thyroid tags

Armour desiccated thyroid by Forest Pharmaceuticals used to be easy to do sublingually, even if the official line was they didn’t make it that way.

And patients liked that sublingual ability with Armour.  It allowed them to work around the problem of swallowing desiccated thyroid several hours from having swallowed iron, estrogen or calcium–all which can bind some of the thyroid hormones in your stomach.

It also helped those with digestive issues, gluten intolerance or Celiac (a common problem for some hypothyroid patients) by bypassing the stomach.

But with the newly formulated Armour in 2009, it became difficult. The pill is harder with less dextrose and more cellulose.  It now fell into the ranks of all other desiccated thyroid pills, including Naturethroid and other good brands, as a more dense tablet.

But no matter what brand you use (especially the growing group of patients who are having their doctors switch them to Naturethroid), below are tips from patients on how to continue doing your desiccated thyroid sublingually. Let your doc know, too.

1) Try adding a touch of the contents of a Pixie Stix under your tongue. It’s flavored sugar in a straw, and the sugar seems to help the tablet dissolve sublingually through tissues under the tongue.

2) If you are using sublingual B12 lonzenges to treat low B12, try adding it under the tongue with your desiccated thyroid. The action of the sublingual lozenge seems to move over to the thyroid tablet.

3) Swish warm water in your mouth before you place the tablet under your tongue.

4) Crunch up the desiccated thyroid tablet before any of the above and before placing it all under your tongue.

Also note that you can swallow your desiccated thyroid. You’ll just have to make sure you don’t also have a stomach full of iron rich foods or calcium, or estrogen. Generally, it’s best to take your tablet 4 hours from any of the former. P.S. See comments below on the newly formulated Armour, and farther down, a post on Naturethroid.

*Have more sublingual ideas or experiences? Share it in the Comments section.

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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’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 just knew that wasn’t correct.

So she took some of her own intestinal tissue to her Biomedical Problems class, and voila…she diagnosed her own problem:  granuloma, and specifically, Crohn’s disease, an inflammation of her intestines.

Sound familiar??

Yup, thyroid patients have had to do the exact same thing–self-diagnose– for almost ten years because of continuing symptoms of hypothyroidism which doctors have routinely dismissed, pooh-poohed or blamed on something else.  It’s all been a horrific, wide-reaching and damaging 50 year medical scandal by the medical establishment upon thyroid patients.

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 T4-only thyroxine medications like Synthroid, Levoxyl, Levothyroxine, Eltroxin, et. al. were from God Almighty, and the TSH lab test was just as holy.

And thanks to thyroid patients around the world who had the gall to use the internet and join patient groups, we figured out it’s all because those medications and labwork have not worked, and what has worked. Additionally, it was patients who discovered they had adrenal fatigue and/or low ferritin and how to treat it, and patients 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).

You can read Jessica’s story first reported in the Sammamish Reporter,  and only recently reported to a wider audience in the Bay Area News newspaper. She also spoke to a CNN affiliate.

Thanks to Kem on NTH for informing me of this news.

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’re still waiting……

*Want to be informed of Janie’s blog posts? Curious what’s on her mind? Just use the Notification link to the bottom left of the links.

Funny how things work.

I had been wondering what the heck was going on with thyroid patients in the UK after the Royal College of Physicians (RCP) came out with their dim-witted, cuckoo’s- nest February 6th guideline stating that 1) thyroxine was the only medication needed for hypothyroidism, 2) “natural” medications were dangerous and 3) the only labs needed are the TSH and T4.

Equally a part of this B-grade horror movie is the three-stooges stand taken by the British Thyroid Association (BTA).

And UK-TPA thyroid patient advocate Sheila Turner began to go through her own hell when her Armour was taken away, which you can read about in the February 20th blog post here.

And suddenly, I get an email from Sheila, informing me that the RCP is as stupid as they were three months ago.

Sheila states: This is absolutely unbelievable that out of the hundreds of references we sent to the Royal College of Physicians to show their guideline to be flawed, they have taken no account of one single one of them. They are publishing their previous guidance without one since change. The world has gone mad.

Dear Sheila,

Further to my email of 6 April, the comments and materials received by the College have been reviewed. This position statement or guidance (not a guideline) was produced on behalf of the Royal College of Physicians, in particular its Patient and Carer Network and the Joint Specialty Committee for Endocrinology and Diabetes; the Association for Clinical Biochemistry; the Society for Endocrinology; the British Thyroid Association; the British Thyroid Foundation Patient Support Group and the British Society of Paediatric Endocrinology and Diabetes and is endorsed by The Royal College of General Practitioners.

The President has asked me to let you know that this review has not resulted in any changes to that statement.  It should be noted that it is about the treatment of primary hypothyroidism and does not preclude other treatments for exceptional cases by specialist endocrinologists who can make clear to patients any associated risks.

References supporting the statement are listed below.

Yours sincerely,

Catharine Perry
Administrator

•   Diagnosis and treatment of primary hypothyroidism. BMJ 2009;338:b725
•   Vaidya B, Pearce S. A Clinical Review of the management of hypothyroidism in adults. BMJ 2008;337:a801. This contains references for 35 articles and states that Armour thyroid is of no proved additional benefit to levothyroxine.
• The Lancet Volume 363, Issue 9411, Pages 793 - 803, 6 March 2004.  This covers the history, epidemiology, pathophysiology, and clinical diagnosis and management of hypothyroidism and is written by Caroline GP Roberts and Paul Ladenson of Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, USA.  This review, which references 164 clinical articles, states that the treatment of choice for hypothyroidism is levothyroxine sodium (thyroxine) and does not refer to Armour thyroid.
•  Baloch Z, Carayon P, Conte-Devolx B, et al. Laboratory medicine practice guidelines. Laboratory support for the diagnosis and monitoring of thyroid disease.Thyroid 2003;13:3-126.
•  Association of Clinical Biochemists BTA, British Thyroid Foundation. UK Guidelines for the use of thyroid function tests. http://acb.org.uk/docs/tftguidelinefinal.pdf
•  Surks MI. Ortiz E, Daniels GH, et al. Subclinical thyroid disease: scientific review and guidelines for diagnosis and management. 2004;291:228-238.

And as your peruse the six references above which they use to defend their tunnel-visioned, moronic position, you realize that YOU, YOUR WORDS, AND YOUR POSITIVE-OUTCOME EXPERIENCE ON DESICCATED THYROID IS ABOUT AS IMPORTANT TO MOST PHYSICIANS & ORGANIZATIONS IN THE UK AS IS DIRT ON THE BOTTOM OF A RUSTED BUCKET IN THE MIDDLE OF A EMPTY FIELD IN NOWHERE. Yup.

Or as Harold Shipman stated about the RCP’s guidelines: What a brilliant wheeze.

*See below on the potential importance of potassium in your health and well-being. And on the May 7th post about the party being over with Forest Pharmaceuticals, comments continue to come in about experiences with the “new” Armour. Have you read the STTM book? Patients are stating they like it even better than this HUGE website. lol.

