What Do my Estradiol and SHBG Tests Mean?

Pharma / TRT Testosterone Replacement
1

Hello,
Im 46 years old . I have been on trt for about a year and just added hcg about 6 weeks ago.
The hcg really made a big difference! I have much more energy and mood is good. I take 25 mg of test cypionate plus 500 iu hcg in same syringe every mon, wed, and friday. My test was high but normal range before adding hcg and now its higher than normal.
(Last week I got a blood test):

Total test : 922
(They did not test free testosterone)
Estradiol sensitive test: 13 pg/ml
Shbg: 70

I probably should have waited longer than 5 or 6 weeks for my blood test after adding hcg.

And know I should have gotten free testosterone test and maybe others, but I was just wondering what these results could mean. I feel pretty good, but shouldnt estradiol be higher, especially because I am on hcg?
And isnā€™t shbg kinda high? Any input would be much appreciated.

(Im recovering from an illness and trying to get as healthy as possible. Im not trying to get huge)

1 Like
2

List all of your supplements you are taking please. Your SHBG is pretty high, which might be drowning your free test and hyperinflating your total testosterone. 75mg of test a week is likely not enough for you.

Iā€™ve had to deal with high SHBG and to get my free test into the higher normal limits i have to take 200mg a week.

3

yes and yes, you may not aromatize much. As for FT, yours is about 13ng/dL. You could try to lower that SHBG some if youā€™re not feeling great. More FT would mean more e2, so maybe fix both issues?

4

75mg/wk of Test is weak, no wonder HCG made you feel better. The more exogenous T you take the lower your SHBG will be. Just keep doing what youā€™re doing, and test again in 2 months. These values are kinda meaningless for the time being. People who say ā€˜Im not trying to get hugeā€™ are definitely not trying. So dont worry, no one is thinking that, with that amount of T going in. Give your protocol more time, and then test again. More T= more E, so if you are not aromatasing enough, you will have to supplement. 5 weeks in youā€™re not cruising yet.

5

More than likely to the reason HCG made you feel better is because of your below average 75mg weekly dosage. Most men are on 100mg cypionate or more per week.

This estrogen level is not healthy, normal estrogen for a male is 20>. As for your astronomically high SHBG, your doctor should be checking Free T.

Your calculated Free T isnā€™t great and in fact some men complain of low-T symptoms around (10-12 ng/dL) this value.

Is your illness related to your liver?

6

Thank you for all these replies!
I was taking the normally prescribed 200 mg cypionate/ every 2 weeks, but started taking less because I was only looking at total test and not free test. I was trying to stay in ā€œnormalā€ range according to longevity research.
So after reading these replies , I guess I should take a free testosterone test after a few more weeks and then go from there.
If I understand correctly, if free test is low then I should increase my cypionate dose and this will probably increase my estrogen to better levels and then also lower my shbg ?

And yes, i do have liver issues. I have cholastasis. Its controlled with berberine and artichoke extract. My liver enzymes are currently in the normal range. I take tons of supplements:

  1. Buprenorphine for nerve pain ( synthetic opiate)
  2. Red clover extract to stop night sweats from the Buprenorphine ( this is a strong phytoestrogen. Maybe this is lowering my own bodiesā€™ estrogen production?)
  3. Agmatine sulfate
  4. Berberine
  5. Progesterone (high dose for traumatic brain injury)
  6. Milk thistle
  7. Creatine
  8. Boron
  9. Coq10, k2, E, C
7

These protocols are stupid and any doctor prescribing TRT in this way is foolish.

8

I know, that is exactly why I have posted here and am trying to figure out what to do.

Im not following what my dr says. It is at this forum that I learned that its better to take testosterone more often and thats why I take it mon, weds, and fri .This is only the first sensitive estrogen and shbg test I got so far after a whole year on trt and I got it after learning about it here. Im trying to understand the whole picture now.