As I note above, my appointment with Dr. Knecht here in Phoenix is in late October. Not wanting to wait to be seen until then, which would mean waiting until mid-December, probably, to see the benefit of any changes Dr. Knecht would make to my treatment regimen, I saw Dr. Theodore Friedman in Los Angeles on August 5. I am really glad that I did.
Dr. Friedman has doubled my levoxyl to 100 mcg daily and does not want me to take generic synthroid. He also ran lab tests to see if I had enough testosterone, Vitamin D, Vitamin B12, and iron. He also tested me for the Hashimoto's antibody. He also observed, contrary to what my GP, who physically examined my neck area about a month ago reported, that I have a goiter with a nodule.
My labs showed that my testosterone level is OK. However, I am low to low-normal with the vitamins tested, and so am now going to begin taking supplements that Dr. Friedman has recommended at doses that he has suggested based on my lab tests.
Dr. Friedman suspects that I may have low aldosterone levels, and so wants my GP or the endo here in Phoenix to run aldosterone tests. He has advised me to add salt to my diet. This has been hard to do, as I had become so used to a saltless diet, given my family's history of hypertension and heart disease. In my case, my blood pressure and pulse tend to be low, and have, at times, been really, really low. (Last summer, for example, right before my blood levels showed that I was hypothyroid, my pulse was regularly in the low forties.) My low pulse and blood pressure stem from hypothyroidism; and increasing my salt intake, if I can just do so, will increase my energy level.
Thankfully, I don't appear to have Hashimoto's; for I don't have the antibody.
Dr. Friedman underscored the role that genetics played in my case. My mother had a goiter; and my father is hypothyroid.
He said that it will take about six weeks for symptoms to start resolving.
It may be just placebo, but some symptoms have started to resolve. I have no idea if this is because the higher dose of levoxyl is taking effect or if it is the lifestyle changes that I have implemented for the past month or so.
I would recommend to anyone with thyroid concerns to read Dr. Friedmans book, The Everything Guide to Thyroid Disease. It's a very thorough guide to issues concerning the thyroid. I discovered in it, for example, that alopecia, a disease that produced baldness, which my father suffered from for a few years not too long ago, is related to thyroid problems. When my father had alopecia, I believe that they told him that they thought it was from stress, but that they really had no idea what caused it. I don't believe anyone told him it was related to his hypothyroidism.
Anyone with thyroid disease needs to be seen by an endocrinologist. Don't let your GP treat you! In my case, for example, my GP had me for months on a dose of levoxyl that Dr. Friedman deems to be "homeopathic." She did not diagnose my goiter. She discounted my symptoms, even when my lab tests were not good. She did not make any calls to see if she could help me get in more quickly to see an endocrinologist. So as soon as you are diagnosed with thyroid disease, get yourself to a specialist, and a good one at that!
By the time that I see Dr. Knecht, I will have the benefits of about 2.5 months of treatment with Dr. Friedman. Hopefully, I can go back to work this Fall. If I had taken my GP's course of action and had waited until late October to see Dr. Knecht, I would not be able to work this Fall. Not only would I not be getting better with her"homeopathic" dose, but I may have begun t feel even worse. So if you take one thing away from this post, let it be this: get treated by a specialist!
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As I note above, my appointment with Dr. Knecht here in Phoenix is in late October. Not wanting to wait to be seen until then, which would mean waiting until mid-December, probably, to see the benefit of any changes Dr. Knecht would make to my treatment regimen, I saw Dr. Theodore Friedman in Los Angeles on August 5. I am really glad that I did.
Dr. Friedman has doubled my levoxyl to 100 mcg daily and does not want me to take generic synthroid. He also ran lab tests to see if I had enough testosterone, Vitamin D, Vitamin B12, and iron. He also tested me for the Hashimoto's antibody. He also observed, contrary to what my GP, who physically examined my neck area about a month ago reported, that I have a goiter with a nodule.
My labs showed that my testosterone level is OK. However, I am low to low-normal with the vitamins tested, and so am now going to begin taking supplements that Dr. Friedman has recommended at doses that he has suggested based on my lab tests.
Dr. Friedman suspects that I may have low aldosterone levels, and so wants my GP or the endo here in Phoenix to run aldosterone tests. He has advised me to add salt to my diet. This has been hard to do, as I had become so used to a saltless diet, given my family's history of hypertension and heart disease. In my case, my blood pressure and pulse tend to be low, and have, at times, been really, really low. (Last summer, for example, right before my blood levels showed that I was hypothyroid, my pulse was regularly in the low forties.) My low pulse and blood pressure stem from hypothyroidism; and increasing my salt intake, if I can just do so, will increase my energy level.
Thankfully, I don't appear to have Hashimoto's; for I don't have the antibody.
Dr. Friedman underscored the role that genetics played in my case. My mother had a goiter; and my father is hypothyroid.
He said that it will take about six weeks for symptoms to start resolving.
It may be just placebo, but some symptoms have started to resolve. I have no idea if this is because the higher dose of levoxyl is taking effect or if it is the lifestyle changes that I have implemented for the past month or so.
I would recommend to anyone with thyroid concerns to read Dr. Friedmans book, The Everything Guide to Thyroid Disease. It's a very thorough guide to issues concerning the thyroid. I discovered in it, for example, that alopecia, a disease that produced baldness, which my father suffered from for a few years not too long ago, is related to thyroid problems. When my father had alopecia, I believe that they told him that they thought it was from stress, but that they really had no idea what caused it. I don't believe anyone told him it was related to his hypothyroidism.
Anyone with thyroid disease needs to be seen by an endocrinologist. Don't let your GP treat you! In my case, for example, my GP had me for months on a dose of levoxyl that Dr. Friedman deems to be "homeopathic." She did not diagnose my goiter. She discounted my symptoms, even when my lab tests were not good. She did not make any calls to see if she could help me get in more quickly to see an endocrinologist. So as soon as you are diagnosed with thyroid disease, get yourself to a specialist, and a good one at that!
By the time that I see Dr. Knecht, I will have the benefits of about 2.5 months of treatment with Dr. Friedman. Hopefully, I can go back to work this Fall. If I had taken my GP's course of action and had waited until late October to see Dr. Knecht, I would not be able to work this Fall. Not only would I not be getting better with her"homeopathic" dose, but I may have begun t feel even worse. So if you take one thing away from this post, let it be this: get treated by a specialist!
August 18, 2009 - 11:04amThis Comment
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