Full lab results (update)

[Jerajera]

Thanks for taking the time.

This is a follow up to my thread from last week (Total T > 1000 ng/dl (very high), Free T < 65 pg/ml (very low)).
Total and Free same deal as last time, and not surprisingly SHBG is super high. Is there anything else in there I should pay attention to? I'm 40yo, in good shape and lean (true 11-12% BF). Very clean diet, lift + cardio 5 times/week. No drugs (incl. alcohol/cigarettes).

I have a lot of symptoms of low T. No drive/agency/initiative, "I should have, would have, could have...". My entire life feels like "I want to want to" and it's passing me by at an alarming rate. I have to push through everything out of pure disccipline, feel like I have no ability to effect change, high anxiety, confrontation aversion, brain fog, etc...


Testosterone Serum: 860 ng/dL, 264-916
Testosterone Free (Direct): 11.1 pg/mL, 8.7-25.1
Estradiol, Sensitive: 18.5 pg/mL, 8-35
SHBG: 79.5 nmol/L, 16.5-56
DHT: 67 ng/dL, 30-85
LH: 4.5 mlU/mL, 1.7-8.6
HDL Cholesterol: 83 mg/dL, >39
LDL Cholesterol: 91 mg/dL, 0-99
DHEA-S: 210 ug/dL, 102-416
TSH: 2.5 ulU/mL, 0.45-4.5
Free T4: 1.3 ng/dL, 0.8-1.8
Free T3: 3 pg/mL, 2-4.4
Reverse T3, Serum: 11 ng/dL, 9-24
Prolactin: 9 ng/mL, 4-15
PSA: 1 ng/mL, 0-4
IGF-1: 120 ng/mL, 90-278

 

[Cataceous]

The Tru-T calculator puts your free testosterone at around 25 ng/dL. This is in the middle of the healthy normal range of 16-31. It's questionable that hypogonadism is responsible for your symptoms. If you'd like confirmation in a measured value then equilibrium dialysis is the way to go, as it's considered the gold standard.

I don't particularly trust the sensitive estradiol test, but if it's right it means your free estradiol is on the low side. Anecdotally, low estradiol could be associated with some of your symptoms, but not others.

All told there's nothing blatant in your results, and I don't think tinkering with sex hormones is advisable at this point.

You have some leeway to supplement with a little DHEA, which could increase free testosterone some. Otherwise, as I mentioned previously, you might try raising neurotransmitters, and dopamine in particular.

 

[fifty]

Eat more carbs. Less cardio, more sprints.

 

[Jerajera]

The Tru-T calculator puts your free testosterone at around 25 ng/dL. This is in the middle of the healthy normal range of 16-31. It's questionable that hypogonadism is responsible for your symptoms. If you'd like confirmation in a measured value then equilibrium dialysis is the way to go, as it's considered the gold standard.

I don't particularly trust the sensitive estradiol test, but if it's right it means your free estradiol is on the low side. Anecdotally, low estradiol could be associated with some of your symptoms, but not others.

All told there's nothing blatant in your results, and I don't think tinkering with sex hormones is advisable at this point.

You have some leeway to supplement with a little DHEA, which could increase free testosterone some. Otherwise, as I mentioned previously, you might try raising neurotransmitters, and dopamine in particular.

Thanks man, I'm gonna get the equilibrium dialysis tomorrow and look into DHEA supplementation along the L-tyrosine and Alpha-GPC you mentioned before.

 

[Jerajera]

Eat more carbs. Less cardio, more sprints.

I eat a lot of carbs, 3 cups of rice/day, sweet potatoes, etc...cardio is not long distance either, mostly fast runs of 15m 3 times/day.

 

[at15]

What is your protocol right now for all drugs?

 

[Jerajera]

What is your protocol right now for all drugs?

I'm not on anything right now. I've never taken medication for anything in my life.

I just feel like absolute shit pretty much all the time and am considering TRT because Free T is in the toilet and seems representative of my symptoms, and I have nothing else to point to that justifies how terrible I feel.
Cataceous mentioned supplements for Dopamine and neurotransmitters and my DHEA is a little low, so I'm going to look into that as well.

I'm not lazy though. I push through everything and am highly functional despite feeling like shit all the time. I guess I'd just rather not spend whatever time I have left to live feeling this way, and most likely even worse as I keep getting older.

 

[at15]

Oh wow ok, i assumed you were just not happy with your trt protocol. But your actually natural. Have you looked into supplements or medications to lower your shbg?

