In September 2022, I decided to stop taking my l-cysteine, ashwagandha, rhodiola rosea, and vitamin C supplements. I had started these over a year before to help with the stress response to my inner ear damage. At this point, though, I was having symptoms that I thought stopping these might help resolve. Not long before, I had started enlarging fonts on my screens to lessen eyestrain, and I believe that made the difference. While I was researching my remaining supplements to see if I could stop any of those, I came across information on l-carnitine/acetyl-l-carnitine. The last thing I wanted to do was add another supplement after getting to drop four, but since it was listed as a heart-healthy supplement that is sometimes taken with Co-Q10 and d-ribose, I thought it might be worth a try.
From my research, the biggest issue I found was my hypothyroidism. Information I found seemed conflicting. Some articles, such as this one, seemed to indicate that carnitine supplementation could make hypothyroidism worse. Others, like this one, were a little more optimistic. I decided to give the smallest dose I could find a try. I found a bottle of 500 mg of l-carnitine at a local store and bought it. I definitely felt more energetic in the days after I started taking it. I even think it helped me get through a slight withdrawal from the stress herbs. After that supply ran out, I decided to order some acetyl-l-carnitine, 500 mg, from Amazon. It was a lot cheaper than what I bought locally, and some information online seemed to indicate that it’s a superior form of the supplement when it comes to brain benefits.
In February 2023, I finally was able to do some thyroid tests to see where things stood. When I got the results, I was dismayed to see an abnormal marker on them. When I opened up the results, however, I saw that my TSH was actually on the low side. I had been taking 75 mcg of levothyroxine a day since the previous summer when my TSH kept climbing for some inexplicable reason. I now believe addressing my under-corrected vision played a big part in improving my TSH. I decided to go down to five 75 mcg tablets a week to see where my TSH would end up. I was hopeful that I could go back to my previous 50 mcg a day dosage. It would only be a 25 mcg difference a week. The next time my thyroid was tested, my TSH was just under 2.5. I decided to stay the course, and at my physical at the beginning of July, my TSH was actually under 2. I still have plenty of 75 mcg tablets to take, but once those are done, I hope to be able to ask for a 50 mcg a day prescription. I was also very happy to see that the acetyl-l-carnitine supplement was not interfering with my levothyroxine, which I take first thing in the morning away from my supplements. My plan as of now is to continue taking it.
I’m also taking my menopause supplements twice a day. I’m taking 150 mg of soy isoflavones in the morning and 250 mg of soy isoflavones in the evening. I’m also taking 1,000 mg of evening primrose oil twice a day (or 1,000 mg plus 1,300 mg when I can get the Zhou brand at the grocery store). I’m not sure it’s made a huge difference in hot flashes, but things do seem to be under better control as long as I don’t get too hot.
Please see this post for my full list of supplements.
If you like this post, please consider subscribing by e-mail and/or grabbing the RSS feed. Feel free to comment on this post or use my contact form to send me a message. Also, please consider sharing this post to your favorite social media sites. Thanks!
RSS - Posts
