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Tag: addison’s

T3 to heal adrenals, Selenium, liver–all important info for thyroid patients!

Though this post was written in 2012, it has been updated to the current day and time and it still applicable. Enjoy!

HOW T3, DOSED A CERTAIN WAY, CAN REVERSE YOUR ADRENAL FATIGUE!

UK’s Hashimoto’s patient Paul Robinson has been a successful T3-only treated patient for more than 13 years, especially because he never did well on either synthetic T4, nor on the combination of T4/T3. And he learned so much about himself that he compiled all the information on T3 dosing in his book called Recovering With T3: My Journey from Hypothyroidism to Good Health Using the T3 Thyroid Hormone.

But what I especially find interesting is how he used T3 to cure his flagging adrenal function rather than HC (hydrocortisone).  And here is a short summary of key points. He calls this The Circadian T3 Method, aka the CT3M.

  1. Most of the day’s cortisol is made in the last four hours of sleep, which means your adrenals work their hardest during that time. And like any cell in your body which need T3 to function well, so do your adrenal cells…especially during the time they work the hardest.
  2. With the above in mind, it made sense to Paul that if adrenals are struggling with low cortisol, they clearly need T3 in that early morning 4-hour window in order to function better. How did he do it?  He moved his first T3 dose to one hour before he would normally wake up, held it for a few weeks to see the results, went earlier another half hour, held it for a few weeks to see the effect…and so on. He obtained a lot of data to ascertain what was happening–urine cortisol, blood pressure, pulse, etc. He found that the time which gave his adrenals the biggest boost, and thus better function, was 3 1/2 hours before he normally wakes up.  But he feels that others might find that anywhere in the first three hours of that four hour window, and it’s important to move slowly within that area to find the right time for you based on data.
  3. This protocol needs certain supplements, which include high potency B complex, B12, Vit. C, Vit. D and a good multi mineral. He goes into detail in his book.
  4. This protocol would not work if someone has Addison’s Disease, Hypopituitary or Diabetes…and may not work if you have pre-Diabetes blood sugar issues. It’s blood sugar in the cells that reacts positively with T3.

There is much more detail than the above. And Paul makes it clear that this treatment for adrenal fatigue and proven low cortisol should only be done in your relationship with your doctor. You can read more here on STTM.

UPDATE: many patients have reported that though the CT3M did wonders bringing up the morning cortisol, it didn’t help afternoon cortisol at all, and for some, didn’t help noon’s low cortisol. Yes, there are some who feel it’s helped all day, but also a large body who said it only helped morning. So we concluded that though it’s great for that low morning, you may have to use other supports for other low cortisol times. Also, the CT3M is excellent to help get off HC! Many are off in a month or less!

SELENIUM, EVEN WITH HIGH RT3, IS A MINERAL YOU NEED!

Check out what thyroid patient Cheryl Alvey has put together about selenium. This is a masterful page!

WHY THYROID PATIENTS NEED HEALTHY LIVER FUNCTION

What happens if your liver isn’t healthy?  Transportation is less optimal, and the deiodination type 1 will change to type 3, meaning T4 will convert to excess RT3! And guess what can make your liver unhealthy? Continued hypothyroidism, which happens to all too many who are on T4-only medications, or those left undiagnosed due to the TSH. Hypothyroidism is worsened with adrenal problems, and low iron.  And liver function can become unhealthy or stressed if you eat poorly  You can read more about all this here.

In the meantime, what can one do to promote better liver function? Milk thistle is one highly recommended way by many (use Milk Thistle supps from the seeds to avoid estrogenic affect). Also look into dandelion root /leaf, Sassafras, Burdock, Goldenseal and Yellow Doc root, Red Clover and Echinacea root. Ask someone knowledgeable at your local health food store.

PATIENT YOU-TUBE STTM VIDEOS

See thyroid patient Sam Aliyev’s latest YouTube video.  If you do one about the message of STTM, let me know and I’ll post about it.

**Has STTM benefitted you?? Want to Pay It Forward? Go here.

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One more kooky & hilarious video! Plus more about bipolar, pregnancy, mistakes patients make.

HUMOROUS VIDEO ABOUT ADRENAL FATIGUE:   In my blog post last February 15th, 2011, I sent you in the direction of a kooky, creative and hilarious You Tube video titled “Our Holy Miracle of the Infallible TSH Test”.

Well, creator and thyroid patient Brian Foreman has brilliantly done it again, but this time, it’s about adrenal fatigue and titled “Why Isn’t My Thyroid Medication Working?”  Have fun watching it, and get ready for a good laugh here and there.

