Backfilling Progesterone with Estrogen Dominance

[Maca]



Due to not using HCG for 3 Years (Just testosterone), according to Nelson, this can cause your Pregnenolone and Progesterone levels to crash.

My theory is due to having very low Progesterone it is causing Estrogen Dominance and any time I take HCG I am having estrogen side effects even though my estrogen is not that high (40). A lump in my breast starts to grow and I get itchy, sensitive, puffy nipples.

Estrogen dominance is a condition where a man has more estrogen than progesterone. Even if a man's estrogen levels are low, it is still possible that he will experience symptoms of estrogen dominance.

Now my question is what is the best way to fix this, should I supplement progesterone? (Any idea how much?, blood tests are difficult due to quarantine)

Or should I take HCG and just control the estrogen with an AI

Thanks!

 

[Cataceous]

There are various possibilities. Some guys have success with pregnenolone, getting sufficient conversion to progesterone to solve this problem. I didn't test progesterone when I was supplementing, but side effects ruled out this option for me anyway.

You look younger, so hCG might work for you. There's actually published research showing that hCG administration raises progesterone in younger men, but not older men. HCG never raised my progesterone.

Finally there's direct supplementation. In theory progesterone can be taken orally, applied topically, or injected directly. There are some oddities with the first two options—alternate metabolites and heterogenous concentrations respectively, so I use the latter, direct injections. It's definitely safer to test your levels when supplementing; high levels have the potential to be worse than low levels.

Dosing ideas here: Could the ratio of progesterone to estradiol affect water retention in men on TRT?

 

[Vince]

Could the ratio of progesterone to estradiol affect water retention in men on TRT?

I've been doing reading on water retention on TRT and I'd like to discuss a hypothetical I haven't seen floated: that the ratio of progesterone to estradiol could play a role. This is a good post by Nelson: "Water Retention Caused by Testosterone May Have Nothing to Do with Estradiol". The...

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[Maca]

You look younger, so hCG might work for you. There's actually published research showing that hCG administration raises progesterone in younger men, but not older men. HCG never raised my progesterone.

Finally there's direct supplementation. In theory progesterone can be taken orally, applied topically, or injected directly. There are some oddities with the first two options—alternate metabolites and heterogenous concentrations respectively, so I use the latter, direct injections. It's definitely safer to test your levels when supplementing; high levels have the potential to be worse than low levels.

Dosing ideas here: Could the ratio of progesterone to estradiol affect water retention in men on TRT?

Thanks for the reply! I'm currently 29, so ideally I'd love to have everything sorted with HCG as it covers all hormones that need backfilling. My HDL is also low and I'm thinking that even when I've taken HCG in the past I might have been lacking the raw material to make the hormones. So this time I'm going to do HCG 500IU EOD, use Aromasin and also try and raise the HDL using a couple of techniques.

I'll check out the link as a backup, although I'm thinking I'll try HCG first and then test my progesterone once out of quarantine to see where I stand. Alternatively, I could try supplementing with Pregnenolone and hope I can convert it to Progesterone.

 

[Vince]

Why does testosterone therapy decrease HDL cholesterol in some men?

This HDL lowering effect is seen at higher testosterone doses. Relationship of plasma HDL-Cholesterol to testosterone, estradiol, and sex-hormone-binding globulin levels in men and women James Semmens et al. Metabolism Volume 32, Issue 5, May 1983, Pages 428–432 Abstract The significance...

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[Maca]

Why does testosterone therapy decrease HDL cholesterol in some men?

This HDL lowering effect is seen at higher testosterone doses. Relationship of plasma HDL-Cholesterol to testosterone, estradiol, and sex-hormone-binding globulin levels in men and women James Semmens et al. Metabolism Volume 32, Issue 5, May 1983, Pages 428–432 Abstract The significance...

www.excelmale.com

Thank you Vince, I'll have a read through now. My HDL was at 36,5 mg/dL in Feb 2020. I think this could also be related to not eating fish due to high levels of mercury I discovered in 2018, I removed all fish apart from occasional sardines. Also I haven't used an AI in the past and my test dose was reasonable at 87.5mg per week - that was all I was taking.

DHEA-S was also at 327 ug/dl in Dec 2019.

I've also always suffered with low energy, depression, anxiety and I wonder if starting testosterone fixed the low T but then maybe caused knock-on side effects lowering Pregnenolone, Progesterone, DHEA and my adrenals are now taxed as they're picking up the slack.

My Cortisol seems to crash out end of day.

 

[Vince]

Thank you Vince, I'll have a read through now. My HDL was at 36,5 mg/dL in Feb 2020. I think this could also be related to not eating fish due to high levels of mercury I discovered in 2018, I removed all fish apart from occasional sardines. Also I haven't used an AI in the past and my test dose was reasonable at 87.5mg per week - that was all I was taking.

DHEA-S was also at 327 ug/dl in Dec 2019.

I've also always suffered with low energy, depression, anxiety and I wonder if starting testosterone fixed the low T but then maybe caused knock-on side effects lowering Pregnenolone, Progesterone, DHEA and my adrenals are now taxed as they're picking up the slack.

View attachment 9523

My Cortisol seems to crash out end of day.

My protocol is 16 mg of testosterone cypionate daily, 500 iu of HCG twice a week, pregnenolone 10 mg, 25 mg of DHEA and no AI.

 

[Rock H. Johnson]

@Maca Do you eat eggs? If so how many?

 

[Vince]

whole eggs

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[Maca]

@Maca Do you eat eggs? If so how many?

Yeah sometimes for breakfast 2-3 eggs - 3 days a week on average.

 

[Maca]

Im pretty sure I’m low In Progesterone as I used to be able to handle more testosterone without the use of an AI and now it seems no matter what I do I get flare ups with my chest. Would make sense as slowly over time without hcg it’s been depleted.

i also have quite a few of the symptoms associated.

• Low libido
• Fatigue
• Depression
• Gynecomastia
• Muscle weakness

although the only question now is what’s the best way to boost it.

ive started HCG although I’m getting problems with gyno and worry that to fix the gyno im having to kill my estrogen.

 

[Rock H. Johnson]

Yeah sometimes for breakfast 2-3 eggs - 3 days a week on average.

Okay, I am asking as you state you are lacking raw materials. I started feeling much better when I started eating 6 whole eggs every day and now I do about 10 a day. I am a vegetarian for the last 27 years and I think I seriously lacked cholestrol which I assume was part of my low hormone levels. I remember a couple of other EM members mentioning the same that they started to feel much better eating 6+ eggs ED.

Just my 2 cents.

 

[Vince]

I also enjoy eating eggs, I usually 3 jumbo eggs a day. Very good for your HDL cholesterol.