*Want to be informed of my blog posts? Curious what’s on my mind? Use the Notification on the lower left of the links.

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 “borderline hypothyroid” was discovered by age 30, I thought whoo-hooo, I’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.

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.

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 patients have learned, a miracle occurred.  My severe autonomic reactions made an almost complete turnaround.

And my experience of change or improvement when it comes to other diseases or conditions has been shared by others.

Last week, I received an email from a man whose brother has MS–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.

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’s awful to think about it.

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Ever heard of perchlorate?? It’s a salt taken from perchloric acid, and it’s used in rocket fuel and explosives.  It was also once used in a medication to treat hyperthyroidism.

And guess where residues of it are hiding? In our drinking water and in infant formula. (EPA map shows where perchlorate is manufactured just in the US—nearly every state)

In a recent article by the Environmental Working Group,  it’s estimated that 15 brands of infant formula are contaminated with it, and two of the most contaminated brands of those 15 made up 87% of powdered formula used in 2000…all according to the CDC (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention).

As bad as that is, this goes beyond infant formula. It’s estimated that the drinking water of 28 states is contaminated by perchlorate, and other estimates are 35.  In addition,  the majority of women who breastfeed have it in their milk.  And you can find it in water-rich foods such as tomatoes and melons, or carrots and spinach.  It could even be found in milk.  Ouch.

So we not only have millions of US babies being exposed to a toxin which can diminish thyroid health, but adults who can be drinking their water and eating their food.

But guess what can counter the toxic effect of perchlorate? Iodine supplementation, if you take enough. In spite of some controversy with the use of iodine supplementation, this gives one pause in favor of it.

Luckily for all of us who know that desiccated thyroid like Armour is a better thyroid treatment, it also contains iodine. And some go beyond that, adding iodine to their supplements via Lugols or Iodoral.  It might be worth looking into.

P.S. The buck doesn’t stop with perchlorates in our water. We could also be exposed to a variety of pesticides, chemicals from deposed prescription drugs, and even mercury in our water.  Sad.  Our poor thyroids are assaulted.

The British Medical Journal (BMJ) recently came out with yet another thyroid article, benignly titled Diagnosis and treatment of primary hypothyroidism and authored by the British Thyroid Association (BTA),  that at first blush, looks so caring.

Namely, they express deep concern that that since hypothyroid symptoms can mimic other conditions, patients may be getting an incorrect diagnosis which could expose some patients to the harmful effects of excess thyroid hormones, while other serious conditions may go undiagnosed.

And they add: In other patients, adequate replacement with levothyroxine does not resolve symptoms, which are attributed to hypothyroidism rather than other conditions that may coexist, such as depression.

The article continues with:  Normalisation of thyroid stimulating hormone means a return to normal health in most patients with primary hypothyroidism.

In other words, what you have above are the Three Stooges of the stated beliefs of the British Thyroid Association.

Stooge stated-belief #1: “Incorrect diagnosis allow other conditions go undiagnosed” What is inferred is that there are a host of diagnoses of hypothyroidism that are incorrect. Why? Because a wise physician dared to listen to clear symptoms of hypothyroidism or use the free T3, in spite of a so-called “normal” TSH–a lab test which measures a pituitary hormone, not the cells ability to receive enough thyroid hormones.

Stooge stated-belief #2: “If adequate doses of levothyroxine do not resolve symptoms, those symptoms are due to something else.” That is akin to saying if eating 100 calories a day results in malnutrition and starvation, your malnutrition and starvation is due to something else. And one particular symptom they are referring to is depression–a classic symptom of undiagnosed and undertreated hypothyroidism in MILLIONS of individuals around the world.  And isn’t it just odd how that depression resolves itself when the patient is put on Armour and allowed to dose by the elimination of symptoms.

Stooge stated-belief #3: “A normal TSH lab result equals normal health in those treated for hypothyroidism”. Gee, funny how millions of thyroid patients around the world have had a so-called “normal” TSH lab result along with a diverse blend of continuing and CLEAR hypothyroid symptoms.  Additionally, we have a large and growing body of patients who, when they switched to Armour desiccated thyroid or other fine desiccated thyroid prescription meds,  had those symptoms resolved when they were dosed according to the free T3, improved blood pressure, strong heart beat, lowered cholesterol, and complete elimination of symptoms. Patients have learned what works!

When you understand the British Thyroid Association’s hell-bent and rigid stands against Armour desiccated thyroid, their promotion of one of the worst labs ever created to diagnose and dose by, their love affair with the most inadequate thyroid medication ever thrust onto the market by money-grubbing pharmaceuticals (levothyroxine), and their complete failure to listen to patients and recognize continuing symptoms of hypothyroidism while on synthetic T4, you come to realize how meaningful any article on hypothyroidism will be by the British Thyroid Association.

P.S.  Do ya wonder if the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) has the smarts to report the other side of the story??

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Just two months ago on January 15th, I wrote an article titled Ten Reasons You May Still Feel Bad.  Nearly every hypothyroid patient can have some of those ten problems, and if so, they need to be discovered and corrected.

And one of those issues was low B12. B12 is a vitamin which has a key role in cell metabolism of your entire body, giving you energy, sharpness in your brain, and healthy nervous system functioning.

And unfortunately, a certain percentage of hypothyroid patients have low levels of this important vitamin, largely due to digestive issues common with hypothyroidism– either undiagnosed due to the lousy TSH lab test, or undertreated on T4 meds like Synthroid, Levoxyl, Levothyroxine, Eltroxin, etc.

Symptoms of low B12 can vary from person to person, but can include numbness and tingling in your hands or feet,  tremors, poor reflexes, tongue soreness, leg pain, or difficulty walking with balance.   Psychologically, you may have memory issues, confusion, or depression. Young women may have difficulty getting pregnant due to low B12.

When doing lab work, you want a result in the upper end of the range.  To correct inadequate levels of B12, you’ll want to use high oral B12 (methylcobalamin is the recommended form of B12), B12 cream, or injections by your doctor (especially if you have pernicious anemia) .  It’s also recommended to increase your consumption of meat and dairy products, which can be rich in B12.

March 27, 2009 is the kick-off date to begin an awareness campaign of B12 health, with September 23rd being “Vitamin B12 Awareness Day”. And I highly recommend the book Could It Be B12? An Epidemic of Misdiagnoses by Sally Pacholok, R.N. and Jeffrey Stuart, D.O., who are spearheading this awareness.

Have you found yourself with low B12? Tell us your symptoms, how you treated it, and how long it took to stop the symptoms.

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Now being announced on the Forest Pharm hotline at 866-927-3260, the following strengths of Armour are now completely available again:

1) 15 mg. (1/4 grain)
2) 30 mg. (1/2 grain)
3) 60 mg. (one grain)
4) 120 mg. (2 grains)
5) 180 mg. (3 grains)
6) 240 mg. (4 grains)
7) 300 mg. (5 grains)

Yessiree, the above represent the different size and strength tablets of natural desiccated thyroid via the Armour brand, most of which had been unavailable for quite awhile. The 90 mgs is still on backorder.

