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	<title>Stop The Thyroid Madness &#187; T4-only</title>
	<atom:link href="http://www.stopthethyroidmadness.com/tag/t4-only/feed/" rel="self" type="application/rss+xml" />
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	<description>Not just another Thyroid site</description>
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		<title>FDA&#8217;s Safe Use Initiative&#8211;think they will listen to our cries about T4-only meds?</title>
		<link>http://www.stopthethyroidmadness.com/2009/11/04/fdas-safe-use-initiative-think-they-will-listen-to-our-cries-about-t4-only-meds/</link>
		<comments>http://www.stopthethyroidmadness.com/2009/11/04/fdas-safe-use-initiative-think-they-will-listen-to-our-cries-about-t4-only-meds/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Wed, 04 Nov 2009 19:26:18 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Janie</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Thyroid treatment]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[fda]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[t4]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[thyroxine]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[acetaminophen]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[acetaminophen toxicity]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[adrenal fatigue]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[alcohol-based surgical preps]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[anti-anxiety]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Armour]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[consumer medication information]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[cortisol]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[food and drug administration]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[healthcare system]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[hypothyroid]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[hypothyroidism]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[levothyroxine]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[levoxyl]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[medication dosing devices]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[medications]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[medications in vials]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[natural desiccated thyroid]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[prescription]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[preventable harm]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[safe use initiative]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[stakeholders]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[statins]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[synthetic t4]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[synthroid]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[t3]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[T4-only]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[throxine]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[thyroid patient]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[U.S. Department of Health and Human Services]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[westhroid]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.stopthethyroidmadness.com/?p=3867</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[As a thyroid patient who was profoundly harmed by the use of Synthroid and Levoxyl in the treatment of my hypothyroidism, and as an activist who sees this same harmful truth with potentially millions of other patients, I find this recent news interesting.
But you gotta wonder if they will be wearing noise reduction headsets and [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p><img class="alignleft size-full wp-image-3878" title="Earplugs" src="http://www.stopthethyroidmadness.com/wp/../images/Earplugs2.jpg" alt="Earplugs" width="145" height="141" />As a thyroid patient who was profoundly harmed by the use of Synthroid and Levoxyl in the treatment of my hypothyroidism, and as an activist who sees this same harmful truth with potentially millions of <a href="/stories-of-others/">other patients</a>, I find this recent news interesting.</p>
<p>But you gotta wonder if they will be wearing noise reduction headsets and ear plugs&#8230;or not&#8230;when it comes to the scandal of synthetic T4-only medications.  Will they?<strong><br />
</strong></p>
<p><strong>Just today, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announced the <a href="http://www.fda.gov/downloads/Drugs/DrugSafety/UCM188961.pdf">Safe Use Initiative</a>, <em>&#8220;a program aimed at reducing the likelihood of preventable harm from medication use&#8221;.</em><br />
</strong></p>
<p>Statements I gleaned from this initiative include:</p>
<blockquote><p>1. Today, tens of millions of people in the United States depend on prescription and over‐the‐counter (OTC) medications to sustain their health—as many as 3 billion prescriptions are written annually. Too many people, however, suffer unnecessary injuries, even death, as a result of preventable medication errors or misuse.</p>
<p>2. Although FDA and many other stakeholders have been working to improve how the healthcare system manages medication risks in the United States, it is widely recognized that more needs to be done to protect the public from preventable harm from medication use.</p>
<p>3. Medications offer great benefit, but they come with risks. Whenever medications are not used optimally, risks of harm can increase significantly.</p>
<p>4. FDA proposes to identify, using a transparent and collaborative process, specific candidate cases (e.g., drugs, drug classes, and/or therapeutic situations) that are associated with significant amounts of preventable harm.</p></blockquote>
<p>This initiative is actually far broader than what I gleaned above, and also involves self-abuse, exposure of dangerous medications to children, dire side effects, and more. Five areas are also specifically targeted:  Consumer medication information (CMI), Medication dosing devices, Acetaminophen toxicity, Alcohol-based surgical preps, and Medications in vials. You can read more in the <a href="http://www.fda.gov/Drugs/DrugSafety/ucm188760.htm">fact sheet.</a></p>
<p>But if the FDA is going to do their job with this initiative, or do their job overall, you have to wonder if they will listen to and include the problems associated with being treated with a T4-only medication as experienced by millions of patients worldwide. <a href="/long-and-pathetic/">Continuing symptoms of hypothyroidism</a> while on this inadequate treatment is widespread and damaging for many, causing hands reaching deep in pockets to pay for numerous doctors appointments, besides antidepressants, anti-anxiety meds, blood pressure meds, statins, cortisol meds for adrenal fatigue, and other medications which we would have never needed, <em>and would have been preventable,</em> if we had been on <a href="/natural-thyroid-101/">natural desiccated thyroid</a> like Naturethroid or Westhroid in the first place.</p>
<p>Many patients on thyroxine, T4-only medications will also report actual hospital visits due to the side effects of a poor treatment.</p>
<p><strong>In other words, thyroxine aka levothyroxine aka T4 treatment has been an unsafe and harmful treatment, causing millions to suffer unnecessary injuries and side effects for over 50 years of its useless and popular use.  It fits the Safe Use Initiative. Or at the very least, it calls for the FDA to listen to patient experience with this lousy choice to treat hypothyroidism.<br />
</strong></p>
<p><strong>Listen to us, FDA. Listen and be wise.</strong></p>
<p>P.S. See the blog post below about a genetic reason why so many do lousy on T4.</p>
<p><em>*Want to be infor­med of these ‘fringe web­site’ blog posts?  <img src="../../wp-includes/images/smilies/icon_lol.gif" alt=":lol:" /> Curious what’s on radi­cal Janie’s mind? Just use the Noti­fi­ca­tions on the left below the links.<br />
</em></p>
<p><em> </em><em>* The extre­mely hip and sophis­ti­ca­ted <a href="../../2009/09/t-shirt/">STTM t-shirts</a> are half price! I love sales!<br />
</em></p>
<p><em> </em><em>* Pre­fer STTM in book form with more detail? You can read about it <a href="../../book/">here</a>.</em></p>
<p><strong><em>*Need options for thy­roid treat­ment during the current shor­ta­ges due to demand being grea­ter than supply? Go <a href="../../options-for-thyroid-treatment/">here</a>.</em></strong></p>
]]></content:encoded>
			<wfw:commentRss>http://www.stopthethyroidmadness.com/2009/11/04/fdas-safe-use-initiative-think-they-will-listen-to-our-cries-about-t4-only-meds/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>4</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>Thyroid patients report despising their Endocrinologists&#8212;but here&#8217;s one you might just love!</title>
		<link>http://www.stopthethyroidmadness.com/2009/10/19/endo-you-might-just-love/</link>
		<comments>http://www.stopthethyroidmadness.com/2009/10/19/endo-you-might-just-love/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Mon, 19 Oct 2009 20:49:25 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Janie</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Doctors]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[desiccated thyroid]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[endocrinology]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[abbott labs]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[american boards of internal medicine]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[cnbc]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[community call]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[diabetes]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[disease]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[dr. gary pepper]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[dr. pepper]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[endo]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[endocrinologist]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[endocrinologists]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[five-star]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[gary pepper md]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[hypothyroid]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Janie]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[levothyroxine]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[metabolism]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[natural desiccated thyroid]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[natural thyroid]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[new york city]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[new york magazine]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[stop the thyroid madness]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[sttm]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[synthroid]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[T4-only]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[talkshoe]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[thyroid patient]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[top 100 physicians]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[william osler]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.stopthethyroidmadness.com/?p=3781</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[
I once cracked open an egg to find it had TWO shells.  And that oddity is equivalent to finding an Endocrinologist who supports the use of natural desiccated thyroid.   
