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The Problem that Aging Hypothyroid Patients Face and How to Deal With it

Perhaps because millions of baby boomers are hitting their “senior citizen” ages, we are seeing an increase in statements by doctors, websites, and pharmaceutical reps implying that seniors should not have T3 in their treatment like NDT (Natural Desiccated Thyroid) or synthetic T3, calling it “dangerous”.

So I hope you are as impressed with the words below of this wonderful 72-year-old lady named Pat as I was…because her experience refutes the growing and ridiculous fallacy that T3 is globally and inherently “dangerous”.

I am 72 years old and up until four years ago, I was on Synthroid for over 30 years. Back then, I noticed my hypothyroid symptoms about six years after my second child. But if I’m honest and look back on my life, I now know that even as a teenager, I had brain fog….actually pretty serious brain fog. But I learned how to cover it up…

During all this time, I was diagnosed with multiple problems (which are typical for too many people on the poor treatment with T4-only or those undiagnosed): fibromyalgia, high cholesterol, high blood pressure, arthritis in my fingers, fatty liver syndrome and more. 

I also had the inflammatory disease called sarcoidosis in one nerve and in my lungs. I can’t actually connect sarcoidosis to my hypothyroidism and poor treatment with Synthroid, even if hypo people can report seeing increased inflammation. But it did happen when I was taking Synthroid. I had to take prednisone to beat it back and have been in remission for 15 years now.

But the bottom line is that for all those other issues mentioned above, I used to take multiple medications to treat all of them.

And guess what? Changing to Natural Desiccated Thyroid (NDT) four years ago took away all the above issues I was having, meaning I was also able to get off most of my prescription meds. I have less fatigue. I now have the flexibility of a 40 year old. The arthritis I had in my fingers just went away. I don’t need cholesterol or blood pressure meds anymore.

I sometimes add in compounded T3 if my RT3 (reverse T3) inches up.

My latest doctor now takes Natural Desiccated Thyroid after she saw how well I was doing. She has hypothyroidism and Hashimoto’s. We share a lot of ideas on how to conquer this disease.

My husband often goes to my appointments and says he does not understand a thing we discuss. I gave my doctor my copy of the “Stop The Thyroid Madness” book.  Interestingly enough, i knew when I went to my doctor that she used to recommend Synthroid, but also recommended herbs and other things to help with this disease. She was open to change, I think, because of her own experience.

So I think I blew their office up on my first appointment. I came in with all my labs and history. It was a 3-hour appointment with 2 people plugging in my info – my doctor and her assistant. It was later that I realized, when she asked me how I took my NDT, that she had switched to an NDT herself!

On our last appointment when we were talking about my slowly rising antibodies she told me that hers were in the thousands (my mouth dropped) and that she was taking 6 grains of her NDT. I’m thinking of recommending that she take LDN (low dose naltrexone) as I have heard it can reduce the antibodies.

Bottom line, it wasn’t staying on Synthroid that changed my life. It was moving over to Natural Desiccated Thyroid that has direct T3 in it. And in my opinion, my experience tells me the drug companies are lying! They want to keep people unhealthy so they will buy their drugs and then buy more drugs to take care of the damage the first drugs caused.   ~Pat

Here are some of the crazy issues seniors face (and there are more):

1) Medicare in the United States dropped all NDT’s from their Part D formulary—i.e. they won’t be paid for if you rely on Medicare. Armour on page 2, Naturethroid on page 16, NP Thyroid on page 17, Westhroid and WP Thyroid on page 29. See here.  Luckily, most prescription NDT brands are not that expensive anyway. Armour did go up, while the others stayed less expensive like NP Thyroid. Some use the prescription comparison called GOOD RX to find the best price in your city. 

2) Medicare in the US states “….the serum TSH test is reliable, valid, and acceptable to patients.”   To the contrary, patients of all ages have found it to be the most ridiculous test to either diagnose or treat by. It should always be about clear symptoms along with the free T3 and free T4, plus about where the latter fall in those so-called normal ranges. This is why you HAVE to be informed and be prepared to stand up for what is right and wrong. Read http://stopthethyroidmadness.com/tsh-why-its-useless There is also a complete chapter against the lousy TSH lab test in the STTM II book, and written by an MD! THAT is a chapter your doctor should read. 

Even worse, the ATA (American Thyroid Association) has stated that the target serum TSH should be 4-6 mIU/L in hypothyroid individuals age 70 or older.  That is in spite of the fact that so many of us at ANY age can have raging hypothyroid symptoms even with a TSH in the 2’s.

3) Or take the British Thyroid Association (BTA), which has stated that British thyroid patients shouldn’t be put on any thyroid meds whatsoever until their TSH is over 10, and that seniors should have a TSH around 4-10…in spite of the FACT that no matter what age, we can have raging hypothyroid symptoms even with a TSH in the 2’s–symptoms which UK doctors may blame on something else!!  Equally as bad, the UK National Health Service only endorses levothyroxine, and refuses to provide T3 to patients anymore.