Rejoice!

P.S. And we thank RLC Labs for their continued availability of Naturethroid and Westhroid, plus Sriprasit Pharma Co., Ltd. in Thailand for their Thyroid-S.   Because no matter how hard any pharmaceutical company, Endocrinologist, certain hospitals,  or group of physicians (see below) tries to sing the praises of T4 treatment with Synthroid, Levoxyl, Levothyroxine, Eltroxin, Norton for thyroid disorders or hypothyroid….WE KNOW BETTER.

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When I work up this morning and later got on my computer, I read an email which informed me that Dr.  Jeffrey Dach had reviewed the Stop the Thyroid Madness book in a surprise article which came out today: www.opednews.com/articles/A-Review-of-Stop-the-Thyro-by-Jeffrey-Dach-090218-801.html

Yes, I write on the same site, yet had no idea he was going to do this…

You can also see my response to his review, on his blog, here: http://jeffreydach.com/2009/02/06/stop-the-thyroid-madness-by-jamie-bowthorpe.aspx#Comment

Humble thanks, Dr. Dach.  With the shared experiences of thousands of hypothyroid patients around the world, I climbed a steep mountain to get that book out–a labor of love and the firm commitment to educate patients because of a medical community which has been keeping us sick.  Stop the Thyroid Madness!

The recent press release by the UK’s Royal College of Physicians about the new guidelines on the diagnosis and management of primary hypothyroidism hit the web with a resounding, stiff-necked thud.

And I have written about it in the news media here:  http://www.opednews.com/articles/The-Royal-College-of-Physi-by-Janie-Bowthorpe-090210-698.html

p.s.  In the 1600’s, Galileo was the first most prolific voice to proclaim that the earth revolved around the sun (Armour), in contrast to the firmly held position that the sun revolved around the earth (Thyroxine).  He was denounced as being dangerous and heretical. But over time, the truth won out.

Are you from the UK? Tell us what you think.

In honor of 2009,  a year we hope to see bold changes in the medical system, Stop the Thyroid Madness presents the Fifteen Most Annoying Phrases From the Mouths of Doctors. (Note that the word “Armour” has been used for simplicity sake; any prescription-grade desiccated thyroid product can be inserted there.)

Here’s raising our New Year’s stemmed glasses to change!

15) I’ll see you in eight weeks.
14) Here’s a script for [insert any non-thyroid medication to bandaid continuing hypo symptom]
13) The free T3 lab test is not necessary.
12) Your symptoms do not warrant a thyroid medication.
11) You’re tired because you are [insert any label like "a mother" "menopausal", etc]
10) That has nothing to do with your thyroid.
9) I can find nothing wrong with you.
8 ) You need to eat less and exercise more.
7) Your TSH is too low.
6) The TSH test is [insert any positive description, like "a reliable marker" or "sensitive measure"]
5) I do not believe in Armour.
4) Armour is [insert any negative adjective/description like "unstable" or "hard to regulate"]
3) You’re depressed.
2) You are hyper.

….and tah-dah, the #1 most annoying phrase that comes out of the mouth of a doctor:

1) You are normal.

Just as I was finishing up the post below about a short summary on the Endocrinology Today website, I saw a link at the bottom of the page that interested me.  It took me to a blog post on the same site from December 10th titled “Why can’t it be my thyroid?”.

And a slew of thyroid patients around the world, as well as a growing body of doctors,  would completely disagree with this post.

Namely, a DO explains the problem of patients arriving in doctors offices with “innumerable possible symptoms of hypothyroidism” including “fatigue, cold intolerance, decreased energy, weight gain, depression, hair loss, low libido, menstrual irregularity and others.”

Yet, he bemoans, these patients have a “normal TSH” which is “well within the normal laboratory reference range.” He also refers to their normal free T3 and free T4, and states there is no history to suggest pituitary dysfunction or that the TSH is unreliable.”

He then proceeds to pat himself on the back because he 1) will treat some patients with a high-normal TSH and other clinical features,  2) he will treat to a low-normal TSH of less than 2.0, but like the good-boy-doctor, “still within the normal laboratory reference range” and 3) he will not induce iatrogenic hyperthyroidism, even if symptoms persist. (yikes)

“Iatrogenic hyperthyroidism”??  Since “iatrogenesis” refers to harmful medical procedures, he’s probably referring to a TSH below the range, which in his mind, equates to hyperthyroidism.

***Then comes the observation that has made many thyroid patients shiver, since so many doctors have said it: because he feels that adding T3 to T4 has more negative results than positive, he explains to his patients “that there may be causes of their symptoms besides the thyroid.”

THUD.

So here is my 6-point response to any doctor who might share these beliefs:

1) There’s hardly a thyroid patient around who hasn’t had a so-called “normal” TSH in spite of clear and obvious hypothyroidism.  The TSH lab test frequently lags behind what is reality in the body, and has been doing so since it’s creation in the early 1970’s (see Chapter 4 in the Stop the Thyroid Madness book for history).

2) Having a “normal” free T3 and free T4 means nothing. It’s “where” the result falls in that range that means something. i.e. patients all around the world are noticing that having a free T3 mid-range or lower in the presence of hypothyroid symptoms is usually a BINGO lab result pointing to hypothyroidism.

3) Exactly because doctors tend to dismiss clear hypothyroid symptoms as “something else” thanks to a lousy TSH reference range, a burgeoning number of thyroid patients are falling into adrenal fatigue with its low cortisol, which serves to mess them up even more.

4) A huge body of thyroid patients who are on desiccated thyroid hormones (aka Armour, Naturethroid, etc), and who finally have a complete removal of symptoms with a normal temperature and heartrate, also have a suppressed TSH lab result, and not one iota of “iatrogenic hyperthyroidism.”

5) When it appears that adding T3 to T4 is having negative effects, the problem is most likely adrenal fatigue that needs correction, and/or low ferritin, NOT deciding that the symptoms must be from another cause or T3 doesn’t work.

6) “Fatigue, cold intolerance, decreased energy, weight gain, depression, hair loss, low libido, menstrual irregularity and others” may be shared in other conditions, but you are most likely missing CLEAR symptoms of hypothyroidism, both in the undiagnosed patient with a so-called normal TSH, or with a patient treated with the lousy thyroxine, which leaves most everyone with continuing hypothyroid symptoms.

“I’m sorry. It IS your thyroid” is exactly what patients need to hear.

In the magazine India Today, it’s estimated that there are at least forty million individuals with thyroid disease, according to Dr. Ganapathi Bantwal, faculty member of the Indian Thyroid Society (ITS) and Professor and Head of Department of Endocrinology, St John’s Medical College, Bangalore.

He adds that most are women, and most hypothyroidism is occurring after the birth of a baby, called postpartum hypothyroidism.

The Indian Thyroid Society wants to observe January 2009 as Think Thyroid Month with experts calling  thyroid related disorders as the next diabetes to affect the nearly forty million Indians.

