posted
Things were going a lot better with my health up until I went to pick up my refill of Armour Thyroid medication. The pharmacy automatically substituted this "NP Thyroid" by Acella Pharmaceuticals and the only way I could get them to give me the Armour back was for my doctor to send in a new prescription with "no substitutions / DAW (dispense as written) on it. My doctor said to give this new med a try because you never know - it might be better.
Well, not better. A whole lot worse, actually. Heart racing, tremors, insomnia, diarreah. ugh! I kept decreasing my dose just thinking maybe it was just stronger than Armour, but I got down to just one tablet in the morning and I still felt like crap. This is exactly how I felt when I was on Synthroid. No matter what dose, I felt terrible. So, luckily, my doctor was willing to call in a new prescription.
Then, to top it all off, the pharmacy couldn't dispense the new prescription because it was too soon after getting the last one and my health insurance company had a hold on it! The pharmacist had to call the insurance company to get the hold taken off.
I've started back on Armour again this morning. I'm hoping my body adjusts quickly. That was horrible!
-------------------- IgM: [18++,31+++,34++,41++,83-93+] [39 IND] IgG: [41 IND] Positive according to IGeneX. Negative according to CDC. Negative for co-infections. Currently treating for Lyme, Bartonella, Babesia Posts: 225 | From Minnesota | Registered: May 2011
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posted
Sorry to hear of your adverse reaction to the substituted thyroid medication, and the fight with your insurance. Glad you were able to have your doctor ask for no substitutions, and finally get the Armour.
I also use Armour. Formerly I used a compounded thyroid med, but it got too expensive for me, so I switched to Armour. The Armour has been very good. However, even on the Armour, it's important to have your thyroid levels monitored.
Recently, my dosage was lowered, as I had developed high anxiety, heart palpatations, and irritability. Once the Armour dosage was lowered, I felt much better.
Armour thyroid is relatively inexpensive, and a very old medication. Therefore the pharma companies don't make much money on it, so they tend to push the newer formulations.
Hope you're feeling better soon.
Posts: 873 | From WA | Registered: Dec 2005
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Keebler
Honored Contributor (25K+ posts)
Member # 12673
posted
- I've reacted badly from generic thyroid meds - and some others, too.
For those with celiac, be sure that all meds are gluten-free. I also prefer no dyes or additives but that can be nearly impossible and so much homework.
Glad the "no substitutions" worked for insurance. This will have to be stressed with each refill, too.
And, each time to pick up a refill, look at the actual pills inside to be certain they are the real deal. Always keep ONE last pill from the current supply to compare. -
Posts: 48021 | From Tree House | Registered: Jul 2007
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posted
Ooooh, that's a good suggestion. I didn't think of comparing the pills to the last batch.
-------------------- IgM: [18++,31+++,34++,41++,83-93+] [39 IND] IgG: [41 IND] Positive according to IGeneX. Negative according to CDC. Negative for co-infections. Currently treating for Lyme, Bartonella, Babesia Posts: 225 | From Minnesota | Registered: May 2011
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posted
Perhaps it was one of the "fillers" in the generic substitute? Also this brand is 65 mg vs most others being 60 (per tablet). Not sure what you dosage is...
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