cytomel plus synthroid

I switched to Synthroid and Cytomel and after some dosage adjustments, I am now on 150 Synthroid and 12.5 mcg of Cytomel, with the Cytomel split into two doses, in a.m. and late afternoon.

I left it at 75mcg Synthroid and had her add the Cytomel. My question is would it be advantagous to increase the synthroid first and stay at 5mcg Cytomel, than if that doesn't help move to increase the Cytomel? I sure appreciate everyones feedback, this forum has been a great source of information!

s fairly rare for somone to be on Cytomel only. Usually a small dose of Cytomel is added to the Synthroid, which may have to be reduced to accomodate the Cytomel. Cytomel (T3) is very fast-acting, so it has to be taken several times throughout the day if taken by itself. This leads to intra-day ups and downs in hormone levels. Do you have the results of your latest lab tests (FT3, FT4 and TSH) and their reference ranges?

I was wondering if it would be a good idea to maybe drop the Synthroid to 100 and increase the Cytomel to 5 mcg of Cytomel. Or, should I stick with the 112 +2.5 for awhile to see what happens. Please advise. Thank you.

Now taking Synthroid plus Cytomel. At dose of 125 mcg Synthroid, 12.5 Cytomel my TSH was 1.6 I felt O.K. but kind of sluggish and I get muscle pain and some constipation. When I increased to 137.5 mcg Synthroid, 12.5 Cytomel, I feel much better,no muscle pain. Is that too much medication? My endocrinologist is surprised I feel different with such a small change. Says it's O.K. but we have to monitor because of heart risks. Am I taking chances? Please explain.

hello everyone. what exactly is cytomel? my background: on synthroid 125 with a tsh of 0.82. hair loss since first diagnosis in April of 07. I still don't feel like I am where I should be. NO WEIGHT LOSS whatsoever etc. Would cytomel help me feel better? Also, what is the thyroid Pub? Can I join? Thanks.

You have to have the proper ratio of both or you will still remain and feel ill. So, you need T4 and T3 meds both. I switched from armour to synthroid and cytomel. And then had to do teh labs every 6 weeks to make sure I was on correct dosage. Cytomel is very potent. I was on 120mgs of armour. I am now up to 100 mcg synthroid and 15 mcg cytomel.

7.5 mcg Cytomel X 4 = 30mcg plus 88 mcg Synthroid = 118 mcg total thyroid hormones per day. You state that you take your medication only 6 days a week, and that your previous thyroid hormone intake for those 6 days was 822 mcg. Your 6 day weekly intake is now 708 mcg, quite a significant difference. I would have thought your doctor might have given you 100 mcg of Synthroid plus 7.

Synthroid, levothyroxine, cytomel and Armour are not all the same meds and are not interchangeable!! Levothyroxine is the generic for synthroid, which is a T4 med only - those 2 can be interchangeable, but some people do better on one or the other. Cytomel is a T3 only med. Armour is a natural thyroid hormone which has both T4 and T3. T3 is a very short lived hormone - only lasts a few hours and often works best to split the dosage over the day.

Yes, that is what I suggest you ask the doctor about. And also important to get tested for Vitamin D, B12 and ferritin.

I read that Cytomel is four times as potent as Synthroid. So lowering your Synthroid by 25 and putting you on 25 of Cytomel doesnt compute right. I was recently on 175mcg of Synthoid and lowered to 150mcg of Synthroid and the dr added only 5mcg of Cytomel. Maybe get a second opionion. Try asking the thyroid dr on the expert sight.

Then backing with blood work and listening to the patient the doctor could prescribe adding a T3 Cytomel to your Synthroid to see if you feel better. But usually not stop Synthroid entirely. I found my doctor frowned on Cytomel for some reason when I was still on Synthroid so he made the decision along with my inquiry to try a T4/T3 combo medication Armour. That has definately made a huge difference for me in relieving my symptoms of hypothyroidsim. HUGE!!

Most people split the Cytomel dose in half and take half with their Synthroid first thing in the morning. They take the second half later in the morning or early afternoon. Cytomel is very fast acting and quickly neutralized by your body if not used promptly. That's why you feel tired again after just a few hours. Most people don't take it at night as it can disturb sleep, plus they need the boost most during the day to stay active.

