Could you expound on this? Do you have trouble getting to sleep or do you wake up during the night? I've had both happen and each required a different solution, for me anyway.

Trouble getting to sleep was from taking my Armour too late in the day. I eventually had to take my entire dose in the morning.

Waking up in the wee hours of the morning, for me, was from low T4 levels. Because Armour has a more T3 than human thyroid, some people find that adding a bit of T4 along with Armour is helpful to prevent the T4 levels from dropping too much.

Wanda

Wanda, I've been having a hard time getting to sleep and then when I finally do fall asleep I wake up like every hour or so. I take all of my Armour in the morning...I was feeling really good until today...now all of a sudden I have all of my Hypo symptoms back again.

Sunshne24, definately get your FT4 levels tested or convince your doctor to add some T4. I'll bet your T4 levels have dropped like mine did. I initially noticed a difference when my doctor added 50mcg of Synthroid to my Armour. I also took the Synthroid before bedtime.

Unfortunately, my experience with Armour was a negative one. I eventually had to go off it b/c I was really wired and couldn't sleep throughout the night, exactly as you describe. If you find this continues, you COULD be stressing your adrenals. If your cortisol levels are low to begin with, the T3 might act like a stimulant.

Just something to keep an eye on. Armour is WONDERFUL for lots of people, but some people can have difficulty with it. In my case, it may not have been the Armour specifically, but untreated adrenal problems.

Hope you get some sleep.

Wanda

Wow! That sounds like me with the sleeping. But I was way low on my FT3, below the range. So I figure I need the stuff.

I had no problem sleeping last night...didn't wake up once, but like I said all my Hypo symptoms were back yesterday so I was feeling pretty tired.

I'm very uneven too. I feel great some days, hypoT others. I think it's might be:

1) That's just how it is. (Hope not!)
2) Takes awhile to adjust (figuring 6 weeks)
3) Not on a big enough dose.

Wanda, are you taking any T3 at all?

Nancy, I was on Armour and Synthroid and had to stop for a couple of months b/c things got worse. I'm now on Cortef and hoping that helping my adrenals helps me tolerate my thyroid hormones.

I just started taking Synthroid 3 days ago (Round 2) so we'll see how it goes. If I tolerate the synthroid alone and my FT3 levels don't come up with my FT4 levels, then we'll have to address the T3 issue.

Yes I have jaw pain, in the muscles I use to chew get puffy somtimes and ache and make a cracking noise because of all the muscular tension. I was looking up the symptoms online and there is a name for it, its called Hoffman's syndrome, a study shows that is may be in response to thyroid antibodies, or something attacking the thyroid. You said you had RAI treatment done, do you have any thyoid tissue left? how long ago was that? I think removing the thyroid through surgery may get rid of all this. I havent found too much info about it online. But there is a rise in creatine and muscular enzymes and increased production of mucus and it gets incorperated into skin and muscles somtimes causing hypertrophy (hoffman's syndrome). Do a search on google.

I have not been diagnosed hypothyroid, my TSH is 1.9 but I have to go and get tested at the doc. and get an ultra sound, and blood tests still. Im not sure if I have antibodies or painful hasimotos or who knows what is causing this stupid thing. It cant go on forever, its killing me. Do you have any abnormal labs, or tests for antibodies? get your creatine checked when you are having a bad day, it may be elevated then you can prove that you have a problem to your doctor. Does your thyroid still hurt? Mine does but on the left side more than the right. Is your face still looking fat?

Yes I have jaw pain, in the muscles I use to chew get puffy somtimes and ache and make a cracking noise because of all the muscular tension. I was looking up the symptoms online and there is a name for it, its called Hoffman's syndrome, a study shows that is may be in response to thyroid antibodies, or something attacking the thyroid. You said you had RAI treatment done, do you have any thyoid tissue left? how long ago was that? I think removing the thyroid through surgery may get rid of all this. I havent found too much info about it online. But there is a rise in creatine and muscular enzymes and increased production of mucus and it gets incorperated into skin and muscles somtimes causing hypertrophy (hoffman's syndrome). Do a search on google.

I have not been diagnosed hypothyroid, my TSH is 1.9 but I have to go and get tested at the doc. and get an ultra sound, and blood tests still. Im not sure if I have antibodies or painful hasimotos or who knows what is causing this stupid thing. It cant go on forever, its killing me. Do you have any abnormal labs, or tests for antibodies? get your creatine checked when you are having a bad day, it may be elevated then you can prove that you have a problem to your doctor. Does your thyroid still hurt? Mine does but on the left side more than the right. Is your face still looking fat?