Voila!! ~~ you can listen and talk to an Endo who does just that on this Thursday evening&#8217;s popular THYROID PATIENT COMMUNITY CALL on TalkShoe. [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p><img class="alignleft size-full wp-image-3812" title="officedoor2" src="http://www.stopthethyroidmadness.com/wp/../images/officedoor21.jpg" alt="officedoor2" width="126" height="225" /></p>
<p><strong>I once cracked open an egg to find it had TWO shells.  And that oddity is equivalent to finding an Endocrinologist who supports the use of natural desiccated thyroid.  <em> </em></strong></p>
<p><em><span style="font-size: small;">Voila!!</span></em><strong><em><span style="font-size: small;"> ~~ </span></em></strong><em>you can listen and talk to an Endo who does just that on this Thursday evening&#8217;s popular <a href="http://www.talkshoe.com/talkshoe/web/talkCast.jsp?masterId=62603&amp;cmd=tc">THYROID PATIENT COMMUNITY CALL</a> on TalkShoe. </em></p>
<p>His name is <strong>Dr. Gary Pepper</strong>, Board Certified by the American Boards of Internal Medicine, and Endocrinology and Metabolism and editor-in-chief of  <a href="http://www.metabolism.com">metabolism.com</a>.  Besides serving many years in distinguished leadership positions, he was selected as one of the top 100 physicians in New York City by New York Magazine and is also a featured expert with CNBC and ivillage on topics of diabetes and endocrinology. He states:  <em>Almost daily I reread the words of Sir William Osler: “It’s often more important to know what sort of person this disease has than to know what disease the person has.”</em></p>
<p><strong>i.e. this is one of a rare but growing breed of doctors who supports what we as thyroid patients already know&#8211;that desiccated thyroid is a five-star hypothyroid treatment and T4-only is about as effective as a doughnut diet for most. And lo and behold,  Dr. Pepper is an Endocrinologist! <em>Of course, I can give no guarantees how he is as a doctor in his own office, but I do appreciate his understanding that T4-only treatment may not be the best way to treat hypo. </em><br />
</strong></p>
<p>Join us this Thursday evening, 6 pm Pacific, 7 pm Mountain, 8 pm Central and 9 pm Eastern by clicking on the first link above titled Thyroid Patient Community Call.  When on that page, you&#8217;ll also see the exact day and time left before the call. You&#8217;ll be able to listen to the call right on your computer, or you can dial in and listen on your phone. There is also an option to talk  one-on-one live with Dr. Pepper and Janie.</p>
<p><em>And remember: neither I or Dr. Pepper can offer personal medical advice or provide individual specific counseling. Those are between you and your <a href="/how-to-find-a-good-doc/">personal physician</a>.<br />
</em></p>
<p>***P.S.  <a href="http://www.pharmatimes.com/WorldNews/article.aspx?id=16742">PharmaTimes</a> this month reported that <span>this quarter&#8217;s sales of  Synthroid (levothyroxine) were up 3.7% to $134 million by Abbott Labs.</span><strong><span> </span></strong><span> Sad for most of those patients. </span><strong></strong><span>If you know of someone who has been put on a T4 med, send them here: <a href="/t4-only-meds-dont-work/">www.stopthethyroidmadness.com/t4-only-meds-dont-work</a> or to the audio page here: <a href="/audio-shorts/">www.stopthethyroidmadness.com/audio-shorts</a></span> (third one down).<a title="Synthroid" href="http://stopthethyroidmadness.com/mp3/synthroid.mp3"></a></p>
<p><em>*Want to be infor­med of these ‘fringe web­site’ blog posts?  <img src="../wp-includes/images/smilies/icon_lol.gif" alt=":lol:" /> Curious what’s on radi­cal Janie’s mind? Just use the Noti­fi­ca­tions on the left below the links.<br />
</em></p>
<p><em> </em><em>* The extre­mely hip and sophis­ti­ca­ted <a href="../../2009/09/t-shirt/">STTM t-shirts</a> are half price! I love sales!<br />
</em></p>
<p><em> </em><em>* Pre­fer STTM in book form with more detail? You can read about it <a href="../../book/">here</a>.</em></p>
<p><strong><em>*Need options for thy­roid treat­ment during the current shor­ta­ges due to demand being grea­ter than supply? Go <a href="../../options-for-thyroid-treatment/">here</a>.</em></strong></p>
]]></content:encoded>
			<wfw:commentRss>http://www.stopthethyroidmadness.com/2009/10/19/endo-you-might-just-love/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>3</slash:comments>
<enclosure url="http://stopthethyroidmadness.com/mp3/synthroid.mp3" length="2581047" type="audio/mpeg" />
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>Glad to see some reason creeping in with thyroid patient discussion!</title>
		<link>http://www.stopthethyroidmadness.com/2009/09/09/reason-creeping-in-with-thyroid-patient-discussion/</link>
		<comments>http://www.stopthethyroidmadness.com/2009/09/09/reason-creeping-in-with-thyroid-patient-discussion/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Wed, 09 Sep 2009 19:34:59 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Janie</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Coalition for Natural Desiccated Thyroid]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Patients]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[desiccated thyroid]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[fda]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[aace]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Armour]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[big]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[big mistake]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[coalition for desiccated thyroid]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[community call]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[endocrinologist]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[forest labs]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[huge]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[julia roberts]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Mary Shomon]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[naturethroid]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[palpitations]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[pharmaceutical]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[pretty woman]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[RLC]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[sleep problems]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[sttm]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[T4-only]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[thyroid patients]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Time Caps Labs]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[unapproved drugs]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[westhroid]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.stopthethyroidmadness.com/?p=3493</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[If you have been keeping up with my posts, you&#8217;ll know that thyroid patients have been facing a shortage of desiccated thyroid for many weeks, probably due to sharp increased demand i.e. thyroid patients have been finding out how lousy T4-only treatment like Synthroid has been for them, and how much better desiccated thyroid is. [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p><img class="alignleft size-full wp-image-3501" title="IMG_2564" src="http://www.stopthethyroidmadness.com/wp/../images/IMG_25642.JPG" alt="IMG_2564" width="175" height="123" />If you have been keeping up with my posts, you&#8217;ll know that thyroid patients have been facing a shortage of desiccated thyroid for many weeks, probably due to sharp increased demand <em>i.e. thyroid patients have been finding out how lousy <a href="/t4-only-meds-dont-work/">T4-only treatment</a> like Synthroid has been for them, and how much better <a href="/natural-thyroid-101/">desiccated thyroid</a> is. </em></p>
