I have had Hashimoto's thyroiditis for 24 years. This is an autoimmune disease which means my antibodies are attacking my thyroid and putting it out of commission. Or, at least, they were. I had my amalgams replaced in Dec. My recent thyroid test showed no more antibodies are attacking my thyroid. Praise the Lord!
However, I also found out that my T3 and T4 are normal which means I am getting the correct amount of thyroid medication, but my TSH (thyroid stimulating hormone) is way high - off the charts. Has anyone out there had this occur after having their amalgams replaced? <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/confused.gif" alt="" />

I suggest you post this question either on this forum

http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/NaturalThyroidHormones/

or more specifically

http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/ThyroidMercury/messages

here you get a view from people who are very knowlegeable on thryoid matters. I spend a lot of my time there, as thyroid and adrenals are my biggest issues!

Great news that you no longer have Hashi's - mercury is known for causing auto immune disorders. I also have Hashis, albeit at a low level. I have three more amalgams to remove, and wonder whether this will resolve when they are out.

The high TSH could indicate that the feedback loop between the body and pituitary is not working properly, as the endocrine messages are messed up by mercury. So your pituitary is thinking that there isn't enough thyroid hormone in your body, and is asking the thyroid to produce more, when there is already enough in your body, according to the tests, though these are not always accurate. More important than test results are how you actually feel. What medication are you on?

My ND told me that after we get the mercury out and our digestion starts to improve, all of the systems will normalize and our body will reach homeostasis...but that may take awhile.

Sandi

Anonymous, I am on Levoxyl and am feeling like my thyroid is low - very tired and drained. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/confused.gif" alt="" />

Dallas

Andy Cutler recommends taking a combination T3/T4 med like Armour rather than T4 only like Synthroid or Levoythyroxine, as most mercury toxic people have problems converting the T4 to T3. T3 is the active form of thyroid hormone which keeps the metabolism going and makes us feel good. It is possible to be on T4 only meds and still be hypothyroid. I know I was. I am now taking Armour and slowly feeling better.

Armour Thyroid didn't work for me. Right now I am on obscene amounts of Levoxyl and Cytomel (T3). Its not working. I believe the mercury toxicity is mounting and not allowing the thyroid meds to work. Or, rather, its the mercury symptoms I'm experiencing more so than the thyroid.

Hi Tammy

When you say Armour didn't work for you what do you mean? You didn't feel any better or you couldn't increase your dose?

I know that Armour is recommended for those who cannot make T3, but I must be making T3, as my test for T3 was normal, as was my test for T4. Just my TSH was way out of line. It seems to me that if TSH is that high (over 600) then T3 and T4 would be high too, but they aren't. Also, it seems I should have a goitre, and I don't. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/confused.gif" alt="" />

Before the switch to synthetics, I was up to 6 grains of Armour. I still suffered from extreme fatigue, brain fog (so bad I couldn't drive a car in the afternoon) Hand pain, the hashimoto's was out of control. I couldn't breathe, or I call it air deprevation. Periods were heavy and painful, low body temp. I had it all. I feel about 50% better on levoxyl and cytomel than the armour.

Dallas,

Were you tested for Free T3 & Free T4 or just T3 & T4. Makes a difference. Let me know.

Hi Tammy, i too take thyroxine, i take 150mg a day now, it used to be 100mg. I increased my dose myself without the doctor to see how i felt, i have been on this for 12 yrs, and taken all sorts of doses. I have more energy and not so much brain fog since i upped the dose, i hope it lasts. I had my thyroid gland removed because it was overactive. How much thyroxine do you take?

I take 300 mcg of Levoxyl and 50 mcg of cytomel a day.

The doc says not to use generic t4.

It barely skims the symptoms. I have some decent days, but most are plagued with symptoms.

How did you up your dose?