What dose of T4 were you taking before adding the Cytomel? What was your T4 dose after adding the Cytomel? How much Cytomel? Did you split the Cytomel into two doses and take 1/2 in the morning and 1/2 in the afternoon? Be aware that switching from Synthroid only and going to Armour may require a transition, rather than doing it all at once. What is your current dose of Synthroid and what will be the new dose of Armour?

Just a couple of thoughts for you. The 125 mcg of Synthroid plus 25 mcg of Cytomel (equivalent of about 100 mcg of Synthroid) is a pretty hefty dose. Also, how are you taking the Cytomel? Is it all in one dose, or split into two doses during the day? Also, how long have you been taking the Cytomel and what was the starting dose? Have you had your FT3 tested? If not, that would be a good idea to document where you are currently.

Your FT4 was quite high, so bear in mind that when adding Cytomel, the rule of thumb is to decrease Synthroid by 20-25 mcg for every 5 mcg Cytomel added. Cytomel is roughly 4 times more powerful than Synthroid, so be sure your doctor knows how to use it and doesn't try to dose it like Synthroid. Also, Cytomel is very fast-acting compared to Synthroid, so many of us split the dose and take some in the morning and some later in the day. Start low and work up. Good luck!

Your total T4 is a result of any available natural thyroid hormone plus the Synthroid you are taking. Clearly you are not converting T4 to T3 adequately, thus your FT3 is much lower in the range than T4. So that high T4 really is not doing much for you and could be reduced. Perhaps a reduction to 100 might get you to a lower, and better, level. I would be sure to ask the doctor about any reduction before doing it, just to maintain that close relationship with your doctor.

like your dr suggested, I think you would benefit from taking the cytomel he prescribed to you. Just make sure you lower your synthroid as dr instructed. Usually cytomel is broken into at least 2 dosages....I would take half in morning and half 5-6 hrs later. Or if you are a little nervous (don't be), you can start with 1/4 am with your synthroid and 1/4 in afternoon and build up to 1/2 and 1/2. Never know...you might feel a lot better!

He has added cytomel to my synthroid, I am taking 100mcg synthroid plus 5 of cytomel and in two weeks add another 5 of cytomel. I already feel better, no more brain fog, tiredness and seems like the extra weight in the middle is disappearing. I only weigh 125 lbs but already 6 days later I feel much more toned. I was wondering who is taking cytomel with synthroid.??

Results at 1:15 p.m. on 12-16-11 TSH .95 (.45-4.50), T4Free 1.8 (.7-1.5) T3Free 3.6 (2.3-4.2). I am on synthroid and was back on cytomel before this test. Back on 10-29-11 my TSH was 13.33. I was off cytomel at the time and was trying synthroid at night. While I am feeling a little better and feeling like I was actually better staying on the cytomel , I still feel like synthroid and synthroid plus cytomel has not helped much. I was diagnosed with Hashimoto's over 10 years ago.

I am on Nexium, Synthroid, Cytomel, Iron and Vit D. I take Synthroid in the morning and then I take Nexium and Cytomel together. Is that ok??? I then take Vit D and Iron with dinner. I am also seeing a new doc to test thyroid/adrenals. What tests should I have run? I feel horrible and want to feel better!!!

I was put on both cytomel and synthroid due to very high thyroid antibodies. After 3 plus years of medication, I recently have went off of all medication due to the fact that I was having hair loss and numerous other symptoms. My TSH is in the normal level, but higher than used to be normal for me. Does taking synthroid and cytomel permanently damage your thyroid gland? Thanks.

Interesting! How much Cytomel are you taking? Are you using Synthroid too? I've started 12.5mcg cytomel about 1 week ago along with .75mg of synthroid. I'm so tired now it's causing me anxiety. Do you know how to tell if you're taking too much T3? I've heard that Hypothyroid problems have been misdiagnosised with a number of things like Fibromylgia among with many other things. I'm anxious to hear if you "get your second wind" again. Here's hoping.

Do you have recent labs and reference ranges? Cytomel is much more powerful than Synthroid (about four times more powerful). So, if you subtract 25 mcg of Cytomel from your regimen, you ought to be adding more like 100 mcg of Synthroid. It sounds like your doctor might have left you undermedicated in the switch to Synthroid. I have no personal experience with Cytomel-only therapy, but I do know of people who have been treated with T3-only temporarily.

Cytomel plus synthroid

Common Questions and Answers about Cytomel plus synthroid

cytomel