Christina, I'm pretty sure what I have in my skin is mucopolysaccarides (mucin) which is a gel-like substance with an affinity for water. It causes the face to appear swollen or water-logged. It is edema that is assosiated with Hypothyroidism. I have fluid retention everywhere on my body but especially in my face and around my eyes. I did have thyroid antibodies 2 years ago when I was diagnosed with Graves..this is when I had RAI done. I have not been tested for antibodies since. I've asked a few doctors about this and they have all basically said the same thing..that it is not relevant at this point. I am definately Hypo now and have been ever since RAI. I developed the swelling around my eyes and forehead about 2 months after RAI and when my TSH was 23.5. It did get better for awhile but my doctor at the time stupidly lowered my medications to almost nothing and then gradually the swelling got worse and spread everywhere. Besides my face it is also bothersome in my hands. For about 6 months my face was very round and full..this is when my jaw bothered me most. My muscles and joints were so stiff I developed TMJ and could hardly open my mouth. The pain and discomfort was causing me to clench my teeth constantly. It was definately the fluid in my face that caused this. I really restricted my salt intake and also have increased my thyroid meds and I have less fluid now. The more fluid I have in my face the more my muscles ache and appear swollen. Ocassionally I'll have a very good day with hardly any fluid and on these days I do not have headaches or muscle/joint pain and stiffness. I'm almost positive that I've never had a high enough dose of thyroid to make me well again & I'm hoping that now that I have a better doctor helping me I'll finally get to that point. As far as how my face looks now....its definately not as puffy as it once was. Back then I could'nt feel my cheekbones or my jawbone at all...there was so much "padding" in my face. Now I can feel the bones again & my face is looking somewhat normal. Sometimes if there is more fluid around my eyes or in the lower part of my face it makes my face look kinda wierd...it was actually less obvious when the swelling was all over my face rather than just in certain areas. Anyways now I can actually grab the fluid in my face and I can stretch my skin abnormally far. This is how I prove to people that there IS something going on with the tissues in my skin.
So my new nickname is rubberband girl...oh well the thing is that even though its painful and uncomfortable I know that its definately something thats not permanent because I DO have those good days. The days when my face hurts most are the same days that I'm more tired and my skin is drier and my muscles and joints ache...etc. I didnt experience any of these symptoms till I went Hypo & I'm thinking once I get stabalized my body will heal. My thyroid never actually hurt...yours does? I never felt a thing from my thyroid not even right after RAI. I never had a goiter and when my doc feels my thyroid now he says its very small..typical after RAI. I didn't find a whole lot of info on Hoffman's but I'm sure my symptoms are due to HypoT. Do you have other symptoms of being hypo other than the puffy face? Do you notice any puffiness in your hands or anywhere else? Does your jaw seem sore after you eat? The cracking and soreness and even swelling can be caused by TMJ. If you end up not Hypo and you don't have other symptoms involved maybe you can look into that. TMJ can be extremely painful but is treatable without medications. I went to Physical Therapy only 3 times and it helped my jaw pain tremendously.

Yes I have thyroid pain, its an intermittent stabbing pain and I think what I feel may be lymph tissue (white blood cells) like little lumps that go to the area, and other areas in my neck and they feel tender. I think it is the white blood cells attacking a foreign substance and causing a stinging sensation. when I eat iodine it gets worse. Maybe the good days are when were avoiding iodine and dairy. I have noticed that Iodine really aggrivates my thyroid pain and TMJ and facial puffiness. I have the puffiness espically in the lower part around my mouth. I hope that it gets better. Yes I am convinced that it is a thyroid problem, but its funny because we both have a normal TSH, which should mean that everything is fine, right? How is the Armour doing, do you get tired on it? Has it helped you feel normal again?

Cy, a TSH of 1.9 is high. Ask your doc to do a Free T3 test and a Free T4 test. Then you'll really know what's going on, ok? If your doc won't tun the tests, you can get them for $75 at www.healthcheckusa.com.

Sunshine - how long have you been on Armour and how much are you on?

Cheers,

Friday

Friday, I've been on Armour 2 weeks tomorrow. I started out with 1.5 grains (90mcg) and after 1 week I increased to a pill and a half (135mcg). I'm confused because when I first started on it I had 4 days of feeling awesome but that was it, since then its back to feeling not so great. I'm wondering if the changes in how I feel are related to what I eat or maybe my TOM. I'm just frusterated and unsure whether thyroid meds will ever help me. During the 4 days I felt good I was warmer, my skin had more color, I was retaining less fluid and I had energy to spare. Then all of a sudden I'm cold and puffy again.

Cy, I have pain and tender areas in my neck too but not in the area of my thyroid. It's usually directly under my earlobe. It does get worse with iodine and I'm pretty sure dairy and sugar are culprits too. Unfortunately since I feel that I'm underweight I tend to want to eat things that might help me gain weight and instead I feel worse. I do feel better eating only meat/eggs and veggies but then I'm losing even more weight. My doctor says that my food sensitivities are related to my autoimmune thyroid disease. I'm hoping she's right and that its not a whole seperate issue. I haven't noticed alot of people here with food & chemical sensitivities. I am not feeling tired on Armour..maybe a little sluggish. It seems to have helped with depression too but when I feel puffy and I'm in pain I tend to not want to do much. I have the swelling around the lower part of my mouth too and my upper lip as well. You never mentioned whether you have swelling anywhere else such as hands or feet? Also, I have learned that a normal TSH does not always mean that we are in the right range. Especially for someone like me who has had my thyroid ablated and still has so many symptoms. My new doc does not care about TSH for me at this point..she is just trying to get me feeling well again.

I was pretty uneven feeling on Armour too at first. But I've been increasing my dose by about 1/2 a grain every week or two and I'm feeling better and better. I just started on 2.5g today.

I think you just need to keep increasing it until you get to a point where you feel good most days. But not too fast, I think it takes awhile to adjust.