Getting in touch with doctor isn`t easy!

[Guest guest]

>> On Thu, 16 Oct 2003 00:16:16 -0400, " Conner,

Psy.D. " wrote:

450mgs PTU/day is a bit high (were your Free T's really

high to start?),

with the average starting dose being about 300. You

might want to get labs

in 3 weeks, especially if you are feeling tired or

sloooow (or other

symptoms of hypO/overmedication).

Let us know how you do.

<<

I spent the whole morning trying to get in touch with

my thyroid doctor`s office and kept getting an

answering machine.When I finally did get someone to

answer,at 1:45pm,they said the doctor couldn`t see

me... even to answer a few questions,till sometime in

December!

This will not do!

I ended up calling my family doctor and actually

talked to her and was able to explaine my concerns. She

said she`d get my test results and copies of my Endo`s

notes,etc,immediatly (he`s her husband-same office

building) and that I can see her tomorrow morning.

Whew! At least she will be able to tell me what his

plan of treatment is/was going to be. He certainly

didn`t.

I`ll have my original test results to send so you can

see if my T`s were high enough to call for 450mg of PTU

per day.

Thanks,

Crystal

[Guest guest]

Hi Crystal,

Glad you will at least be able to talk to one doctor! Geez. Are they aware

that you are his patient and that you have questions about your current

treatment? I don't like to be negative, but I would expect that he won't be

telling you as much as you can learn on your own; hopefully he will give

you some idea of what his treatment plan is. But really, Crystal, we

ultimately determine our own treatment plan, because if most of us left it

up to the doctors to dictate treatment, we'd be in big trouble. The way I

see it, treatment is not something that is planned out, but rather you do

it by ear and with knowledge. The plan as far as I'm concerned for myself

is to use medication keep my FT3 and FT4 steady and at a point where I feel

good, as long as it takes, until I achieve remission (defined as TBII<10

and TSI<2%). If I don't achieve remission, as long as I'm doing/feeling

well, I will be fine with taking the medication.

I won't really be able to advise you about specific dosage, as I am not a

doctor. We all make our own way, and use test results to guide our

decisions. I anticipate that you won't be on 450mgs for more than a few

weeks, so just be sure to get testing and request a dose reduction when

your FT3 and FT4 are near the top of the normal range. Don't let the doctor

medicate you according to the TSH; that usually stays suppressed for a long

time, and lags behind anyway, not giving you an accurate reflection of your

thyroid levels right now. Best tests to go by are FT4 and FT3.

At 01:45 PM 10/16/2003, you wrote:

> I spent the whole morning trying to get in touch with

>my thyroid doctor`s office and kept getting an

>answering machine.When I finally did get someone to

>answer,at 1:45pm,they said the doctor couldn`t see

>me... even to answer a few questions,till sometime in

>December!

>

> This will not do!