29 y/o considering TRT

1Draw said:

The glaring result that I see in addition to your low T is your Reverse T3. It is 30.9 ng/dl (9.2-24.1) which can cause a lot of health issues all bad including sleep. Here is a great website by Dr. Westin Childs - Thyroid Expert that recommends RT3 to be less than 15 ng/dl and lower if possible.

Here are optimal thyroid ranges from Dr. Childs - https://www.restartmed.com/normal-thyroid-levels/

Also, another great source is here - https://www.restartmed.com/reverse-t3/

My RT3 was 28.1 after a severe sinus infection in January and a few rounds of antibiotics which is bad for your Rt3. I have also been on a beta blocker last 5 years which causes high RT3.

My DR at Defy put me on Liothronine 5mcg 2 x day which will lower the RT3. I'm just starting my 2nd week and can feel a small difference in how I feel.

I would get your DR to look at the Liothronine or Cytomel to get your RT3 down and find a doctor that can treat your low T. Defy is a choice of many members here. Good luck and keep us updated.

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Thank you for the input, I also saw this when I was looking at my labs as well as high DHEA. Even though these test are abnormal they are only high about 5%. These test are all statistical, and for me those could be my normal ranges. Everyone is different, then again what is normal?

I think the next step at this point is hope my insurance approves an MRI, and it comes back negative. Just the thought of a pituitary tumor makes me sick. But after this test I have exhausted all possibilities. The last obvious thing to do is correct my low testosterone and see if everything else fixes itself in due time. Just every doctor I have seen has said, “you are young, you will recover in time, just give it time. You are healthy nothing is wrong with you.” May be out of context but that seems the go to diagnosis for all the doctors I have seen. Turning 29 in a month...

I do believe the low testosterone is contributing to my high LDL, which again is borderline. As well as the slightly elevated ALT. The ALT from my readings could be stress induced, as well as possibly my liver is picking up the slack where my kidneys are over worked.

From what I have read, low testosterone can cause frequent urination, as well as low estrogen. But from all my readings I could never figure out why this may be? Why does the body project this symptom with these low readings?

Update:

My 24 hour urine analysis came back clean, my Endocrinologist only mentioned I was just over the 2,400 mark. I believe I was around 2,500-2,600 for volume which he said was a little high but nothing of course concerning. I drank around 80 ounces of water that day so I think that seems to be right. My vitals are still normal, no changes there, but I have been feeling still a lack of energy, brain fog, head ache (mostly due to malnutrition, and less water intake), low libido, appetite changes, and sleep insomnia. My MRI of the pituitary, with and without contrast is on 03/23/18.

While I have been waiting for the MRI, I revisited my original Urologist who in the past prescribed me Clomiphene Citrate. He concluded at this point from the recent labs that testosterone replacement therapy is not a bad idea, and prescribed me 200mg/ml of Cypinate (brand Hospira) which would be administered once a week at 100mg. In conjunction, he prescribed me HCG which would be administered 3x a week at 350iu (35 units). These would be the only 2 compounds I would run with this protocol.

I just wanted to get some opinions on how I should space out my injections. Should I inject 100mg on a Monday all at once, or space it out 50mg Monday, and 50mg Thursday? Also for HCG should I start off less and only do twice a week instead of the instructed 3 times?

My Doctor is very smart and is part of this forum, I just will be on this for life so I want to make sure I do this right without causing more harm, thank you.

Until you get your Reverse T3 lowered to Less than 15, your symptoms will not improve. I would do that first along with your Testosterone shots.

You can keep ignoring it if you want - its up to you. I know - I've been there and, its no fun going thru the fatigue, loss of libido, etc. I'm treating my high RT3 of 28.1 and you are at 30.

1Draw said:

Until you get your Reverse T3 lowered to Less than 15, your symptoms will not improve. I would do that first along with your Testosterone shots.

You can keep ignoring it if you want - its up to you. I know - I've been there and, its no fun going thru the fatigue, loss of libido, etc. I'm treating my high RT3 of 28.1 and you are at 30.

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I understand, I have also read RT3 can be manipulated by stressing the body in extremes like starvation. I have not been eating a lot and quite well lately which may be the reason why my RT3 is slightly elevated.

Good luck.

UPDATE:

So great news, MRI was clean, the brain checked out to be normal and there was nothing unremarkable.

I am now starting my TRT with 50mg of Cypionate twice a week. And HCG 350iu 3 times a week. I think I gonna try this for a few months and revisit the kick start with Clomid. Seeing in the past I messed up my PCT by taking an AI and crashed my estrogen. I also might throw in some Cytomel 5mcg twice a week to help my RT3 levels.