29yo male, started TRT due to low T @ 100mg/week 3 months ago, just got my first blood test 7 days after the injection (it should measure my lowest levels).
Test: 339ng/dL
Estrogen: 183 pg/mL
The doc said the test levels are fine and that the estrogen levels are a little high but we’ll just check them again in 3 months.
Is it normal to have high estrogen on such a low dose? Can i lower it by just losing some weight (just finished my bulk) and maybe injecting 50mg twice a week?
What is the “average” test level that I should aim for? It looks like my levels are pretty mild right now so I could increase the dosage… but dat estrogen doe.
Can’t ask my doc because even though he agreed on putting me on TRT he doesn’t seem to care much about the smaller details, or at least he’s in no rush to optimize my blood work.
You need ranges for your labs. Also you need ALOT more information. Read all of the sticky’s especially the advice for new guys and the thyroid sticky.
Based on your Estrogen number it looks like it is total estrogens and not Estradiol (E2). So it would be difficult to determine how your E is compared to your T. If that number is total estrogens and its high or in the upper limit of high within the range, it’s probably a gut issue with recycling E (KSMAN knows more details about this).
Three months is WAY too long. I am not on TRT but, I wouldn’t go more than 4 weeks without seeing labs so I can adjust things accordingly. Are you taking anything to control E2? Are you using HCG?
You are very young to be starting TRT, have you ruled out other possibilities of low T? Thyroid can cause major issues, I would read the Thyroid sticky and start by taking your morning temp and afternoon temp. Morning temp <97.7 is a indicator hypothyroidisim…
Yes, the value is “Estrogen, Total, Serum”. The range says “130 or less”. I read that Estradiol is a little more reliable but by that time the doc already ordered the test.
I don’t have any high estrogen sides, but since I want to up the dose of T a little (120mg/week maybe), the fact that it’s high already at 100mg/week is not a good sign.
No hCG, no AI. The doc wants to see the value again in 3 months before deciding what to do. Who needs AI for 100mg/week anyway? I’d have to be the only person on the planet…
I know that I am young. Believe me I’ve monitored my levels over a year before I went on TRT, always between 250 and 350. I’ve also done LH and FSH and prolactin before my first injection to confirm it’s not secondary hypogonadism.
(this time the doc also ordered CBC, but the values are normal so i didn’t post any)
Be very careful about “normal” lab results because this is a statistical “normal” range that captures most of the samples in a population of samples. Nothing there means normal health and in some labs, the range captures may pathologies. What you are interested in is optimal and most docs are clueless. Reference range - Wikipedia
You really have a lot of reading to do. That is the best thing that you can do for yourself now.
Your LH/FSH was not tested so you lost the diagnostic window to determine if its your testes or pituitary that are the problem. With guys in your age group, low T is a symptom and not condition. You need to find the cause to see if that can be fixed.
I’ve read the sticky about thyroid issues, thanks. While I did not perform all the test the thyroid sticky suggests, a few months before I started TRT my andrologist back home did test for LH, FSH, Prolactin, Total Test and Free Test instead of just Total Test, to rule out secondary hypogonadism.
LH: 1.9 mUI/mL (1.2-8.6)
FSH: 3.4 mUI/mL (1.3-19.0)
Prolactin: 9.9 ng/ML (2.6-13.0)
Test: 13.02 nmol/L (6.1-27.0) (i think it’s around 350 in american units)
Free Test: 22.98 pg/mL (8.7-64.70)
(Obviously those test levels were not the one that made me go for TRT, I got 250 a few months later and got 280 the previous year)
He said that they were not indicative of a thyroid issue, and that my test was not low enough to warrant TRT (true at that particular time) and to suck it up.
I couldn’t find information about the ideal levels of LH and FSH, are they low? They are in the normal range, but if the range is as ridiculous as it is for Test, you might have a point. Does the temperature test still work even now that I am on TRT?
re hCG: I thought that I could start it a few months before trying to have children (or worst case, I could hop off Test and do a PCT). I’m not planning to have children for a couple of years so I didn’t see the need for hCG right away, and my doctor didn’t suggest it either.
You can do T+AI and avoid most fertility issues. You can’t do TRT without hCG without some serious risks.
Nothing that you posted has any being on hypothyroidism.
In the thyroid basis sticky I talk about looking at your long term sources of iodine and determining if you have functional hypothyroidism by looking at your body temperatures. This is what you control, not your doctor.
I’ve read the sticky about thyroid issues, thanks. While I did not perform all the test the thyroid sticky suggests, a few months before I started TRT my andrologist back home did test for LH, FSH, Prolactin, Total Test and Free Test instead of just Total Test, to rule out secondary hypogonadism.
LH: 1.9 mUI/mL (1.2-8.6)
FSH: 3.4 mUI/mL (1.3-19.0)
Prolactin: 9.9 ng/ML (2.6-13.0)
Test: 13.02 nmol/L (6.1-27.0) (i think it’s around 350 in american units)
Free Test: 22.98 pg/mL (8.7-64.70)
This group of numbers is self consistent. So why is LH/FSH low? That is what you should be finding out and your doc is not doing that. Start with thyroid issues, read the thyroid basics stick and advice for new guys.
Injecting one a week is wrong and labs after one week are quite useless.
Estrogen: 183 pg/mL
Better to test E2 and need lab ranges.
As far as Iodine source are concerned… During the whole year of low T I was either cutting (a little too hard to be honest) and taking a multivitamin with iodine, or bulking and eating everything in sight, including eggs and milk which should be rich in iodine.
Permanent infertility issues without hCG is new to me, are you sure about that? At the very least, I could get off TRT, do a PCT with clomid and have my sperm count back in a few months. I’m not sure if adding hCG during TRT does anything, but if that stimulates sperm production i don’t see why you can’t start it later.
Have you seen that Chinese study where they experiment with TRT as a form of contraception? (Hint: it’s not reliable enough) 998/1000 men had their sperm count back in 6 months. The other 2 probably didn’t try clomid.
Another statement that contradicts what I’ve read so far is that 1 injection per week is wrong. A lot of people report feeling better with once a week instead of once every other week, but most people are just fine with once a week on low doses. Do you have any sources that claim you should pin more often on low doses?
I’ve seen the temperature test… but what i was asking is if the test is still meaningful as my HPTA is now shut down.
Also it’s not clear to me what I should do… short term I should probably change to a doctor that will test my E2 sooner, and take it from there (take AI if it’s high, increase T dosage if it’s normal). But long term? It looks like I can’t diagnose a thyroid condition until I get off TRT.