A side note from Janie: Sadly, when you visit the website of the Indian Thyroid Society (which by the way was created by the Department of Endocrinology at Amrita Institute of Medical Sciences in India), there is a flashing ad on most pages for thyroxine called Thyronorm. And guess who makes “Thyronorm”? Abbott Labs in India, the same pharmaceutical in the US which produces Synthroid.  Anyone hear the theme song from Twilight Zone playing in the background??

SECOND UPDATE as of Dec. 10th: WHOOPI GOLDBERG has it RIGHT! Today on The View, she stated that Oprah needs to take her thyroid problem SERIOUSLY!! Contact the View about STTM and the seriously correct treatment here.

UPDATE as of Dec. 10: Gail King, Oprah’s best friend, was on the Good Morning America show this morning talking about Oprah’s weight gain and thyroid problem. She also talked about how depressed she looked.  Oprah, a huge and growing body of thyroid patients are all around the world, waiting to tell you what the answer is.  Listen to us.  We have been emailing you for years, and you’re going to see more of those emails. Contact Good Morning America here. (Then contact Oprah below)

Just on the stands, Oprah’s January issue of “O” magazine has an eye-opener: Oprah Winfrey admits that she’s now back up to 200 lbs, a condition that puts her at higher risk of several chronic conditions, including diabetes and heart disease.  She states “When it comes to maintaining my health I didn’t just fall off the wagon. I let the wagon fall on me.”

But what Oprah, a wonderful talk show host and chairman of  Harpo, Inc, doesn’t seem to get is that the “wagon” is probably a “poorly treated” hypothyroid condition, which causes a lower metabolism and easy weight gain.  She even admits in the article that she deals with an out-of-balance thyroid condition which has made her develop a “fear of working out.”

A fear of working out?? Oprah, do you get exhausted from working out? Because there is NOTHING to fear with working out if you are optimally treated with natural desiccated thyroid in the presence of strong adrenals or adequate treatment.

Are you on desiccated thyroid, Oprah?? Are you dosing high enough to remove all symptoms?? Have you learned what patients have learned? And what condition are your adrenals in, Oprah?? Because it’s all too common for thyroid patients to have developed adrenal fatigue from being poorly treated for so long.

And Oprah, when you state that you don’t need to be thin, but do want to be “strong, healthy and fit”…the way to do that is optimally treat your thyroid! We are a large and growing body of patients worldwide who have done just that, and now live “strong, healthy and fit”.

IT IS TIME FOR JANIE TO BE ON YOUR SHOW, OPRAH. (Thyroid patients even have a book you can recommend to others.)

Because in all due respect to your personal trainer Bob Greene and Dr. Mehmet Oz…you have YET gotten someone on your show who can give you GOLD about the right thyroid treatment.  Call me, Oprah.  Email me, Oprah.  I am waiting to tell you how to stop your yo-yo weight problems and fear of working out!  We and I have a LOT to tell you, Oprah, to stop your own personal thyroid madness. Contact Oprah here.

Send a message to Oprah’s best friend, Gayle King, here.  Tell her about desiccated thyroid and YOUR story. Send Gayle to this website so she can understand all this.

Oh jolly.

Diane, a thyroid and adrenal patient, informed me of a recent visit to a local Endocrinologist.  The doc stated that she was on a committee that is working with the FDA to do away with saliva testing, strongly proposing that it’s not accurate testing and is “harming” people.

Well, let’s see. For a couple of years now, thyroid patients who strongly suspect they have adrenal fatigue by the reactions they have to desiccated thyroid have been using saliva testing…and lo and behold,  the results they receive nearly completely conform with how they feel! i.e. saliva testing, which tests one’s cortisol levels at four key times during a 24 hour period,  has worked beautifully in helping thyroid patients with adrenal fatigue identify their problem, in helping these patients doctors have a better understanding of their problem, and knowing better what might be their best treatment, which can range from using licorice root, to over-the-counter adrenal support, to hydrocortisone (HC).

Harmful?? Give me a break. (And why are we not surprised this is coming out of the mouth of an Endocrinologist.)

Could it be that medical school trained doctors just hate and despise any method which a patient might benefit from WITHOUT going to the doctor and paying big bucks??  hmmmm.  And once again, could it be that a method NOT taught in medical school just MIGHT be a good one (just as desiccated thyroid like Armour, Naturethroid, etc. is far, far better than Synthroid or Levoxyl, which ARE taught in medical school)?

The FDA approved saliva testing for AIDS in 2005. They approved saliva testing for ovulation in 2003. They approved saliva testing to detect if a woman is going into premature labor in 1998. And there’s many more they have approved.  So…perhaps this is all a gasp of a committee who hates to see patients have some control over their health (terrible, awful thing, isn’t it?) or the cry of a committee that only reveals its ignorance.

p.s. Dr. Best of San Antonio recently posted the following excellent article on saliva testing: http://besthealthandwellnessinfo.com/hormone-testing-i-spit-on-your-blood-test/

HO! HO! HO! Laughing Grape Publishing will send the STTM book for you to a loved one or friend for the holidays!

A thyroid patient from the UK, and a member of Thyroid UK, reminded me of the ongoing travesty in the UK concerning the TSH lab test. And I thought it was worth revisiting due to its extreme absurdity. Quoting from www.brf-thyroid under FAQ, then Hypothyroidism, then Treatment:

The most sensitive indicator of developing hypothyroidism is a rise in the TSH result. Generally a TSH result of <5 is regarded as biochemically ‘normal’, a result of 5-10 is borderline and a result of >10 (in a patient who is not acutely ill) is regarded as consistent with hypothyroidism. The biochemical results have to be considered along side clinical symptoms, and together they determine the point at which the physician will introduce Thyroxine therapy.

Yikes. 5-10 is only BORDERLINE hypo?? What planet to they live on?? I have come across MANY thyroid patients on internet groups who have had a TSH below 3 with RAGING hypothyroidism, and for YEARS being told they were normal. Never, ever has the TSH been a “sensitive” indicator until it finally rises enough to reveal it….but that can be YEARS in the making, and the patient is now living with adrenal fatigue to further complicate their ongoing hypothyroid condition. The TSH lab test does NOT work.

Then from http://www.british-thyroid-association.org/Guidelines/, and downloading the 2006 final version of the UK guidelines for the Use of Thyroid Function Tests , and reading 3.2.2, comes this:

The decision on treatment of patients with subclinical hypothyroidism should be guided by repeated TSH measurements. When TSH is elevated but <10 mU/L there is no consistent evidence of an association with symptoms, secondary biochemical abnormalities (hyperlipidaemia), cardiac dysfunction or cardiac events.

No consistent evidence of an association with symptoms?? Then what ARE those symptoms that thyroid patients have experienced over and over and over, even with a TSH as low as the 2’s??? And repeated TSH measurements?? There is a huge body of thyroid patients across the world who have had years of a NORMAL TSH yet raging hypothyroid symptoms.

