Liothyronine for Underactive Thyroid User Reviews (Page 2)

• Lynn
• March 17, 2018

"Was on Armour Thyroid for 15 yrs., however, was feeling super tired (always wanting to sleep), no energy,, had severe brain fog, my headaches were horrible, and my thyroid numbers were always ok. After asking my Doctor to please change my medication (as I was progressively getting worse), she prescribed a combination of liothyronine and levothyroxine and a miracle happened!! Headaches disappeared, could sleep through the night without waking up in severe pain (headache pain), only needed 8 hours of sleep, my dizziness and brain fog lifted, and my energy returned, all symptoms alleviated after about 3 weeks. Have had a few symptoms with this medication, but they have subsided. Feel wonderful after all these years have my life back!!!!!!"

• Terri...
• December 6, 2015

Cytomel (liothyronine) "I was on Cytomel for a couple of years. Then my dose got increased along with my Synthroid medication dose. I began having tremors, heart palpitations and tachycardia. It was a terrifying experience! My symptoms almost entirely went away when going off this medication but, I feel as though my heart was dramatically affected and I don't know yet whether or not it was actually even damaged."

• SCano
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• April 12, 2019

"Took for hypothyroid and high cholesterol. My only low value was T4 0.61., T3 and TSH were normal. Started on 25 mcg, month later 50 mcg, 3rd month 75 mcg. Weight GAIN end of month 3, 8 pounds! Not happy!! I can see my arms are flabby now, weren’t before! So frustrated I could scream. Read something saying you can overwhelm receptors with too much and actually gain weight. So I cut it back. Still wearing the 8 pounds! I’m going off cold turkey. I don’t care! It’s making me worse! After I take it, within an hour I start to get very sleepy! Like seriously? Then at night I can’t sleep! Makes me sweat like crazy, yet no weight loss. My luck! Happy for those who it helped. But sympathize with those that gained. Anyone else gain and at what dose? Thanks"

• Anonymous
• Taken for 1 to 2 years
• August 2, 2012

"I have had hypothyroidism for almost my entire life. I have been on Synthroid and generic levothyroxine and never felt much better with all symptoms remaining. I finally got an endocrinologist to listen to me and he lowered my dose of Synthroid and gave me liothyronine. My depression lifted in 2 days, my cholesterol dropped 40 points and my energy level has never been this good. I am having a little difficulty with insomnia. I still struggle to lose even 1 pound but I'll still take the difference that I feel."

• CMano
• Taken for 6 months to 1 year
• July 11, 2021

Cytomel (liothyronine) "I have had hypothyroidism for years proceeding menopause, and it was worse during menopause. Doctors always prescribed one of the big three, like Levothyroxine, with combination T3 and T4. I had bad reactions to all. It was only after I did the research that I found this T3 only option. Luckily, my current doctor let me try it (Nov. 2020). Two hours after taking one 5 mcg pill I felt better. My mood lifted and my mind was clearer. I had the energy to complete a work day. It has been a godsend. We have slowly increased my dose... two pills, three pills and four pills (20 mcg) a day. Any more is too high for me. While initially I had the occasional headache when I first woke up in the morning, that is gone now. No other side effects. No weight loss, but holding steady. I work out a lot (now I have energy) and try to stay under 1,000 calories/day to maintain. No hair regain, but no big hair loss either. Female - 54 yrs."

• Cat
• Taken for 2 to 5 years
• November 5, 2018

Cytomel (liothyronine) "I have a little more energy on Cytomel. I was born with hypothyroid. I relented on going on synthroid in 2002 in hopes of losing weight and went off in 2015. My last dose was 200mcg. I never felt energetic on synthroid and it didn't make me thinner. I took a blood test in 2015 and found my reverse T3 was high and my doctor put me on cytomel. I lost 5 pounds when my meds were changed (not a significant amount in the scheme of life but I overeat so I can't really blame the drug) and I have noticed no ill side effects. I'm happy."

• The...
• November 11, 2019

Cytomel (liothyronine) "I've been on synthroid for 9 years now. I have been on a roller coaster ride the whole time with my dosage from 150mcg a day down to 125mcg always fluctuating depending on symptoms. Now I have just seen a new endocrinologist to try to have my thyroid removed due to large nodules and the hashimotos thyroiditis and all the non-stop issues stemming from the thyroid, so the new endo puts me on 5 mcg of cytomel and I have the opposite reaction from it, I had some tightness in chest, blurred vision and it knocked me out for near 7 hours after taking it the first and second dose of it the next day. Not really knowing if that's an adverse reaction from it but I stopped taking it, I don't understand how a medication that is supposed to reverse fatigue and boost my energy does the exact opposite. I am now currently take 137 mcg of synthroid and need to have the thyroid excised so the auto immune response will be lessened so I can be less symptomatic and have somewhat of a normal immune system."

