Been considering a possible first time cycle in the next year or so, and am in the process of all my newbie research.
Just wondering as a 23 year old Male what is the best way of going about getting a proper blood test and exactly which tests should i be going for? I figure a blood hormone test is a no brainer to establish a baseline for my bodies natural test levels to get back to during PCT but are there any others I should be aware of and get?
Also I know there are a lot of private labs that you can pay out of pocket to get blood tests do any of you have a preferred lab or site that you use to find one? And I do have pretty good insurance coverage, so would there be a way to say the right things to get a test covered by my actual doc?
Sorry for a lot of questions but thank you very much in advance for the info.
even if you have good insurance, you’d probably pay similarly going through privateMD as you would with a doctor. the women’s hormone panel on there is the one i always order, as it includes E2. It’s about 100 bucks. Similar price on other sites. I can’t imagine getting a similar hormone panel for less than 30 bucks under the best circumstances. So to me, it’s worth doing on your own so you don’t have to deal with a dr. That being said, there are no magic words to tell a doctor. go to him/her with a list of the tests you want, and say please order these tests for me.
If you haven’t at least tried, I’d have the conversation with your doctor.
I told my doc that I’ve been doing some research and was really interested in seeing my testosterone levels. He probed a little, and I gave him pretty standard responses based on things that I’ve read about low T (not that I think I have it, but it’s what gets your doc to listen). He agreed to have the lab ordered. My plan for when the cycle ends is to tell him that I’ve been trying some natural things to raise my test and would like to see if they’re working.
I realize every doctor might not respond the way that mine did, but it’s at least worth bringing up.
Awesome thanks for the info guys, I’ll go ahead and use PrivateMD then.
I see from your suggestions the women’s hormone panel or the female menopause testings got all the things that I want, so they are cool with you ordering that even as a guy and just give you funny looks when you go?
I’ve had success just being straight forward with my doctor. Last year, after an unsuccessfull PCT, I had a full hormone panel with over 100 tests taken. I only paid the $50 deductible, the actual bill was close to $2,000. Of course it depends on your insurance and how comfortable you are with your doctor. I got the typical “drugs are bad mmkay” speech, but for me at least, being honest with my doc. saved me a bunch of money and helped my situation.