They also add:
There is evidence of improvement in the lipid profile and symptoms when patients with modestly raised TSH (mean 11.7mU/L) were rendered euthyroid with thyroxine

Calling anyone “euthyroid” (normal thyroid-wise) on a T4 med, with an average TSH of 11, is so laughable that it stands on its humorous own.

The Dark Ages persist in the diagnosis and treatment of hypothyroidism. What a shameful, blind-sighted travesty! Are you from the UK and dealing with the backwardness? Talk to us by replying to this blog (and be patient–comments don’t always show up quickly.).

I was informed today that a very popular and well-liked doctor in Texas, who treats many hypothyroid patients, was disciplined recently.  And for what?  Under the column titled NONTHERAPEUTIC PRESCRIBING, it states:  The action was based on Dr. Launius’ prescribing Adipex, Adderal and Armour Thyroid to patients when such medications were not indicated. www.tmb.state.tx.us/news/press/2008/101608a.php

Adipex and Adderol are both central nervous system stimulants, and I can’t comment one way or the other. But the mention of Armour thyroid as “not indicated” is potentially worrisome, especially with similar disciplinary actions brought upon well-liked and wise doctors like Peatfield and Skinner of the UK, Derry of Canada, and  Springer in the US–all who dared to make obvious symptoms more important than ink spots on a piece of paper.

Take Kymm, a 45 year old woman.  She has manifested hypothyroid symptoms for 15 years since the birth of her daughter.  Yet during those entire 15 years, her TSH lab result has been completely “normal”…i.e. hypothyroidism has never been “indicated” based on the typical and widespread gold standard of diagnosis: the TSH.  But she has never, ever been normal with 15 years of easy weight gain, chronic depression, thinning hair, rising cholesterol, and other clear hypothyroid symptoms. And she has in fact started on Armour…and is soaring.

Kymm is not an oddity.  Thyroid patients on internet groups report going years with a normal TSH, no diagnosis, yet clear symptoms which are ignored by their TSH-obsessed doctors.   So their doctors may have avoided disciplinary action, but did they truly practise the art and science of healing??

How many doctors can I strangle with my bare hands?? Grrrrrrrrrrr.

Today, I am once again appalled and saddened by the endless body of thyroid patients who continue to plummet into the abyss of adrenal fatigue, day after day after day. And it just never needs to happen if doctors would simply pay attention and be informed.

Belinda is the perfect example. She didn’t participate in thyroid patient groups anymore, living her life happily, because she thought her post-RAI thyroid treatment was under control, being on 2 grains of Armour for a year. But suddenly, she felt the need to return to her groups and seek feedback. Because she has become more irritable and moody, has a hard time falling asleep, and feels frequently anxietal. Labs are redone, and she finds herself with a slightly over-range free T3 and a very suppressed TSH. Her doctor decides to lower her thyroid meds, which in turn improves her insomnia and anxiety, but weight starts piling on. She’s confused and wonders how she can find her balance between being on too little with unwelcome weight gain and being on too much with uncomfortable anxiety and insomnia.

What Belinda didn’t get, and what her doctor didn’t get, is that Belinda had now joined the dubious camaraderie of those with adrenal fatigue, a needless condition of over-stressed and under-functioning adrenals. As a result, T3 in Armour starts to pool in the blood, causing anxiety, insomnia, and all sorts of low cortisol symptoms. Thyroid patients just like Belinda have to first discover what is going on, then face the complicated balancing act of treating adrenal fatigue AND hypothyroidism. And it’s a path that never needed to happen.

WHAT IS POTENTIALLY TAKING YOU DOWN THE DIRTY-YELLOW BRICK ROAD TO ADRENAL FATIGUE??

1) Being undiagnosed, or being dosed by, the faulty TSH lab test and its dubious “normal” range, which will leave you with lingering hypothyroid symptoms. (Belinda’s 2 grains tells me she was being dosed by the TSH)
2) Being treated by T4-only medications like Synthroid, Levoxyl, Eltroxin, et al, which end up teasing your adrenals to work harder to take up the slack of an inadequate treatment.
3) Lowering your expectations of what “normal” is. No, it’s not normal to have less stamina than others, to be on an anti-depressant to bandaid your hypo depression, to feel colder than others, to require frequent naps, to feel the need to avoid people, to be bothered by lights or noises, to be told by those you love that you are too defensive or over-reactive…and so on.

I hope anyone reading this comes to an understanding that you canNOT enter your doctor’s office as if you are entering the throne of a god. Your doctor, no matter how educated or dedicated, may not have a strong understanding of the role of adrenal function in relationship to bad treatment via T4-only meds or the TSH lab range. You may have to bring this knowledge to your doctor, or find another one who is either learned, or open-minded. Because your chances of having adrenal fatigue are huge if you are on T4, if the TSH is worshipped by your doctor whether on T4 or desiccated thyroid, or if you keep walking into the doctor’s office and hang your own knowledge on the hook outside his or her door.

(See Deborah’s story about ceasing to smoke with adrenal fatigue)

The topic of iodine supplementation for your overall health has been growing the past few years among patients, especially in light that many of us may be low in iodine, or just the fact that iodine has anti-cancer qualities. I became interested in the topic after reading Dr. David Derry’s book Breast Cancer and Iodine. I’ve also seen the testimony of several women with Fibrocystic Breast Disease who saw it disappear once they started iodine supplementation. Impressive!

And since thyroid hormones are primarily composed of iodine, thyroid patients are listening to and questioning the use of iodine supplementation. Yahoo Groups has an excellent iodine group now led by Stephanie, where you can ask questions and decide for yourself. Also, if you google “iodine”, you’ll find much to read.

But thyroid patient Mike Lawson came up with some very interesting facts this week about iodine in desiccated thyroid–just one more reason to consider using Armour, Naturethroid, Westhroid or other desiccated thyroid products! He figured out the below:

T3 = C15H12I3NO4 = molar mass of 650.9776
T4 = C15H11I4NO4 = molar mass of 776.87

So, each grain of Armour has 30.20325 mcg iodine. In other words, each
grain of Armour has 1/5 the RDA of iodine (150 mcg).

Very interesting facts, Mike! Sure, some thyroid patients feel they need more than what desiccated thyroid offers. But it’s a good start when so many individuals feel their own iodine levels are too low, and need help, especially those who have had to deal with thyroid or breast cancer, or have a family history of it.

I received a reply to a post below that I was unable to approve because it mentioned someone by name. And the reply was not particularly friendly, and definitely not accurate. lol. But the reply brought up some good issues, which I have no problem addressing.

Namely, can I agree that there are some people who do well on T4-only treatment such as Synthroid or Levoxyl?? I can…sorta. I have a friend whose husband is one of those seemingly lucky individuals on T4, with no thyroid, who leads a fairly active and happy life. Considering how lousy I did, he amazes me. But I did notice something else about him: he has high and rising cholesterol and is on statins. That’s a classic symptom of a poor treatment and continuing hypothyroid, even if he does have much better energy that I ever did.