4) The American Thyroid Association (ATA) states “As with the younger patient, pure synthetic thyroxine (L-T4), taken once daily by mouth, fully replaces the function of the thyroid gland and successfully treats the symptoms of hypothyroidism in most patients”  YET, we know that’s a joke. Time to inform whomever you can that a healthy thyroid does NOT make the human body solely depend on conversion of T4, a storage hormone, to T3. A healthy thyroid gives some direct T3 to counter any issues with conversion.  Read http://stopthethyroidmadness.com/natural-thyroid-101

But you CAN bypass this craziness, say informed seniors, with these steps

  1. Finding the right doctor: As with any age, senior patients state they all-the-more need to DO THE WORK to find a smart doctor who WILL let you be on T3 or NDT, and will NOT go by the lousy TSH lab test. It can be work, but it’s possible to find one. http://stopthethyroidmadness.com/how-to-find-a-good-doc
  2. Understanding the iron and cortisol issue: Seniors who have either been undiagnosed or on T4 for years say it’s extremely important to check iron and cortisol levels, since they can be off from all the years of no treatment or a poor treatment with T4. If they are off, they can cause reactions to T3 or NDT, causing the misinformed doctor to proclaim “See, I told you so”, when in reality, reactions to NDT or T3 are revealing inadequate iron or a cortisol issue. They will need to be treated. See http://stopthethyroidmadness.com/iron-and-cortisol
  3. Commiserating with other seniors: If you are OVER 60…consider joining the Facebook FTPO 60-and-over discussion group and see where others have found a good doctor. (FTPO stands for For Thyroid Patients Only) https://www.facebook.com/groups/FTPO60andover/ NOTE: you canNOT be approved if the admins can’t discern that your age fits this group, or we can’t see either your wall posts or friends list–the latter to know you aren’t a spammer.
  4. If you have to go in the hospital…have an informed family member or friend) who will advocate for you about your current NDT or T3 treatment. Too many patients have reported they were taken OFF their needed T3 or NDT and put on T4-only…and they regret not bringing their own meds or having an advocate.
  5. Keep a document stating what thyroid meds you are on, and why, that your advocate can have access to.

To read more: https://stopthethyroidmadness.com/thyroid-patients-getting-older

To get the very important STTM Books: http://laughinggrapepublishing.com …. because YOU have be informed!! If we put all our apples in a doctor’s cart, the risk is high we’ll stay sick or poorly treated. We have to be prepared to guide our doctors!

 

 

 

 

42 replies

The Affordable Care Act, aka Obamacare, and Thyroid Patients: How will it be for us?

Screen Shot 2016-01-05 at 3.48.46 PMUS Thyroid patients have been abuzz behind the scenes for months about what the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act ((PPACA), aka Obamacare, will mean for them, positively or negatively.

And more discussion has been sparked by the disastrous enrollment launch since October 1st, followed by many of us going through the shock of our private insurance being cancelled, or facing much higher premiums. So questions and concerns abound.

Of course, the stated intent of this healthcare reform, says Obama Care Facts, is to “give more Americans access to affordable, quality health insurance and to reduce the growth in health care spending in the U.S.”  In other words, it’s supposed to give affordable healthcare to those who have been uninsured or improve the terms of the health insurance you already have.

But is the latter so for thyroid patients? Will we as thyroid patients be better off? Let’s look at the Affordable Care Act in general first.

Obamacare’s stated benefits and facts are:

  1. It will mostly benefit a large body of the uninsured, as well as those who don’t have employer-based or government-based health insurance.
  2. Premiums will vary depending on the state you live in, your age, health, income, and which of four plans you decide upon.
  3. You can choose between four types of medical plans with Obamacare–better plans mean higher premiums but lower out-of-pocket costs.
  4. You can still have private insurance plans instead.
  5. There will be a Medicaid expansion to cover more people in approx. 26 states
  6. Medicare recipients will have an easier time getting prescription drugs.
  7. Certain preventative medicine will be covered 100%, including health, dental and vision.
  8. You can buy Obamacare health coverage until March 31, 2014. If you don’t buy any health coverage, you may pay a tax penalty of $95 or 1% of your taxable income in 2014
  9. Larger businesses will be required to provide insurance for their employees.
  10. Your won’t be charged extra if you have to go out of your area for emergency room visits.
  11. You’ll be covered for goods and services to help you maintain a standard of living if you have a chronic disease like Multiple Sclerosis
  12. All preventative care lab tests will be covered before you are diagnosed.

Obamacare effects private insurance companies this way:

  1. All participating health insurance companies are required to cover services in ten Essential Health Benefits categories, from emergency room and hospital care to mental health and approved prescription benefits.
  2. You cannot be dropped because you have an illness or because of pre-existing conditions or charged more.
  3. Your yearly out-of-pocket costs are limite
  4. There will be no annual or lifetime limits to your insurance.
  5. You cannot be discriminated against because of your gender.
  6. Young adults can stay on their parents plan until they are 26 years old, and low budget plans until they are 30.
  7. You have the right to rapid appeal of insurance company decisions
  8. Whatever prescription meds that you pay out-of-pocket will count towards your deductible.
  9. There will be free yearly check-ups, immunizations, counseling, and screenings for all non-grandfathered plans at no out-of-pocket costs
  10. You will still have several different insurance plans in the Marketplace to choose from.

