Cytomel

[notsoswoleCPA]

I was experiencing energy issues around August and I was wondering if the following labs supported being put on Cytomel?

Reverse T3, Serum 30.4 ng/dl (high)
Triiodothyronine (T3), Free 3.5 pg/mL (in range)
TSH 1.290 (in range)
T4,Free(Direct) 1.42 ng/dL (in range)

I used to be on NDT, 1.5 grains daily, and was asked if I felt worse when I discontinued it due to a shortage earlier in the year. When I stated that I noticed no difference, it was theorized that my reverse T3 was blocking the conversion of T4 into T3, hence the reverse T3 lab 8 months later, which was high. It is speculated that RT3 rises even higher when I was taking 1.5 grains of NDT, thereby negating the impact of the so called natural thyroid medication that every local doctor was pushing.

It was recommended that I start at 5 mcg per day and ramp up to 15 or 20 mcg per day over a period of time, depending on how I feel after taking it. Does this sound right based on my Free T3 being in range and my TSH being normal while being off thyroid medication for over 8 months when those tests were taken? I just find it odd that those numbers can be normal whereas the RT3 is high, when they used to tell people not to rely on the RT3 test just a few years ago.

 

[notsoswoleCPA]

Ok, after performing more research versus doing my work, it would appear that a high RT3 number is usually an indication to start taking T3 only. I wonder if this is why I have a hard time losing my remaining abdominal fat? I guess I will know soon enough since my dosage protocol seems like a shot in the dark to start. I'm guessing it is to see how my body adjusts to the additional T3 versus sending me into orbit on the first day.

 

[Jin]

Ok, after performing more research versus doing my work, it would appear that a high RT3 number is usually an indication to start taking T3 only. I wonder if this is why I have a hard time losing my remaining abdominal fat? I guess I will know soon enough since my dosage protocol seems like a shot in the dark to start. I'm guessing it is to see how my body adjusts to the additional T3 versus sending me into orbit on the first day.

Rhino is The in-house thyroid expert. If he doesn’t chime in you should PM him and ask him to read your thread.

 

[Rhino99]

Thank you Sir

Im no expert but I do know enough because I battle hypothyroidism as well.

Yeah your RT3 is very high. To give you a comparison, I feel my best when my RT3 is very low. Last labwork a month ago it was <5.0.e...My T3 is 2.6

My tsh is always low due to being on the T3 meds, its currently .105.
I take liothyronine (cytomel). I was started on a combo t3/t4 which is protocol and i felt better for a couple months but then got worse. Wound up going to T3 only.

Dont let any doctor diagnose you while only taking into account your tsh level.

Important to get your iron serum and iron saturation tested, that is a reason for fatigue also. Every few months mine goes low and I supplement for a while and it comes back up for a few months.

Here's a good forum for information https://www.tiredthyroid.com/

There's other forums to where you can ask questions of people more qualified

Good luck bro

 

[Rhino99]

By the way, what a high RT3 means with normal other levels is that you have the proper levels of everything but that the T3 is not being pushed into your cells, which is what gives you energy, or lack thereof.

 

[notsoswoleCPA]

Thanks for the reply. I guess this explains why I felt awesome at first on NDT, then it lost its effectiveness over the course of two years. My main hope is that this helps me to drop the remaining fat that I have worked my ass off to drop, yet still can't drop AND levels out my energy. I'm literally all over the map throughout the day and to think, I blamed it on my desk job, lol.

 

[Rhino99]

There's so many moving parts it can be a nightmare to decipher....here's another one..SLEEP.
vitally important. How is your sleep?

 

[notsoswoleCPA]

I get about 6.5 to 7 hours per night. That has been the average for most of my life except when I was first diagnosed with low t and hypothyroidism. I was sleeping 12 to 14 hours per day and still feeling like shit. My GP wanted to put me on SSRIs because my testosterone was close enough to the bottom number and my TSH was normal. That f00ker!

 

[Rhino99]

Here's another tidbit I learned the hard way and that I forgot again until just now.
When on cycle thyroid dose needs to increase. There's something going on that makes it less potent I guess.

 

[Rhino99]

 

[Rhino99]

https://hormonesdemystified.com/t3-or-not-t3-tough-question

 

[notsoswoleCPA]

Here's another tidbit I learned the hard way and that I forgot again until just now.
When on cycle thyroid dose needs to increase. There's something going on that makes it less potent I guess.

That does make sense based on what one of my sources told me. Basically, I told him that I was going to be put on 15 mcg of Cytomel and he said the lowest he dose can get for me is 25 mcg. He then added in that I will need to contact him for that dose the next time I do a cycle and he highly recommended that I up the dose to 25 mcg while on cycle.

I know deca is touted as being one of the worst things to take with thyroid problems, yet my numbers were normal except for the reverse T3. It was speculated that my RT3 was always out of whack, just never tested.

Finally, thank you for all of your responses.

 

[Rhino99]

Im normally 50mcg daily but on cycle I need to double it to 100mcg.

No problem bro, glad I could help in some sort of way. That's what this place is all about. It's threads like this that make you forget all the other BS threads.
Nobody knows it all, except for Snake.

 

[Rhino99]

https://twitter.com/TiredThyroid