Cross Post: Broken metabolism after WLS? Might be your thyroid!

 I just learned I have too much Reverse T3, which is keeping me hypothyroid in spite of increasing my Armour thyroid dose (Armour has celloluse now, which could be making it harder for me to absorb as well. I might need to change medications). 

I've been doing a lot of research on the web and came across this site:

http://nahypothyroidism.org/deiodinases/

If you scroll down to the part titled, "Dieting/Weight loss/Obesity/Insulin Resistance," it discusses a little about what dieting does to T3 levels in the body, and how that causes a lowered metabolism. You might, however, want to read the beginning to get a bit of an explanation of what a deiodinase enzyme is. Don't ask me, I'm still trying to get a grasp on it myself. :)

So what I want to know is, should I accept the fact that my metabolism is low because of my gastric bypass? Or can I counteract this problem by treating my hypothyroidism correctly?

Hmmm...

Lynda

PS: The discussion on Leptin is interesting as well. You might want to read that. 

I have Hashimoto's and my experience with thyroid issues is that nothing will make the weight come off. I was not an over-eater or food addict. Pre-op I didn't eat much but gaining weight was efffortless. I too have too much RT3. I don't convert T4 to T3 very well so Armour made me sick. All I can take is Cytomel. I discovered something called Low Dose Naltrexone which is an off label use of Naltrexone and it does miracles for autoimmune diseases. Even with Cytomel, I couldn't lose the weight or get rid of that awful fatigue. Once I got ont he LDN, my Hashimoto's went into remission. It was miraculous for me.

Because of the opiates I knew I'd need for the surgery, I had to stop the LDN for a while before and after the surgery. Because of this, my TSH went from being suppressed to jumping to over 6 in just under a week, and I was still taking my Cytomel! That's how powerful the LDN is. Once my Hashimoto's was out of remission the first 5 weeks post op, my weight loss was slow. While most patients lose 20-30# their first month, I lost 11# in 5 weeks. But when I was able to get back on the LDN, the weight started to come off. I have only been able to get back on the LDN recently so I haven't had long to compare but within 2 days I dropped 2#. I got on the scale again this morning and it looks like I dropped another 1/2#. I wasn't able to do this prior to taking the LDN. However, because it affects the opioid receptors, I had to be off of narcotic pain meds for 2 full weeks before I could start up again so that's why it took so long (it seemed like it anyway) to get back on it.

There is a great website with more info about LDN and let me just tell you that it works for ANY autoimmune disease as well as some cancers and it also works for neuro-degenerative conditions as well. Basically, any illness that has an immunity component to it will benefit from LDN. Here is the link:

www.lowdosenaltrexone.org

 Yeah, I've heard of LDN. I've read it's kind of a miracle drug, if such a thing even exists. With Hashimotos your thyroid goes hypo and hyper, right? Back and forth? Makes regulating your condition hard I would think. 

Fortunately I don't have an autoimmune disorder. I just seem to have straightforward hypothyroidism. And now I have too much Reverse T3.

I was on way too high doses of hydrocortisone for two years, and that, along with my constant rotting teeth, seems to be the cause of my Reverse T3 issue. Well, I'm off the steroid now, and the teeth are coming out on January 2nd (Dentures? Yeah, real sexy), so now I can finally focus on this thyroid problem. I've read that Cytomel is the best for too much Reverse T3, and I've also read that some people find they do the best on T3 only, so they stay on Cytomel. That might be how it is for me too. Time will tell. 

Glad to hear your doing well,

Lynda

yes your thyroid manages metabolism (other things, heart rate etc) to address your RT3, you should take a T3 only compound for at least 12 consecutive weeks.  if your RT3 is abnormal, that isomer blocks true thryroid hormoes, hence you can look hyper on blood work and actually be hypo as no thyroid hormones are actually getting in the tissues.  Armour really is inappropriate for DS patients as sublingual is impossible due to the formulation changes, especially the one in 2009.  you should look into NP thyroid by Acella, much better product, can be taken sublingual, which is my suggestion for DSers.  Once your FT3, and FT4 are normal, and you have a normal heart rate and you have normal body temperature, your metabolism will normalize, but yes thyroid untreated can cause hypo which can cause weight gain or severe difficulty with weight loss.......and don't go to an endocrinologist as they do not RX desicated medications and they will chase your hypothyroid by treating your pituitary hormone (TSH).............good luck with your search

I absolutely agree about avoiding an endocrinologist. Yes, the thyroid does the hypo-hyper thing from time to time and my 'at the time' endo decided I had Graves. I told him I was hypo (didn't know I had Hashi's yet) and he insisted I had Graves. Long story short - I had to have a parathyroid tumor removed and when the surgeon opened me up, he found a mass on my thyroid. He removed it and biopsied it and that's when I got the official Hashimoto's diagnosis. The endo decided the biopsy was wrong.  I decided the endo was an idiot and I fired him.

It really is difficult to find good thyroid care so do your research and find a doc willing to work with you. What works for me is only T3 supplementation. I do best when my TSH is suppressed, my T4 is low and my T3 is somewhat raised above the 'normal' range. LDN works so well for me that my Cytomel dosage is significantly reduced and it is much easier for me to regulate my thyroid now. So far I have not had any more episodes of the hypo-hyper thing but I haven't been on LDN long enough to know if this is permanent.