Sorry, That is me above. I take 300 mcg levoxyl, 50 mcg cytomel

Email me, I would love to compare treatments

tburn9686@aol.com

TammyB

Tammy, I don't know if it was T3 ,T4 or free T3,T4. The dr. sent my results in the mail and I hope to have them tomorrow. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/confused.gif" alt="" />

Tammy, sorry to be so slow - brain fog. I forgot all about this post. I was tested for free T3,T4. I just had another test to see what is happening now. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/confused.gif" alt="" />

I personally don't believe anyone here will get better by taking thyroid supplements because of the mercury problem. Im in the UK and was diagnosed with hypothyroidism. In fact the doc i went to see said it was one of the worst cases he had ever seen. Ive been on Armour thyroid, Thyroxine, T3 and they all made me worse. My actual score showed that my body had very low T4 and wasnt converting to T3. My thyroid doc is mystified so i told him mercury, he actually agreed. I just think all those things put strain on your body if they are not the root cause.

My other test says everything is normal. Fat chance! I'm gaining weight, have a totally non-functioning bowel (unless I take a ton of magnesium), and my oral resting temperature is 96.4F! But my tests say normal, so my naturopath says everything's fine and to call if I have any other problems. Doesn't matter how I feel, I guess. I thought naturopaths were supposed to be different. Dawn, how did you manage to increase your dose yourself? Don't you need a prescription? <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/confused.gif" alt="" />

I had my thyroid removed 12 yrs ago, i have taken so many different doses through the years, its the only way to go. Your body will tell you if you have the right dosage, not blood tests. Lately i have gone back to 100gms thyroxine, plus i take 1 capsule of NSP thyroid support per day. I feel OK at the moment. Im ever so thin, i feel quite energetic these days aswell, i get edgy and depressed but i think thats mercury detox. I dont understand why blood tests sometimes show normal when symptoms clearly are there. I dont think they are accurate, it should be how you feel. If i had thyroid symptoms and normal blood tests i would take a thyroid support to see how i feel.

How do you get a dr. to go by what you feel? My naturopath sold me some thyroid support pills, and each day as I was taking them, I watched as my temp went down and down. When I stopped taking them, my temp started to go back up again. Don't know if it will keep going up. The Naturopath had told me not to take supplemental iodine - you're not supposed to with Hashimoto's thyroiditis, so I stopped taking any. Then she sold me thyroid support pills with 150% of daily iodine. Go figure! <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/confused.gif" alt="" />

I dont tell my doctor anything about dosage, all i know is if i take less than 100mg thyroxine daily, i go underactive after a few months. My doctor knows nothing about thyroid problems, i have to do it myself. You have Hashimotos disease, i have no thyroid so its different i suppose. Mine used to be very overactive and i became very ill, had a mild heart attack and put on beta blockers, so i know that when i take too much thyroxine i have the symptoms of overactive thyroid, which in my opinion is alot worse. Back in the old days, i was extremely nervous, depressed, heartrate 180 per minute, uncontrolable diarorea (spelling) sweating, fatigue and muscle cramps, everyone thought i was going insane, including myself, also my neck looked like it had a rubber tyre around it and my eyes were popping out, i just caught it in time otherwise i would have been disfigured. Now if i get underactive i go lethargic, depressed, constipated, put on a little weight, chest pains etc.

Iodine is a massive no no. I took it and my eyes looked like they were popping out. The whole thyroid issue is so complicated, its fine if your thyroid is the root cause but for some people they never respond to medication as their problem is due to something else. ie mine is mercury. Also diagnosing thyroid problems is a joke. in the UK, it's even worse than the USA. The TSH range here is .5-4.5 fall within that range and youre fine. I had two tests done..one was .08 and the other was 4.0, these were done within a month!! So my thyroid was clearly on a rollercoaster but doctors said it was fine. They're clueless. I begged them to do T3/T4 testing but labs simply wont do them if your TSH is within the range. I had them done privately and it showed i was not converting or producing enough T4 and T3. My pituitary wasn't working. Of course this produces massive problems with your endocrine system and the whole thing breaks down. So you get adrenal fatigue, liver problems etc. Thats why using milk thistle for a lot of people makes them worse when they're attempting to detox, they think its a liver problem but its an endocrine system problem caused by the mercury. The whole process is a huge chain reaction. Quite simply put one disease causes another. You can buy thyroid meds off the internet but if you're mercury toxic, its pretty pointless as you'll just put greater strain on your body.

