Compounding Offers Solution to Armour Shortage

I had more than 80% of my thyroid gland removed due to goiter and over-active thyroid function when I was only 13 years old. I am now 72. It has been a problem all of my life. My current doctor keeps cutting the dosage of my medication and he does NOT like to prescribe (WILL NOT prescribe) the Armor Thyroid that I was on previously. He is very adamant about that.

I am quick to admit that I do not understand a lot about the thyroid gland. I do know that the "numbers" have changed in recent years. 3 months ago, my reading was .55; and he changed my dosage from 0.125 mcg of Synthroid to 0.112 mcg and my TSH reading went from .55 up to 1.25. He also refuses to do T3 and T4 testing. He is a General Practitioner and not an Endocrynologist. If I could afford to see both kinds of doctors, I would.

My main health complaints are that I am FREEZING (even inside where the temp. is set at 70 - 72 degrees); my hair is thinning; my skin is so dry that it literally is flaking off; my nails are thin and breaking; and I cannot lose weight no matter how little I eat. Any practical suggestions? I may have to change doctors. Thank you for reading this long email. I do apologize for taking so much of your time.
Martha

Unfortunately this compounded product costs 6X the commercial variety. Thank you FDA!

I was switched from Armour to synthroid (My Dr. DID agree to insist on the brand name Rx and not a generic) the last part of September '09; My nails are peeling off down past the quick and almost to the nail bed; my eyebrows are coming out worse than before; my hair is coming out and my morning voice sounds like I am under water; MY DOCTOR will not switch me back to Armour or compounded. He says synthroid is guaranteed in exact doses from batch to batch and it will just "take time to get adjusted"; When I was first started on synthroid I had been losing weight, on a balanced diet/low carb/low glycemic diet; three days after starting synthroid the weight loss stopped no matter how I dieted!

My doctor just does not want to put me back on dessicated; my husband is insisting I find another doctor, one that WILL... but I really do like my Dr. except for his stand on synthroid vs dessicated.... WILL IT GET ANY BETTER FOR ME??

I have used synthetics in the past and they never worked well; my doc said he would add a teeny bit of T-3 (synthetic) when I first boo hooed about going off armour... but the blood test showed my T-3 was normal.......help

When the pharmacies ran out of Armour I found Safeway had 120 of the 60 mg. I am taking 30 mg one day then 45 mg the 2nd day, rotating. The pills I bought will not split clean, they shatter, do not have a dividing mark as some have in the past. I feel I am not getting the accurate dose. I have used thyroid since age 10 and now 82 years old. Why did Forest stop making Armour is my question? We users needed this vital information.

I have to take 2 compounded formulas; one for my thyroid and one for my hormones, and Medicare won't approve any of them for insurance payment. And they are not cheap! They want us all on drugs because they are cheaper for them to make in China, India or no telling where else! And most doctors go right along with this decision; lazy I guess; too much work for them.

There is a solution to the armour problem. In Canada, there is a licensed pharmacy called Universal Drugstore. They sell Canada's version of Armour, which is called ERFa Thyroid. It is a natural product, almost the exact same as the original armour. They have plenty in stock and are helping alot of the patients who can't get armour. There phone number is 1-866-783-4223. Hope this helps.

Martha, you MUST do what is right for your body! When will we learn that no doctor should have the last say about our bodies!! I guarantee you know every symptom and know exactly what you must do. Doctors don't tell us by their own personal experience, they only go by what they think they know, books and the logic that they don't want to get sued if something does wrong.

If your doctor won't put you on natural or Armor, then find one that will!! It's that simple! Just because you like your doctor doesn't mean he's right! God made you and your body, YOU know what's best! If you had a better quality of life on Armor (so did I) then I pray we can all find it again and by all means, get a doctor that will prescribe it for you. Take control of your happiness and well-being, stop trusting it to someone else.

