Coming Off T3 Only Cycle

[Randle Cyclist]

Long story short, I down-regulated my thyroid many years ago by cutting from 195lbs at 11% body fat to 160lbs at who knows what body fat percentage but it sure wasn't my goal of 5 to 6%. I lost mostly muscle. The final nail in the coffin was trying keto for way too long.

I mostly recovered from this state but had some lingering issues like cold hands and feet and dry skin. My cold tolerance was nonexistent. I tried supplementing seaweed and it resolved my symptoms within two weeks. I thought I must be iodine deficient so I took 12.5mg for a couple of months along with selenium which eventually made my symptoms return with a vengeance. I was feeling cold in the middle of summer. My weight then started to creep up.

I discovered Wilson's temperature protocol around this time and decided to give it a shot. I started at 25mcg and eventually worked up to 125mcg of t3. I know it's a crazy dose from Dr Peat's perspective but it fully relieved my symptoms. I never tapered back down according to the protocol. I've been using this amount for nearly 3 years now.

Lately I've been having some issues that I believe are due to the t3. The most troublesome is heavy legs and fatigue in the evening. I also can't gain lean mass for the life of me, only fat, which is annoying because I'm too skinny. My last blood test showed my shbg is double the top end of the reference range. I'm ultimately sick of relying on pharma to feel somewhat normal and I'm planning on quitting t3 cold turkey.

I expect to have a very rough few weeks as my hpt axis tries to recover. Has anyone here done this before? If so, do you have any advice? I plan on dropping calories and possibly using some kind of a stimulant as a crutch. I'll have a thyroid panel done at the end of 6 six weeks, perhaps a bit longer, to see how my numbers look. Is there anything else I should consider?

Also, is it possible that I irreparably damaged my thyroid years ago from the high dosage of iodine?

Thanks in advance

 

[ecstatichamster]

i have done it several times. Just taper slowly over a few weeks. I used 200mcg at peak.

Nothing is irreparable, it all comes back but DO NOT USE IODINE AGAIN.

 

[Randle Cyclist]

Thanks for the input, EH. I've been weighing the idea of tapering vs cold turkey and have heard arguments for both methods. Have you tried cold turkey before?

Trust me, I don't plan on using iodine again, at least not orally, after what happened the first time. Perhaps it's too risky to use it topically for infections as well. I'll just stick with colloidal silver and honey.

 

[ecstatichamster]

Thanks for the input, EH. I've been weighing the idea of tapering vs cold turkey and have heard arguments for both methods. Have you tried cold turkey before?

Trust me, I don't plan on using iodine again, at least not orally, after what happened the first time. Perhaps it's too risky to use it topically for infections as well. I'll just stick with colloidal silver and honey.

Wilson says to taper. So that's what I did.

 

[Randle Cyclist]

Right, his rationale of having a soft landing makes sense... But then so does the argument that any amount of exogenous t3 only serves to delay recovery. I have enough cynomel to last another 2 months so I have plenty of time to decide on a method.

 

[Saba]

Despite the Wilson protocol being known as T3 only, the key thing that Wilson recommends is taking a bit of T4 to keep things "steady." This has solved my issues of feeling off while on T3 only, and adding the T4 helped a family member too while tapering down on the Wilson protocol. While tapering down especially, I take 1/3 to 1/2 of a 25mcg tablet of T4 before bed (though I'm not sure it matters when you take it). I actually found that I'm best on the slow-release T3 on an ongoing basis, with T4 on most days. About a year ago I tapered down to 37.5 mcg twice a day, plus 1/3 to 1/2 of a 25mcg T4 tablet at night, and I've had the best results of any thyroid supplementation. I feel well, sleep well (which was an issue for me before), I lost fat, and I need very little coffee during the day comparing to how much I was drinking before (in other words, I don't have the fatigue I used to have). I don't know if taking Cynomel works comparably to the slow-release T3 Wilson recommends, but adding the T4 may help either way if you haven't tried that already. The other thing I found was that if I already felt way off on the T3 for some reason (e.g, not enough T4, and before the 37.5mcg dosage I tried staying on 45 mcg twice a day which ended up being too much), I had to taper down on the T3/T4 completely, and restart his protocol again after a couple of days and taper down again to feel well. Restarting the protocol resets things for me very well.