<p>That demand became especially true after a reformulation of Armour by Forest Labs in 2009 drove patients to RLC&#8217;s Naturethroid and Westhroid. The &#8220;new&#8221; Armour caused a return of hypo symptoms plus new maddening ones, including palpitations and sleep problems never seen before.  As Julia Roberts said in the 1990 movie Pretty Woman: <em> Big mistake</em>, <em>Big</em>, <em>Huge</em>.</p>
<p>In addition, it didn&#8217;t help when Time Cap Labs, a pharmaceutical which made plenty of desiccated thyroid for other pharmaceuticals, stopped production after being contacted by the FDA. This action was probably in line with their aims to make long-term unapproved drugs become approved, even if the timing was incredibly stupid.</p>
<p><strong>As all the above was happening, panic ensued! </strong></p>
<p>We&#8217;ve heard all varieties of negative presumptions from thyroid patients about what caused the shortage, including an FDA conspiracy and an overt belief that desiccated thyroid is about to be removed.  Patients have threatened law suits, blamed pharmaceuticals, and/or sent numerous letters to FDA pleading to keep desiccated thyroid as if it was to be gone tomorrow. Even I, at first, fell in line wondering about the FDA.</p>
<p><strong>But it started to dawn on me, as it has others, than we have been jumping the gun, not giving enough emphasis to facts and reason.</strong></p>
<p>And finally, facts and reason are starting to appear on blogs and groups:</p>
<p><strong>1) Yes, Forest Labs, the makers of Armour, and RLC, the makers of Naturethroid and Westhroid, state they have <em>not</em> been contacted by the FDA. We have no reason to disbelieve them!</strong></p>
<p><strong>2) Yes, RLC is working hard to catch up, as is American Laboratories, both state. We also have no reason to disbelieve them!</strong></p>
<p><strong>3) Yes, thyroid patients who know the superiority of desiccated thyroid have always been there to support them. Glad to see that recognition in blog and group postings.</strong></p>
<p><strong>4) Yes, as health writer Mary Shomon has stated, <em>information-gathering, brainstorming, and communicating with our doctors</em> is a good thing to be doing.  That is contrary to making panicky negative predictions about desiccated thyroid,  rallying for law suits, and feeding ideas to the FDA that may not be there in the first place.</strong></p>
<p><strong>5) Yes, we need to put energy in <a href="/stories-of-others/">letting the world know</a> about the superiority of desiccated thyroid treatment in our lives. That is where our power lies in the face of clueless Endocrinologists and their equally-clueless medical boards like AACE. </strong></p>
<p><strong>6) Yes, we need to listen to and support the pharmaceuticals and laboratories which give us the desiccated thyroid we need. It&#8217;s they who have to walk the line with the FDA. Let&#8217;s listen to their cautions and support them. </strong></p>
<p>Strangely, there are still misconceptions being reported by patient blogs and posts:</p>
<p><em>1) That we don&#8217;t know what caused the shortage.</em> But we do! Demand is as logical as it gets.  All of us have succeeded in getting the word out! That is exactly why I created STTM in the first place!  And by emails I get every week, it&#8217;s clear that it&#8217;s been working.</p>
<p>2) <em>That groups like the <a href="http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/CoalitionForDesiccatedThyroid/">Coalition for Desiccated Thyroid</a> (CDT) have a wait-and-see attitude. </em>That is as silly as saying STTM wants to ban T4 or encourages self-treatment. There are simply some thyroid patients who don&#8217;t agree with the extreme panic and negative presumptions that have been going on, and want more reason in our pro-activity!  Patients have been encouraged to spread the word in any way possible about the superiority of desiccated thyroid and how it&#8217;s changed lives, NOT to feed dire negative predictions which only end up giving ideas we don&#8217;t want to give! You are most welcome to join the Coalition above in addition to other groups.</p>
<p><strong>Good for patients and advocates alike for putting more reason and fact in this situation. </strong></p>
<p>I&#8217;m also glad to see some strategic, pro-active behind-the-scenes work going on as a <em>just-in-case</em> line of activism. That is the way it should have always been&#8211;a plan for action &#8220;just in case&#8221;, not dire predictions and fear mongering as if it all WAS going to happen.</p>
<p><strong>We&#8217;ll get through this, folks. Here are <a href="/options-for-thyroid-treatment/">options for thyroid treatment</a> in the meantime. And if you want to talk to other patients, join our thyroid patient Community Call this Friday. Details are found in the <a href="http://www.stopthethyroidmadness.com/2009/09/07/join-us-every-friday-night-for-a-sttm-community-call-talk-show/">September 7th blog post</a>.</strong></p>
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		<slash:comments>36</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>The gnarly man and what we can do in the face of this crisis</title>
		<link>http://www.stopthethyroidmadness.com/2009/08/29/the-gnarly-man-and-what-we-can-do-in-the-face-of-this-crisis/</link>
		<comments>http://www.stopthethyroidmadness.com/2009/08/29/the-gnarly-man-and-what-we-can-do-in-the-face-of-this-crisis/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Sun, 30 Aug 2009 02:53:47 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Janie</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[hypothyroidism]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[American Laboratories]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Armour]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[canadian pharmacies]]></category>
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		<category><![CDATA[thyroid patient groups]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[thyroid patients]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Time Caps Labs]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[US Congress]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[westhroid]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.stopthethyroidmadness.com/?p=3317</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[
There once was a gnarly, bottom-scratching and tuna-breathed man who terrorized a neighborhood as if he was above the law. He intimidated people, used threats to stop others from telling the truth about his actions, and he mooned his hairy buttamous to anyone he didn&#8217;t like. He brought other criminals into his large house, took bribes to [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p><img class="alignleft size-full wp-image-3348" title="ogre" src="http://www.stopthethyroidmadness.com/wp/../images/ogre1.jpg" alt="ogre" width="123" height="135" /></p>
<p>There once was a gnarly, bottom-scratching and tuna-breathed man who terrorized a neighborhood as if he was above the law. He intimidated people, used threats to stop others from telling the truth about his actions, and he mooned his hairy buttamous to anyone he didn&#8217;t like. He brought other criminals into his large house, took bribes to do some of their own dirty work, and stole every single vegetable and fruit from all his neighbors gardens.</p>
<p>Finally, all the fearful, frustrated and hungry neighbors got angry, sick and tired of it all. So they sent him emails, letters and phone calls, asking him to stop what he was doing, and explaining how he was hurting their lives and well-being,  and speculated how he was going to do this or that.</p>
<p><em>And do you think he stopped doing what he always did?</em></p>
<p>Finally, the neighbors got wise. They reached out to the police, to local radio and TV stations, to the newspaper, and even to local political leaders.  They stated the facts as they knew them, how specific actions affected their lives, how they had speculations that they couldn&#8217;t prove but were quite uncomfortable&#8230;and they made sure everyone knew what was going on to get the help and support they needed. <span><br />
</span></p>
<p>********************************</p>