Want to know more about adrenal dysfunction? Go here to find out about the problem, and do the Discovery Tests tests to see if you might have it.  Note that it’s critical, if the self-tests seem to point to an adrenal issue, to do a 24-hour adrenal saliva test to see what is going on at four key times during a 24-hour period.  Here is a compilation of what patients have learned in how to treat low cortisol, and this page is important to share with your doctor. If you want even more detail, it is strongly recommended by thyroid patients to order the REVISED STTM BOOK, and see Chapters 5 and 6. This can be carried right into your doctor appointment with key areas highlighted and bookmarked.

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BIPOLAR, DEPRESSION and HYPOTHYROID: A thyroid patient emailed me with just one more article on the connection between having a bipolar disorder and one’s thyroid, including the fact that there is “a strikingly high rate of autoimmune-caused thyroid problems in people with bipolar disorder”, aka Hashimotos disease.

And even if depression is your main problem, the article mentions “gently pushing your thyroid status over toward the “hyperthyroid” end of normal, if you happen now to be toward the hypothyroid end of normal”, in order to adequately reverse the depression problem. I constantly think back about my own mother who suffered from depression, succumbed to having shock therapy, and ended up on anti-depressants the rest of her life because of her use of Synthroid.  So we know that treating hypothyroidism with direct T3, such as is found in desiccated thyroid, is far better. 

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IS THERE A BABY KNOCKING IN YOUR BELLY?  I often see pregnant women in forums wondering how their babies are doing and how the thyroid works in helping their babies, or hurting them if the mother is pregnant and hypothyroid.  Here is an article sent to me that can help inform as to changes in your thyroid function when pregnant, how thyroid hormones affect the brain of the fetus, and the role of iodine.  It can underscore how important proper treatment is while pregnant.

What about adrenal fatigue which so many thyroid patients find themselves with, and pregnancy? A gal named Anne has written about this issue here. She has Addisons disease, which is more about a disease process and can be autoimmune, but her comments can be very applicable for those of you with sluggish adrenal function. Share all of this with your doctor. Need to find a good one?? Go here.

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TWO COMMON MISTAKES  MADE BY PATIENTS:  In patient groups, here are two common mistakes I see patients make:

  1. Not doing the 24 hour adrenal saliva test if adrenal dysfunction is suspected:  I can’t stress this enough:  patients have learned repeatedly they shouldn’t have rushed into cortisol treatment if they or their doctor’s “suspect” an adrenal problem. Yes, STTM has outlined several self-tests, called Discovery Steps, that you can do in your own home to see if anything is suspicious. There is also a checklist of symptoms related to adrenal problems. But the problem is two-fold:  symptoms of high and low cortisol can be exactly the same, and ‘where you are low’ and ‘where you are not’ can dictate how your treatment should be.  Some only need to lower high cortisol, some may do well on simply adaptogens like Ashwagandha or Rhodiola, some do well on Isocort or OTC adrenal cortex, and some outright need to be on prescription hydrocortisone. Teach this to your doctor. Here is where you can order your own saliva tests, and then take them into your doctor’s office.
  2. Not getting copies of labwork: Contrary to how your doctor says it, you have a right to have copies of your own labwork. And you should! Patients often come on groups seeking feedback from other patients, and yet, have no idea what their labwork was, or the ranges. Getting copies of labwork is just one step of many in being a pro-active patient. Here is how to read labwork according to the experience of thyroid patients.
Remember: Stop the Thyroid Madness, aka STTM,  is a patient-to-patient informational site meant to educate and inspire you with that information. Talk to your doctor about what you have learned; use the STTM revised book right in the office, and push for what you believe in, and you can go a long way to feeling MUCH better.
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Doctor questions if adrenal fatigue is real….so is it??

Screen Shot 2015-08-13 at 1.26.06 PM(This page was updated. Enjoy!)

In 2009, Louis Neipris, M.D., a staff writer who has written many fine articles for myOptumHealth.com, wrote one article titled Adrenal Fatigue: Is it for real?

It appeared on Upper Michigan News, TV 6 website on July 16th and made the rounds on other sites.

His answer to his own question?  “Not really”. He adds  “It’s not an accepted medical diagnosis.”

Oops. Thyroid patients and a growing body of informed medical practitioners beg to differ.

