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20 pounds down, Armour thyroid, normalcy and Thank You’s

First things first:  I need to thank Judy Coates Perez and Jenny K. Lyon for sharing with me their luck with Armour thyroid.  For years I have not felt well or normal, always tired, despite having “good” levels on my thyroid checks while taking Synthroid and Lyothironine (T3 and T4) to deal with my thyroid disease.   My endocrinologist REFUSED to prescribe Armour, however, because it is derived from pigs (whom I bless for sharing their thyroid) and not as precisely quantifiable as the synthetic thyroid replacement drugs.   Finally after 2 1/2 years trying the endocrinologists way, I got fed up and looked for another doctor.   I kept asking my GP, and it took two years to find an in-network (Blue Cross Anthem) doctor in Maine that would prescribe Armour.  It is a 4+ hour drive round trip.  And worth every minute!

In March, in preparation for my soonest-available-appointment in May, I started a diet, using the phone app MyFitnessPal.com (free, easy to use, and really has helped) to track my calories and weight.   Despite eating about 1400 calories a day plus walking regularly when I could (I could either exercise or work, but not both as I was sleeping 11+ hours a day), I didn’t lose an ounce for 6 weeks.   Then, astonishingly, a slow weight loss began even on synthroid.

On Monday, May 9th, (and I didn’t have to look that up–it is ingrained in memory) I visited the new doctor.  She said she’d let me try Armour, but said some people saw no difference, and that it wouldn’t help the being tired as my levels were just right (so I should investigate whatever else might be making me so tired).  Hah!   By Saturday I was feeling SO MUCH BETTER I went to ask the pharmacist (LOVE the two at Hannaford in Camden) to find out how long it would take for the synthroid etc to work out of my system.  Six weeks.  By that point I felt better than before, but not as good as when I started.   Turns out I needed a tiny bit more RX.

Since July, I have felt NORMAL for the first time in YEARS!   I can sleep 8-9 hours and FUNCTION like a normal human being!  I can go for a 30-40 minutes walk and not feel obliterated!   I totally get that Armour doesn’t work this well for a lot of people.  But for those of us for whom it does work, it is quite literally LIFE-CHANGING.  And yes, I am *shouting* because this is so flipping amazing.  I was delighted in my follow-up appointment to tell the new doctor I was happy to say she was wrong about the tired thing, that it too was so much better!

Do I feel like I did when I was 35 or 40?  No.   I feel my 59 years (my knees and feet and hands think 79), but I am functional again!   And (DRUM ROLL) as of this morning, I have lost TWENTY POUNDS and 11.5 percent of my body weight!     I am within 2 1/2 pounds of my original goal (which I never thought I could reach) and maybe 7-8 pounds of my revised goal (since I think I can actually do that).  I am very careful, most days eat around 1400 calories with occasional hot fudge sundae splurges, and it is Very Slow Going.  It has taken nine *months* to lose 20 pounds, but I’ve done it.  But the weight is GOING!

So I just wanted to share my delight.  I am, most importantly, feeling NORMAL for the first time in years.  I can get stuff done.   Usually when I have returned from teaching in Houston I am obliterated for at least a week, maybe two.  This time, one day, then I bounced back and started getting stuff done again.   LIFE CHANGING!

So thank you to Judy and Jenny.  HUGE Thank you to the pigs whose thyroid hormones make me feel normal (I hope the thyroid can be extracted somehow without them giving their lives, but since they are bacon anyway, I can live with this).   And thank heavens for the new doc who was willing to let me try!

17 Responses to “20 pounds down, Armour thyroid, normalcy and Thank You’s”

  1. Rachel Says:

    I am so happy for you! I know you have fought this battle long and hard. We honor the lives of the pigs who contributed.

  2. Libby Williamson Says:

    Wow! What a great wonderful fantastic amazing result you had with Armour! I had thyroid issues for years Started with Hashimotos disease then cancer. After my thyroid was removed I asked, several times, about Armour. I got the same negative answer. I’m feeling pretty good, or maybe I’m just acclimated to this new normal . Maybe it’s time for me to switch. thank you for sharing your wonderful tail. Thanks to Judy and Jenny (❤️❤️) for encouraging you and subsequently encouraging me. Hooooooray!