<p><strong>For over 100 years, thyroid patient lives have made a huge and positive turn-around on natural porcine desiccated thyroid, a </strong><strong>superior, safe, and effective medication as expressed by all our lives for over a century.  But today, we face a crisis.</strong></p>
<p>The most popular desiccated thyroid brand, Armour, was reformulated by 2009  and most patients reported a return of their hypothyroid symptoms. Then, the only other major pharmaceutical, RLC Labs, has their quality Naturethroid and Westhroid on backorder in August of 2009. The only North American makers of the desiccated powder, American Laboratories, is out.</p>
<p>And finally, the remaining two generic makers, Time Caps Labs and Major Pharmaceuticals, are told to cease production by the FDA.</p>
<p><strong>We are now without desiccated thyroid other than the remaining 10 tablets there, or 5 tablets here. They will all be gone soon.<br />
</strong></p>
<p><em>The facts we know are this:</em> because of the 1962 “Drug Effi­cacy Amend­ment”, the FDA is suddenly demanding phar­ma­ceu­ti­cal drug manu­fac­tu­rers (with medications which have been used successfully for 80-110 years) pro­vide proof of the effec­ti­ve­ness and safety of their drugs before they can receive true FDA appro­val, aka potential cli­ni­cal trials and the data that results. i.e. 110 years of patient success, and a website like Stop the Thyroid Madness, and testimonies all over the net and in patient groups with desiccated thyroid&#8230;is somehow&#8230;just&#8230;not&#8230;enough.  <em>What is obvious, is not enough.</em></p>
<p><strong>In other words, they want proof of efficacy and safety of desiccated thyroid&#8212;a medication which has a safe and effective track record in a huge body of patients for 110 years&#8230;in the same way they give an FDA-stamp-of-approval on a whole variety of drugs which, in 2004, killed </strong><span id="Lefplaceholder2"><strong>783,936 individuals per year </strong><em>(according to the article <a href="http://www.lef.org/magazine/mag2004/mar2004_awsi_death_01.htm">Death by Medicine</a>, co-authored by </em></span><em><span id="Lefplaceholder2">By Gary Null, PhD; Carolyn Dean MD, ND; Martin Feldman, MD; Debora Rasio, MD; and Dorothy Smith, PhD).</span></em></p>
<p><span id="Lefplaceholder2">Does THAT make any sense to you?<br />
</span></p>
<p>And now, because there is hint that they may require RLC Labs to apply for a New Drug Application&#8230;and because we <em>wonder</em> if that will mean expensive and drawn out clinical testing to provide data&#8230;and because we <em>wonder</em> if they will allow RLC to continue manufacturing our only good supply of desiccated thyroid which saves our lives in a completely healthy way&#8230;we are left with a lot of uncomfortable and unanswered questions.</p>
<p>Of course, we can admit that all the above is <em>pure speculation</em>. We don&#8217;t know what will happen until it happens. But we are strongly uncomfortable with the unknowns, frustrated by the possibilities, and scared to death we might lose the only medication which has removed our <a href="/long-and-pathetic/">lingering and debilitating symptoms</a> while we were once on synthetic T4&#8211;aka Synthroid, Levoxyl, levothyroxine, etc. <em></em></p>
<p><em>And by the way, <a href="/t4-only-meds-dont-work/">synthetic T4 </a>is an FDA-approved medication which has left most of us sick or with <a href="/long-and-pathetic/">lingering symptoms</a> to our own degree and intensity for YEARS. Perhaps THAT is what you need to write the FDA about.</em></p>
<p><strong>So do we email the FDA about this situation??</strong> I am of the belief that writing/emailing the FDA is no different than asking the neighborhood ogre to change.  I could be wrong, but it is my deep suspicion. In fact, I am suspicious that the onslaught of communication with the FDA is going to do more harm than good&#8230;if it hasn&#8217;t already&#8230;just as writing and emailing the neighborhood ogre would probably cause him to laugh and do even MORE harm.</p>
<p><strong>So what seems the best and most logical action to take with our current situation? Write/email your <em>senators</em>. Write/email your <em>representatives.</em> Write/email <em>newscasters, talk show hosts, radio personalities, newspapers of merit, and anyone who has the power to spread the word.</em> In my mind, we cannot expect to face <em>what may be</em> with power unless we inform the world of our plight ahead of time.</strong></p>
<p><strong>How to say what we need to say?</strong> I think, for our integrity in the eyes of whom we speak/email/write to, it&#8217;s important to state facts first and foremost. For me, if I need to mention speculation, I turn them into questions: <em>Will RLC be able to afford clinical trials? Will the FDA stop all desiccated thyroid? </em> You may not agree but that&#8217;s what seems wise for me. <strong><br />
</strong></p>
<p>I have compiled <strong><a href="/congresspersons/">a list of particular congresspersons</a> </strong>who just last year, made a resolution against the FDA. You will see a list of those supporters at the bottom of the page with their contact info. Email them.  You will also find links to contact each and every other political office. If I have missed something, let me know and I&#8217;ll add it.</p>
<p>I have also compiled <strong>a<a href="/template-letter/"> simple template letter</a> </strong>you can use, or change exactly as you need it changed, for these emails.  It will not fit every single individual who uses it, so change it as you may. But keep it short and succinct. Too much to read will turn off the reader.</p>
<p><em>I have tried hard in this post to communicate my thoughts and intuition. I also still have some strong hope and faith that this IS going to work out, one way or the other. I&#8217;m just not into fear-mongering based on speculation.  Some of you may not agree with my sentiment, but that&#8217;s okay. And some of you may agree that it&#8217;s time to strongly communicate with our congresspersons, and I will hope you follow through. All of us need to follow through. I need to follow through. You need to follow through.</em></p>
<blockquote><p><strong>NEED OPTIONS FOR THYROID TREATMENT during this hard time?</strong> Go <a href="http://www.stopthethyroidmadness.com/options-for-thyroid-treatment/">here</a>. You&#8217;ll also find several Canadian Pharmacies to use with a prescription, as well, that is much easier than ordering directly from Erfa.</p>
<p><strong>NEED A GOOD DOCTOR?</strong> Go <a href="/how-to-find-a-good-doc/">here</a>.</p>
<p><strong>NEW TO DESICCATED THYROID?</strong> Here&#8217;s <a href="/things-we-have-learned/">everything patients have learned</a>.</p></blockquote>
<p><em>*Want to be informed of this blog posts? Curious what&#8217;s on Janie&#8217;s mind? Use the notifications on the left below the links. </em></p>
<p><em>*Spread the word! <a href="/t-shirt/">STTM T-shirts</a> are 50% off. I love sales. </em></p>
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		<slash:comments>13</slash:comments>
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		<item>
		<title>Patients and wise doctors continue to learn in leaps and bounds</title>
		<link>http://www.stopthethyroidmadness.com/2009/08/03/patients-and-wise-doctors-continue-to-learn/</link>
		<comments>http://www.stopthethyroidmadness.com/2009/08/03/patients-and-wise-doctors-continue-to-learn/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Mon, 03 Aug 2009 18:22:34 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Janie</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[About this site]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[desiccated thyroid]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[hypothyroidism]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[24 hour saliva test]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[ACTH]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[adrenal fatigue]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[adrenals]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[australia]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[cholesterol]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[cortisol]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[denmark]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[depressio]]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[feedback loop]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[germany]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[hair loss]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[hypo]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[hypothyroid]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[italy]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[less stamina]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[medical research]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[new zealand]]></category>
