I am back! My husband and I were gone for a two month long trek across the country. We took our trusty little camper and a 90 pound German Shepherd dog along with us. We traveled almost 11,000 miles and while we had a few misadventures, it was an overall wonderful vacation. We camped in mostly state and national parks. Most of the parks had electricity, but some did not. We have a little mini-fridge in our camper, which made keeping heat sensitive medication easier, but I had to take enough medication for two months. Levoxyl or any brand of levothyroxine is heat intolerant. That means it will lose potency and break down if stored in a heated or damp location. The somewhat " official" temperature that this medication needs to be stored at or under, is 77 degrees Fahrenheit, or 25 degrees Celsius( for those that use the metric system.)
So, I stored my stock supplies of medications in our fridge, but I needed to take along my daily medication reminder pack with me in our truck. When we started our trip, it was cold most places that we were visiting/camping. In fact, there was lots of snow at Crater Lake, for example. My husband and I wore coats, sweaters, etc. during the first part of our trip. I felt fine taking my weekly medication container in my purse, as it was with me when we traveled and hiked. As we moved along the country, the weather warmed up and storage was a bit of an issue. I began to be concerned about the medication in my purse. Although we turned on the air conditioner when needed, the sun still heated up the car a bit. I had brought a small cooler for our lunches, so sometimes, depending on the temperatures, I put my daily reminder container in the cooler.
Another concern was when I would take my medication. It is best if one takes their Levoxyl or other brand of levothyroxine at the same time each day. We stayed at a few campgrounds for two or three days at a time, but mostly we only spent one day. I did my best to take my medicine at the same time each day, but it was a challenge! We have a little bathroom in our camper, but it is damp in there so I could not put my daily reminder container in there. As stated above, the manufacturers recommend not storing medications in a bathroom. The dampness, and possible heat, could greatly affect the potency of thyroid medication. I could not leave it out on the counter because our dog, who is technically still a puppy ( a very large, long haired puppy who thinks everything is a toy) would have certainly chewed my container up along with my medication. Out of sight, out of mind as the saying goes. I can say that I missed only one dose of my Levoxyl, but as far as the time(s) that I took it were varied I am afraid. I did manage to always take it on an empty stomach, and wait the hour before eating.
As it worked out, I had a doctor's appointment scheduled the week after I returned from our big trip. My T4 level was up a little (However I am still in the suppressed range, which is what my endocrinologist wants, since I had both papillary and fairly aggressive follicular thyroid cancer) My T3 was almost in the low range- just barely in the normal range. I have been very tired lately, and since T3 is our body's "fuel" that may explain my fatigue. Hopefully, now that I am back home and have returned to a somewhat more normal schedule, my T3 will eventually go up a bit.
Proper storing one's thyroid hormone medication, either at home or on vacation, is very important. If our medication gets hot or damp, it will not work as well and that leaves us feeling badly. If a person is on a suppression dose, taking medication that is not potent could possibly make that person more prone to a recurrence. So, in summary, how one stores thyroid hormone medication, and when and how it is taken is important to our health and well being. This is obviously more difficult if on vacation, especially a long one, but there are things we can do to insure a good outcome. So take that trip! Have fun but remember to store your thyroid medication correctly, and take it as close to the same time each day as possible.