 

[Randle Cyclist]

I once tried bovine ndt for a week or so but it gave me symptoms of hyperthyroidism. I couldn't run as my heart would immediately start fluttering.

I'd rather not add t4 now as it has such a long half life which would prevent tsh from quickly rising. My goal is get off all thyroid hormones permanently and never touch them again. I hope having been on t3 for so long will have reset my hpt axis or at least made it "forget" the prolonged stress I put it through.

I don't have hashimotos and my thyroid is intact so normal function should resume. Some people do well on the Wilson's protocol, others don't. Me? I just want off the rollercoaster.

 

[Saba]

If you take just the tiny dose of T4 I mentioned your TSH should rise quickly again. Last year I had my thyroid hormones tested after being off T3 and T4 for a week, and my TSH shot up to a 6 just after one week off the meds. I don't think I'm someone who can be off the supplementation any time soon, unfortunately.

 

[Randle Cyclist]

Interesting. I'll have to read through Wilson's protocol for coming off again. I'm going to formulate a plan in the next few weeks and stick to it for better or worse. I understand that some people need medications for the rest of their life. Hell, my father was a type 1 diabetic from the age of ten. I get it. I just don't want to be bound to a medication if I can help it.

Besides, my SHBG is way too high which means my free testosterone is right at the bottom of the normal range despite my overall T being good. Estrogen is a bit towards the higher side even though I have little fat to cause aromatization. I think that's another sign that I need to come off. I want to do it before winter because I haven't forgotten how miserable it is to have no cold tolerance.

I'll post an update here when I begin weaning or if I quit cold turkey in addition to my plan for recovery. Then I'll post my thyroid panel results after 6 or 8 weeks. Whenever I start feeling normal again, really. I'll probably do a sex hormone panel too. Hopefully my experience can help someone in the same situation. Of course, if anyone else has any prior experience with this or any additional advise then I'm all ears.

 

[Andman]

you will be fine, 2 weeks is usually the timeframe for recovery from t3 only. might be a good idea to have the usual thyromimetic substances (caffeine, prog, andro, aspirin etc) on hand for the first few days if temps drop too low - or you may not even need them at all

 

[Lokzo]

I came here to comment on your username @Randle Cyclist - You have officially made my day. Thank you!

 

[Ficini]

I came off 5 months T3 cycle (25 to 70mg daily doses) by taking 4 grains of disiccated thyroid daily for one month. After that I went down to 1 grain which is my dose now. It was a struggle at first, any of my attempts to come off T3 were ending in a huge blood pressure and headache after 2 or 3 days.

 

[Randle Cyclist]

you will be fine, 2 weeks is usually the timeframe for recovery from t3 only. might be a good idea to have the usual thyromimetic substances (caffeine, prog, andro, aspirin etc) on hand for the first few days if temps drop too low - or you may not even need them at all

Truth be told, I tried coming off 2 years ago cold turkey. I had a thyroid panel at 4 weeks which showed I wasn't recovered. I'll upload the results later. I was taking clenbuterol at the time to mask the hypo symptoms which may very well have inhibited my recovery.

I came here to comment on your username @Randle Cyclist - You have officially made my day. Thank you!

LOL you bet bud, I'm glad you found it humorous. My old user photo of an obese guy on a bike was a bit too provocative though I think.

I came off 5 months T3 cycle (25 to 70mg daily doses) by taking 4 grains of disiccated thyroid daily for one month. After that I went down to 1 grain which is my dose now. It was a struggle at first, any of my attempts to come off T3 were ending in a huge blood pressure and headache after 2 or 3 days.

I'm currently experiencing headaches in the morning after waking which I'm attributing to t3. I take my dosage all at once 2 hours before getting up. I had low blood pressure before taking t3 so I don't think I have to worry about it spiking. If anything I'd expect it to be high while at 125mcg daily.