And the negatives as outlined by critics:

  1. Not all preventative tests you might want or need will be covered.
  2. It’s going to be a one-size, fits all policy created by your federal government, as if all people fall under one umbrella of needs, lifestyles and goals.
  3. Treatment goals by hospitals may end up being related to whether they are financially rewarded by the government for that treatment or not.
  4. Like an HMO, your network of doctors to choose from will be narrower if you go with Obamacare, which means you may not be able to use your current doctor.
  5. Up to 30 million still won’t be insured.
  6. A survey completed by The Doctors Company found that 60% of physicians feel their patients will get less quality of care due to the Obamacare pressure to decrease costs and improve their patient load. It will also cause 43% of doctors to go into early retirement.
  7. Private insurance premiums will probably go up for most.
  8. The higher premiums in exchange for stated better coverage will only be a good trade for those who have hefty medical expenses in any given year.

So how might thyroid patients see all this??

 1.    Obamacare says that all preventive care lab tests will be covered. This could continue to mean that the most favored test to diagnose thyroid disease will be the TSH, similar to what veterans in the VA system get, and which thyroid patients know has been an abject failure for diagnoses since its inception in the 1970s. So the thyroid madness with the TSH might sadly continue.

2.    Obamacare says that you’ll be covered for goods and services to help you maintain a standard of living if you have a chronic disease. Thyroid patient skeptics have expressed doubts that we will be covered for the chronic and debilitating low cortisol issues we tend to have–the latter usually due to undiagnosed or undertreated hypothyroidism from the use of the TSH lab test or T4-only treatment. Then think of the disability from Lyme and compromised immune function and you have a continuation of the problems we encounter today, on top of how adrenal issues keep us from working.

3.   Obamacare will have standardized kinds of treatment.  Say thyroid patient Andy: “That can certainly be a disappointment if they favor T4-only for hypothyroidism, just as government-run VA care does for my Dad”, and which leaves him with worse problems than he had when diagnosed. And a large body of thyroid patients know what an abject failure T4-only treatment has been. i.e. the failure of T4-only like Synthroid, whether from the beginning or the longer one stays on it, is not isolated.

4.    Obamacare states that because of the required Essential Health Benefits categories your insurance has to cover (preventative medicine), it will allow more people to find and treat chronic diseases before you have to go into the emergency room.  If the government believes the fantasy that the TSH is the best way to diagnose, or T4 is the best treatment, or the low cortisol problem doesn’t exist except for Addisons patients, or the only test for cortisol levels is blood testing instead of saliva (the latter which we know gives far better information)…some thyroid patients aren’t going to avoid the emergency room.

5.   Obamacare has always said you can keep your doctor. But with recent news revealing millions of people are experiencing cancellation of their insurance policies, that may not be so, which can be crushing if you finally found a doctor who isn’t obsessed with the TSH and T4-only medications, or who understand the low cortisol problem. If you aren’t able to keep your current health plan, and have to purchase another coverage, the latter may not cover your current doctor. You’ll need shop for a plan that does.

In other words, whether one is for or against Obamacare, it may continue the backwards diagnosis and treatment of hypothyroidism, plus new issues and direction that everyone will have to deal with on top of it, both positives and negatives.

Read more:

http://cbo.gov/sites/default/files/cbofiles/attachments/44190_EffectsAffordableCareActHealthInsuranceCoverage_2.pdf

http://obamacarefacts.com/obamacare-facts.php

http://obamacarefacts.com/insurance-exchange/health-insurance-plans.php

http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/wonkblog/wp/2013/09/30/%3Fp%3D63297/

20130611_191125 (1)**Laughing Grape Publishing has moved to PayPal payments for the acclaimed and revised Stop the Thyroid Madness books!  All SPANISH books are on sale via LGP only–i.e. 19.95 instead of 24.95.

**SIGN UP to receive these blog posts right to your email. It’s on the left of the STTM blog post page.

 

15 replies

Does it make sense? Nope. In fact, it’s just plain STOOPID.

If you were told that water wasn’t important to your well-being, and thus, if you want it, you will now need to pay a LOT more for it, would that make sense?

Nope. And neither does what Medicare has decided about Armour Thyroid.

Medicare is the government’s health insurance for those of you age 65 or older. It’s also available for those with certain disabilities, and for any age with permanent kidney failure requiring dialysis or a kidney transplant. And recently, the almighty Medicare has notified those using Medicare that it will no longer cover Armour. Why? Because it fits under medications considered “less than effective.” And poop on top of garbage…Medicare also recommends T4.

You have got to be kidding.

Armour thyroid is conclusively, adamently and overwhelmingly changing the lives of those who switch to it. Conversely, T4-only medications like Synthroid, Levoxyl and others have conclusively, adamently and overwhelmingly left most if not all hypothyroid patients with continuing hypothyroid symptoms of one degree or another. Yet, Medicare has dictated that an inferior treatment is the medication of choice and will be covered, and a medication that changes lives is not worth being on their formulary.

There is a pervasive madness going on out there.

8 replies