Saturday, February 19, 2011

D3, T3, IAG, LDN Update

I'm still struggling with the side effect of Vitamin D3 overdose (constipation). For awhile I did really well with adding 150mg extra magnesium (for a total of over 1000 mg daily magnesium) to metabolize the vitamin D and adding extra T3 (1/3-1/2 of a 5 mcg pill). Both extra Mg and T3 resolved my regularity problem.

However, after I experienced some hyperthyroid symptoms (palpitations), I decided to cut back on the extra T3. BIG MISTAKE!! The constipation returned with a vengence (bleeding hemorrhoids). So I'm back on extra T3 and extra Mg and have normal regularity. However, I'm still dealing with bleeding hemorrhoids. So I'm using 1-2 daily (10 minute) sitzbath sessions to relieve hemorrhoidal swelling and hopefully heal the bleeding hemorrhoids. Preventing constipation is the best thing I can do to prevent hemorrhoids. Nevertheless, I know from experience that bleeding hemorrhoids heal rather slowly.

At my last appointment my doc expressed some concern about taking IAG (arabinogalactan) longterm (more than 6 months). Because I already took IAG for almost 5 months, I asked my doc what she learned about longterm side effects of arabinogalactans. She told me 'joint pain', but she didn't know the physiology of that side effect (or what specifically caused that reaction). So I did some online research and read that IAG is sometimes used for autoimmune diseases.

I know that many autoimmune diseases are highly correlated with (or even caused by) gluten intolerance (gluten antibody damage). Also joint pain is often a symptom of gluten intolerance. So I need to see studies which show that joint pain is actually the result of IAG, rather than untreated gluten intolerance. In other words, perhaps subjects who experienced joint pain were not on a gluten free diet. So the gluten, rather than the IAG, caused the joint symptom. Nevertheless, I plan use IAG only when I have cold symptoms and taper off slowly over the next month or so.

Meanwhile, I counted my remaining low dose Naltrexone capsules and calculated that I have a months' worth left. I divide the contents of my 3mg capsules into capsules containing 1.75-2mg. So I have enough to continue taking that nightly for over a month. I started LDN in late November. So by the end of March, I will have taken LDN for 4 months. That should be long enough to raise my white blood cell (specifically neutrophil) level to a normal range.

Wednesday, February 9, 2011

Increased T3 Morning Dose

After I saw my mid January blood tests, I realized my worsening constipation was caused by having too much vitamin D in my body. (My vitamin D level was 93 with a normal range of 30-80.) So for the past 3 weeks I've taken extra magnesium (which vitamin D uses) and sometimes extra vitamin C (because I was fighting yet another cold). I also added a teaspoon of flaxmeal to my cereal. All that worked to improved regularity, but also caused extra gas, bloating and cramping pain. (Bloating often causes cramping pain for me, even without any gastro infections.)

So yesterday morning I tried adding a bit more T3 (liothyronine) to my morning dose. Yesterday I added about 2/3 of a pill, because my pill splitter doesn't evenly divide tablets. I felt a little weird, with very mild palpitations. So I took a little less than a full dose in the afternoon and slept well last night. As I expected, the extra T3 resolved my constipation. So this morning I added less than 1/2 of a T3 tablet to my morning dose for a total of about 7, rather than my usual 5 mcg. I had no cramping pain or bloating, because I didn't take extra Magnesium or vitamin C, but I had normal regularity again this morning.

I hope the vitamin D levels decrease enough within the next few weeks, because I usually don't need more than 10 mcg of T3 daily (total of morning and afternoon dose). In fact I did well (normal regularity) when I only took 7.5 mcg of T3, BEFORE my vitamin D levels got too high after taking 6000IU daily for a few months. Right now I'm abstaining from vitamin D until I notice normal regularity. I plan to just add very small amounts (1/4-1/3 of my 5mcg tablet) to my morning dose for a few days and then return to my prescribed 5mcg 2x daily T3 dose.

For anyone who reads this blog, I don't need suggestions about constipation cures. I follow all the usual anti-constipation suggestions, including lots of fiber, fluid, exercise, magnesium, vitamin C, etc., everything EXCEPT laxatives, which I will NOT use. Most laxatives contain either senna or sorbitol, which both cause painful intestinal cramps for me. Others just contain magnesium, which I already take. I prefer to use natural remedies. However, despite following all those 'regularity' rules, liothyronine (T3 thyroid hormone) is the only thing that gave me consistent normal regularity, because my problem was 'low motility' caused by hypothyroiditis, rather than lack of fiber, fluid, etc. So once my D3 levels return to normal (after a period of abstention), I should only need to take my prescribed amount of T3 (or less) to maintain normal regularity.

Sunday, February 6, 2011

Doctor Appointment and Birthday

I saw my doc the day before my birthday. We discussed my latest WBC differential results. Because my most recent WBC result increased (from 3.0 to 3.4) and my Hashimoto's antibodies decreased, I decided to continue the LDN at 1.5-1.75mg, which still helps immunity w/o disturbing my sleep. I'll try to take my T3 before 4:30 so that I get tired earlier in the evening. Since the T4 only gives me palpitations and overheating, which disturb my sleep, but doesn't help regularity, we decided to discontinue T4 (Levoxyl) and continue T3 (liothyronine) at my current dose of 5mcg 2x daily. Also I'll continue to abstain from vitamin D (and take more magnesium) until my vitamin D blood levels return to normal symptoms. Unfortunately that could take weeks or even months. SIGH

My doc called in a 3 month supply of my T3 supplement so that I don't have to pick up cold germs when I visit my HMO clinic pharmacy. My doc also recommended I continue taking B12 (1000 mcg daily) and begin taking 1000 mcg of folate daily, because my low WBC could also be related to low levels of those two vitamins. So I'll continue T3, arabinogalactin, B12 and LDN, but add folate for the next 2+ months and then retest after I've taken LDN for 3+ months (or finished my prescription).

The next day I celebrated my birthday by seeing "Black Swan" (for which Natalie Portman won the Golden Globe Best Actress award). That was a dark, disturbing movie, but Portman's acting was outstanding and well worth the award. After the movie I went to get a 'grow out' haircut. I'm growing my hair from a pixie to a short bob. So my stylist had to shorten the back and the bangs (which were in my eyes) and barely skim everything else. I like the overall look of my 'growout' cut, but I don't plan to get another cut for about 3 months. My stylist promised free bang trims when I couldn't stand the length of my bangs. So I can let the rest of my hair grow. After my haircut we visited my local HMO clinic pharmacy to pick up my 3 months' supply of T3 and then went home. I enjoyed my "Tacos Guymos" (favorite Mexican restaurant) leftovers for dinner.

For my birthday, my husband bought me 5 pound weights. I'd been using 3.5 pound weights for years and noticed those were not helping anymore. The 5 pound weights were difficult at first, but I quickly noticed the difference in my arm muscle tone. He also bought me a package of new socks after my feet got wet on my birthday and some facial moisturizer (Clinique). So all in all I enjoyed my birthday.

We planned to continue birthday celebrations with another movie ('No Strings Attached'), clothes shopping and dinner at PF Chang's. However, on the way to the movie, I realized I left my afternoon T3 dose at home. So we decided to just see the movie and go home. Since I was struggling with yet another cold (and feeling really tired), I was happy to go home early and miss the evening rainstorm.