And by observing him, and knowing a few others who subjectively feel they do well on T4, I came to the following conclusion: though some may do better than others on T4, I have yet to find anyone on T4 who doesn’t have some kind of side-effect of a poor treatment, whether they are treating it with statins, treating it with antidepressants, or not treating it at all & denying it. Sure, some may do better than others, but the proof is in the pudding if you look deep enough. And, at the very least, I’m just plain suspicious that ANYONE on T4, even doing subjectively well, is going to have symptoms of a poor treatment creep up on them as they age. The body was not designed to live on conversion alone.

Can I agree that some people just canNOT tolerate desiccated thyroid like Armour and need to be on T4? Initially, that may be. The gal that wrote me stated she felt a lot better on T4, and that no matter what she did, she couldn’t tolerate Armour. I believe her. If Armour was that miserable, she should be on T4 for the time being, or even better, a synthetic T4/T3 combination. But I also believe that even if she feels she did everything to a “t” and still couldn’t tolerate it, there was more for her to learn that she didn’t get the first time around when it came to her adrenal fatigue treatment. I see it too many times. And perhaps, over time, it will become more clear.

Do some proponents of desiccated thyroid go overboard in their fervor? I don’t doubt it one bit. We’re human. And we hope you are forgiving. But once you get past however you view are communication shortcoming, do know that our fervor is based on the fact that a huge volume of individuals are having lives changed due to desiccated thyroid (and/or treatment of low ferritin, and/or treatment of adrenal fatigue). And it’s too widespread and global not to have fervor, besides common sense that a treatment that gives us back what our own thyroids would be giving us is just plain remarkable.

So, do know that if you are on T4, and feel well, I’m behind you. It’s your life, not mine, and I believe you. But neither can I stop my belief and too many observations that if you are truly hypothyroid and need treatment, desiccated thyroid is a superior choice, now or later, whether you are lucky enough to have escaped adrenal fatigue, or whether you have a challenging case of adrenal fatigue that can be adequately treated!

Six years ago, when I got involved in thyroid patient advocacy by starting the Natural Thyroid Hormone Users group on Yahoo, I did it because I was amazed and shocked what switching to desiccated natural thyroid did for me! There I was, on the brink of applying for Social Security Disability after YEARS of misery & lack of answers, and simply changing to a different thyroid treatment completely turned my life around. I owe some of that change on what I found out on Mary Shomon’s Thyroid group in early 2002.

And it dawned on me: if desiccated thyroid with its T4, T3, T2, T1 and calcitonin did this for ME, what could it do for others?!I  A group was NEEDED with a direct focus on desiccated natural thyroid.

And over time, as NTH grew and other fine internet patient groups evolved and grew, other patients were just as amazed at what it was doing for them, as well.  This wasn’t coming across at ALL as a treatment only for “some”. It was coming across as a treatment that might just benefit quite a large body on individuals! We also learned by the seat of our collective pants about low ferritin, low cortisol, low B-12, Celiac and gluten intolerance–you name it.

From all the above came the STTM movement: a patient-to-patient compilation of all we have learned–and then the book with even more information.  The STTM movement was created because “internet groups” were NOT enough to get the word out about the efficacy of desiccated thyroid, nor were they enough to change the huge and rigid medical establishment. Change had to come from the bottom up–in other words, educate patients, who in turn can take the new information into their doctor’s offices.

But sadly, with the success of patient information about the amazing results of desiccated thyroid treatment has come veiled criticism and overblown misconceptions within our own ranks. And it’s a sad thing to behold!

Namely, we can now read a September 10th internet blog “conversation” by so-called thyroid patient advocates who imply that it is “dogma and narrow-minded” if anyone dares state there just might be a thyroid treatment which JUST MIGHT BE better for most all thyroid patients. IMAGINE the audacity!! I guess it was just as “dogmatic and narrow-minded” when it was first suggested there were better ways to deal with certain health conditions than bloodletting. I can hear it now: “To deny bloodletting is just boxing people in!” “Offering bloodletting as a choice is helping people expand.”

And contrary to the self-righteous tone, condescending misrepresentations, and veiled criticisms towards certain patient groups, this patient movement is not a one size fits all movement.  Instead, it’s a “one size JUST MIGHT BE a better alternative” than the other available alternatives, and we strongly encourage that each patient consider finding a doctor to help them give it a try.  And, if something about desiccated thyroid isn’t working, we strongly encourage patients to look at particular reasons that can underlie problems.

If you think T4 is working for you, go for it! The same goes for the use of T3 only, or synthetic T4/T3, or certain ratios of T4 and T3.  Choice is a blessing we can all respect.  Just keep an eye out for depression, rising cholesterol, less stamina than others, adrenal issues and/or a myriad of other continuing hypo symptoms that just might creep up on you as you age on these treatments.  Or, consider that we’ve seen many people on these treatments, who, when they switched to desiccated thyroid like Armour, Naturethroid, Westhroid, etc, they reported even better results. (The use of T3-only for high RT3 is a different issue and is where T3-only may be absolutely needed and good. We also respect those who have ethical issues with animal products.)

Finally, I encourage others who consider themselves thyroid patient advocates to TAKE A BIG BREATH and TAKE THE TIME to be in open-minded dialogue with all patients, including me and all of us over here, instead of openly ignoring our existence or deciding what we promote is simply narrow-minded dogma.  You might find that direct communication and kindness is a far better method to help thyroid patients instead of the underhanded veiled bashings and misrepresentations within this recent blog conversation.

To update again if you’re feeling panicky–Armour thyroid, made by Forest Pharmaceuticals, is not discontinued, contrary to what your poorly-informed pharmacist or Synthroid-loving doctor tells you.

What is going on is this: about a year ago, something went wrong in the production of the higher grains, i.e. they didn’t work. Those who had been on Armour awhile and picked up their new prescriptions had their hypothyroid returning!

And when a Pharmaceutical makes a mistake, they have to jump through hoops with the FDA to correct their manufacturing problem, and it takes a lot of TIME to get back to producing their product.

What stopped being produced this year, as a result of the problem, were the 2, 3, 4 and 5 grain tablets (120 mg, 180 mg, 240 mg. and 300 mg). Everyone was now forced to use the smaller amounts, and the increase in demand put a great strain on quantity in your local pharmacies.

Forest now predicts that the larger sizes will return in “late 2008″. So we’ll see. One gal has reported that some of the larger sizes did return to her pharmacy this week, but I’ll need confirmation before saying it’s a fact.

What do you do in the meantime? Call pharmacies to see what they still have, and expect to drive farther to a pharmacy which still has them in stock. Because many still do. If you don’t find any close enough with Armour, you can get your doctor to write out a prescription for Naturethroid or Westhroid, both quality desiccated thyroid products and very available.

To keep up with the latest from Forest about Armour availability, just call 866-927-3260 for a recorded message (which will be a repeat of some of the information you have read right here.)

p.s. Think your doc is open-minded enough to read the STTM book?? You can have the publishing company send one directly to your doctor. Click on the SEND A BOOK TO YOUR DOCTOR.

