Shortness Of Breath - Hematocrit?

[Hoodlum]

Hey guys

So I've been on testosterone replacement therapy (TRT) for the best part of 3 months now. The last couple of days, I've noticed that I'm finding it difficult to get a good breath, my heart thumps a bit from going up the stairs, and my head feels a little "tight". I'm thinking these could be symptoms of high hematocrit?

I'm going to sign up to go give blood tomorrow, and get my hematocrit checked. I thought it would take longer than a few months for potential side effects such as increased RBC to start manifesting - but then I'm not entirely sure on what I was basing that!

I've heard some people actually take their own blood using a transfusion kit to avoid the hassle - how hard is this to do?

Thanks for any info as always

 

[Megatron28]

High RBC's should make it easier to breath as you can carry more oxygen. Think Lance Armstrong and EPO. I don't think this is the cause of your problems -- but then I am not a doctor.

To your other question, your hematocrit can become elevated in just three months. If I recall correctly, you are taking a little more test than your "standard" testosterone replacement therapy (TRT) dose too. When in doubt, donate blood.

 

[Pantalones]

I have experienced the same, and have found it is in relation to an elevated hematocrit. Yes, Megatron it does allow you to carry more oxygen, but ultimately polycythemia vera will result in a thickening of the blood which slows down the rate in which you actually receive oxygen. So you have a lot more oxygen, but its not necessarily moving to where it needs to be at the right speeds. What works for me everytime is to either increase frequency of injections at a lower dosage, or just go donate some blood.

 

[Mprtz]

Mine went from 45 to 48 in the first 6 weeks. After 5 months it was at 53. Donated blood, and a few weeks later it was at 51. Just donated platelets to try to bring it down further, and will donate whole blood again ASAP. The pounding in the ears during cardio is definitely something I've noticed, and I suspect it may be related to elevated hct. My BP is still normal, have you checked yours?

 

[Megatron28]

I have experienced the same, and have found it is in relation to an elevated hematocrit. Yes, Megatron it does allow you to carry more oxygen, but ultimately polycythemia vera will result in a thickening of the blood which slows down the rate in which you actually receive oxygen. So you have a lot more oxygen, but its not necessarily moving to where it needs to be at the right speeds. What works for me everytime is to either increase frequency of injections at a lower dosage, or just go donate some blood.

Yeah, but you are talking about being around 60%+ for that. That doesn't happen when you are at the top of the normal range or slightly above -- at least not with most guys.

 

[Pantalones]

Yeah, but you are talking about being around 60%+ for that. That doesn't happen when you are at the top of the normal range or slightly above -- at least not with most guys.

Who's to say he isn't getting up there? It really is all individual, but I'd put my money on there being a correlation between the fact that he started testosterone replacement therapy (TRT) 3 months ago, and is just now noticing this. Almost a tell tale sign this is the connection, and the answer is almost always to just donate. UNLESS, however, he is not aspirating, hitting the vein every single time, and then proceeding to sprint up the stairs immediately after the oil had begun to reach his lungs lol. That would explain it..but I doubt it.

 

[Hoodlum]

Thanks for the replies guys. I actually have a baseline hematocrit reading from when I got my initial bloodwork done that confirmed my low testosterone levels. I think I'm correct in assuming that when I go to give blood, they will take the hematocrit level then and there, so I can compare and see how far it has (or has not) risen.

Yeah, but you are talking about being around 60%+ for that. That doesn't happen when you are at the top of the normal range or slightly above -- at least not with most guys.

Sorry - I don't think I quite follow the discussion here - around 60%+ of what? You're right in your recollection about my dosage - I'm doing 240mg test cyp/weekly, which puts me at a trough value of 900 as of my last bloodwork 2 weeks ago.

UNLESS, however, he is not aspirating, hitting the vein every single time, and then proceeding to sprint up the stairs immediately after the oil had begun to reach his lungs lol. That would explain it..but I doubt it.

As unlikely as this scenario probably already was, it's also not possible since I'm doing subq injections.

Cheers

 

[icejosh]

did you find a Dr or Clinic in the UK to support your protocol? I know you where in the same boat as me with Dr going down the Gel path only. Me im still on gels and know I need to get of them onto injections. I did get adex to take my e2 levels down from the 347 level.
So I have been following your progress as theres not many in the UK who can give good reports on there treatment.

 

[Mprtz]

Hematocrit is the ratio of packed cell volume to blood volume... 60% would be when you centrifuge a blood sample and 60% is solid with 40% plasma floating on top. Most of the solid volume (97%?) is made up of red blood cells, the rest is white blood cells and platelets.

When you donate blood, they are likely to quote hemoglobin concentration rather than hematocrit percentage... just multiply by 3 and round to nearest whole number is the standard conversion.

 

[halfwit]

How's that BP and swelling of the feet/face Hoodlum? Elevated E2 (I didn't see mention of an estradiol level) can most certainly cause you to retain water, which can most certainly cause symptoms of congestive heart failure -- which includes difficulty breathing.

Just a thought to look into.

 

[Hoodlum]

How's that BP and swelling of the feet/face Hoodlum? Elevated E2 (I didn't see mention of an estradiol level) can most certainly cause you to retain water, which can most certainly cause symptoms of congestive heart failure -- which includes difficulty breathing.

Just a thought to look into.

My face is no more swollen than its normal, lumpy self ;-)

My E2 was a little out of range a couple of weeks ago, since I'd dropped off the Aromatase inhibitor (AI) because I didn't think I needed it for subq shots (turns out I did). I've been back on 0.25mg adex EOD since then, so it should be fine - no water/hobbit feet issues to report.

I'll post back results from when I go to give blood today - the symptoms have alleviated somewhat for the moment.

 

[Hoodlum]

did you find a Dr or Clinic in the UK to support your protocol? I know you where in the same boat as me with Dr going down the Gel path only. Me im still on gels and know I need to get of them onto injections. I did get adex to take my e2 levels down from the 347 level.
So I have been following your progress as theres not many in the UK who can give good reports on there treatment.

In the end, I didn't even bother following it up. The fact that the dude was perfectly prepared to let me walk out of his office with a box of gels, no Aromatase inhibitor (AI), and no Human Chorionic Gonadotropin (HCG), and just say "see you in 2 months - phone me if you start feeling aggressive" kind of indicated to me he probably wasn't capable of offering me any useful advice.

There was a private testosterone replacement therapy (TRT) clinic on Harley St I was referred to by a doctor friend, but since they wanted £600 just for a consultation, that went out of the window too.

Essentially, I'm just crowdsourcing advice for my treatment on here. The collective knowledge of all the guys on here, along with how helpful everyone is, has made the whole thing more than manageable.