  3. Linda Swanekamp Says:

    I also use Armour thyroid as the synthetic did not work on me. I did not have the dramatic improvement you had, but much better. I had to go to an endocrinologist as my primary does not believe in it. I still can’t lose weight, but my energy is up.

  4. Whiskers Says:

    GLORY HALLELUJAH, PRAISE THE LORD, and AMEN!!!! I know what I’m going to discuss with my endocrinologist in July. It is hard for others to understand what it feels like when your thyroid is out of whack. Mine died when I was 13 and nothing has been the same since.

    It has been 2 1/2 yrs (3 1/2?) since I decided, that as my numbers weren’t where they should be, I would look for a specialist because the locals just weren’t getting the picture. Lose weight! Lose weight! When you are constantly tired, losing weight just doesn’t happen. Exercise. Bah.

    When I first started taking thyroid replacement, the only thing available was “natural”. Then somewhere along the line synthetic (it’s better!) came a long, and that is all they can write Rx for. And, you are right. I felt better on natural.

    (I think piggy or sheepy thyroids are considered ‘by-products’.)

  5. Patricia L Walters Says:

    YEAH! Sarah! 20 Pounds and more to go – Fantastic! So happy you found something that is working for Your body!

  6. Cheryl Brown Says:

    Congrats Sarah. I too have been on Amour for 6 years and it made a world of difference. It’s hard finding a doctor who is informed about it. As my first boss used to say, “when the lab work and the patient say two different things, go with the patient.”

  7. Susan Dunne-Lederhaas Says:

    Hey Sarah,
    I am so happy for you.. Having the right dr means everything! Now you can begin your new life, feeling chipper! I guess piggies are pretty cool animals! When I need my Aortic valve replaced, my pick is a pig valve..they do the best with the least side effects… Many blessings.. Susan

  8. Marie Z Johansen Says:

    That is amazing, wonderful, uplifting, news !
    I have always been proud of you so this is icing on the admiration cake!
    ❤️m

  9. Janice Novachoff Says:

    Great news. The important thing is you are making progress.

  10. Sarah Ann Smith Says:

    Thanks, and I agree. It may be slow, but it is definitely in the right direction!

  11. Sarah Ann Smith Says:

    We share something upwards of 98 percent of our DNA with pigs, and their biology is closest to ours (hence fetal pigs in science labs). I am grateful! Thanks for writing!

  12. Sarah Ann Smith Says:

    Thanks Cheryl! Smart boss! Joshua’s first pediatrician said similar…he said always trust a mother’s instincts. Told of something that had happened recently to him (he was a research pediatric nephrologist but missed patient care so returned to a regular practice). A diabetic mother was concerned that her son was showing signs of the onset of diabetes. Did tests. All showed as normal. A few weeks later she was back, saying, no, something is off. Did the tests again. Diabetes confirmed. Trust the mom! Wish more people would inform themselves and advocate and, if needed, find another doctor (which isn’t always easy!).

  13. Sarah Ann Smith Says:

    Thanks Patricia!

  14. Sarah Ann Smith Says:

    With thyroid disease, it is 5 billion times harder to lose weight, so I try not to get discouraged and just realize it will take me so much longer than someone without. And look enviously at those with a normal metabolism. And then there is always the “can’t lose weight when you are too tired to move” thing!

  15. Sarah Ann Smith Says:

    Once the energy goes up, it helps. And it took my body at least six weeks of steady dieting before showing ANY signs of losing. I basically had to re-train my body. It was so used to functioning with minimal food that it took a while! I was determined to do a food log and calorie count to prove I really was doing everything I should and that it wasn’t working. But my appointment wasn’t for two long months. To my utter astonishment, after six weeks of no change, suddenly I DID start to lose–I’d just never stuck with it that long before. It was a surprise!

  16. Sarah Ann Smith Says:

    So sorry you had to go through cancer. My previous endocrinologist called it Hashimotos, but a description I read recently said Hashimoto’s starts with hyperthyroid, and I never was. And yes, I do wonder how much is acclimation to a new normal, so maybe I’m not normal like I was in my 30s, but it is so vastly better than it was before. Good luck!

  17. Sarah Ann Smith Says:

    I totally agree. Now, if I can get the last 5-7 pounds off, I can further honor the piggies by indulging in bacon! Isn’t that awful giggle? At least they know (somehow, through the karma of the universe?) that I appreciate their sacrifice.