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		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.stopthethyroidmadness.com/?p=3066</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[ Just when you think we&#8217;re full of great information for better thyroid care, there&#8217;s still more to learn and find out.  Below is information that you might find interesting on STTM.
ADRENALS: For those who discovered via the 24 adrenal saliva test that they needed cortisol support, we have come to realize that some can&#8217;t [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p><strong><img class="size-full wp-image-3091 alignleft" title="IMG_2008" src="http://www.stopthethyroidmadness.com/wp/../images/IMG_2008.JPG" alt="IMG_2008" width="175" height="108" /> Just when you think we&#8217;re full of great information for better thyroid care, there&#8217;s still more to learn and find out.  Below is information that you might find interesting on STTM.</strong></p>
<p><strong>ADRENALS: </strong>For those who discovered via the 24 adrenal saliva test that they needed cortisol support, we have come to realize that<em> some can&#8217;t do the ramping up schedule from a small amount to a larger amount without having problems</em> from the feedback loop.</p>
<p>Instead, many simply need to <strong>&#8220;start&#8221; </strong>on the higher amount, which would range from 20-30 mg. You can read about that on the <a href="/adrenal-info/how-to-treat/">How to Treat</a> page, and you&#8217;ll note that not one morning amount goes higher than 10 mgs.  With the exception of men, higher than 10 mg seems to suppress the ACTH and adrenals too much.</p>
<p><strong>A NEW LOOK: </strong>To make the <a href="http://www.stopthethyroidmadness.com/">STTM home page</a> more understandable to newcomers, the home page has broken down the information better into separate pages, and also has a new interesting way of using it.</p>
<p><strong>LISTEN TO THIS INFORMATION:</strong> STTM has short <a href="/audio-shorts/">audio clips</a> you can listen to, or send someone else to, to help understand what this is all about.</p>
<p><strong>STORIES OF OTHERS: </strong>Individual <a href="/stories-of-others/">real-life stories</a> continue to come in, proving over and over that this revolution for far better care really does work.</p>
<p><strong>FEEDBACK and MORE FEEDBACK: </strong>I get emails daily about lives changed thanks to this patient revolution. It&#8217;s wonderful to see people finding out WHY they have depression, less stamina than others, rising cholesterol and blood pressure, hair loss plus other lingering symptoms of  hypothyroidism left untreated because of the lousy TSH, or undertreated because of the equally-lousy T4-only treatment like Synthroid. I can&#8217;t begin to post them all, but STTM does contain a sampling of this <a href="/feedback/">feedback.</a></p>
<p><strong>DESICCATED THYROID BRANDS:</strong> Wow, the list is growing for <a href="/armour-vs-other-brands/">desiccated thyroid brands</a> around the world! We now have listings for Denmark, Germany, Italy and New Zealand, as well as more detailed information on compounded thyroid in Australia. Thanks to all who contributed.</p>
<p><strong> KEEPING UP WITH ADDITIONS TO STTM: </strong>In case you didn&#8217;t know, there&#8217;s a page meant to inform you of <a href="/whats-new/">what&#8217;s added to STTM</a>. I may neglect to list a few additions occasionally, but think I&#8217;m pretty close to getting most of them up there.</p>
<p><strong>MEDICAL RESEARCH TO PROVE WHAT WE ALREADY KNOW: </strong>Did you know that STTM has a page which compiles <a href="/medical-research/">research and studies</a> which prove what we as patients already know? It&#8217;s not loaded with research yet, but it&#8217;s growing. And if you have found more to contribute to that page, use the Contact Me form.</p>
<p><strong>SITE MAP:</strong> And bottom line, you can always go to the <a href="/site-map/">Site Map</a>, or review the information more compactly in the <a href="/book/">book</a>, which patients are taking into their doctors offices.</p>
<p><em>*Want to be informed of these blog posts? Curious what&#8217;s on Janie&#8217;s mind? Use the Notifications on the left at the bottom of the links.</em></p>
<p><em><strong>*Stop the Thyroid Madness <a href="/t-shirt/">T-shirts</a> are now 50% off! </strong>I like sales, don&#8217;t you? And by wearing these shirts, you&#8217;ll never know what seed you put in the mind of someone walking past you who&#8217;s still on Synthroid or any other T4 meds, and doesn&#8217;t know WHY they have depression, rising cholesterol, easy weight gain, the need for naps, etc. </em>You&#8221;ll also find humorous bumper stickers which definitely spread the word.</p>
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		<slash:comments>2</slash:comments>
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		<item>
		<title>The intrusion of reality about levothyroxine and depression</title>
		<link>http://www.stopthethyroidmadness.com/2009/06/26/the-intrusion-of-reality/</link>
		<comments>http://www.stopthethyroidmadness.com/2009/06/26/the-intrusion-of-reality/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Fri, 26 Jun 2009 23:39:42 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Janie</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[t4]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[thyroxine]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[uk]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Armour]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[depression]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[desiccated thyroid]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[diagnosis and treatment of primary hypothyroidism]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[eltroxin]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[hypothyroidism]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[levothyroxine]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[levoxyl]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[medications]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[National Health Service]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[new england journal of medicine]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[NHS]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[oroxine]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[physician]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[rai]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Royal College of Physicians]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[synthroid]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[t3]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[T4-only]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[thyroid patients]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[ulcer bleed]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.stopthethyroidmadness.com/?p=2531</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[I&#8217;ve been perusing comments in response to the UK&#8217;s Royal College of Physicians blundering and dark-age-constructed Diagnosis and treatment of primary hypothyroidism.  And though all comments are quite good and worth your read, I was struck by the comment titled May Reality Intrude? by a man named Charles. 

