Newbie here-should I try thyroid supps? PLEASE HELP!

bennyha

Member
Joined
Jan 30, 2014
Messages
87
Hello all. I am new here but have been reading the forum for many months. I am slowly switching over to a Peat inspired diet the past 3 months after 2 or 3 years of low carb paleo. I am a 33 year old male, 6'0 165 lbs. Basically normal height and weight. The past 3 years I have developed the following symptoms:

-unable to sweat (haven't sweat for over 3 years now)
-chronic fatigue/brain fog
-very low libido
-acne/digestive problems
-frequent urination
-cold hands and feet/intolerance to cold
-very low pulse rates (low as 38 beats per minute and usually in the mid 50's)

Of course the doctor I was working with said my pulse rates were great because I was an "athlete". I was wondering if I should try and take thyroid meds? My temps are also low, but usually in the mid 97s for the most part, and can get up to low 98's. I had really low T3 and high RT3 through years of low carbing, as well as high TSH, but since making a more dominant carb and sugar diet, my thyroid lab levels have gotten much better, but still seem low. My last results I took 2 weeks ago were:

Test My Result Lab Range
Free T3// 2.3/// 2.0-4.4
Free T4 // 0.98/// 0.82-1.77
TSH// 2.000/// 0.450-4.500
Rev T3// 11.2/// 9.2-24.1

Overall, I feel like ***t. I find it almost impossible to build muscle, and my energy levels are poor. I suspect low testosterone and high estrogen. I also did some saliva tests for adrenals, and they showed wonky cortisol, but not too horrible. I went through a 2 year period of binging and fasting during my low carb days. I would eat up to 4 lbs of raw almonds on my binge days. I ate tons of nuts. Knowing now I am assuming all the PUFA's wrecked me.

I have some thyroid-s I bought about 6 months ago but never took it. Every doctor I have worked with said I don't need thyroid help but I need to fix my adrenals first. All this is so confusing to me. Would you guys try taking some thyroid based on my labs/symptoms? If so, what would you take?

Thank you so much for taking the time to read and respond. I am really confused on all this stuff and really appreciate your input.
 

Miguel

Member
Joined
Dec 29, 2013
Messages
23
You mentioned frequent urination and cold hands and feet. A typical Peat-inspired diet tends to include a lot of liquids (milk, OJ, coffee) which will probably just make those symptoms worse. Peat has mentioned in a podcast before that those who are hypothyroid cannot tolerate many liquids. Initially, you'd probably be better off consuming less liquids and following something like Matt Stone's Eat for Heat http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00AGBH7FO/?tag=rapefo-20 until your body recovers.

I speak from experience as I too used to have those same symptoms. I can now tolerate drinking a lot of liquids but I had to first start out by limiting my liquid intake and gradually working back up to it. I'd suggest making those changes first before supplementing with thyroid.
 

Ben

Member
Joined
Dec 13, 2013
Messages
497
How high was your cortisol?

It definitely doesn't hurt to try thyroid. You can get a doctor to prescribe it to you. Usually they will only prescribe L-T4 at first, but when it comes to supplementation RP recommends a ratio like 1-4 or higher. Mine is 1-2 at the moment and it works well, I had trouble converting T4 to T3. A lot of your symptoms sound like low testosterone symptoms (like low libido and muscle mass), so if it's not corrected after taking thyroid, you should get it tested. I made a thread about low testosterone, and I'm going to experiment with pine pollen soon and post my results there:

viewtopic.php?f=56&t=3049

If you want to buy T3, which is "cynomel", you can buy it from a site a lot of members on this site use, called "mymexicandrugstore", if they live in the US. My blood tests said my thyroid levels were normal, but then I started taking cynomel and I'm now taking 3x more T3 than I was prescribed, and feel a lot better. So don't put all your faith in the blood tests, go by the way you feel. Start slowly with T3, at a few micrograms, because taking too much at once will make you feel bad.
 

4peatssake

Member
Joined
Feb 7, 2013
Messages
2,055
Age
62
FYI

Prices are significantly higher at My Mexican Drug Store with 100 tabs of cynomel selling for $23. (US dollars)

Compared that to Farmacia del Nino where 100 tabs of cyomel is on sale for $14.64 (regular price $16.64) (also US dollars.)
 

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