Successfully reduced HEMATOCRIT by lowering dosage

[HealthMan]

After 2 years fighting high HCT I finally won the battle! It all came down to reducing my testosterone dosage. My HCT has been high on 120-180mg a week (tried all different injection frequencies). I have recently reduced my dosage to 100mg and my last CBC has my HCT at 49.5 (down from 53.5 4-5 months ago). Hemoglobin at 16.6 and RBC at 5.6 (all done with labcorp).
My TT is in the low 700s and FT low-mid 20s. I feel great. Sleep is much better. Gym results are the same when compared to higher dosages.
All the side effects i had on TRT are ALL gone. I think there is so much your body can handle without messing other things up and the more is not necessarily the better.

 

[Vince]

Congratulations on getting your HCT under control. It took me two years also before my HCT stabilized, what a relief it is not having to donate blood every 8 weeks like I had in my first two years of trt.

 

[HealthMan]

Congratulations on getting your HCT under control. It took me two years also before my HCT stabilized, what a relief it is not having to donate blood every 8 weeks like I had in my first two years of trt.

Tks Vince! For me the big issue in donating is that i have white coat syndrome. So I would get rejected sometimes. Everytime I had to donate blood was very stressful

 

[madman]

After 2 years fighting high HCT I finally won the battle! It all came down to reducing my testosterone dosage. My HCT has been high on 120-180mg a week (tried all different injection frequencies). I have recently reduced my dosage to 100mg and my last CBC has my HCT at 49.5 (down from 53.5 4-5 months ago). Hemoglobin at 16.6 and RBC at 5.6 (all done with labcorp).
My TT is in the low 700s and FT low-mid 20s. I feel great. Sleep is much better. Gym results are the same when compared to higher dosages.
All the side effects i had on TRT are ALL gone. I think there is so much your body can handle without messing other things up and the more is not necessarily the better.

Great news HM, glad to hear things have finally worked out for you.....so many are uninformed and gun ho when starting trt with the mentality that higher doses are needed and "if a little is good than more must be better" when in fact the least amount of testosterone needed to experience relief/improvement from low t symptoms and minimize the chance of experiencing side effects should be the goal.

 

[Vince]

Great news HM, glad to hear things have finally worked out for you.....so many are uninformed and gun ho when starting trt with the mentality that higher doses are needed and "if a little is good than more must be better" when in fact the least amount of testosterone needed to experience relief/improvement from low t symptoms and minimize the chance of experiencing side effects should be the goal.

I've been told, I do not know if it's true, men like me with hypothyroidism need higher levels of testosterone to feel good. I assume that's why I feel better with higher levels of testosterone that many members here.

 

[HealthMan]

I've been told, I do not know if it's true, men like me with hypothyroidism need higher levels of testosterone to feel good. I assume that's why I feel better with higher levels of testosterone that many members here.

What’s your FT Vince?

 

[HealthMan]

Great news HM, glad to hear things have finally worked out for you.....so many are uninformed and gun ho when starting trt with the mentality that higher doses are needed and "if a little is good than more must be better" when in fact the least amount of testosterone needed to experience relief/improvement from low t symptoms and minimize the chance of experiencing side effects should be the goal.

Tks Madman. I am a firm believer that out of control side effects are a sign someone’s dosage needs to be reduced. But many fear that a lower dosage means subpar results. And for me and many it was the opposite

 

[madman]

I've been told, I do not know if it's true, men like me with hypothyroidism need higher levels of testosterone to feel good. I assume that's why I feel better with higher levels of testosterone that many members here.

I would say a lot of men who feel they need higher doses of trt to feel better regarding relief/improvements of low t symptoms actually have a dysfunctional thyroid and would do much better on lower doses of testosterone once the thyroid function is corrected.

Also regarding testosterone levels I feel that intra-individual variability plays a big role due to the sensitivity of ones AR (androgen receptor)/ polymorphism of the AR and ones CAG repeat length (wether short/long).

