LDN Video Interviews and Presentations

Michelle - US: Graves' Disease, Hashimoto's Thyroiditis (LDN, low dose naltrexone) from LDN Research Trust on Vimeo.

Michelle from the United States shares her Graves Disease and Low Dose Naltrexone (LDN) story on the LDN Radio Show with Linda Elsegood.

Michelle was diagnosed with Graves Disease in 2001, followed five years later by Hashimoto’s. Both illnesses took an extreme toll on Michelle’s wellbeing, impacting not only upon her physical health but also her mental health.

Michelle would sometimes be walking down the street and forget the reason for her journey due to the brain fog, and her back pain also began to limit Michelle’s mobility.

Michelle thankfully heard about Low Dose Naltrexone (LDN) from a local autoimmune support group. Shortly after, she was able to get a prescription and within three weeks she woke up with no pain whatsoever.

This is a summary of Michell’s interview. Please listen to the rest of Michelle’s story by clicking on the video above.

May - US: Fibromyalgia, Hashimoto’s, Asthma, Allergies (LDN, low dose naltrexone) from LDN Research Trust on Vimeo.

Mae from the US takes Low Dose Naltrexone (LDN) for Fibromyalgia, Hashimoto’s, Asthma and Allergies.

Mae started having skin issues as a teenager and at 37 was diagnosed with Fibromyalgia. Her rheumatologist put her on amitriptyline and after two weeks she started losing her vision. Mae tried diet changes, elimination of certain foods and additives and managed to get control of her migraines. Feeling a little better but not as well as she could have been she was prescribed prednisone which made everything worse still. 

Feeling at her lowest she admits to feeling suicidal and finally found mention of Low Dose Naltrexone in a blog and she researched it. Mae got a prescription from her doctor and took her LDN the first night and woke the following day feeling better than she had in a long time. Within three days of taking LDN she felt better brain function, less pain and stiffness and she had renewed hope for the future. 

Margaret - US: Cushing's, Hashimoto's, PCOS, Arthritis, Depression (LDN, low dose naltrexone) from LDN Research Trust on Vimeo.

Linda Elsegood: I'd like to introduce Margaret from the United States who takes LDN. Thank you for joining me, Margaret.

Margaret: Hi,

Linda Elsegood: thank you. Could you tell us when you first started to get sick, how old were you?

Margaret: Well, after the birth of my first child when I was 20, um, I started to have a lot of hormonal problems and symptoms.

And after several years and several doctors, um, my first diagnosis was with the polycystic ovarian syndrome. And, um, I suffered through, uh, many years of trying to find someone to treat me in a way that didn't have a lot of side effects. And I eventually went on Metformin, and that was very helpful. And I kind of had a period of good health for several years, and then when I was about 35 I started to have a lot of new symptoms that were similar but different and more intense.

And after probably four years of that, I finally was diagnosed with having Cushing's disease and having an ACTH secreting pituitary tumour. And I had pituitary surgery, two years ago, in May of 2013. And they found the tumour, they got it out, and I went into remission. And the recovery from that is quite brutal.

You have to slowly wean off of steroids. You have to take them as replacement because your pituitary doesn't work right for a while. And the withdrawal from steroids has been like into heroin withdrawal. So it's very intense. It's very painful. You have a lot of joint pain, muscle pain, um, a lot of psychological symptoms, depression, um, anxiety because not having enough cortisol is almost as anxious.

It is provoking as not as having too much. And so it's, you know, a good year of weaning. And then what happens is because you had high cortisol for so long, a lot of autoimmune things pop up that were being suppressed by the cortisol. And that's kind of where I'm at at this point, where now I have really high Hashimoto's titers and.

You know, I'd have to replace a lot of hormones and I'm still in the recovery process from Cushing's. But, you know, in the meantime, ten other autoimmune things get you.

Linda Elsegood: So, before you, um, started on LDN, could you describe what a typical day for you felt like?

Margaret: Well, I started on LDN when I was about sixteen months postop from pituitary surgery. So I would say that I had very little quality of life. I was still in the place where I was in a lot of pain. I didn't work full time. I was only working part-time and only from home at that point. I could barely do the grocery store by myself and come back home. I still have people taking my kids to school for me and all. It was basically helping me just to survive.