 Charles explains that in 1999, his [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p><img class="alignleft size-full wp-image-2540" title="depressiont4" src="http://www.stopthethyroidmadness.com/wp/../images/depressiont4.jpg" alt="depressiont4" width="125" height="95" />I&#8217;ve been perusing <a href="http://www.bmj.com/cgi/eletters/338/mar26_2/b725#211350">comments</a> in response to the UK&#8217;s Royal College of Physicians blundering and dark-age-constructed <a href="http://www.bmj.com/cgi/content/full/338/mar26_2/b725">Diagnosis and treatment of primary hypothyroidism</a>.  And though all comments are quite good and worth your read, I was struck by the comment titled <em>May Reality Intrude? </em>by a man named Charles. <em><br />
</em></p>
<p><span> Charles explains that in 1999, his 67-year-old wife had RAI (radioactive  iodine) and was then put on levothyroxine, a T4-only medication (aka Synthroid, Levoxyl, Eltroxin, Oroxine, levothyroxine, et al).  And not long after, she complained of having depression. </span></p>
<p><span> He had an idea why after reading the <a href="http://content.nejm.org/cgi/content/short/340/6/424">New England Journal of Medicine</a> about T3, and proceeded to buy her Armour off the internet.  Without her knowing, he switched medications. Lo and behold, he states <em>&#8220;she  promptly returned to her usual sunny disposition&#8221;. </em>Her physician knew nothing of the switch either, and found nothing to be concerned about in her.<br />
</span></p>
<p><span> Charles then explained how, at age 74 in 2007, she was near death thanks to an ulcer bleed.  And to continue treating her hypothyroidism, the hospital gave her levothyroxine all over again.  Back came her depression and a feeling of wanting to go home and die. </span></p>
<p><span>So Charles brought her Armour to the hospital, and though her physical state was depressing enough, her sunny disposition returned.  And that happy spirit while still on Armour continues today after a full recovery.<br />
</span></p>
<p>And Charles pondered. If his wife had been in a NHS (National Health Service) hospital under the care of a so-called thyroid specialist of the NHS, would she have failed to obtain T3 and instead, sent to a psychiatrist as if her depression had nothing to do with her levothyroxine treated hypothyroidism&#8211;the very treatment that the Royal College of Physicians has a dogmatic love affair with?</p>
<p><span> He then concludes: <em>My wife’s depression was obvious.  Since  she is equipped with much the same assortment of body parts and associated physiology as others, is it not likely that many levothyroxine-treated  patients suffer from less-noticeable depression? </em></span></p>
<p><span>Well Charles, most any thyroid patient who decides to respond to this will tell you unequivacably YES, YES, YES.  Because there&#8217;s no research, study or directive that is more profound and telling than the actual EXPERIENCE of patients all over the world with<a href="/t4-only-meds-dont-work/"> T4 treatment</a> and depression&#8230;besides a slew of other <a href="/long-and-pathetic/">side effects of continuing hypothyroidism</a> on T4-only meds.</span></p>
<p><strong><span>Did you have depression on a T4 med? Tell us about your experience in the Comments section of this post.</span></strong></p>
<p><em><span>*Want to be informed of these blogs? Curious what&#8217;s on Janie&#8217;s mind? Use the Notifications on the lower left of the links.</span></em></p>
<p><span><em>*Scroll down to the June 2nd post and report your experience on the newly formulated Armour. It&#8217;s not a happy picture. </em><br />
</span></p>
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		<slash:comments>17</slash:comments>
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		<item>
		<title>Yes, Jessica Terry, it&#8217;s weird to have to self-diagnose, but thyroid patients have had to do the same thing!</title>
		<link>http://www.stopthethyroidmadness.com/2009/06/15/yes-jessica-terry-its-weird-to-have-to-self-diagnose-but-thyroid-patients-have-had-to-do-the-same-thing/</link>
		<comments>http://www.stopthethyroidmadness.com/2009/06/15/yes-jessica-terry-its-weird-to-have-to-self-diagnose-but-thyroid-patients-have-had-to-do-the-same-thing/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Mon, 15 Jun 2009 19:13:45 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Janie</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Patients]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Thyroid treatment]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[bay area]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[bay area news]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[big pharma]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[cnn]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[colitis]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[crohn's]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[crohn's disease]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[dark ages]]></category>
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		<category><![CDATA[granuloma]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[hypothyroidism]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[inflammation of the intestines]]></category>
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		<category><![CDATA[jessica terry]]></category>
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		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.stopthethyroidmadness.com/?p=2455</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Jessica Terry is an 18 year old student at Washington State high school in the Bay Area who had years of problems which doctors couldn&#8217;t figure out: vomiting, diarrhea, weight loss and stomach pains.  Doctors said she had irritable bowel syndrome or colitis, and said her intestinal tissue was just fine according to slides.
