Opinion on Test/Adex adjustment

[msulwaves]

Upfront, my doc isn't the most informed when it comes to TRT but is still a great doctor that I have a solid relationship with and will allow me to follow any sensible protocol that I bring up.

My TRT dose is 120mg/week and my regimen was just taking my foll dose in one shot on Sunday night, and taking .5mg Arimidex on Mon / Wed / Fri.

After getting my bloodwork done, which I did on a Friday to see trough levels, my t was low 600's but my estradiol was <20, so for all I know it was completely crashed or it was at 19.

Shortly after getting my bloods, I actually broke my vial and for various reasons was unable to get it refilled for two weeks, so I figured it a great time to try a different route. I've decided to to split my dose into 60mg Monday Morning and 60mg Thursday night. What I'm not sure about and would appreciate opinions on is this; since I already haven't taken any adex for two weeks, should I just run with the mon/thur testosterone shots for a bit, see if that alone keeps my estrogen in check but if it doesn't then slowly integrate the adex again or should I also restart my adex but at an obviously lower dose?

I know nobody can give any conclusive answer, really am just looking for some opinions here. Appreciate any responses.

 

[Vince]

You are using a low dose of testosterone, so I would skip the AI. Are you getting the right estradiol test, the sensitive one for men?
Why All Men Should be Tested with the Sensitive Estradiol Test
https://www.excelmale.com/forum/sho...d-be-Tested-with-the-Sensitive-Estradiol-Test

 

[CoastWatcher]

Why you are taking anastrozole without elevated estradiol lab results/symptoms associated with high e2 is a mystery. Estradiol is an important hormone to maintain at a healthy level. Set aside the AI and see how you do in six weeks on your new protocol.

 

[Vince Carter]

These guys know what they're talking about!!! ^^

 

[msulwaves]

You are using a low dose of testosterone, so I would skip the AI. Are you getting the right estradiol test, the sensitive one for men?

Why All Men Should be Tested with the Sensitive Estradiol Test (couldn't quote this message without removing your link since I'm under the post count required for links)

Is 120mg/week really considered low? I've grown pretty used to seeing a lot of men talk about 100mg/week being relatively standard in other forums. I'm here to learn though and appreciate any info.

The most recent bloodwork I had done was just what my doc requested but I only recently got insured again and for a long time, I just used this... privatemdlabs.com/lp/Female_Hormone_Testing.php (had to part link since I'm under the post count to include them)

Despite saying "female", as long as I requested male levels, they would alter the ranges. They just charged far less for the female panel than the male one for the same thing. Going back and looking at old results, the range on that test was 7.6-42.6 pg/mL but it would show if you were above that, so now I'm thinking this may still be an optimal test since the one my doc ordered didn't show estradiol below 20.

I will research that link you posted. Thank you.

Why you are taking anastrozole without elevated estradiol lab results/symptoms associated with high e2 is a mystery. Estradiol is an important hormone to maintain at a healthy level. Set aside the AI and see how you do in six weeks on your new protocol.

That's kind of a hard question for me to answer without it becoming long winded but the gist, I suppose, is just misguided assumptions on my part. When I started TRT, in my mind, an AI was simply part of it. Mistake made, lesson learned.

20-30 seems like the ideal range for e2 to be in, correct? I'm really glad I found this forum because I definitely had other misguided assumptions too, there's so much conflicting and/or misguided info out there about TRT (and everything else), that I really appreciate the info here. Thank you.

 

[Vince]

120 mg of T is not a high dose, the lowest protocol that I've used was 70 mg of T and 500iu of HCG every 3 1/2 days and no AI. The only way you know of course it by labs. One of the biggest issue with TRT is overprescribing estrogen blockers.

 

[CoastWatcher]

Is 120mg/week really considered low? I've grown pretty used to seeing a lot of men talk about 100mg/week being relatively standard in other forums. I'm here to learn though and appreciate any info.

The most recent bloodwork I had done was just what my doc requested but I only recently got insured again and for a long time, I just used this... privatemdlabs.com/lp/Female_Hormone_Testing.php (had to part link since I'm under the post count to include them)

Despite saying "female", as long as I requested male levels, they would alter the ranges. They just charged far less for the female panel than the male one for the same thing. Going back and looking at old results, the range on that test was 7.6-42.6 pg/mL but it would show if you were above that, so now I'm thinking this may still be an optimal test since the one my doc ordered didn't show estradiol below 20.

I will research that link you posted. Thank you.




That's kind of a hard question for me to answer without it becoming long winded but the gist, I suppose, is just misguided assumptions on my part. When I started TRT, in my mind, an AI was simply part of it. Mistake made, lesson learned.

20-30 seems like the ideal range for e2 to be in, correct? I'm really glad I found this forum because I definitely had other misguided assumptions too, there's so much conflicting and/or misguided info out there about TRT (and everything else), that I really appreciate the info here. Thank you.

Men are terrified of estradiol. They regard it as a noxious waste product that must be eliminated from their body. In reality, e2 is a necessary hormone for sexual function, skeletal and cognitive health, and emotional stability. As uncomfortable as elevated estradiol may be, the misery associated with crashed estradiol is a terrible experience. There is no validated research that says 20-30 is the ideal range for estradiol in men. That's a reasonable assumption, but it may not apply to you.

Many feel well with estradiol levels in the mid to upper 30s, I do. We have members who are at their best if their e2 climbs to the low 40s. Symptoms guide this decision...symptoms and the proper estradiol test. Quite bluntly, you really don't know where your estradiol sits because you don't use the proper assay. It has nothing to do with ranges, as you write, and everything to do with the underlying lab test. Men require the sensitive, sometimes known as ultra sensitive, test to measure estradiol. This test utilizes liquid chromatography, dual mass spectrometry analysis to detect the lower levels of estradiol typically found in men. The ECLIA method you rely on is fine for women, unreliable for men.

 

[codus2112]

Right off of LabCorps website..