I´ve been literally a pain in the ass with the topic. Too many questions, but I need to be sure that testosterone is the issue as only one doctor told me it could be. But he was doing the treatment through the gel route and I found it was not covered by insurance and would be too expensive for my pocket. I was also not too keen on the effectiveness compared to injections so i decided to give more time.
I need to go to a different doctor and get another opinion.
Today i´ve been feeling like a total garbage. But, the reality is i´ve been sleeping around 7 to 8 hours everyday and i´m taking things to a minimum. It´s like we are forcing ourselves through eveything we do and still, recovery is compromised.
And these episodes are repeating themselves more and more frequently along the year. I just can´t be productive as would like and need to. Also, I feel my personality is getting weaker (low-flame) these recent years but again, more and more frequently. I´m too negative…
This lack of motivation could be caused by a lot of different things because when we feel good, we just embrace things and feel passionate about them. And that´s not happening as frequently as i´d like. Lately, I just feel “blah”…
Probably a stupid question, but would a 2 week trial with testosterone Enanthate indicate if low-T is my issue? Is there any way to do a quick test-drive without fully shut down ?
As I expected. Levels could increase but the overall benefit would only be perceived later on.
I don´t think that Natesto exists in my country. I can´t find it anywhere in the countries approved medication. Should be similarly positioned in terms of price, just like Androgel or Jatenzo?
Just like every 6 months (or close to), I did a routine check-up to my hormones. This time I ordered the things I wanted to check to a new (general healthcare) doctor we have at the company and decided to do in a time I was not feeling so good. Some items were never tested before, but makes sense to test to have a reference :
Total test : 300.3 ng/dl
Free T : 24.14 pg/ml (2.41ng/dl) Reference : 20-50 yr/old 8.69 to 54.69 pg/mL
17 Beta Estradiol : 33.8 pg/ml
LH : 2.83 mUI/ml
FSH : 2.31 mUI/ml
DHEA-Sulfate : 256 uG/dl (range 80 - 560)
TSH : 2.170 mUi/l (range 0.35 - 5.5)
FT3 : 3.53 pg/ml (range 2.3-4.2)
FT4 : 1.20 ng/dl (range 0.8-1.76)
SHBG : 25.30 nmol/l
IGF-1 : 221 ng/ml ( range 43-209) ??
PSA total : 0.56 ng/ml
PSA free : 0.20 ng/ml
PSA free / total : 0.36
Total Cholesterol : 132 mg/dl
LDL : 69 mg/dl
HDL : 38 mg/dl
trygliceride : 127 mg/dl
Ferritin : 314.4 ng/ml (range 30-340)
Hemoblogin : 16.4 g/dl
Eritocrit : 5.46 x10^6/ul …
Hematocrit : 49.8 % …
Everything else on hemogram as well as Creatine, AST, ALT is within range.
I was expecting a lower DHEA and IGF (never tested). My testosterone seem to be floating around the same numbers since at least 4 years ago. Not getting worse, but less than this and it´s time for TRT.
Free T should be (using the calculator) 6.85 ng/dl. I understand this is on the low side I guess. But, the lab is saying that mine is 24.14 pg/ml which is 2.14 ng/dl. Are they saying it is even lower than the calculator ?!??
I have a feeling my Free T could explain most of my occasional symptoms. But, in reality, I never understand if it is low or good.
Any comments on IGF, DHEA or others (hematocrit or eritorit) that stand out ?
So, what Free T result should I trust ?
I read around here that we should have free T at 20 or 25. Are these 20 or 25 in the same metrics than my 2.41 ng/dl from lab result? It seems there are different metrics and interpretations.
That’s per Labcorp’s reference ranges, it seems every lab company has a different reference range because there’s no standardization in hormonal testing.
Some lab companies have reference ranges the bottom out at 190 ng/dL and a guy gets tested at 235 ng/dL and his doctors says your normal, the same guy goes to Labcorp which bottoms out at 264 ng/dL and well you get the point.
Notice how TRT is offered to men in range <300, the confusion with testosterone is you can have normal levels within range and still have symptoms of low T.
This is what happens when you have no standards, everyone is doing their own s***.
I got your point and I can apply that without questions to total testosterone.
But in the case of Free T, my deviation from the normal (or the range) is quite significant. If I use Lab Corp as my reference Lab, they say i´m totally OFF. On the other hand, my local Lab where I tested says I´m absolutely fine !!
It´s not just a mere deviation. It will be the evidence of a condition that needs treatment or not.
My local lab says the maximum range is 5.46. This is 4x less than what LabCorp says.
Shouldn´t they indicate the range based on statistics ? This is more than the Total testostrone range deviation !!
Well, then, that makes me think that my Free T is reeeeeeaally low then. And probably explain my symptoms. Also, it will never improve naturally to those 20 to 25 Free T Lab Cop suggests.
It´s going to be be hard to convince a doctor that LabCorp (which is from different country) suggests that I am very low T.
Any suggestion on DHEA or IGF-1?
Probably will donate some blood to reduce Ferritin and hematocrit? Never did that before.
The Lab I use is one of the best in the country. I just need a reference to work with in the future. My Lab says i´m good. But… I guess maybe not due to improper metrics or surely not if I use the calculator.
There´s some controversy around the units used (metrics) and the ranges. Even at labcorp :
The odds are one day I will unfortunately have to do TRT and try to achieve a hormone balance of what I once was. But I have a question :
Let´s suppose I once had a Total T of 500 to 600 and with adequate/normal free T levels and I felt great at that time. Now I would have to do TRT I to achieve those figures to feel better.
After targeting those figures I would be in the ballpark of what I once was in a “lab” perspective. Should I expect issues because i´m disturbing my current hormone balance or simply none because I once had them naturally ?
But, OTOH, the reality is I don´t have references which means i´m lost like many of you once were before TRT. And, because I am conservative, I would try to get into that same ballpark based on what I currently see in my bloodwork and see how i´d feel. It would mean trying to double that (from 300 to 600) and still be very within the normal male range. If along the process I ever find issues, could that mean that I never had those levels in my life before or maybe I once had them but the side effetcs would come (temporarily or not) because I am now disturbing my current natural hormone balance?
Probably stupid question. Just trying to understand what I should target with TRT without cheating what I once must have been naturally. It´s a fine line and I could eventually ignore it but I think it is key in the process for pure TRT benefit.
Or, understanding if my body is not supressed at all and my T levels are low-ish for a reason or a balance I should not mess with.
I’m pretty sure I’m way above my natural set point for testosterone levels, I peak as high as 1200 ng/dL, then 4 hours later 600-700 ng/dL and 12 hours 287 ng/dL.
You may need equal to or a little higher do to aging as our bodies don’t function like it did 20-30nyears ago.
You may even find that you feel better a bit higher than where your natural levels used to be.