Yet, she [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>Jessica Terry is an 18 year old student at Washington State high school in the Bay Area who had years of problems which doctors couldn&#8217;t figure out: vomiting, diarrhea, weight loss and stomach pains.  Doctors said she had irritable bowel syndrome or colitis, and said her intestinal tissue was just fine according to slides.</p>
<p>Yet, she just knew that wasn&#8217;t correct.</p>
<p>So she took some of her own intestinal tissue to her Biomedical Problems class, and voila&#8230;she diagnosed her own problem:  granuloma, and specifically, Crohn&#8217;s disease, an inflammation of her intestines.</p>
<p><strong>Sound familiar??</strong></p>
<p><strong>Yup, thyroid patients have had to do the exact same thing&#8211;self-diagnose&#8211; for almost ten years because of <a href="/long-and-pathetic/">continuing symptoms of hypothyroidism</a> which doctors have routinely dismissed, pooh-poohed or blamed on something else.  It&#8217;s all been a horrific, wide-reaching and damaging 50 year medical scandal by the medical establishment upon thyroid patients.</strong></p>
<p>And why has this calamity occurred? Because doctors have always been hoodwinked by their medical school training, continuing education and Big-Pharma-financed-research in believing that <a href="/t4-only-meds-dont-work/">T4-only thyroxine medications</a> like Synthroid, Levoxyl, Levothyroxine, Eltroxin, et. al. were from God Almighty, and the <a href="/tsh-why-its-useless/">TSH lab test</a> was just as holy.</p>
<p>And thanks to thyroid patients around the world who had the gall to use the internet and join patient groups, we figured out it&#8217;s all because those medications and labwork have not worked, and <a href="/things-we-have-learned/">what has worked.</a> Additionally, it was <em>patients</em> who discovered they had <a href="/adrenal-info/">adrenal fatigue</a> and/or low <a href="/ferritin/">ferritin </a>and how to treat it, and <em>patients </em>who have succeeded in beginning a wave of change around the world in the treatment and diagnosis of hypothyroidism (except for the UK, who has gone backwards to the dark ages).</p>
<p><em>You can read Jessica&#8217;s story first reported in the <a href="http://www.pnwlocalnews.com/east_king/iss-s/news/45722467.html">Sammamish Reporter</a>,  and only recently reported to a wider audience in the <a href="http://www.nbcbayarea.com/news/us_world/Teen-Outsmarts-Doctors-In-Sciene-Class.html?yhp=1 ">Bay Area News</a> newspaper. She also spoke to a <a href="http://www.cnn.com/2009/HEALTH/06/11/teen.self.diagnosis/index.html#cnnSTCText">CNN</a> affiliate.</em></p>
<p>Thanks to Kem on NTH for informing me of this news.</p>
<p><strong>P.S. Do ya think that any newspapers or major news outlets like CNN are going to finally get what a huge story thyroid patients have given them?? We&#8217;re still waiting&#8230;&#8230;</strong></p>
<p><em>*Want to be informed of Janie&#8217;s blog posts? Curious what&#8217;s on her mind? Just use the Notification link to the bottom left of the links.</em></p>
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		<title>Thyroid Tidbit: Desiccated thyroid in Denmark, Germany &amp; Italy!</title>
		<link>http://www.stopthethyroidmadness.com/2009/05/20/thyroid-tidbit-desiccated-thyroid-in-denmark-germany-italy/</link>
		<comments>http://www.stopthethyroidmadness.com/2009/05/20/thyroid-tidbit-desiccated-thyroid-in-denmark-germany-italy/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Wed, 20 May 2009 16:16:41 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Janie</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Armour]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Around the world]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[desiccated thyroid]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[denmark]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[germany]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[hypothyroid]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[hypothyroidism]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[italy]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[stop the thyroid madness]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[sttm]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[T4-only]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[thyroid patients]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.stopthethyroidmadness.com/?p=2230</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[STTM&#8217;s Armour-vs-other-brands page now has information on desiccated thyroid in Denmark, Germany and Italy: www.stopthethyroidmadness.com/armour-vs-other-brands Thanks go to Julia Hendryx for alerting me about the brand in Denmark! 
If I need to add more info or corrections, please use the Contact Me form at the bottom of any page on Stop the Thyroid Madness.
THIS PATIENT [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p><img class="alignnone size-full wp-image-2234" title="dancingpeople" src="http://www.stopthethyroidmadness.com/wp/../images/dancingpeople.jpg" alt="dancingpeople" width="150" height="115" />STTM&#8217;s Armour-vs-other-brands page now has information on desiccated thyroid in Denmark, Germany and Italy: <a href="http://www.stopthethyroidmadness.com/armour-vs-other-brands">www.stopthethyroidmadness.com/armour-vs-other-brands</a><strong> Thanks go to Julia Hendryx for alerting me about the brand in Denmark! </strong></p>
<p>If I need to add more info or corrections, please use the Contact Me form at the bottom of any page on Stop the Thyroid Madness.</p>
<p><strong>THIS PATIENT REVOLUTION for a better hypothyroid treatment is working! Desiccated thyroid brands which were almost extinct from low use are now seeing a comeback. Another comeback?? PATIENT HEALTH!!</strong> <strong><em>T4-only meds do NOT work, unless an elevator which only goes to the 5th floor of a 50 story building&#8230;.works.</em> My quote; my words.<br />
</strong></p>
<p>p.s. See the post below about the importance of your <strong>potassium levels</strong>, and below that, how being hypothyroid can affect your <strong>liver</strong>, and my opinion of that fact with T4 meds vs. desiccated thyroid, which one comment disagrees with.  For the May 7th post, comments are still coming in about the <strong>&#8220;New&#8221; Armour</strong>. Express yours, and let&#8217;s hope that just raising it will do the trick, in spite of the loss of being able to do it sublingually as easy as before&#8211;a sad loss.</p>
<p><em>*Want to be informed of my blog posts? Curious what&#8217;s on my mind? Use the Notifications on the bottom left of the links. </em></p>
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		<title>Another reason to shun T4 meds&#8212;your liver</title>
		<link>http://www.stopthethyroidmadness.com/2009/05/09/your-liver/</link>
		<comments>http://www.stopthethyroidmadness.com/2009/05/09/your-liver/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Sat, 09 May 2009 23:51:44 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Janie</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[doctor]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[eltroxin]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[fatty liver]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[hepatocellular carcinoma]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[hypothhyroidism]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[hypothyroid]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[leothyroxine]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[levoxyl]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[liver]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[liver cancer]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[liver disease]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[nonalcoholic steatohepatitis]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[smoking]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[steatohepatitis]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[synthroid]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[t4]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[T4-only]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[thyroid disorder]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[thyroid disorders]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[toxins]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[tsh]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[tsh lab test]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.stopthethyroidmadness.com/?p=2125</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[
I&#8217;ve been noticing several articles coming out the past week about a strong association between hypothyroidism and a twice the risk of liver disease and liver cancer, especially in females. And then it dawned on me: another strong reason to play basketball with your trashcan using your lousy Synthroid, Levoxyl, Levothroxine or Eltroxin bottles while [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p><img class="alignnone size-full wp-image-2140" title="liver6" src="http://www.stopthethyroidmadness.com/wp/../images/liver6.jpg" alt="liver6" width="123" height="125" /></p>
