New Bloodwork After 2 Months on Pregnenolone, B Vitamins and no A.I.

[Maximos]

So long story short, after my last bloodwork I realised that I probably had adrenal issues that had to be addressed. My cortisol was lowish, progesterone was low and so was DHEAS. I felt tired, irritated and I was considering coming off TRT. I crashed my E2 like 4 times this year, mostly because I was afraid of high E2. Like most of you know already, low estrogen is FAR worse so I thought that maybe if I take care of my adrenals, I might be able to control E2 better. More on that later. I started taking Vit-B6, Vit B-5, Follic Acid (I was low), Vitamin C, Vitamin D and pregnenolone (25 mg daily).

So this is my bloodwork now on 100mg split into 2 doses:
Testosterone Total: 980ng/dl. This is pretty much the same everytime I check

Free Testosterone: 24 pg/ml. Same here too.

E2: 45 pg/ml (This is not the sensitive test. Its anavailable in my country. Refrence range is 15-71)

Progesterone: 0.64 ng/ml (0.07-0.86.). This was at 0.32 in my last bloodwork.

DHEA: 4ng/ml (1.5-11). This was 2.9 in my last bloodwork

SHBG: 21.5 nmol/L. This has stayed the same since I got on TRT 3 years ago.

Cortisol: 223 ng/mL (95-262). This was 160 in my last bloodwork.

Insulin: 6.5 IU/ml (2.1-22). This was 3.1 in my last bloodwork.

Follic Acid: 11 ng/ML. (1.5-16.9). This was 3.5 in my last bloodwork.

TSH: 2.40 (0.15-4.5)
FT4: 13pM (11.5-23)

Everything else looks awesome. Because the sensitive E2 test is anavailable in my country I have to go with how I feel and previous bloodwork. When my TT was at 260 my E2 was at 20 at the same lab. When my TT was 1400 my E2 was 71. So I assume that 45 is a good number. When I have high E2 I get the usual symptoms (Brain fog, back acne, occasional ED,extremely puffy nipples) and now I dont have any of these except that during the day my nipples might get a bit puffy sometimes, but I get that even with low E2.

My doc suggested 50mg of micronised DHEAS in the morning and I started taking 25mg about a week ago because I can't handle 50. I feel even better now (better mood, better erections). I stopped taking pregnenolone for now. Doc also perscribed 25mcg of T4 every morning because my FT4 is low.

If somebody has anything to suggest or other tests you might want to see, please tell me. Is 25 mcg a good starting dose for my thyroid according to my lab values?

Also, I wanna say that this forum has been IMMENSELY helpful to me over the past year. If there wasn't for this, I would have never taken care of my adrenals, I would still be taking Arimidex and I would still be wondering why I feel like crap. So thanks in advance guys.

 

[Re-Ride]

Maximos, Commendably well composed report. You were diagnosed with adrenal insufficiency? Was the fatigue accompanied by marked weight loss or gain, diarrhea, stomach pain or nausea? I do not have a view on "adrenal fatigue" , which is not a medical diagnosis. I am aware of the controversy as laid out here:
https://www.hormone.org/diseases-and-conditions/adrenal/adrenal-fatigue

Serum folate isn't often tested. MCV , RBC and B12 are often looked at in conjunction with folate if it is suspected to be high.

"When B12 is low the cells can not utilize folic acid and it may build up in the blood" (WebMD)."

Folic acid is a synthetic substitute for folate found in green leafy vegetables, peas , corn, oranges, grains and meats. In the U.S. and Canada but not in countries like Norway F.A. is mandated to be added to white flour. This has prevented birth defects when consumed by pregnant woman. It's use and benefit for other groups is controversial.
https://sciencebasedmedicine.org/the-benefits-and-risks-of-folic-acid-supplementation/

 

[Maximos]

Maximos, Commendably well composed report. You were diagnosed with adrenal insufficiency? Was the fatigue accompanied by marked weight loss or gain, diarrhea, stomach pain or nausea? I do not have a view on "adrenal fatigue" , which is not a medical diagnosis. I am aware of the controversy as laid out here:
https://www.hormone.org/diseases-and-conditions/adrenal/adrenal-fatigue

Serum folate isn't often tested. MCV , RBC and B12 are often looked at in conjunction with folate if it is suspected to be high.

"When B12 is low the cells can not utilize folic acid and it may build up in the blood" (WebMD)."

Folic acid is a synthetic substitute for folate found in green leafy vegetables, peas , corn, oranges, grains and meats. In the U.S. and Canada but not in countries like Norway F.A. is mandated to be added to white flour. This has prevented birth defects when consumed by pregnant woman. It's use and benefit for other groups is controversial.
https://sciencebasedmedicine.org/the-benefits-and-risks-of-folic-acid-supplementation/

Thanks Re-RIde. I had moodiness, fatigue, low libido and a general feeling of something not going right. I also had lowish cholesterol, cortisol and ACTH and thats how I figured that something might be going on with my adrenals. I reasearched about adrenal fatigue in this forum and drlam.com and I then talked with my doctor. I showed her all the info I gathered and she told me what supplements and vitamins to take.