About the term “Adrenal Fatigue”

Patients in the earliest discussion groups were using the term “adrenal fatigue” right after the turn of the 21st century, probably because they saw it used so often on the internet, as well as referred to in certain books. And we did think that the adrenals became “tired” as a way to explain the low cortisol we outright saw in each other’s saliva results, as well as symptoms. The term “adrenal insufficiency” also fit.

Later, it became more popular with patients to identify the biological cause of our low cortisol as being rooted in a sluggish HPA axis, i.e. the messaging between the Hypothalamus to the Pituitary to the Adrenals. That messaging wasn’t as vibrant as it should be.

Fast forward to the 2014 book Stop the Thyroid Madness II, where the last chapter by Dr. Lena D. Edwards et al does a bang-up job explaining what might really be going on, and which they term “hypocortisolism”. They propose five brilliant and biologically valid reasons why we see low cortisol:

  • a developmental response to high stress
  • a corticotrophin-releasing factor (CRF) receptor down-regulation
  • inadequate glucocorticoid signaling
  • intrinsic adrenal gland dysfunction
  • an adaptive response towards infection or inflammation.

See Chapter 13, pages 291-292 for more details on each of the five. It’s a brilliant chapter on the subject within the STTM II book.

In other words, there are explainable and logical reasons why certain thyroid patients have low cortisol, and it’s very real, whether you call it adrenal fatigue, adrenal insufficiency or hypocortisolism.

The cortisol saliva test

One excellent method, we as informed patients, prove our low cortisol state is by the use of saliva testing. The important aspect of saliva testing has been two-fold: 1) it reveals our cellular level of cortisol, which we’ve noticed has always fit our symptoms (if the facility we use knows that they are doing, as do the ones listed on the Recommended Labwork page which do not need a doctor’s prescription), and 2) it tests us at four key times during a 24 hour period (which is important to see the fuller picture of what our adrenals are doing.)

We’re learned repeatedly, in comparison, that blood cortisol is not the way to go, since with blood, you are measuring both bound and unbound cortisol. And as informed patients, we have noticed that blood cortisol can look high, yet both saliva testing and our symptoms reveal we are actually low, cellularly. We’ve even seen blood cortisol measure low, yet saliva and our symptoms reveal high…even though it’s less common that the other way around. It’s uncanny! Also, with blood cortisol testing, a misinformed doctor will only do one test instead of the needed four.

What has been the impetus behind the low cortisol state of a large body of thyroid patients?

Two very clear reasons:  first, being held hostage to the TSH lab test, giving one a “normal” reading for years in spite of obvious clinical presentation of hypothyroid symptoms, and pushing one’s adrenals into overdrive with high cortisol and adrenaline to keep the patient going, and ultimately leading to the downwards spiral of adrenal fatigue/adrenal insufficiency/hypocortisolism.  On page 65 of the revised Stop the Thyroid Madness book, you’ll read about a 44 year old woman who went 15 years with a “normal” TSH result, in spite of obvious clinical presentation of hypothyroidism, and which led to her own low cortisol. This is not uncommon.

Second, the risk of adrenal fatigue is high due to the inadequate treatment of T4 medications like Synthroid, Levoxyl, levothyroxine, Eltroxin, Tirosent and other T4-only meds. Because of being forced to live for conversion alone, and missing out on the compliment of all five thyroid hormones, T4-only meds leave a high percentage of patients with their own brand and intensity of lingering symptoms of a poor treatment…sooner or later…forcing the adrenals to kick in for too long, for many.

Even William Mck. Jeffries MD., who wrote the medical classic Safe Uses of Cortisol around 1984, understood the preponderance of adrenal fatigue and low cortisol, even without the diagnosis of Addison’s disease, and the need for physiologic doses of cortisol treatment, or the amount needed by each individual’s body to function correctly.  And he would certainly be amazed by the explosion of adrenal fatigue that has occurred since then in thyroid patients thanks to the lousy TSH and synthetic T4-only ‘affaire de coeur’ with doctors.

Adrenal fatigue may not be an “accepted diagnosis” by some medical professionals.  But today, there are a growing body of open-minded practitioners who recognize its reality as an acceptable diagnosis, and for which we are grateful.  Now our job as patients is to make sure our more open-minded doctors understand what we have on how to treat it! 

JanieSignature SEIZE THE WISDOM

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** Chapters 5 and 6 in the revised STTM book contain the best details about adrenals and treatment in any book. 

** Here’s a page on STTM listing a variety of symptoms related to a cortisol problem: //www.stopthethyroidmadness.com/adrenal-info/symptoms-low-cortisol/

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