Look at my blog post below and you’ll see the latest duhhh entry–i.e Endocrinologists finally reported that T3 was an effective treatment in place of T4. Finally!! Of course, patients know that desiccated thyroid is an even BETTER treatment, and that has been underscored by those that tried T3 with their T4 (without having a reverse T3 issue), then switched to desiccated thyroid like Armour, and noted they felt much better. But it’s still an announcement in the right direction.

But we now have another duhhh entry: The Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism has reported that long-term levothyroxine replacement therapy in young adults is associated with cardiovascular abnormalities. Another finally. We as patients have already known that for years! We’ve experienced what Synthroid, Levoxyl and all other T4-only medications have done to our hearts! I watched my own mother have to have an angioplasty because of her long-term use of Synthroid…and we have NO heart disease or problems like this in our family history!

So yes, you will see the announcement that a new page is going to be created here on STTM which will highlight journal entries and medical announcements which only support what patients have been experiencing and trying to tell their doctors for a longgggg time. lol. And your contributions to this new page will be welcomed.

********************

The new page is here: www.stopthethyroidmadness.com/medical-research Check this page often, either to send me new research which supports what we already know, or to find meat to give your rigid doctor.

***You can order the STTM book here, which is a complete patient-to-patient book on far better thyroid treatment. It’s YOUR book!

Shock and amazement.

At the 90th annual meeting of the Endocrine Society, it was announced that T3 can be an effective substitute for T4. And…the target TSH was .5 - 1.5.

DUHHHHHHH.

But it’s GOOD news.

OK, so…

1) it’s light years behind what patients had already figured out for a longgggg time
2) it’s not as effective as being on desiccated thyroid (which has exactly what your thyroid would be giving you: T4, T3, T2, T1 and calcitonin)
3) the TSH needs be even LOWER when you are adequately treated.
4) NO THYROID TREATMENT SHOULD BE BY THE LOUSY TSH AT ALL….

….but it’s a GOOD STEP in the right direction!!

http://www.endocrinetoday.com/view.aspx?rid=28931

p.s. Maybe if some of those Endo’s would open their minds to what PATIENTS HAVE LEARNED on this site and the book, they might finally make the next great step!! TAKE THIS INFORMATION INTO YOUR DOCTOR’S OFFICE!! It’s the power YOU have to change this mess!

It would make an incredible horror movie. The plot: stunningly convince at least hundreds of millions of individuals worldwide that what has always been obvious, isn’t. That leaves only look green because of alien filters in your eyes. That ripe apples fall because water pulls them down. That fire doesn’t really burn your skin; it’s just your imagination.

And about hundred more schizophrenic ying yangs. Because if those in authority say so, it must be so.

But the horror movie is a reality, and I see it EVERY TIME I come into contact with people and the subject of my thyroid advocacy comes up.

Like today. A couple saw my book and struck up a conversation. She was on Synthroid; he was on Levoxyl. They had each been on their T4-only treatment for 12 and 14 years respectively, felt their hypo was perfectly treated, believed their doctors…and were now dealing with other problems: his rising cholesterol, her depression, his fatigue, and her weight gain. BUT OF COURSE, THOSE HAVE NOTHING TO DO WITH THEIR T4-ONLY TREATED HYPOTHYROID AND SOME OF IT IS THEIR OWN FAULT…leaves aren’t really green, water makes ripe apples fall, and fire doesn’t really burn.

It just struck me. And it’s struck me before. There’s just a LOT of SILENT SUCKERS walking around. I was one; my mother was one; and there are obviously millions out there, still walking around trying to live with the side effects of a treatment that their doctors say are NOT caused by their thyroid.

Sad.

(Has your cholesterol and other lipids improved since you switched to Armour and raised without using the TSH? Your story of success is welcome on the blog post below!)

I was lucky.

My cholesterol hadn’t started to raise yet when I was on Synthroid and later Levoxy. But it was going to, because nearly everyone on a T4-only medication has a climbing cholesterol number, sooner or later, along with heart problems and/or elevated CRP. And what do their doctors do next? Put them on statins with all the lovely side effects: muscle aches & pains, memory loss, and peripheral neuropathy. (See the Yahoo Stopped My Statins group here.)

My mother is the classic example. We have absolutely no heart problems in our family history that I know of. Yet, here was my mother who, in her 60’s, was suddenly in the hospital having a balloon procedure on her heart, called an Angioplasty, done to open up a clogged artery to her heart. Huh??

It was only years later, when I become a thyroid patient advocate, that I could look back and see why that happened to her. She had been on a T4 medication for the majority of her adult life!

Today, as patients are switching to natural desiccated thyroid like Armour, Naturethroid and Westhroid and others, and as they are allowed by their informed doctors to raise NOT according to the TSH but by the complete elimination of symptoms…VOILA…. their once-high cholesterol….FALLS!!

But guess what else falls? Your CRP.

CRP stands for C-Reactive Protein, and it becomes elevated in response to an inflammation. With that elevation comes the heightened risk of heart attacks and strokes. And guess what: continued hypothyroid (as found with T4-only treatment) results in an increased CRP level.

On an optimal amount of Armour, which for me is 4 grains, my CRP is 0.9. Ideal is less than one. Bingo.

***Have a story to share about your improved lipid or CRP levels since you became optimal on Armour? Let us know.

YEEHAW! Check out this study done in 2007–the higher the TSH, the worse your lipids. Ironically, even a TSH IN RANGE does this, according to the experience of MILLIONS of patients!! Thanks Nita for bringing this to my attention!

Have you ever had someone say something in JUST a way that it hits you between the eyes?? That’s what Diane did to me. She’s a thyroid and adrenal patient, and we were discussing the way a huge medical website still gives out backwards and harmful thyroid treatment information, telling patients to “raise their Synthroid” to counter their continuing hypothyroid symptoms (which doesn’t work), or pronouncing that because their TSH is “normal”, those symptoms are not related to hypothyroid (they are.) This huge website has kept patients sick for YEARS, and is one of the main reasons I created STTM!

And Diane said to me “Somehow the true message needs to get into the main stream.”

Boink! That just hit me squarely between the eyes! Sure, I’ve been saying the same in a different way for years–that our message needs to get out. But when Diane mentioned the “mainstream”, it hit me.

Here we are, victims of a medical scandal which has been going on for 50 years, and which has effected HUNDREDS OF MILLIONS all that time. Some of those victims are dead; and many more are still alive, with new victims happening DAILY. Yet, the “mainstream media” has never taken the time or interest to report on this. HUHHH??

Wikipedia defines the mainstream media as the section of the media specifically envisioned and designed to reach a very large audience, and that might include television, radio, newspapers and magazines. Yet, what do you see on any of those mediums? You see the regurgitation of the old-boy, Pollyanna methods of hypothyroid diagnosis and treatment–the use of the TSH and total T4, plus T4-only meds like Synthroid, Levoxyl, Levothyroxine, et al. And if there is mention of desiccated thyroid, it’s bare. YAWN.