As of now I'm going to stay at my current dose for another week and then begin tapering. It seems the consensus is that tapering is best when coming off a dose higher than 100mcg. I'll probably drop it 12.5mcg every 3 days, unless y'all advise a slower weaning rate.

 

[Randle Cyclist]

I apparently remembered incorrectly, having done a blood panel at 3 weeks post t3 cessation instead of 4. These are the results at exactly 21 days after quitting cold turkey. Three weeks apparently isn't enough time to fully recover. I now feel that I jumped the gun by going back on t3 a few days after receiving these results.

 

[Randle Cyclist]

So it begins...
I've decreased my dose of T3 by 12.5mcg and will continue to drop 12.5mcg every three days. I believe this is close enough to Dr. Wilson's suggested tapering speed of 7.5mcg every two days. At this rate, I will be completely off by the 22nd of September. I will update this thread if I have anything noteworthy to report. And of course, I'll post the results of my thyroid panel which should be sometime late November if all goes well.

 

[Randle Cyclist]

It's been over 30 days now since I've been completely off t3 and I feel mostly back to normal, thank God. I would say if anyone has been taking high doses of t3 for a prolonged period of time that tapering is far more pleasant than cold turkey. Another method I read about is dropping to 12.5mcg a day for around a month before quitting entirely though based on my experience this probably result in feeling out of sorts for a while. Unfortunately, there isn't much info out there about what to expect with any method.

Cold turkey, in my experience, has you feeling completely wrecked for weeks. Walking is like wading through knee deep water and mentally you feel enveloped in a dense fog. You can barely function. Tapering, on the other hand, feels fine until you reach the 25 to 12.5mcg mark, at which point exhaustion kicks in roughly 10 hours after dosing and all you want to do is take a nap. There was some fatigue and brain fog after coming off completely but not nearly to same degree as cold turkey. Water retention is very noticeable with either method, especially in the face. For me, this was compounded by dark circles to the point of resembling a raccoon. This fades within a few weeks. Worth mentioning is the fact that I developed severe heel fissures within three days of being off. Fortunately, they healed on their own by week two.

Appetite drops rapidly while glycogen stores refill. 10lbs of water/glycogen gain can be expected. Strength and stamina also increases accordingly. I went from 148lbs to 160lbs in a week while eating between 2.3-2.5k calories, more on lifting days and less on rest days. I've kept my intake in this range since the 12.5mcg point and I don't think I've gained any fat (most calculators say I need between 2.6k-3k to maintain). Also, I went very low fat until last week with the bulk of my diet being fat free dairy, tons of fruit, extra lean meat, and pasta. The only overt fat was a half cup of full fat jersey milk in my daily coffee. I averaged less than 10 grams of fat most days. I don't know if I'd recommend this as my skin began to look like a shedding lizard a few weeks in and I started to feel mentally off, not like hypothyroid brain fog but rather an indescribable unease. This past week I've reintroduced olive oil, cheese, and full fat dairy and I feel much better and my skin reflects it. Mixing fat with carbohydrates is far more satisfying and palpably thermogenic for me.

My temperatures are going up and are no longer dipping below 97.8F and my resting heart rate is often in the 70s now. I don't think I've completely recovered yet but I suspect I will be within another month. I generally feel better now than I did while using 125mcg daily. I no longer experience a slump in energy around 5pm like I did before. Honestly, it was like feeling uncomfortably stoned and I suspect it was caused by going hypothyroid everyday as I was taking my dose all at once at 4am. My plan here on out is to reverse diet, adding 100 cal each week until I reach maintenance, stay there for a time, and then slow bulk to 175lbs or so. I will also continue to slowly increase my fat intake from its current level of ~40g to at least 80g for hormonal reasons.