So I would say probably on a scale of one to 10, it was about a three.

Linda Elsegood: Oh, wow. That's not good. Not a good life.

Margaret: I mean, it was better than when I had Cushing's where my life was a zero. Yeah. Before they took the tumour out, I was home-bound and could not work. Didn't think straight. Had severe panic disorder. And anxiety all the time. And how did slept in probably two years by the time I had surgery. Yeah. So it's a really intense disease.

Linda Elsegood: It certainly sounds like it. So how did you hear about LDN?

Margaret: My endocrinologist, who, he is a Cushing specialist. That's what he specializes in. He actually recommends it to a lot of his postop patients because most of us have these underlying autoimmune problems and he gives it out quite frequently, especially if you kind of linger in your recovery.

I mean, some people just snap right back. That wasn't me. Maybe cause I was older, not sure, but he recommended it. And my primary care doctor prescribed it for me. I ended up making my own with a 50 millilitre, uh, 50 millilitres and 50-milligram pills because my insurance doesn't cover compounding.

And that was the most economical way for me to do it. And so my primary care doctors, he's in on it too, and he actually prescribed it for me. And, um, you know, does all the followup for it for me.

Linda Elsegood: When you started, did you notice any side effects at all?

Margaret: Well, I started at 0.5.mg, cause I was doing liquid, it was really easy to change my dose based on whatever I was noticing.

So the very first thing that I noticed was that I started dreaming, like a lot, and they weren't bad dreams. They were actually amazing, wonderful dreams. But when you have Cushing's and you don't sleep for a long time, you don't dream anymore cause you never get to REM sleep. And I'd had several sleep studies. You know when I was sick but didn't know what was wrong with me.

And I never got up. I never had any REM at all. So I will say that the very first thing that happened was it gave me background sleep and I started dreaming on a regular basis. And each increase in dose I would have several days of. Just fantastical dreams, which is a good thing for me. So it's a side effect, but a good one to me.

IThey were never bad dreams or nightmares or anything like that.  I did notice that on each dose increase that I would have a little bit of bowel motility, very short-lived. And when you have hormone issues. That's not unusual. You know, there's a lot of stuff going on in my body, so I don't know if I can particularly attribute it to LDN, but I think so. and it just was, you know, getting used to it. So at this point, I'm, my endo wants me to work up to four, but I'm very slowly working my way up. Right now, I'm on four, and that has been a process of about a year of getting up that high. And I stayed at three for a long time. But my Hashi titers were still very high, and so he wanted me to go up a little higher and see if we could get it to work.

Linda Elsegood: So, what is a typical day like for you now?

Margaret: Well, I attribute some of it to LDN. Some of it is just simply time. And my pituitary is recovering, but I now work full time. I am completely in control of my own life. I still have some chronic pain. It's much better. I do think that the LDN helped with the pain a lot.

It is now where I can take two Motrin a day and be pretty okay. I also use acupuncture extensively, which is, you know, it's not about LDN, but that is a huge part of my recovery as well. And I would say, you know, my life is an eight, and I work full time, probably 60 hours a week. I take my own kids to school.

I have a child in college now. And I take him to school and I grocery shop, clothing shop. I do everything now. And so it's a huge improvement from before I had surgery for my pituitary tumour. And I think LDN is probably half that. I, I won't be stopping it anytime soon.

Linda Elsegood: What would you say to other people who are thinking of trying LDN?

Margaret: You know, I think it's such, it's such a longstanding drug that's been around for so long and they know what the side effects are and it's really easy. So low risk, why not try it? And I think that's how I presented it to my primary care. I said, you know, cause he had other people on it.

And so he had heard of it. He was aware of the drug, and it's such a low dose. He just had no problem letting me try it, even if he didn't really believe in it necessarily. So I would approach it in that way. But I mean, the risks are very low and if it doesn't help, then just quit if it does and amazing.

Yeah. That's what I would say. Try it,

Linda Elsegood: You have such an amazing story and so inspirational for other people. Thank you very much. You're sharing it with us.

Margaret: Oh, you're welcome.

