Bloodwork ... Do I need TRT?

[MikeZ]

Hi,

Just looking for any insight.

Ive had conflicting opinions from two 'anti ageing' doctors.

1st thought I had hypogonadism and low adrenals (don't see him now as I moved), and 2nd think only low adrenals and not a test. The second not only said level was fine, but assured me because my LH was normal, there is no issue there. Not sure what to make of that ?


I'm 31 - several years of a 'burnt out' feeling - muscle loss, lack of libido, poor sleep.



I'm interested in a take on my results. ANY help is hugely appreciated.


Results: (Note: prolactin was normal, but couldnt find the copy. Brain MRI normal. I was sick during the one super low cortisol reading. Not sure if that makes a diff)



Thyroid :
Free T4 13.7 pmol/L Ref (11-22)
Free T3 4.8 pmol/L Ref (3.2-6.4)
TSH 1.28 mU/L Ref (0.5 - 5)

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[joecoolredbarron]

Hey Mike - I'm not the one to comment here on bloods. Have you talked to IMT? They're a sponsor here and are highly regarded on these forums (I use them as well). I wouldn't call them anti-aging doc's but they are highly specialized in TRT and the latest protocols...just a thought and might be worth a conversation. Treatment is based more on your well being than over analyzing blood levels (though that is important).

Someone smarter that me can chime in re: your bloods. Good luck!

 

[appleton111]

thanks for sharing, help is on its way

 

[MikeZ]

Hey Mike - I'm not the one to comment here on bloods. Have you talked to IMT? They're a sponsor here and are highly regarded on these forums (I use them as well). I wouldn't call them anti-aging doc's but they are highly specialized in TRT and the latest protocols...just a thought and might be worth a conversation. Treatment is based more on your well being than over analyzing blood levels (though that is important).

Someone smarter that me can chime in re: your bloods. Good luck!

Thanks for the response ! Being in Australia, I can't order or use a place like IMT sadly. I can get what I need here by seeing the right doc, or even order clomid myself (they let it in). However, my main issue was having two different opinions from docs and not knowing which way to go.

Agree that its based on how you feel!

 

[Megatron28]

You most definitely do not have hypogonadism. Your TT is 526ng/dl. That right about average for most males your age. You absolutely do not need TRT.

Your thyroid looks good too by the way.

 

[daleb]

If you want you could take a morning dose of 50mg or so of NDT(natural dessicated thyroid) or T4 to push up your thyroid numbers into the optimal range. The AM cortisol numbers are low, signifying you have some level of adrenal fatigue. You should think about using Adrenal Cortex Extract. That can be taken in the morning too. You wont be able to find a dr to supervise the optimization of the thyroid or treating your adrenal fatigue, so you have to bone up on knowledge and look for the ACE and NDT or T4 on your own. The last thing is you need to find a reverse t3 test, people who have adrenal fatigue can have high reverse t3, the result should be in the bottom half of the lab range, if its above the bottom half of range you will have issues with reverse t3, then you have to figure out why you are making reverse t3, can be cortisol, can be iron, can be an autoimmune disease such as leaky gut. Probably not what you want to hear. I also echo Megatron's comment. Chances are you get the cortisol taken care of and the thyroid optimized your Total T will go up to. Do you suffer from ED? Do you have sleep related erections?

 

[MikeZ]

No, that's ok..any response is what I wanted to hear. If I don't need TRT, it saves me a lot expensive / hassle.

So it appears cortisol is my issue?

I found some old bloods and from 08-10, my AM cortisol was near the top of the range. For a few years, its been near bottom.


What's troubling, is cortisol seems extremely hard to treat as there is no real approved way other than cortisol itself, which you need to obviously be super low to get.


Ive tried a number of boosting remedies , always with limited benefit. Test gel and HCG gave more of a response out of anything, but it seems I don't need those now.



DHEA sublingual pharm grade: Felt good first week, then nothing. Bloods showed raised E2 with barely a rise in T.

Pregnenolone sublingual pharm: Very subtle effect. Some days notice nothing., same days it gets me to 2/10. Still take it.

Low dose hydrocortisone - Tried after DHEA failure. Had a great response first week on low dose, then nothing. Couldn't replicate that first time.

Metagenics adrenotone - at the full dose, made me feel worse in every way. Half the dose, gets me to about 2/10.

Panax ginseng - trying now as I read it can raise cortisol. Some herbs lower it apparently.

Adrenal cortex - havn't tried yet. I seem to remember reading some negative things on iy yjouh.




Thanks!

 

[MikeZ]

Also, is the fact that both my FSH and LH are near the bottom of the range considered 'normal'? Thanks

 

[daleb]

i take 250mg of adrenal cortex extract enery morning when i wake up and 300mg phosphital serine before bedtime. this will balance most ppls adrenals. a morning dose of 50mg of ndt will push ur thyroid hormones into the optimal zone and not be tsh supressive. run that for 2 months and retest testosterone and you will be surprised.

 

[Milton]

hows your cortisol doing these days?

 

[Therealkozmo]

What is the average Testosterone level of a 27 year

 

[Roush]

What is the average Testosterone level of a 27 year

637 ng/dl

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[Megatron28]

Actually, that is the median, not the mean.