Some pundants feel that there is a form of literary censorship going on in the main media…i.e. if it’s not sensational, forget it. Others will cite bias and manipulation by those that report, especially in the political arena.

But what I lean to believe is that there’s a monkey-see, monkey-do mentality in the media. Namely, the mainstream media lazily conforms itself to the loudest, longest or most financially-influential voice. And who’s had that voice in the thyroid treatment arena?? The money-grubbing pharmaceuticals, who thrust billions of dollars into medical schools, besides their bright-eyed reps, to eventually convince every doctor since the early 1960’s that the lousy T4-only medications (Synthroid, Levoxyl, et al), and the dubious TSH lab tests, are from God Almighty.

So, that lie keeps being repeated, ad nauseum, and the TRUTH, which comes from everyday patients all around the world, gets ignored by the mainstream media. Thus, millions out there still sit, miserable or compromised in their day-to-day lives, and on a myriad of other pills to counter the lingering symptoms…because their main contact with the world–the mainstream media–is deaf and dumb–and they have not yet found Stop the Thyroid Madness, and may not for years!

So….what can YOU do?? Contact the mainstream media. SCREAM at the mainstream media. DOG the mainstream media. I have worked hard to put YOUR truth up here and in the book. You can help by spreading that word, one by one, like the Lilliputians who moved the giant.

*To contact ABC, go here.
*To contact MSNBC, go here or email Health@MSNBC.com
*To contact CBS, go here. Use the drop down menu to click on a news program
*To contact Fox News, go here.
*To contact CNN, go here.
*The top 20 Women’s magazines are here.

Want to add more emails or website URL’s for contact? Just add a comment to this post below.

**Patients are reporting that the STTM book is even better than the website! Yeehaw! To order your copy, go to the publishing website here. There are also options to order one for your doctor, and one for Oprah!

I use those phrases often. I can’t help it. Because it’s exactly what doctors are when it comes to thyroid treatment. It’s APPALLING.

Yesterday, I had the first of two book signings. It was announced in the paper, and I wasn’t sure what the turnout would be. I shouldn’t have wondered. It was a great turnout. People are GETTING IT that there is SOMETHING WRONG with their treatment. Around me stood several women, all still on T4 (Synthroid, Levoxyl, et al), and ALL suffering. All but one woman had weight problems. Several had rising cholesterol. Some admitted to being on anti-depressants. Some obviously had adrenal fatigue. And ALL were being told by their doctors that their thyroid treatment was now “normal”. Where can I go beat my head against the wall?????? They were eager to get the book and the knowledge it contained to change their lives!

So far, the book has been sent to Norway, Iceland, Belgium, UK, Austria, Sweden, Switzerland, Ireland, Australia and Canada, besides all over the US. The STTM website started the wheel to turn, and the book can only move it faster. And add it to other thyroid books which had begun to mention the truth (Broda Barnes being the first) as well as other groups and websites—we’ll eventually knock some SENSE and SIGHT in doctors, don’t you think?

The Stop the Thyroid Madness book, the bible of correct thyroid and adrenal treatment, by patients for patients, can be ordered here.

P.S. I live near one town which serves a population of nearly 35,000 people, and near another of over 4000 people, and there are plenty of doctors around here. Yet, there is not ONE doctor in this area that “gets it”. I sympathize with YOU if you are in the same boat.

Sometimes I ponder: the current movement away from Synthroid & Levoxyl and all other T4-only meds to desiccated thyroid like Armour (as well as the understanding of the high prevalence of adrenal fatigue with thyroid patients), has been going on for ALL of the 21st century. In other words, patients were starting to talk about desiccated thyroid like Armour by the year 1999, and Yahoo’s Natural Thyroid Hormones group was started in 2002. Other patient groups sprung up around the same time. The latter group is also where the knowledge about adrenal fatigue in thyroid patients grew, which was further added to on STTM. So….has there there been any changes in the way thyroid patients are treated for their hypothyroid and related conditions?

The YES

Sometimes I can say a resounding yes! There are many doctors around the world who are looking at Stop the Thyroid Madness (STTM) and listening to what is says. STTM is about the real life changing experience of patients! Some doctors tell me outright, either via the Contact Me form or by responding to my blog posts here, that they are reading it and approving the information. Or, I find out about other doctors second hand by patients who tell me their doctor TOLD THE PATIENT to read STTM. The latter definitely makes me chuckle when so many doctors tell patients that information on the internet is DANGEROUS!

I can also say yes when I read the comments of patients on various thyroid patient groups on the internet. Because of the information patients have learned from STTM, which is in turn passed into the groups, patients all over the world are making demands in their doctor’s offices, and some progress is being made all over the world.

And a final yes can be uttered by me when I see a few but growing number of websites promote desiccated thyroid.

The NO

But there are so many situations where I have to say no. 1) When doctors on internet forums TO THIS DAY continue to give lousy advice to thyroid patients, it’s disheartening. 2) When patients on thyroid patient groups TO THIS DAY continue to have doctors state each and every ridiculous give me a break comment, it’s sad. 3) When a famous female talk show host continues to ignore each and every email sent to her for years about the deplorable situation across the world with thyroid patients, as well as seem to misunderstand her OWN thyroid and potential adrenal problem, it’s maddening. 4) And when I can run into patients DAILY when I go to the grocery store, or to the gas station, or to any public place, who are still on Synthroid or Levoxyl and coping with innumerable symptoms of a poor treatment, not excluding adrenal fatigue, it’s scandalous.

So the complete answer? Yes and no. The ball has definitely been rolling for better treatment. Some doctors out there are truly listening. Many patients out there are learning and demanding change. It’s happening. But baby, we have a LONG WAY TO GO. And the power will be in the hand of patients who question their treatment, find answers via STTM and other websites and patient forums, and continue to demand change from their doctors and the entire medical establishment. I just hope to see more change sooner than later, don’t you?!

p.s. Want to spread the word?? Go HERE to order a t-shirt or bumper stickers. You CAN make a difference!

If you were told that water wasn’t important to your well-being, and thus, if you want it, you will now need to pay a LOT more for it, would that make sense?

Nope. And neither does what Medicare has decided about Armour Thyroid.

Medicare is the government’s health insurance for those of you age 65 or older. It’s also available for those with certain disabilities, and for any age with permanent kidney failure requiring dialysis or a kidney transplant. And recently, the almighty Medicare has notified those using Medicare that it will no longer cover Armour. Why? Because it fits under medications considered “less than effective.” And poop on top of garbage…Medicare also recommends T4.

You have got to be kidding.

Armour thyroid is conclusively, adamently and overwhelmingly changing the lives of those who switch to it. Conversely, T4-only medications like Synthroid, Levoxyl and others have conclusively, adamently and overwhelmingly left most if not all hypothyroid patients with continuing hypothyroid symptoms of one degree or another. Yet, Medicare has dictated that an inferior treatment is the medication of choice and will be covered, and a medication that changes lives is not worth being on their formulary.

There is a pervasive madness going on out there.