I was on Synthroid for about 3 years when I was first diagnosed as hypothyroid. It was the worst experience ever. I had gained weight from being hypo and Synthroid didn't do a thing. I was still fatigued, my hair was thinning so bad I started looking bald in spots. I was going to Endocrinologists that tried changing my dosage and putting me on combination Synthroid with Cytomel for the T3. Nothing helped and in fact I started having major heartburn and heart anxiety issues.

I finally searched online to find a local doctor that would prescribe Armour because NONE of the endocrinologists will. I think they receive benefits to their associations from the Synthroid drug companies. When I finally switched to Armour Thyroid, it did take a while for me to get to the right dosage. My new doctor goes by how a patient is doing physically (ie fatigue and other symptoms) as opposed to just going by the blood tests. That was about 18 months ago. I now feel much better, my hair is no longer thinning, and I have lost about 15 lbs. I will never go back to Synthroid or any other synthetic. I'll go to Canada or Mexico to get my Armour if that becomes necessary.

Dar,

I think your doctors wished they got money from Synthroid. They DO NOT. Most people are on NOT on name brand Synthroid so the makers of Synthroid do not get much money.

All the doctors are supposed to go by the blood tests and the patient's symptoms.

Armour thyroid is difficult to get because it is from pig and beef thyroids. Many doctors prefer Synthroid because most people do just fine on Synthroid or any one of the generics.

Your doctor should be understandably concerned because too much thyroid medication can lead to heart problems like heart attack or stroke.

The post written by PRK is over 6 months ago; today's date is 9/24/2010. As of Feb. 2009 I was able to purchase bio-identical hormones from my compounding pharmacy. My insurance, TriCare Prime, paid the bulk, and I paid co-pay. Then as of 02/16/2010, when I turned 65, not only did medicare + Tricare For Life pay for my bio-identical hormones, but also my desiccated thyroid + co pay of course. I also received a saliva test kit from my doctor and the labs were paid by the same insurances. The real problem is finding a doctor that will prescribe these wonderfully working prescriptions.

I have been on Armour Thyroid for 15 years, switching from Synthroid. It was wonderful, lost weight, felt so much better than when I was on Synthroid. When Forest ran out a year ago I went to the compounded at 3x the cost. At first it did not work but eventually it did. Well, 6 weeks ago I found out that Forest was making my Armour again so I switched back. Now.... I am having horrible sweats and feel sluggish. Don't know WHAT to do. Should I go back to the compounded version or try to up the dosage of the Forest Armour? My body is not liking the change. And I am not liking these sweating episodes followed by chills. Fun !

My doctor who is an M.D. but practices alternative medicine told me that Armour was bought out by the company that makes Synthroid & that it's never been the same since. She prescribed for me dessicated thyroid from Canada. I haven't been on the medicine long enough to know anything about how I will feel but I thought I'd share what she told me. She will only prescribe out of Canada for that reason.

PEOPLE'S PHARMACY RESPONSE: FOREST MAKES ARMOUR AND LEVOTHROID RATHER THAN SYNTHROID:
http://www.thyroid-info.com/drugs/forest.htm

I had 80% of my thyroid removed in 1983 and have been on levothyroxin. I am 60. about 10 years ago I started having bouts of depression and joint pain. Doctors put me on an antidepressant. Through the next 10 years I have been on and off antidepressants taken lots of Tylenol and even other pain killers am fatigued and irritable. I have never been very over weight--maybe 5 or 10 pounds. Now I just keep gaining and I am active and don't eat a lot.

I'm just no fun anymore and feel crummy most of the time. The doctor says all my blood work is good. I'm only 60 and feel like 80. I've been put on hormone replacement and no help. I've started reading these forums and realize it probably has been my thyroid all this time and the synthetic is not doing its job. Maybe going through menopause my body quit letting the t4 convert to t3 or something. I'm going to search for a doctor that will prescribe Armour and hope for the best. I'm tired of feeling tired.