Note: when I created this page’s URL, I accidentally used the word Protocol. But Paul’s actual wording is Method. So it’s technically called the T3 Circadian Method (T3CM).
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In late 2011, we found out about a method, first discovered by UK thyroid and adrenal patient Paul Robinson, that successfully brings back better adrenal function, aka Adrenal Fatigue, WITHOUT the use of HC (tho some may need a small amount initially, or some may already be on HC when they start this protocol). This has already promoted better adrenal function in Paul and others. He covers this in Chapter 16 in his book–link to order below. The T3 needs to be direct, NOT slow-release. Turns out that NDT can work for this, too, because of its T3 content, and it’s best to chew it up to release the T3 more immediately.
You canNOT have hypopituitary or Addisons for this to work. If you have Diabetes or blood sugar issues, you’ll need to adequately treat those for this to work.
**KEY POINTS CONCERNING PROMOTING BETTER ADRENAL FUNCTION WITHOUT HC:
- Important fact one: Most of the day’s cortisol is made in the last four hours of sleep,i.e. the four hours before you normally wake up. So, for example, if one normally wakes up around 8 am, most cortisol is made from 4 -8 am. i.e. that four hour window is when your adrenals work the hardest.
- Important fact two: Just like ANY organ in your body, your adrenals are made up of cells. And ALL cells in your body need T3. The adrenals need T3 and especially during that four hour window before one wakes up. And, says Robinson, you can’t really expect your adrenals to work well if the mitochondria that make ATP for those cells and the cell nuclei have an inadequate level of T3 thyroid hormone
- With the above in mind, it made sense that if adrenals are struggling, they clearly need T3 (or the T3 in NDT) in that early morning 4-hour window in order to function better. How to do it? A T3 (or the T3 in NDT) dose such as 10 mcg is usually started about 1 – 1 1/2 hours before you wake up, says Robinson, and data taken, such as heart, BP and temps. Then give the beginning dose several days to see if it produces a positive response in any of the above, or symptoms such as waking up better. If not, raise that dose while still at the same time, looking for that positive response. Once you get an amount which gives a positive response, you can then move back earlier by half an hour, and repeat the same process. Do not go too fast, as you need to give your adrenals TIME to respond. Many end up finding their adrenals kick in the most optimally within the first 1-2 hours of that four-hour window. Again, this will be different for each individual based on when your body wakes you up natural in the morning. Adjust accordingly. If the above doesn’t get much of response, you add 5 mcg and start all over again.
- If you get TOO much of a response at a certain time you have moved earlier to, then you go later by 30 minutes. So, if for example, 4:30 am produces TOO much of an adrenal response, as indicated by data, you move to 5 am and see what that does.
- Many end up on around 12.5 -25 mcg T3, with an average dose of 20. Other T3 or NDT doses are continued throughout the day, as needed.
- Some use just T3 for both the early dose and daytimes doses. Some use NDT for all doses. Some do T3 in the early morning, and NDT the rest of the day.
- Robinson and others have seen the adrenals “pick up virtually straight away but generally take six weeks to fully respond to the T3, and three months for full healing.
- Can you stay on “some” HC and do this? Apparently so, but folks would need to watch VERY carefully their blood pressure/heartrate/temps, and maybe blood sugar levels, because if your adrenals did respond, you’d see a rise in these. You will need to be weaning off the HC when seeing a positive response!
- This will NOT work if you have Addisons or Hypopituitary. If you have Diabetes or serious blood sugar issues, it will work IF you adequately treat those. Robinson stresses that one should do an ACTH test in ensure one’s adrenals are capable of responding.
- Supplements needed: 1) high potency B complex with 50 mg of B1-B6 in it twice a day (B1 key for mitochondria) 2) B12 500 ug or 100 ug (even if no detected B12 issue) 3) vitamin C 500 mg 4-6 times per day in divided doses – for adrenals 4) vitamin D 2500 IUs (even if no 25 hydroxy vitamin D bad result) 5) a good chelated multi mineral with all trace / macro minerals in it 6) chelated magnesium 400mg twice a day- enables the sodium potassium pump in the cells to work right.
- When your adrenals kick back in, you may find you don’t need as much T3 or NDT.
He is not against the use of HC. Some have to use it, especially with Hypopituitary or Addisons! But he feels a large body of patients just need direct T3 (NOT time-released), or the direct T3 in NDT, to stimulate the natural production of sluggish adrenal function.
NOTE that if you have diabetes or insulin resistance, you’ll need to treat those issues to make this protocol work right, since correct insulin response is needed. If you have hypopituitary or Addisons, you’ll need HC instead.
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DOES DESICCATED THYROID WORK WITH THIS PROTOCOL?? Yes, say patients who are trying it!! Read Dawn’s story below. It can be wise to chew the NDT up to release the T3 easier.
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QUESTIONS and ANSWERS from Paul:
1) Why can’t we use time-released T3?