Lastly, I took a thyroid support supplement that contained 150mcg iodine from kelp, ashwagandha, and coleus forskohlii for a few weeks once I had dropped to 25mcg and then ashwagandha solo for a week. These herbs are supposed to help thyroid hormone production but I don't think I'd recommend any of them. The coleus made me lightheaded and hypoglycemic on a daily basis within a couple of hours of taking it. My heart would begin to race, I'd break out in cold sweats, and feel on the verge of fainting. I've taken coleus alone before and it would always make me very lightheaded so I know it was the cause. I finally quit the supp as I figured it wasn't worth it and switched to ashwagandha alone. The ashwag was just as bad, perhaps worse. I began taking it before bed and within a couple of days I developed restless leg syndrome which made restful sleep elusive. I guess its effects would linger into the next day as I felt depressed and unmotivated, just out of sorts. Most disturbingly, I felt this persistent lump in my throat by the 7th day of taking it. Needless to say, I binned it and those symptoms rapidly dissipated. Ashwag just does not agree with me. Every time I've taken it in the past it's caused restless leg syndrome. I've never heard of this occurring in anyone else but it does it to me without fail. It's odd because all across the internet it's praised as some wonder herb without any side effects.

I don't know if I'll still have thyroid panel done and posted here. It seems the general forum consensus is that blood levels don't matter but tissue values do which can't be easily tested. I'm more interested in seeing if my sky high SHBG has fallen, freeing up my high but bound testosterone. I certainly do feel more androgenic now though. Finally being able to get a pump again while working out really helps matters, not to mention an amazingly rapid increase in strength. Now I'm just waiting for my libido to return after being AWOL for 5 years which hopefully it will once I put on some healthy weight. That plus my cold tolerance this coming winter will be the real acid test for recovery. If anyone has questions about my experience quitting prolonged t3 usage feel free to ask. Otherwise, I'll try to update this thread with any noteworthy developments at least once more by the end of the year.

 

[GreekDemiGod]

I don't get why would there be any need to come off it if it gives you benefits. Why not just instead stay permanently at a lower daily dose, or perhaps see how adding some T4 influences you.

 

[Randle Cyclist]

I don't get why would there be any need to come off it if it gives you benefits. Why not just instead stay permanently at a lower daily dose, or perhaps see how adding some T4 influences you.

Simply because I don't want to rely on any sort of pharma. Besides, I feel so much better off t3. More strength, stamina, muscle, energy, better mood, skin, wound healing, and so forth. I'm just as lean too with my weight stable at 160lbs.

 

[Randle Cyclist]

An update... I've been feeling progressively worse over the past few weeks. It started with cold fingers and toes which then progressed to persistently cold hands and feet. Now my forearms and shins easily become cold to the touch. It can be 60 degrees outside without a breeze and I'll feel chilled to the bone despite being active and dressing warmly. My legs feel like lead and completing daily tasks is like climbing a mountain. I just feel sluggish in both mind and body. I have a whole laundry list of other hypo symptoms but these are the ones I find most unbearable.

It's incredibly frustrating because I was feeling good up until the turning point. I think I know what caused it though... kelp. The herbal thyroid supp I used contained approx 150mcg iodine from kelp (or so the label says). I figured such an amount wouldn't be a problem. However, I consume a lot of dairy so the supplement may have pushed me over the brink. The pattern of feeling good then crashing hard mimics my experience taking Lugol's a few years ago. That's the only cause I can think of. I'm not undereating or overexercising, nor have I had any major stressful events lately. It's either the supplement or my past mistakes have completely thrown a wrench in my hpta.

So I plan on running some ndt or possibly solo t3 for a time to let things stabilize because as of now I can't keep trudging on like this. I'll probably try to come off again once the weather is more favorable. Hopefully I haven't done any permanent damage. I guess the moral of the story is be careful of excessive iodine and stay away from kelp.

 

[Lejeboca]

An update... I've been feeling progressively worse over the past few weeks. It started with cold fingers and toes which then progressed to persistently cold hands and feet. Now my forearms and shins easily become cold to the touch. It can be 60 degrees outside without a breeze and I'll feel chilled to the bone despite being active and dressing warmly. My legs feel like lead and completing daily tasks is like climbing a mountain. I just feel sluggish in both mind and body. I have a whole laundry list of other hypo symptoms but these are the ones I find most unbearable.

For the warmth of the extremities, try bag breathing or other CO2 increasing measures. When I have the symptoms of Raynaud's syndrome and do bag breathing, I could see how blood raises up my fingers and they become toasty warm.