<p>I&#8217;ve been noticing several articles coming out the past week about a strong association between hypothyroidism and a twice the risk of liver disease and liver cancer, especially in females. And then it dawned on me: <em>another strong reason to play basketball with your trashcan using your lousy Synthroid, Levoxyl, Levothroxine or Eltroxin bottles </em>while being replaced with <a href="/natural-thyroid-101/">desiccated thyroid</a>. <em><br />
</em></p>
<p><strong>In other words, continued hypothyroidism (being on the <a href="/t4-only-meds-dont-work/">lousy T4 meds</a>) and undiagnosed hypothyroidism (because of the inadequacy of the <a href="/tsh-why-its-useless/">TSH lab test</a>) can potentially promote the development of <em>nonalcoholic steatohepatitis, </em>a more severe Fatty Liver disease.<em> </em>The next progression is liver cancer, aka hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC).</strong></p>
<p>Even worse, the study revealed that women who had been hypothyroid for more than 10 years had a <em>threefold higher risk of liver cancer compared to women without a history of thyroid disorders.</em> This will make you pause when you consider how many reports there are of patients having hypothyroid symptoms for YEARS with a normal TSH&#8230;and a clueless, TSH-worshipping doctor.</p>
<p><strong>And if reading this bores you, understand that your liver is a HIGHLY important gland that you can&#8217;t live without. It plays a key role in detoxifying the toxins you ingest and breath in daily (including smoking), besides being a major fat burner.  Make the liver diseased, and you become a breeding ground for toxins, the rise of other diseases&#8230;then death.</strong></p>
<p>The solution?<strong> </strong>Run from TSH-kissing doctors, get on desiccated thyroid like Naturethroid et. al.  and avoid the most <a href="/mistakes-patients-make/">common mistakes </a>of dosing while ceasing to smoke, curtailing the alcohol, and eating healthy (except for the daily dose of chocolate I gotta have. haha). <strong><br />
</strong></p>
<p>P.S. The original report came out in the May journal issue of <a href="http://www3.interscience.wiley.com/journal/106570044/home?CRETRY=1&amp;SRETRY=0" target="_blank">Hepatology</a> (published by John Wiley &amp; Sons on behalf of the American Association for the Study of Liver Diseases).  Similar results were also reported in the Journal of Gastroenterology and Hepatology 2005.</p>
<p><em>Want to be informed about my blog posts? Curious what I&#8217;m ranting about? Just use the Notifications on the left at the bottom of the links. </em></p>
<p>See below about my disappointment in Forest Pharmaceuticals. <img src='http://www.stopthethyroidmadness.com/wp/wp-includes/images/smilies/icon_sad.gif' alt=':(' class='wp-smiley' /> </p>
]]></content:encoded>
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		<slash:comments>5</slash:comments>
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		<title>Multiple sclerosis, Dysautonomia, you name it&#8230;ALL made worse from hypothyroidism or being on a T4 med</title>
		<link>http://www.stopthethyroidmadness.com/2009/04/14/multiple-sclerosis-dysautonomia-you-name-itall-made-worse-from-hypothyroidism-or-being-on-a-t4-med/</link>
		<comments>http://www.stopthethyroidmadness.com/2009/04/14/multiple-sclerosis-dysautonomia-you-name-itall-made-worse-from-hypothyroidism-or-being-on-a-t4-med/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Tue, 14 Apr 2009 22:27:30 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Janie</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Armour]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Health Care]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Patients]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Related conditions due to hypo]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Thyroid treatment]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[autonomic nervous system]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[autonomic reactions]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[borderline hypo]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[borderline hypothyroid]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[borderline hypothyroidism]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[conditions]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[desiccated thyroid]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[diseases]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[dysautonomia]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[eltroxin]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[exercise]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[hypothyroid]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[hypothyroidism]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[levothyroxine]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[levoyxl]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[medication]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[ms]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[multiple sclerosis]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[nightmare]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[social security disability]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[stop the thyroid madness]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[stress]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[synthroid]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[T4-only]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[thyroid]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[thyroid disease]]></category>
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		<category><![CDATA[walker]]></category>
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		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.stopthethyroidmadness.com/?p=1931</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[ Before my thyroid disease of hypothyroidism was discovered, I had horrific and debilitating consequences from exercise or any activity.  You can read about it all here or even more detail in the Introduction of the patients-to-patients Stop the Thyroid Madness book.
When my so-called &#8220;borderline hypothyroid&#8221; was discovered by age 30, I thought whoo-hooo, I&#8217;ll [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p><img class="alignleft size-full wp-image-1939" title="waterripples" src="http://www.stopthethyroidmadness.com/wp/../images/waterripples.jpg" alt="waterripples" width="140" height="50" /> Before my thyroid disease of hypothyroidism was discovered, I had <em>horrific</em> and <em>debilitating </em>consequences from exercise or any activity.  You can read about it all <a href="/my-story/">here</a> or even more detail in the Introduction of the patients-to-patients Stop the Thyroid Madness <a href="/book/">book</a>.</p>
<p>When my so-called &#8220;borderline hypothyroid&#8221; was discovered by age 30, I thought whoo-hooo, I&#8217;ll finally get rid of this strange nightmare whenever I tried to do ANYTHING.  I was put on Synthroid and my anticipation for a better life was profound.</p>
<p>But my hope was dashed. Not only did my body continue to overreact to activity, it got worse over time.  Horribly worse.  Nearly twenty years after I had started on a T4-only medication, and was told by one doctor after another that my problem was not my thyroid, I was going to apply for social security disability.</p>
<p>But they were all dead wrong. Sure, turns out I have a form of Dysautonomia, a malfunction and overreaction of my autonomic nervous system, causing my body to far overreact to stress. But remaining hypothyroid, as we all do on the sucky t4-only medications, had made it far worse. And I proved it. When I switched to Armour desiccated thyroid in 2002 and raised it according to what <a href="/things-we-have-learned/">patients have learned</a>, a miracle occurred.  My severe autonomic reactions made an almost <em>complete </em>turnaround.</p>
<p><strong>And my experience of change or improvement when it comes to other diseases or conditions has been shared by others.</strong></p>
<p>Last week, I received an email from a man whose brother has MS&#8211;Multiple Sclerosis.  And though Armour has not taken his MS away, it allowed him to move from this wheelchair to a walker! That is impressive.</p>
<p>So I am left wondering:  what other conditions or diseases, which are unique in themselves, are worsened being undiagnosed thanks to the lousy TSH lab test or the inadequate treatment of Synthroid, Levoxyl, levothyroxine, Eltroxin and all other T4-only medications? It&#8217;s awful to think about it.</p>
<p><em>Want to be informed of my blog posts? Curious what&#8217;s on my nind? Just use the Notification on the bottom of the links to the left. </em></p>
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