Slow-release T3 prevents the large peaks of cellular T3 that some people actually need to overcome what I call ‘impaired cellular response to thyroid hormone’. Some people just do not respond well to normal blood levels of thyroid hormones. My book outlines several medically validated reasons why this can occur (even though the doctors are lightyears behind on this – the researchers are not). In order to overcome these then enough peak cellular T3 needs to be reached. In my book ‘Recovering with T3′ I liken this to a wave of T3 that has to reach the interior of the cells. A small wave is only able to throw the foamy top of the wave onto the targets in the cells. A much larger wave will dump a large amount of the wave onto the targets within the cells. Slow release T3 is incapable of being fin-tuned to deliver a big enough wave – it is fundamentally a poor tool for the treatment of ‘impaired cellular response to thyroid hormone’.
2) Exactly what do patients notice in the data (BP, pulse, and temp) when they feel they have found their correct time, like 4:30 am?
Normal BP (rises to normal usually), pulse (usually comes down to normal), temp (rises to normal usually). More importantly energy levels and sense of well being usually floods into the body.
3) What if someone’s sleep schedule is messed up due to the adrenal/thyroid mess? i.e. they are waking up at 10 am instead of their normal 8 am? Do they look at a four hour window with the messed up schedule, or the previous normal 8 am wakeup?
Trial and error. Make best guess and then slowly titrate the dose in time and size. The results help to tell you what’s going on.
4) For those who end up staying on HC when doing the T3 circadian protocol (because it’s too miserable to wean down and takes too long to do it safely), would they notice a raise in BP/temp when their adrenals pick up?
I’d want some reduction in HC because what is the point of attempting this otherwise and how would you know it was working? If the adrenals don’t need to work any harder because the HC is making up the difference then providing extra T3 won’t do much if the pituitary doesn’t want to ask the adrenals to do something. If BP was still low and temp was still low because even with the HC the adrenals a re still struggling then I’d expect to see some improvements in signs like these and a general sense of well being and energy. You have to feel your way but it would be important to only use a small early T3 dose (10-20 mcg) to avoid getting a massive surge of cortisol and a bad reaction. This last point applies anyway.
5) How long have your adrenals been healed as author?
About 3 days after I started to use the early T3 dose. I don’t think my adrenals were ever truly damaged they were just T3 starved. Most adrenal damage is via autoantibodies in Addison’s disease. Sure adrenals can be knocked about, battered and world weary but that isn’t the kind of destruction present in Addison’s. I haven’t used any adrenal support for nearly 15 years. Some peoples’ adrenals mhay be damaged of course and they may always need some level of adrenal support
6) Do you still use the T3 in the early morning hours?
Yes – can’t manage without it. My last dose of T3 is in the early evening – there is no way I can keep my cellular levels of T3 high enough until when the adrenals work without using an early T3 dose. (from Janie: some may be able to achieve good levels of T3 just by being very optimal in the day time.)
7) What do you feel has been the most difficult part for you with using T3-only?
Depends what you compare it with. Nothing else works for me due to my strange reactions to T4, so it’s not difficult compared to being sick. I guess when things change then the T3 needs to be adjusted. Over time my thyroid has been totally destroyed, my autoantibodies have dropped to zero and my adrenals have recovered. Once I found a good dosage I have every few years had to adjust it slightly to account for internal changes like this – but nothing has been really difficult once I understood what was going on
To order his book, go here: http://www.stopthethyroidmadness.com/books-on-thyroid Robinson authored the book Recovering With T3: My Journey from Hypothyroidism to Good Health Using the T3 Thyroid Hormone. The book is mostly about the use of T3-only for those who can’t use other forms of thyroid treatment, or for those who choose to be on T3-only, but Chapter 16 covers this use of T3 for the adrenals.
To talk to others about this: join the T3CM Yahoo group: http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/T3CM/
QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS:
Does the above protocol work with the use of Natural Desiccated Thyroid? Yes!!
Can the above protocol work if you canNOT reduce your HC when you try it? Yes, say some patients who have tried it. They end being able to reduce their HC after a few weeks on the protocol, and by 2.5 mg at a time.
What about the use of T3 at bedtime? Yes, it appears this also promotes better adrenal function, since the T3 is still around when that four-hour window starts. Some people are doing BOTH—giving themselves T3 at bedtime, plus in the early morning hours.
BELOW ARE PATIENTS WHO HAVE MET SUCCESS WITH THE PROTOCOL. If you have a story of success, even if you are still work in progress, use the Contact at the bottom of the page to send me your story!
DAWN (who has used NDT with the Circadian Protocol and proved that even the T3 in desiccated thyroid can make a difference.)
TAYLOR (who was on 30 mg HC and has been able to drop down to almost NO HC)
MATT (who couldn’t tolerate T3 until he strenghtened his adrenals with early T3)
JANET (who couldn’t tolerate T4 due to her adrenals/high RT3, and is now using T3 in the early morning hours successfully. )
SUZANNE (who used NDT to do the protocol–a detailed blow-by-blow account!)
SANDRA W. (who since going the T3CM, has stopped shaking and now wakes up feeling energetic)
JAYNINE (who now wakes up with energy and feels like this method has made a great change in her life!)
MARY (who started on both NTH and the T3CM with great results!)
ERIC (whose life has been more most focused, stable and happy in the last 20 years)
SANDRA (who didn’t like what HC was doing for her at all, started the T3CM with T3-only, weaned of HC in two weeks, and got her life back!)
MIA (has weaned from 30 mg HC to 17.5, doing SO much better, and expects to be completely off. Stay tuned.)