Dawn, what I want to know is, how do you medicate yourself? My results come back as fine, but I know by how I feel that I am hypo. But do you think I can get my dr., even my naturopathic dr., to go by how I feel rather than by the test!?: And it is well known - even amongst laymen, that the thyroid tests are often wrong! I feel like I am living under the gestapo! Unless Lord Physician says I may have my proper dosage, I will just have to do without. Can one get thyroid hormone in the U.S. without a prescription from Lord Physician? Dawn, how do you "do it myself"? <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/confused.gif" alt="" />

You can get levothyroxine and armour from the internet, thats what i would do if i had symptoms and no doctor would give me any. Are you taking anything now! If i havnt answered the question properly, tell me, im a bit slow today. Thanks.

I am taking 0.112 mg of Levoxyl. How can you get these meds from the internet if you are not a dr.?

If that is levothyroxine i will give you the website of where to get it.

Yes, Dawn, it is levothyroxine that I take.

If you type in Levothyroxine, theres loads of places to buy it. Good luck!

I'm a little late with this reply (been busy) but standard thyroid tests are virtually useless for mercury toxic persons.

Also, for my situation, I took a thyroid supplement and it did wonders for me by increasing energy and clearing up brain fog and lifing my overall mood.

Depending on the issue, a thyroid supplement like this is not for everyone, but if your thyroid issues stem from mercury toxicity, I believe it will greatly help the vast majority of people.

Thanks, Dawn and Russ. Russ, I have been taking a thyroid supplement prescribed by my naturopath. My temp and pulse kept going down and down. Temp. got to 96.6F and pulse is now at 48 when resting. Although I exercise, I am not an athlete. I went off the thyroid supplement about a week ago and my temp has gone up to 97,2 but can't seem to get above. Pulse is still 48. I am wondering about diamondlite. Do you know if it has any fluoride in it, or any estrogen mimickers. I have diamondlite and am wondering if that is why my thyroid has been thrown for a loop. Also, my daughter is scheduled to have her fillings replaced with diamondlite. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/confused.gif" alt="" />

Dawn, are you in England? That's the only reason I figure you are able to get thyroid meds off the internet without a prescription. I looked at the sites and the ones that are from Europe that I have seen so far, do not allow you to buy if from the U.S. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/frown.gif" alt="" />

Hi Dallas, im from UK. Have you tried medcentre canada. Where are you from?

Actually, I'm from Canada originally. But now I live in Massachusetts.

Dallas, Freedom pharmacy.com looks like it will send to you. The other website needs a docs prescription, i didnt realise.

Thanks so much for all your efforts, dawn. I will take it from here. I have asked my naturopath to send my last results. With things being what they are, what the lab calls normal may not be normal at all, given that there are new standards and most labs/docs don't know. We'll see.

Ah, yes! I got my results and, according to the new data, I am hypothyroid. My naturopath and the lab are both going on the old data. I will have to inform them both.
Does anyone know, when someone is hypothyroid and they go through menopause, do they need to take more thyroid hormone? I have, in the past few months, gone hypo after being able to drop my dosage about three years ago when I stopped drinking fluoridated water. I am menopausal, my last period being abour a year ago. But I am wondering. Is it menopause, or something else? Does anyone know if Diamondllite has fluoride in it - or any other thyroid-suppressing ingredients? I wrote the company, but have not heard back from them. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/confused.gif" alt="" />

O.K., I am getting antsy. My daughter is due to get her amalgams replaced starting next week. She is only 11. I know everyone recommends Diamondlite, but, frankly, there are some materials in Diamondlite that they will not disclose. Those very ingredients could be ingredients that cause problems. My amalgam replacements are Diamondlite and I am having some symptoms - low thyroid, fatigue, wieght gain, tendinitis. I am wondering - could these be caused by Diamondlite - or just detox? I have written the company last week and they have not gotten back to me. This raises red flags in my mind. Has anyone else gotten any of these symptoms after Diamondlite? How can I get FULL disclosure on ingredients in dental materials? I will let you all know if Diamondlite ever gets back to me and what they say. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/confused.gif" alt="" />

Oops! That last post was dallas. I forgot to log in. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/crazy.gif" alt="" />