Any questions or comments you may have, please Contact Us.  I look forward to hearing from you. Thank you for joining us today. We really appreciated your company. Until next time, stay safe and keep well.

Manda - Holland: Hashimoto's Thyroiditis (LDN, low dose naltrexone) from LDN Research Trust on Vimeo.

Manda from Holland has Hashimoto's thyroid condition. She first started noticing symptoms at the early age of 17; she is now 41. During her studies, she had extreme difficulties with her sleep, and at the age of 35 she quit her career because symptoms were worsening. Always tired, dizzy, and her whole back and pelvis started to become unstable, where she then had problems sitting for more than 15 minutes; which therefore made social activities difficult. 

Manda rated her quality of life a 4/10 before low dose naltrexone (LDN), and ever since her quality of life has improved drastically.

After finding information about LDN, Manda asked her doctor to prescribe it for her, but the response was unfortunately a no. Then after looking online she found a six month waiting list prescription from France. 

Initial side effects included, trouble sleeping and migraines. Now after six months, Manda is still amazed by the medication, and would recommend people to give it a try.

Thank you for reading, please watch the video to listen to the whole interview.

Any questions or comments you may have, please contact us. 

Lynn - US: Hashimoto's, High Antibodies, Benign Tumors (LDN, low dose naltrexone) from LDN Research Trust on Vimeo.

Lynn from the United States takes LDN for high antibodies, Hashimotos. Her body was attacking my thyroid and other organs. But was also in agony constantly. She had undiagnosed Hashimotos for 10 years, her thyroids were destroyed, with only a small amount left.

13 different specialists always said they would not prescribe such a drug as Low Dose Naltrexone (LDN). Synthetic thyroid medications were not working, it was causing a huge amount of pain and brain fog, the inability to think straight, and was also in chronic pain. 

After taking LDN for a few days, she started to notice a huge difference in her pain. She built up strength in her muscles, and her brain fog was disappearing. 

Even her husband, who had Parkinson's disease is now also taking LDN, after 7 months he has also noticed a huge relief, and less pain. 

LDN has given Lynn a new lease of life, she feels as though she can now take care of herself and exercise.

Please watch the video to hear the full interview. Thank you

Any questions or comments you may have, please contact us.

Lynn - Australia: Graves Disease, Nephropathy (LDN, low dose naltrexone) from LDN Research Trust on Vimeo.

Lynn from Australia shares her Graves Disease and Low Dose Naltrexone (LDN) story on the LDN Radio Show with Linda Elsegood.

Lynn began to feel unwell around the age of 50 when she began to lose weight and was unable to control her bladder. On top of a loss of energy, Lynn had to cancel many social activities and holidays, leaving her with a bleak life.

Despite the initial struggles, Lynn was able to obtain a prescription for Low Dose Naltrexone (LDN) and began to work her way up to her optimal dose. She is now able to eat properly again and socialise with her friends and family.

“My life has improved so dramatically, I felt the pain before almost constantly and my overall quality of life was 3/10. Now I’m operating at 90% capacity, minimum. Everything’s rosy.”

This is a summary of Lyn’s interview. Please listen to the rest of Lynn’s story by clicking on the video above.

Kerry - US: Hashimoto's Thyroiditis (LDN, low dose naltrexone) from LDN Research Trust on Vimeo.

Kerry from the United States to takes LDN for Hashimoto's where she was diagnosed in 2002. However in the year 2000 she started noticing weight gain, and hair started falling out, she was also constantly having some sinus infections. 

After tests, confusion and different medications such as antibiotics, Kerry was still feeling constantly exhausted, her hair was thin, acne breakouts were common and she was gaining weight. Her cholesterol levels and blood pressure were also going up. There was no answer for Kerry, apart from the fact she did have Thyroid Disease. 

After time on social media, she came across a doctor mentioning Low Dose Naltrexone medication (LDN), and how it's helped Hashimoto's patients. Her general practitioner had never heard of LDN, although she was willing to let her try. Even getting a prescription from her pharmacy in Florida. After some time testing different dosages, Kerry’s energy increased greatly, her hair seemed softer, and her body seemed more hyper. 

To conclude, Kerry definitely does recommend Low Dose Naltrexone (LDN) to people who have Hashimoto’s.