 

[Jerajera]

Oh wow ok, i assumed you were just not happy with your trt protocol. But your actually natural. Have you looked into supplements or medications to lower your shbg?

I read this article from Nelson: How to lower your sex hormone binding globulin

I could use an AI but I really want to stay away from them and my E2 is low already anyway.

The only thing on that list would be Nettle root but I don't see how it would realistically make enough of a difference to really raise my free T. Maybe it's worth a try though.

 

[JayLay777]

Thanks for taking the time.

This is a follow up to my thread from last week (Total T > 1000 ng/dl (very high), Free T < 65 pg/ml (very low)).
Total and Free same deal as last time, and not surprisingly SHBG is super high. Is there anything else in there I should pay attention to? I'm 40yo, in good shape and lean (true 11-12% BF). Very clean diet, lift + cardio 5 times/week. No drugs (incl. alcohol/cigarettes).

I have a lot of symptoms of low T. No drive/agency/initiative, "I should have, would have, could have...". My entire life feels like "I want to want to" and it's passing me by at an alarming rate. I have to push through everything out of pure disccipline, feel like I have no ability to effect change, high anxiety, confrontation aversion, brain fog, etc...


Testosterone Serum: 860 ng/dL, 264-916
Testosterone Free (Direct): 11.1 pg/mL, 8.7-25.1
Estradiol, Sensitive: 18.5 pg/mL, 8-35
SHBG: 79.5 nmol/L, 16.5-56
DHT: 67 ng/dL, 30-85
LH: 4.5 mlU/mL, 1.7-8.6
HDL Cholesterol: 83 mg/dL, >39
LDL Cholesterol: 91 mg/dL, 0-99
DHEA-S: 210 ug/dL, 102-416
TSH: 2.5 ulU/mL, 0.45-4.5
Free T4: 1.3 ng/dL, 0.8-1.8
Free T3: 3 pg/mL, 2-4.4
Reverse T3, Serum: 11 ng/dL, 9-24
Prolactin: 9 ng/mL, 4-15
PSA: 1 ng/mL, 0-4
IGF-1: 120 ng/mL, 90-278

Has your SHBG always been high like that? If I were you I would try to see what some over the counter supplements can do to help lower SHBG but they will likely not lower it enough or even at all. Just my opinion, if I were you I would give TRT a try. If you try it and don’t feel much of a difference after a 3 or 6 month trial you can always stop and go back to your natural baseline levels.

 

[Acer97]

Carbs

 

[Jerajera]

Has your SHBG always been high like that? If I were you I would try to see what some over the counter supplements can do to help lower SHBG but they will likely not lower it enough or even at all. Just my opinion, if I were you I would give TRT a try. If you try it and don’t feel much of a difference after a 3 or 6 month trial you can always stop and go back to your natural baseline levels.

Do you think I would be able to go back to my current levels after 3-6 months? Would you use uCG to keep everything going or do a PCT type thing at the end of that trial period?

 

[Systemlord]

Do you think I would be able to go back to my current levels after 3-6 months? Would you use uCG to keep everything going or do a PCT type thing at the end of that trial period?

It's not uncommon to see men return to baseline levels after stopping TRT and/or going on a restart protocol to get your natural production up and going again. It's rare that men fail to regain their baseline levels after stopping TRT.

In fact men stop TRT all the time for fertility reasons, use clomid to restart the HPTA, get the wife pregnant and hop back on TRT.

 

[sammmy]

Perhaps before going on a full blown TRT or even HCG mono, you should explore options that affect brain and mood.

DHEA is your best option because it improves mood, endurance, muscle power, and for some even sex.

Second best is an antioxidant Superoxide Dismutase. Many people report it gives them more energy (like a mild stimulant) and improves mood. It also seems to have great potential at preventing atherosclerosis (prevents fat from oxidizing and reduces body inflammation).

Last would be a mild legal stimulant like Guarana Powder. It does give energy during the day and brightens mood. I can't take it because even the mildest stimulant worsens my already bad sleep.

 

[fifty]

I agree on giving DHEA a shot. I really liked it when I used to take 25mg twice per day (more energy, better metabolism). The only problem was it seemed to make my hair shed a lot more.

I might start with 10mg twice per day.

 

[sammmy]

Even 10mg/day slow release micronized DHEA even lower may work. It seems to reach stable concentration in a week.

 

[Vince]

Before I started trt, I tried DHEA. The only thing it did for me was, convert more of my testosterone into estrogen. Now that I am on trt, I have no issues supplementing with dhea.