• Anonymous
• October 5, 2014

"My doctor prescribed a dosage of 5mcg along with my Synthroid. My blood work always comes back with my TSH too high and my T3 too low. This seems to work on my tiredness but since I have been taking it (3 weeks), my whole body seems to be aching. I don't know if it is in my joints or in my bones."

• Fiona...
• May 12, 2017

"Cytomel was great for me until it wasn't. Due to a pharmacist error of my Cytomel I'm now disabled for life due to thyrotoxicosis. My reg dosage 15mcgs daily,and for 3 months. I was given 150 mcgs daily. I also was taking 75mcgs T4 daily. I assumed I was dying and started to get my affairs in order. On the 4th refill the pharmacist caught his mistake and called my Dr. Because to this day there's been no data of any person having an overdose of T3 Cytomel for at least 3 months my Dr's have done there best. The American Thyroid Org. has no data on it either. I and many others have looked worldwide. So I'm asking for help on this site from anyone with info I can't except that I have permanent brain damage and such a compromised immune system. Thx"

• Thyroid...
• Taken for 1 to 2 years
• January 6, 2023

Cytomel (liothyronine) "Cytomel is amazing. I was on Synthroid (levothyroxine) for a while and I still felt terribly hypothyroid. Then got into Armour Thyroid and became a functioning human again. Then added Cytomel to my Armour and now I can say that I have my life back. It’s a shame that doctors are hesitant to prescribe T3 medications like Cytomel and Natural Dessicated Thyroid (NDT) like Armour. Synthroid barely ever works for anyone and they make it so hard to get the medicine that actually helps. Big pharma wants to keep us all sick and on ineffective medicines. I had to go to 3 different endocrinologists before one allowed me to start taking Cytomel. Take control of your life people! Pro tip: if you feel jittery and hyperthyroid on one dose of Cytomel and then after decreasing it, you feel hypothyroid, you need to multi-dose the higher dose. That means you need to take more than one dose a day! It being spread out will keep you from being jittery and hyperthyroid."

• Anonymous
• Taken for less than 1 month
• January 16, 2017

"I was diagnosed with under active thyroid was given sertraline felt lethargic sleepy moody. Seen another doctor who added Liothyronine I'm no longer lethargic I cant thank my doctor enough I'm getting back to my old self."

• Doodles
• Taken for less than 1 month
• May 8, 2018

"I am taking this as an adjunct for severe depression, but my T3 levels were below normal as well. I was on 25mcg for two weeks and now at 50mcg for a couple of days. It's like I can finally see a glimmer of light at the end of a tunnel. I'm not out of the woods yet, but there is definitely something different that's going on. Thank goodness my psychiatrist was willing to let me try it."

• User
• Taken for less than 1 month
• January 10, 2022

Cytomel (liothyronine) "Cytomel gave me the worse side effect symptoms of my life in just in 3-4 days. I got severe water retention, chest pain, rash on my body, and dehydration. I just took time afterwards to negate the side effects of this drug. Can't wait to flush out this from my body and will never ever take it."

• MEano
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• March 21, 2021

Cytomel (liothyronine) "This medication is horrible! I have had severe adverse reactions on both the brand name and generic form. Painful limp knees, tachycardia, palpitations, and all of my hair fell out! Never again will I take this medication. It’s not worth my life."

• Journ...
• May 4, 2022

Cytomel (liothyronine) "Was on generic liothyronine for about 5 weeks because Cytomel wasn’t available. Felt like a windup toy whose spring had unwound-horrible muscle pain, weakness, couldn’t think, and constant background pain. Today, finally got my Rx of Cytomel. The difference is remarkable. Within 1 hr my muscles started relaxing. Three hours later and my mental acuity is back. There truly is a difference between generic and brand name. I would never have known that were it not for my shrewd doctor. This is like a miracle drug that restores my life. I take 5MCG, 2x daily Cytomel and 50MCG 1x daily of Synthroid."

• Solsk...
• May 15, 2021

Cytomel (liothyronine) "Started Cytomel 5 mg about 8 days ago. As my t-3 was low. And just did not feel well I had hair loss , weight gain , major constipated, and very irritable, dry skin. I am hoping to feel better and be more regulated in many ways. I curious what everyone’s t-3 number were before starting .?? Cytomel. may be too soon for me to notice any change yet ? Thank you"

• Sienna
• July 22, 2021

"This is a very complex hormone. I started taking it a few years ago, due to inability to convert T4 into T3 - it seemed like a miracle worker, although, I was on a very strict diet. I did lose weight, but never could get my body back to what it was pre hashimotos Thyroiditis. I also noticed lots of sweating, water retention, mood swings (especially when the dose was incorrect, it changes often due to what You eat, etc.), hair loss; although, I noticed it growing back in after about 7 to 8 months, it was very thick. I also had an increase in appetite throughout the years, with less absorption capabilities when not eating very low carb. It's a tricky situation because the energy people speak of is actually like being in a manic state, that's what I experienced."

