You’ll have to excuse me if this post is all over the place…my heart is racing and I have even more nervous energy than I usually do. Here’s a quick timeline of updates:
December 22 – Appointment with the nutritionist was a colossal waste of time that included going over the food pyramid. The best piece of advice I got: cut my lunch in half and bring it home for dinner to spread out my calories.
December 28 – Wiped out with fatigue and other hypothyroid symptoms, I went ahead and did my U of M bloodwork early. (I know, I know…I never take my own advice.)
January 4 – U of M confirms my worst fears…TSH is perfect at 0.6, T4 is 1.3 and T3 is 2.5. Since my T3 is at the low end of the normal spectrum, Dr. E actually complied with my request for Cytomel! I added a 5 mcg dose to my 112 mcg of Synthroid. It’s my last-ditch effort to get back to normal.
It’s been almost 2 weeks, and no change can be observed from the Cytomel except I did lose 2 pounds. I think. I am almost afraid to say it for fear of jinxing it.
Today – I have a cold, so I took my favorite drug in the world – Allegra-D 24-Hour. YOWZA! Either the Cytomel suddenly kicked in, or thyroid patients aren’t supposed to take pseudoephedrine. I feel like a little like Jessie Spano. “I’m So Excited! I’m So Excited! I’m So…Scared…”
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bflYjF90t7c
I really hope it’s just the pseudoephedrine that’s causing these jitters. I was really hoping Cytomel was the answer. To be honest, I’d take a lifetime of heart palpitations if it meant I could drop a few lbs. I still have my follow-up at U of M next week. In the meantime, in the words of Breaking Bad‘s Walter White, NO PSEUDO.
Thyroidless 
Might be a silly question, but are you on Selenium? It supposedly helps with conversion of T4 to T3 and may help?
I’m a thyroid cancer newbie myself, diagnosed shortly after you were, with surgery in early October. For now I’m on 105mcg of Armour and doing pretty well. Juicing has also helped tremendously, I’ve actually lost a few pounds finally. I replace one meal a day with it for the moment (usually breakfast) and my energy levels are so much better. I’m still freezing, but my electric blanket is my friend until my husband gets back from this crazy-long deployment and can keep me warm!
Hi Stephanie! I am sorry to hear you also had thyroid cancer. I used to take Selenium (pre-diagnosis), but now I just take a big multi-vitamin that has Selenium in it. I need to go supplement shopping for sure! I did not do well on Armour, but I only gave it three weeks. So far, I have lost three pounds on the 5 mcg Cytomel/112 mcg Synthroid regimen. I would love to try a juice meal replacement. What kind do you use?