Thank you for reading, please view the video for the full interview. 

Any questions or comments you may have, please contact us. 

Julie - US: Hashimoto's Thyroiditis (LDN, low dose naltrexone) from LDN Research Trust on Vimeo.

Julie from the United States takes LDN for Hashimoto's thyroiditis after noticing issues after the birth of her son, at the early age of 30. Julie started experiencing some fatigue, constipation and eczema. And then after the birth of her son, she was getting the flu a lot; feeling exhausted. Julier found out that she had the MTHFR gene mutation. Which also further hinders your body's ability to detoxify.

After 12 different physicians that never helped her. Julie told them what her symptoms were, her theories, and that her thyroid was not well. They carried on telling her she was fine. 

Julie has been very disappointed with endocrinologists, after her strange experience with her antibody testings. During this time she hasn't been able to find one to prescribe Low Dose Naltrexone medication (LDN). Even after taking it and telling an endocrinologist that it helped, they still wouldn't prescribe it or even expressed interest in learning about it.

Julie felt the difference with the Low Dose Naltrexone medication (LDN) immediately. She felt perkier, better moods, and had more energy .

Julie’s advice to people who have Hashimoto’s is to try LDN, work on your diet, eliminating gluten and cutting down on superfoods. The LDN medication has also made Julie happier, she feels a world of a difference with less anxiety and depression also.

Please watch the video for the full interview!

Any questions or comments you may have, please contact us. We look forward to hearing from you. 

Julie - Australia: Hashimoto's Thyroiditis (LDN, low dose naltrexone) from LDN Research Trust on Vimeo.

Julie is from Australia and takes LDN for Hashimoto’s disease. She was diagnosed in 2007, but looks back on having symptoms several years before. She was tired all the time, losing her hair, had dry skin, couldn’t eat well and living on one meal a day, had aches throughout her body, started to lose strength and muscle, depression, had brain fog almost every day, frequent urination, constipation, loss of balance, dry eyes, blurred vision, cold hands and feet – her hands would go numb in air conditioning - sensitivity to heat, tightness in the throat, neck pain, feeling her head too heavy for her neck to hold up, and limited neck range of motion. She had an internal tremor that made her feel weak; and air hunger as if not getting enough oxygen despite deep breathing. She had low blood pressure and body temperature.

The symptoms started to impact her job and social life. An ultrasound showed 2 nodules on her thyroid and a shrunken left side of the thyroid. Initially she refused medication, thinking she could get better on her own. She went to a naturopath to try for a natural way to heal, but 12 months later had to go on medication. She chose natural desiccated thyroid and got some good from it balancing her hormones, but symptoms didn’t go away no matter how much doctors tweaked her medication. She saw lots of doctors over 5 years, but remained debilitated by the symptoms. She attributes it to the hormone not actually entering the cells.

About 18 months ago her doctor recommended LDN and Julie researched it and decided to try it. When she started she quickly was able to reduce her thyroid medication. But then she had a bad virus lasting 3-4 weeks; then got Candida, which she heard can stop LDN from working. She got fantastic support from a Facebook group.

Julie feels her improvements from LDN are fantastic - from being sad, debilitated, and tired, to loving life and cheerful. Over the last 18 months she has gotten about 50% of her life back, and knows she’ll continue to get better. She feels she started at a quality of life of about 2 on a 10 point scale, and currently is about 7

She tells others about how good it is, and gives much credit to Deb who runs the Facebook group on beating Hashimoto’s disease with LDN.

Summary of Julie's interview, please listen to the video for the full story.

Keywords: LDN, low dose naltrexone, Hashimoto’s, thyroiditis, thyroid, thyroid nodules, natural desiccated thyroid, Candida

 Any questions or comments you may have, please contact us.

Julie - US: Multiple Autoimmune Disorders (LDN, low dose naltrexone) from LDN Research Trust on Vimeo.

Julia takes LDN Low Dose naltrexone for thyroid nodules, frozen shoulder, MCTD, Lupus, Scleroderma, Sjogren's, degenerative disk disease, Dupuytren's Contracture, Multiple Chemical Sensitivity and more.