• The...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• May 29, 2022

"After 10 years of using various dosages of Armour, I never recovered my energy level. TSH all over the place and T4 always the same on the bottom of the "normal". T3 also on the bottom of "normal. I had no energy and every part of my life was a giant effort to participate in. In all that time T3T4 NEVER changed. Obviously the conversation process was broken. I begged my primary to give me Liothyronine and she started with 5mcg. WOW my brain woke up. I did not think I was depressed but I realized there is more than physical stuff going on. We moved the dose to 10mcg and the light got a bit brighter. I knew I needed more and she would not hear of it. I had to change insurance and primary docs and now on 25 mcg and lower dose of T4, and finally my T3 is moving into optimal range. When I started taking Liothyronine, my heart raced a bit but I knew my Armour was too strong so we reduced it. Problem solved. I'm going to ask to use T3 only at 50mcg because I need my life back."

• willow
• April 23, 2019

"I had been on Synthroid alone for 7 years and managing my hypothyroid just fine with it. I felt great and pretty much back to normal. I got switched to a new dr. he told me to start on Cytomel (even though I had NO new symptoms and felt just fine) based on my T3 results. I trusted his judgement as a doctor and took it. Biggest mistake of my life. I started in October and my mid December was dealing with the most severe anxiety I've ever had. I was snappy towards my kids and just downright angry because of it. I lost a ton of weight when I didn't need to and my face started breaking out like crazy. When I mentioned the weight loss and acne he never once said it could be because of that pill and my hormones were probably out of balance and that I should be happy I am so thin! I saw my primary dr. and she is the one who told me that this pill is more than likely causing all of my symptoms and after looking at all my past blood work she realized I NEVER even needed it! My t3 levels were normal."

• Hypof...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• February 8, 2022

Cytomel (liothyronine) "I self diagnosed as hypo several years ago after suffering from almost every classic hypo symptom, but with ‘normal’ TSH labs. A non traditional Endo finally agreed with me after testing more than just my TSH and considering my symptoms. But finding something that worked has been hard. I felt almost worse on T4 alone. Armour thyroid helped for awhile but then I began crashing and found my reverse T3 numbers had skyrocketed. My doctor pulled the AT and started me on 25 mg of cytomel. Within a day, my constant headaches were gone and I felt lighter and more energetic. It’s only been a week but I’m optimistic"

• Sienna
• Taken for 2 to 5 years
• September 7, 2023

"This hormone can be really amazing, but you have to be very disciplined with your diet because it won't absorb properly — or, your thyroid disease will progress, then you'll need more T3, and it may not get into your cells properly if you don't have good iron levels, cortisol, etc. I caution you to take this seriously, as I wish I did. You can feel far worse on a hormone if it's not absorbing properly, that is because your own T3 is suppressed while on T3, so you need to make sure your cells are receiving this hormone. I found that I could eat a lot more and still stay relatively slim, but that didn't last past the 6-month mark. I began having issues with the hormone. Also, different brands affected me differently, so that's also important to note. I always recommend eating very well: no grains, soy, dairy, egg (if you have issues with eggs), remove allergens, no legumes, no nightshades, basically AIP/clean Paleo, keto/carnivore. I highly recommend Paul Robinson & STTM."

• Tootsie
• Taken for 5 to 10 years
• February 18, 2020

"I was on levothyroxine 100 mcg and doing just ok. Then I added 5 mcg cytomel for the first time and it was like the lights went on in the room. I could see clearer, think clearer and had more energy than I had had for a very long time. I did feel extremely sleepy though and had to take a nap for a few days. I just feel so much better having added the cytomel. Strange how it affects people so differently."

• Reenie
• May 29, 2020

"I have hashimoto disease and been on synthroid and cytomel brand name only for years felt great All of sudden cytomel needed prior auth doc gave me generic Having major bloating and constipation Anyone else experience with cytomel generic?"

• Go2lajh
• Taken for 6 months to 1 year
• August 20, 2022

"After pestering my doctor to take my symptoms seriously It was time for my amazing doctor to LISTEN TO ME AND LEARN FROM MY EXAMPLE). I started Liothyronine, 25mg because I'm 57 and have T2D. It was as if someone had turned on the lights in my life! I could now function like other people, with the energy to exercise, do self-care, my brain would focus again, and I have done so well that despite fibromyalgia and bpd2. I am able to go back to work part-time, at my request, because I am bored and I have too many gifts to offer the world that were hidden for too long. *Caveat: I did have to reduce the dose to 12.5 when I stopped sleeping and was walking 5 miles a day. That was TOO MUCH energy! My lab work looks great. Glad my doc finally listened! Have my life back, hooray!!"

• Anonymous
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• September 9, 2012

"I have gained 20 pounds in the last 2 months, feel really hungry all the time, am having a hard time breathing for about a month now. I do not know if the breathing is from the medication, air, or allergies. My thyroid is under control though."