One option is to switch to Armour Thyroid. It's a natural product, made from the thyroid glands of pigs. It is also much more effective than Synthroid because it contains T3
and T4. You may have to insist your doctor prescribe it, though. They get a big kick-back from Synthroid and Levoxyl, but Armour costs $9 or $10 a month, so no Bahama vacation perks there. You may have to find a compounding pharmacy to get this if Armour is not readily available. Call around and ask them if they have it, and if they do, ask if they'll compound it when it's unavailable. If not, find someone else. You may have better luck with the mom and pop type pharmacies.
Do
NOT buy it online. The price is extreme, and the product is doubtful.
As for the thyroid products at health food stores, they won't solve your problem.
DrLowe.com is a wealth of information, but you can read for days on end there now.
To get a good explanation of why the T4 only route (Synthroid) is a waste of time, go to
http://www.stopthethyroidmadness.com/t4-only-meds-dont-work/
I have not found a good hypothyroid book that was available at the bookstore. I did the inter-library loan of Dr. Lowe's medical book (it costs $100!) and it saved my life, but it is designed for medical doctors, not moms in brain fogs. I was able to glean enough information to know that I needed Armour, thank God. I've never read the 'Stop the Madness' book referred to above. Back when I was struggling to find out why I was deteriorating so badly, I read Mary Shoman's book. That made me worse. Do NOT take KELP!!! (which she recommends)... There is NO herb, mineral, vitamin, food, or leprechaun that will make your thyroid work 100% again. You will have to take thyroid hormone replacement for the rest of your life, and you need to choose if you'll take T4 products or one of the T3/T4 products. You can take vitamins, especially the B vitamins, to support your thyroid gland but they will not make it function properly all by themselves.
For the record, I have known several people (my sister and aunt come immediately to mind) who are taking Synthroid, and insist it is working for them. They then complain about these awful illnesses and symptoms they live with, but don't make the connection to their thyroid still being under-treated, or in the case of Synthroid, untreated. I can tell by just LOOKING at them that their thyroid is in a coma!
I'd love to hear what your symptoms are, and if any have been fully relieved with Synthroid.
By the way, if the poop hits the fan, I haven't a clue what I'll do. I have some pigs, but I'm not sure if I could make my own thyroid hormone replacement.
If you do decide to switch to Armour, or Naturethroid, you need to have a doctor treat you based on how you feel, not based on the TSH number. You may feel good at a very low level, but a lot of doctors (most) freak at low numbers. I'm taking 240 mg. I started at 50! I plan to ask the dr. to increase me to 270 as a trial, to see if my pressure point pain goes away. I'm telling you this as a warning: You will be told that 200, 220, 240 is a huge dose. It isn't. The average dose is 265. Average, which means many are higher than that!
Also, don't take your pill within hours of taking any form of calcium. It's best on an empty stomach. And you will be advised to take it in two separate doses, but it may work better to take it all at once, as it does for me, making a floodgate effect.
I wish you luck!
