Question on timing of Bloodwork for doctors if splitting dose twice a week?

[Neverquit]

Hello,

I am starting on testosterone replacement therapy (TRT) for the second time as my restart failed and trying to get it right with the E2 and dosage, My doctor is pretty open minded and said I could start at 200mg a week and wants me to do Human Chorionic Gonadotropin (HCG) 1000 a week, he basically said he wants to work with me to find the dosage that fits me so that may be 100 a week or twice a week. I am not sure. I had a 386 test level and i am pushing 50 years with multiple reasons my test is no longer working ( I am secondary)

Anyway he said take blood test 5 to 6 days after last injection and he believes that would be an injection of once every 7 days and then get one on the 5th or 6th day.

If a person was to split that dosage into 1/2 cc (100mg) every 3.5 days then when would you need to get your blood tested to be the equivelant of getting it tested 5 or 6 days after a whole 200mg ( 1 CC) injection and also if you were to split the Human Chorionic Gonadotropin (HCG) to 250 eod with .5 arimidex eod.

I have searched for answers to this question and not come up with anything. It would also be interesting to know when you would blood test if you split your injections into 3 a week, but at this point I just really want an answer to the first question?

 

[Neverquit]

Also if you dose 100mg every 5 days that would be around 140 mg a week I think and when would you need to get blood tested on that protocol, I honestly do not like to guess when it comes to blood work because I want to know good info on my blood work

 

[totalburnout]

The answer is there isn't an easy time where your levels will register exactly the same - and that's the reason for different dosing frequencies - to illicit different responses.

How'd I'd look at the situation is this. The generally accepted half life of Test Cyp is 7-10 days (some literature claims up until 15days). Been the doctor intending to test you on the 5th or 6th, it appears his goal was to measure your trough Test. level. If he wanted to measure your true trough level, he should have scheduled the blood test for the 7th day, immediately before your next shot. Thats a whole other topic though.

Now, if you're trying to measure the trough level of an E3D injection scenario, you're going to half difficulties because let's assume the half life is 7 days. As the first shot is halfway through its half life, you're injecting a second shot. Therefore your trough will never drop as low as a E7D schedule. You can test on the day of your next scheduled shot but the shot that you injected 3 days prior will be peaking around that time.

I suppose someone else can lend some better advice to you but my intentions were to give you the long drawn out version of why the trough will never be the same.


Cliff notes
Assume Test Cyp has a half life of 7 days
Assume Test Cyp peaks 1-2 days after injection

If you're on a E7D shot, you test your 2nd or 3rd day to find your peak level.
You test on your 7th day before injection to test your trough level.

E3D/E3.5D will not have the same well defined peak and trough.

 

[totalburnout]

Also if you dose 100mg every 5 days that would be around 140 mg a week I think and when would you need to get blood tested on that protocol, I honestly do not like to guess when it comes to blood work because I want to know good info on my blood work

Again, based on the half life, it won't be the same as a E7D test. On a E5D injection schedule, you're never allowing the Test Cyp to reach its half life before injecting additional Test.

The real question is what are you trying to accomplish and why are you looking at different injection schedules? The key to getting meaningful bloodwork is consistency. Pick whatever regimen you're going to use and then always test on the same day for that regimen. Bloodwork is just a snap shot in time.

Your doctor is giving you a ton of Test and hCG. You should be fortunate that you have a doctor so willing to work with you. Talk to him. He may approve of you changing the injection schedule. Worst thing that could happen is you don't keep the doctor informed, your blood tests come out high and then you lose his trust because he thinks you are lying to him.

 

[halfwit]

Get the test the morning before your second injection. While totalburnout is correct in that you won't have the same dramatic peaks and troughs as you would on E7D (which is a good thing), you are taking half the dose every three and a half days, which should have results close enough to what he's looking for. If you're worried about popping high on the test, just skip a pin and test the day of the injection after the skipped one (prior to injecting obviously).