 

[Vince]

What's your FT Vince?

testosterone serum 1117 ng/dL range 264 - 916
Free T 30.3 pg/mL range 6.6 - 18.1
DHEA - Sulfate 347.3 range 48.9 - 344.2
Estradiol, Sensitive 29.5 range 8.0 - 35.0
SHBG 48.8 range 19.3 - 76.4
HCT 47.9 range 37.5 - 51.0

 

[Vince]

I would say a lot of men who feel they need higher doses of trt to feel better regarding relief/improvements of low t symptoms actually have a dysfunctional thyroid and would do much better on lower doses of testosterone once the thyroid function is corrected.

Also regarding testosterone levels I feel that intra-individual variability plays a big role due to the sensitivity of ones AR (androgen receptor)/ polymorphism of the AR and ones CAG repeat length (wether short/long).

I agree with you 100%. I believe some men wouldn't even need trt if they had ideal thyroid levels.

 

[Vince Carter]

I have a CBC pending right now but will be nice to verify what you've found, I hope, though HCT control is a lesser thing Ive been after with my dose reduction(s) this year. I've gone from 28mg/D to right now using only 10mg/D. Labs that I'm waiting on will be for 12mg/D.

I do think that this all makes sense, these unpleasant sides like HCT and blood donations are key indicators that you're being overdosed on an individual basis.

 

[HealthMan]

I have a CBC pending right now but will be nice to verify what you've found, I hope, though HCT control is a lesser thing Ive been after with my dose reduction(s) this year. I've gone from 28mg/D to right now using only 10mg/D. Labs that I'm waiting on will be for 12mg/D.

I do think that this all makes sense, these unpleasant sides like HCT and blood donations are key indicators that you're being overdosed on an individual basis.

Fingers crossed. Just remember that RBC life is roughly 4 months on average so a dosage reduction will take that long to reflect in your bloodwork. One thing that is helpful as well is to stop blood donation if your HCT is not too high.

 

[Vettester Chris]

Good job!! It's all about balance .. Find that balance, everything seems to gel.

 

[HealthMan]

Good job!! It's all about balance .. Find that balance, everything seems to gel.

Wise words. I am glad i have finally found that balance.

 

[HealthMan]

Increased the dosage from 100mg to 110mg and HCT up to 52 from 49 (upper range 51). I haven’t donated blood for over a year which is great because I have white coat syndrome and donating blood is always a nightmare for me. So i am planning to reduce my dosage back to 100mg and everything should be resolved. Problem is Defy wants me to donate which I dont want to. HCT is definitely stable since i dont donate for over 1 year. Blood pressure 110/70. And HCT only 1 point above range.

@Dr Justin Saya MD in a situation like mine would you be comfortable in just reducing again testosterone dosage? I am about to schedule a consultation with you anyways.

 

[Tman]

Fingers crossed. Just remember that RBC life is roughly 4 months on average so a dosage reduction will take that long to reflect in your bloodwork. One thing that is helpful as well is to stop blood donation if your HCT is not too high.

Not sure where the information comes from, but I dropped my dose to 16 mg daily and my RBC and HCT numbers dropped within 3 weeks. Unfortunately so did the positive effects from TRT while the E effects were just as bad if not worse. So, now Ive tried 20 mg a day going back in for blood work tomorrow.

 

[Tman]

Increased the dosage from 100mg to 110mg and HCT up to 52 from 49 (upper range 51). I haven’t donated blood for over a year which is great because I have white coat syndrome and donating blood is always a nightmare for me. So i am planning to reduce my dosage back to 100mg and everything should be resolved. Problem is Defy wants me to donate which I dont want to. HCT is definitely stable since i dont donate for over 1 year. Blood pressure 110/70. And HCT only 1 point above range.

@Dr Justin Saya MD in a situation like mine would you be comfortable in just reducing again testosterone dosage? I am about to schedule a consultation with you anyways.

Sounds like 100 might be a good call for you as far as blood work... Good you figured that out.

 

[HealthMan]

Reduced to 96mg a week (48mg twice a week). I have plenty of data now that shows me anything above 100mg a week (even 105mg) messes up with my HCT and iron. So to be on safe side 96mg will do it.
Stupid my decision to pump it up my dosage to 110mg after everything i have learned and been through. I feel the same 100 or 110mg. Gym results the same. Lesson learnt