Wanted to post an update on this. Appreciate the help from everyone hoping my results can be of help to others. Also have a few follow up ?s..
So gradually i have worked my way up to 100ius of HCG EOD while lowering my dose from 126mg/wk to 105mg/wk. FunkOdyssey was spot on, i feel better in almost every measurable category since adding the HCG (although my E2 did not go up, more on this later..). Only negative thing i was noticing was familiar feeling like my T was too high. Also put on a few unexplainable lbs of muscle which seems to happen to me when TT gets at/over 1200ish.
Anyway after few titrations then additional 6 weeks took bloods and results are shocking..
TT ballooned despite the 17% dose reduction? E2 exactly the same while DHT doubled?? Now my TT to E2 ratios is over 50??
Any thoughts on this?
Any theories as to why I would be a hyper responder to HCG? Anyone else respond similarly to HCG and use it as a base with no T or a low dose (50mg or less/wk) as a supplemental?
By my math - my total T level was 956 on 126mg without HCG. Reducing dose by 17% should have a pretty linear reduction in total test to 793. With TT at 1246 this would suggest that 452pts came from just 350iu/wk of HCG. If I doubled my HCG dose and got rid of the test completely, do you guys think 452 would double to 900 and I could maintain these levels on HCG mono??
Luckily fertility is back on my radar and i have a great opportunity to continue to swap exogenous T for HCG and see what happens. Curious for some feedback and happy to share labs and experience as I further experiment.
PS here are labs
Test
| Reference Range
| 10/3/2024
|
8/1/2024
|
5/31/2024
|
| Protocol--->
| 105mg/wk (EOD) Test E. + 100iu HCG EOD
| 126mg/wk (EOD) test E. NO hcg NO AI
| 140mg/wk (EOD) Test E. + HCG 50iu EOD NO AI
|
|
|
|
|
|
Hormone
|
|
|
|
|
SHBG
| 10-50nmol/L
| 38
|
27
|
26
|
Testosterone, Total, MS
| 250-1100ng/dL
| 1246
|
956
|
1255
|
Testosterone, Free (E.D.)
| 35-155pg/mL
| 216.8
|
190.2
|
291.2
|
DHT
| 12-65ng/dL
| 75
|
48
|
|
Estradiol, Ultrasensitive
| <=29pg/mL
| 24
|
24
|
30
|
DHEA Sulfate
| 93-415mcg/dL
| 102
|
111
|
|
Progesterone
| <1.4ng/mL
| <0.5
| <0.5
|
|
Pregnenolone, LC/MS
| 22-237ng/dL
| 22
|
32
|
|
Prolactin
| 2-18ng/mL
| 6.9
|
6.3
|
|
Total T to e2 Ratio
|
|
51.92
|
39.83
|
41.83
|
Vermeulen Free T calc
|
| 29.05ng/dl
| 25.27ng/dl
| 35.82ng/dl
|
Iron / RBC
|
|
|
2.51%
|
2.39%
|
Ferritin
| 38-180ng/mL
| 115
|
107
|
81
|
Iron, Total
| 50-180
| 130
|
89
|
140
|
Iron Binding Capacity
| 250-425mcg/dL
| 325
|
354
|
348
|
% Saturation
| 20-48%
| 40
|
25
|
40
|
Hemoglobin
| 13.2-17.1g/dL
| 16.1
|
16.2
|
16.8
|
Hematocrit
| 38.5-50%
| 47.8
|
49.3
|
50
|
|
|
|
|
|
Thyroid
|
|
|
|
|
TSH
| 0.4-4.5mlU/L
| 1.94
|
2.54
|
|
T4
| 4.9-10.5mcg/dL
| 6.8
|
8
|
|
T4, Free
| 0.8-1.8ng/dL
| 1.3
|
1.6
|
|
T3, Free
| 2.3-4.2pg/ml
| 3.1
|
4
|
|
T3, Total
| 76-181ng/dL
| 75
|
100
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Other
|
|
|
|
|
IGF-1
| 53-331ng/mL
| 147
|
220
|
|