Why do doctors push Synthroid?

>> 11/27/09

Why do doctors push a synthetic medication over a natural dessicated thyroid medication that has been around far longer than the synthetic version?

Is it because you can't patent a natural medication...therefore pharmaceutical companies can't rake in the big bucks on them?

For more reading on this topic, read here.

I have had an endocrinologist outright refuse to prescribe a T3/T4 combination for my thyroid disease. He even went as far as to call in a prescription for Synthroid to my online prescription provider (which automatically deducts it from my bank account) after I told him I didn't want Synthroid! He's been fired.

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Bad Female Stuff & Thyroid

>> 11/18/09

The really bad premenstrual stuff was back again this month. The only time I experienced such bad cramps that it hurt to move was when my TSH was too high. I was thinking it was time to increase my thyroid medication dosage anyway so after being doubled over in pain, I've decided to definitely add a little bit more.

I need to find another doctor to manage my thyroid but I had such a hard time finding one nearby, I got frustrated. I am going to have to search farther out to find a doctor who will treat symptoms and not just lab results. Why is it so hard for a doctor to actually listen to patients? Doesn't how they feel matter anymore?

Perhaps I should contact a compounding pharmacy and see if they can tell me any doctors in the area who use them. That might help. My pharmacist has been more helpful than my family doctor has been! They all wear the lab coats but even with all those years of medical school, my family doctor was a huge disappointment.

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Nail Care with Thyroid Problems

>> 11/17/09

If your nails are brittle, it could be a sign that your thyroid hormone levels are off. Did you realize that it could be one symptom of hyperthyroidism or hypothyroidism? I didn't know that at first. I knew the hair falling out was one symptom because it was a big one for me for awhile in the beginning. Now, it's more of a mild irritant at times while I get my dosage adjusted.

Hypothyroidism is my curse to try to figure out personally. I've not gone hyper that I'm aware of. I was lucky in that even though I was hypothyroid, my nails weren't soft and brittle but they did get a lot of ridges in them. They're definitely a lot better lately.

I think I'm long overdue for a manicure (years overdue). One of the best places I've heard of to go is to get nail care in Huntington Beach. It's a bit too far to me (like 2,200 miles too far) but after giving my four year old a mini-manicure with red, white, and blue nail polish for Veterans Day this month, I might take a second look in the budget to find some room for a little nail care pampering for me too.

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Weight Loss Success!

>> 11/16/09

Woo hoo! I am officially on my second leg of the weight loss. I broke it up into three parts. The first part of the weight loss went pretty good with the change in medication, however, it got hung up on those last few tenths of a pound before it'd push me into the second part for the next ten pound weight loss. It was like that for most of last week and I was beginning to wonder if that was it. Nope. As of today, I am officially on part 2 and the next ten pounds.

I figure in another five pounds, I'll be able to put on my wedding ring again without feeling claustrophobic from it being too tight. I don't expect to ever wear a size four again. I've had four kids delivered the old-fashioned way - that just does something to the hips, ya know? However, I do expect to be back into a comfortable size eight or maybe even a size six. Then it'll be time to sexy mama up a little bit! It would be nice to feel good in nice clothes again.

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The Miracle of Bio-Identical Hormones by Dr. Michael Platt

>> 11/13/09

This week while I had the flu, it gave me some time to read a book I’d been wanting to read for awhile. The book is called The Miracle of Bio-Identical Hormones by Dr. Michael E. Platt. The book cover says it is about how to lose fatigue, hot flashes, ADHD, ADD, fibromyalgia, PMS, osteoporosis, weight, sexual dysfunction, anger, migraines and more. Some of the other things it talks about helping inside the book are things like restless legs syndrome and thyroid problems.


This was a very interesting read. I wouldn’t mind owning this book and having it on my shelf for reference.

I took some notes from it for myself so as usual, I’m posting them here so I can refer back to them. Maybe they’ll interest you as well.

THYROID

  • TSH (thyroid stimulating hormone): It talks of the “normal” being between 0.3 to 5.5 but if your TSH is higher than one, Dr. Platt says that your pituitary is still indicating you need thyroid. Dr. Platt says that the TSH levels were arbitrarily picked from a study of only 100 medical students (and they weren’t worried about how their thyroids were actually performing during that time). Dr. Platt’s goal is to get TSH levels close to 0.3 so he knows you’re getting close to 100% of what you need. He doesn’t just use T4 (Synthroid or its generic) to get those results. He uses both T3 and T4. THIS IS WHAT I ASKED MY ENDOCRINOLOGIST TO DO AND HE REFUSED! MY TSH LEVELS WERE RIGHT AT 0.3 AND HE SAID THAT WAS TOO LOW AND HE MIGHT CUT BACK ON MY MEDS.
  • T3 Meds: Armour, Thyrolar and Cytomel but these are all short-acting meds. Dr. Platt thinks a sustained-release form of bio-identical T3 is what he prefers. You get this from a compounding pharmacy.
  • Dr. Platt says that people with ADHD always have low thyroid levels.
  • Dr. Platt says progesterone is needed for your thyroid to function.


ADHD

  • Dr. Platt says that people with ADHD always have low thyroid levels. He feels they are also low on progesterone (he says it is required for proper thyroid functioning).
  • He believes adrenaline is “part of the ADHD causation”.
  • ADD and ADHD is low progesterone levels, too much adrenaline (ADHD), and too much insulin. He doesn't believe ADHD is a learning problem.

CHRONIC FATIGUE SYNDROME

  • Dr. Platt talks about how doctors diagnose chronic fatigue syndrome and how he believes they may have a simple case of imbalanced hormones instead. MY ENDO TRIED TO DIAGNOSE ME WITH CFS BEFORE HE EVEN EXAMINED ME.

FIBROMYALGIA

  • Dr. Platt mentions how anger and the muscle tension from it can cause a build-up of lactic acid and fatigue can give you a diagnosis of fibromyalgia. He also believes another common underlying cause of fibromyalgia is ADHD because of the high levels of adrenaline (increasing anger, stress, etc.). MY ENDO ALSO SAID I COULD HAVE THIS BEFORE HE EVEN EXAMINED ME.

DHEA

  • Dr. Platt believes that people with higher levels of DHEA have lower incidences of Parkinson's and Alzheimer's.
  • He said to get the test for DHEA-S, not DHEA.

PROGESTERONE

  • #1 hormone that has to be replaced in most women as they get close to and go thru menopause.
  • He believes the number one reason women can't conceive or have a hard time is because of low progesterone levels. He also believes it is the #1 cause of miscarriage. He believes the only reason women have morning sickness while pregnant and have postpartum depression is because of low progesterone levels.
  • He believes progesterone eliminates RLS (restless leg syndrome) instead of treating it with toxic drugs used for Parkinson's Disease.

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Quickie Update

>> 11/4/09

I've maintained the initial weight loss. Now I just have to give it a push to get some more off to get over the next hump. I have a few humps to get over:)

I'm doing better this week with adding supplements (antioxidants, Iodine, Vitamin C & D) into the routine. I guess it's a habit I'll form eventually.

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