress and thought I'd wait it out. Eventually I quit my job and took it easy for a few months. Then I started getting breast and ovarian cysts and no improvement on other symptoms. Had some tests done but nothing really stuck out. I figured it was the birth control and a year ago I stopped taking it - I instantly got better. Period came back right away, no more cysts and my energy improved drastically in just two days. But the weight kept creeping on whatever I did and I still didn't feel like my old self. I went paleo about 5 weeks ago and noticed some improvements - I suddenly felt like gently exercising again. But still not quite what I was hoping for. So I asked to get some additional thyroid tests done (before I only got TSH checked once a year).

TSH 0.5 (0.2 - 4.00)

FT4 19.3 (10.0 - 25.0)

FT3 3.3 (3.5 - 6.5) Low

TPA 31.2 (0.0 - 34.0)

Thyroglobulin 22.4 (0.0 - 50.0)

Thyroglobulin Antibodies 388.5 (0.0 - 35.0)

Didn't check my rT3 yet though.

Anyway, since my T3 is low my Doc and I decided to add some in and he prescribed 5mcg of Cytomel. I started only taking it once a day to see what happens. The first 2 days nothing at all happened. On day 3 I was completely exhausted after work. On day 4 I couldn't get out of bed. I slept until 12pm (I normally get up at 8 on days off), brushing my teeth and having a shower felt like a struggle. My mood was down the toilet and I felt like crying for no reason several times a day. My whole body felt heavy and my hands and arms felt weak, I got constipated, I lost my appetite/hunger and everything I ate felt like a big boulder in my stomach for hours. I couldn't get out of bed the whole day. No improvement the next 2 days. I went to see my doc. He said to stop taking the Cytomel wait a week and go for tests again (this time checking rT3 as well). We are now both confused what's going on there. He is very close to shipping me off to Endo but that's a 3h drive for me, will probably take 2 months to get an appointment and I'm honestly not too confident in those guys. At least my current Doc is open minded and mostly willing to work with me and accept my input (even though he's not exactly an expert on thyroid). I am 2 days off Cytomel now and I'm back to normal. Going for tests on Monday or Tuesday.

Anyone have any idea what could be going on there??? Has something like this happened to anyone?

Could it be the fillers? Allergic reaction? Should I try a generic? Are there any alternatives? I want to start on NDT but if my rT3 is high I was thinking of trying T3 only and I don't want to add in any T4. And there's a shortage of NDT in Canada anyway&#8230; Doc is thinking about increasing the Synthroid.


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## jenny v (May 6, 2012)

Have you ever had an ultrasound of your thyroid? With high antibody levels, it's good to do so.

Your doctor made the right move by trying T3, but I think you'll need to do a more complete thyroid antibody panel to see if you've got any TSI or TrAb antibodies (the hyper ones); if you've got both, it can make it real hard to try T3 meds. Also, some people with high reverse T3 have bad issues when adding in T3 meds, especially if there are other problems like iron or adrenal issues.


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## Lovlkn (Dec 20, 2009)

What do your labs look like since starting the Cytomel?

Do you take your replacement Meds at least 4 hours away from calcium, iron or magnesium supplements?

I second the ultrasound for your thyroid.


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