Stopping Levothyroxine (Page 7)

I have been taking Levothyroxine .88mg for the past two years. I just left town on a three week vacation and realized I left this prescription at home. Should I be concerned?

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Yes I have been off the a week now and already getting light heads...and feeling wreaked..

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I stopped taking Leavitt the Roxson line 3 weeks ago. My doctor said my levels are normal and I really do not need to continue taking it. I was only on it for five months but notice my hair was falling out and breaking. I did not have any problems with my hair prior to taking the medication. It has been three weeks since I stopped taking it and my hair is still falling out. Has anyone had any experience with this? I am hoping it will stop soon and my hair will go back to normal.

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Re: Carol (# 5)

I accidentally ran out of levothyroxine and was off it 2 weeks before being able to get back on it .i noticed i had less energy and got tired faster i am back on it and beginning to feel better.i will not run out again.i take .123 mcg a day

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I've been on .100 for 15 years, when they removed a cancerous lymph gland next to my thyroid. I'm 76. My wife eats 3 times what I do and she is skinny! I eat very little and sh'e always gettin on me to eat!. I'm rarely hungry, gave up sugar, (well a lot of it) don't drink coffee, soft drinks,eat sweets (maybe a2 cookies once in awhile) etc, but cannot get below 205 bs.!
I took an extra Levo about 2 weeks ago and it about killed me! I've thot about stopping the Levo altogether. My mother was on Armor for years and was alergic to Levo. Can't find Armor though.

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Re: erin (# 19)

I did. I went to the ER so many times I lost count. I was put on 25 mcg about 3 years ago when I was menopausal based on my TSH being 5.25. I also had symptoms of being hypo- my skin was really dry and I was exhausted no matter how much I slept. I had frequent hot flashes and night sweats. The medicine helped and everything was fine until about 2 years later when I was post-menopausal and started having heart palpitations, horrible dizziness/vertigo, numbness, tingling, and subsequent panic attacks because I was convinced I was having a heart attack. If it weren’t for Xanax I would probably be in a mental institution. Each time I would go to the ER or call 911 they would say my heart was fine and that it was a panic attack. I even went to a cardiologist and did extensive testing and wore a heart monitor and he said my heart was perfect and saw nothing from the monitor even though I felt the heart palpitations. I think the monitor only detects abnormal rythyms. I didn’t put it together that it could be the Synthroid because it had worked well for me before. If I even missed a dose I could feel the difference in my energy. So eventually I started reading on forums like this and realized other people were having the same symptoms. I also started having diarrhea and would have to get to the bathroom immediately after eating lunch. For some reason not so much at night but I was up and down all night due to frequent urination which was another lovely bonus. So I quit taking the Synthroid cold turkey and felt great and was sleeping better until day 4 and then boom- now my heart felt more like it was fluttering and I would feel like I was going to lose consciousness. It seemed like my heart was skipping beats too and my neck hurt and my arms would go numb and then of course another panic attack.

So I made a plan to wean myself off gradually so I cut my dose in half. I was due for my yearly blood test so on day 10 after halving my dose my TSH was high again at 4.9. My doctor called to tell me he was doubling my dosage to 50 mcg (I didn’t tell him I had cut my dosage because I was afraid he would be mad). As the days went by I was still having the issues and also what felt like adrenaline surges that would literally jolt me awake if I was sleeping. And the dizziness that was really scary but it seemed like it was getting fewer and farther between so I pushed threw it. I bought one of those blood pressure cuffs that you put on your wrist which gives your pulse also and I started monitoring my temperature throughout the day. Some days the anxiety bouts would last for hours and I was terrified to be home alone for fear I would pass out and not be able to call for help. Oh and also while still on the higher dose I had anxiety when I would be driving and became claustrophobic-I refused to get on elevators and was always worried I would have an attack while in a meeting at work. Basically I was a hot mess. After 41/2 weeks at half dose I started taking a third of the pill- baby steps lol. It’s been 5 weeks total tomorrow since I started weaning off and today was the best day I can remember having in a really long time. And my eyelashes have even grown back! I started exercising also at the same time I started weaning off and I had to take it very slowly because I still was worried I’d have a heart attack but today I made it through the whole hour long workout tape and no issues. I also bought really good vitamins from GNC that are called “Women’s Ultra Mega Active”. I am happy! In retrospect I would never have taken that medicine. I had no idea that I was stepping onto what I call the devil’s roller coaster ride. I plan to remain at a third dose for awhile longer and then go to a fourth and then none. That medicine is nothing to play around with especially for people that have sensitive systems like me. I can now see the light at the end of the tunnel and I sure know a lot more about thyroids now lol. I am so thankful for forums like this because without being able to hear that others had these terrible side effects and that I wasn’t the only one I would still be thinking I was just going crazy and I don’t know what would have happened but I was one miserable person. So thanks to everyone for sharing and I hope everything works out for all of you!

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I was put on Levothyroxine 25mg six months ago and at first, it seemed to make me feel better. Then in the fourth month, my hair started falling out by the fistfuls. I learned a lot about the thyroid and the nutrition and vitamins I needed to help me make my thyroid strong. I am taking my thyroid medication every other night weaning myself off of it while I am taking selenium, vitamin C, D, iron zinc, K, and A. I am also doing the iodine protocol. Good luck all.

jeffreydachmd.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/03/The-Guide-to-Supplementing-with-Iodine-Stephanie-Burst-ND.pdf

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Re: Kathie (# 20)

It is very dangerous to suddenly go off your thyroid medicine because my doctor said that so many parts in the body are affected by your thyroid level. I tried it once and started having severe chest pains after about two days. I started taking it again and was fine.

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I was recently diagnosed with an underactive thyroid. I have been taking levothyroxine for almost two weeks. For the las...

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