Am cortisol is a waste and can be falsely elevated due to alot of factors from driving in traffic, dealing with lab bullshit from techs, site of needle. Unless you are in a state of some what an alpha mind set then cortisol would be skewed. That is why cortisol saliva is much more reflective and one can begin to vary symptoms based upon clincal readings.
true, but it is easier to get your doctor to order cortisol blood tests compared to saliva tests (at least that has been my experience).
and if your cortisol still shows as low even under that extra stress then you know you need to do something (under 15 = possible problem / under 10 = definite problem)
YOu can check cortisol on your own through ZRT and do not have to wait on the dr.
I agree with also the cortisol levels on serums as well, but only problem is if you are really a 5-6 in the blood and see a sight of a need and go up to 17-18 then you slipl through the cracks once again.
Currently taking 100mg Test Cyp 1x a week, Arimidex 0.5mg EOD, Daily-50mg DHEA, Zinc, Vit D 2000 iu, Zinc 45mg,COQ10 100mg, Crstor 10mg, Tricor 145mg. About 4 weeks into shots and I still have a dull constant pressure like headache. BP seems okay at 122/74. Any idea what is causing tmy headache??
any number of hormone imbalances can cause headaches - too low estrogen, too high estrogen, thyroid problems, zinc overdoses, etc. etc. etc. Maybe cut back on something and see if it helps… if not change back, and cut back on something else.
Update six months later. Currently taking 80-100mg of Test Cyp Weekly. 0.5mg of Arimidex divided twice a week. 10mg of Crestor once a day and a daily multi-vitamin. I posted 2 sets of labs to try and tie my threads together into 1 thread for a better history.
Labs Taken on 11/24/10:
Test Total: 658 (Ref Range: 250-1100)
DHEA: 303 (Ref Range: 61-1636)
Test Free: 145.0 (Ref Range: 46.0-224.0)
Test Bio: 310.7 (Ref Range: 110.0-575.0)
Test SHBG 18 (Ref Range: 8-48)
Test Albumin: 4.7 (Ref Range: 3.6-5.1)
Dihydrotest: 41 (Ref Range: 25-75)
Estradiol: 24 (Ref Range: 11.6-41.2)
Total PSA: 0.5
Free PSA 0.1
% Free PSA 20
WBC 5.7 (Ref Range: 4.0-11.0)
RBC 5.0 (Ref Range: 4.3-5.9)
HGB 14.7 (Ref Range: 14.0-18.0)
HCT 43.7 (Ref Range: 42-52 %)
MCV 87.3 (Ref Range: 79-101 fL)
MCH 29.3 (Ref Range: 26-35)
MCHC 33.6 (Ref Range: 31-37)
RDW 14.5 (Ref Range: 11.5-14.5 %)
PLT 229 (Ref Range: 130-500)
MPV: 7.9 (Ref Range: 7.4-10.4)
LYMPH: 30.5 (Ref Range: 20-40)
MONO: 8.1 (Ref Range: 0-9)
GRAN: 58.4 (Ref Range: 50-70)
EO: 2.2 (Ref Range: 0-3)
BASO: 0.8 (Ref Range: 0-2)
Labs taken recently on 4/8/11
Quest Diagnostics
Total PSA 0.6 Normal
Free PSA 0.1 Normal
% Free PSA 17 Abnormal Low
Estradiol 37 (11.6-41.2)
Test Total 522 (250-1100)
Test Free 122.9 (46.0-224.0)
Test Bio 263.5 (110.0-575.0)
Test SHBG 15 (8-48)
Test Albumin 4.7(3.6-5.1)
Dihydrotest 28 (25-75)
Cholesterol 171
Triglycerides 184
LDL 105
HDL 33
WBC 6.5 (Ref Range: 4.0-11.0)
RBC 5.1 (Ref Range: 4.3-5.9)
HGB 15.0 (Ref Range: 14.0-18.0)
HCT 44.6 (Ref Range: 42-52 %)
MCV 87.0 (Ref Range: 79-101 fL)
MCH 29.1 (Ref Range: 26-35)
MCHC 33.5 (Ref Range: 31-37)
RDW 14.6 High (Ref Range: 11.5-14.5 %)
PLT 211 (Ref Range: 130-500)
MPV: 9.1 (Ref Range: 7.4-10.4)
LYMPH: 25.7 (Ref Range: 20-40)
MONO: 8.1 (Ref Range: 0-9)
GRAN: 63.9 (Ref Range: 50-70)
EO: 2.0 (Ref Range: 0-3)
BASO: 0.3 (Ref Range: 0-2)
Overall I feel pretty good. Still feel highs and lows between shots. Headache problem is way better though. On a positive note my cholesterol profile has improved greatly since starting TRT. My diet is the same so TRT must be the reason for the improvement. Do my labs look okay? My E2 is up due to my own fault. I ran out of Arimidex so I didn’t take any for a few weeks. I’m back on it now. Funny thing is I didn’t feel any different when it was up. Wondering though about what % Free PSA means. Mine has gone down since starting TRT. Any input or suggestions is always appreciated.
Thanks
glad you are feeling pretty good.
when was the blood draw in comparison to your last injection?
have you ever tried injecting 40mg Every Three Days? it really does help with those highs and lows which put a lot of strain on your system.
I was just looking back over the other advice earlier in this thread that has been overlooked and based on your lack of response to those suggestions, it appears you are not interested in exploring/confirming/rejecting any of those possibilities by running any of those tests so I am not sure what additional suggestions can be offered at this point that won’t just be covering old topics.
My blood was drawn six days after last injection. I’ve posted different threads regarding my thyroid and and cortisol tests. I’m trying now just to stick to one thread. My thyroid numbers looked good. I guess now I’m just nine months into TRT and I want to make sure I’m still asking the right questions and that my labs look okay… I know most DR’s can overlook things unless it’s off the charts. I’m still having difficulty self injecting so for right now I’m sticking to once a week injections. I’d like to try twice a week eventually. My main concern was about the PSA Panel. Not sure what % of free PSA means. Mine has gone down each time I’ve had blood drawn.
[quote]PureChance wrote:
glad you are feeling pretty good.
when was the blood draw in comparison to your last injection?
have you ever tried injecting 40mg Every Three Days? it really does help with those highs and lows which put a lot of strain on your system.
I was just looking back over the other advice earlier in this thread that has been overlooked and based on your lack of response to those suggestions, it appears you are not interested in exploring/confirming/rejecting any of those possibilities by running any of those tests so I am not sure what additional suggestions can be offered at this point that won’t just be covering old topics.[/quote]
generally the free PSA is only tested when your total PSA is between 4 and 10 to help differentiate benign enlarged prostate from prostate cancer. I don’t know what it means when the total PSA is normal- probably not much of anything. I would not check the free PSA if your total PSA is normal. BTW your LDL cholesterol is good, but your HDL “good” cholesterol is low- this puts you at risk for coronary artery disease. You should take fish oil (if you don’t already) to lower your triglycerides and raise your HDL. I assume you exercise a lot (isn’t this a bodybuilding site?), so you may not be able to do much more there. You might talk with your doctor about adding niacin to raise the HDL.
Hey Guys,
Just got new set of labs. It’s been almost a year now since starting TRT. New labs are off a bit. My total T is down as well as my Estrogen. Back acne has really flared up these last couple of months which I thought was due to high E2. Having a lot of back pain as well. Also, cholesterol is up again. My cholesterol was way down 3 months ago which was great news for me since I’ve been dealing with elevated cholesterol the last 5 years or so. All my meds and doses have been the same. Test Cyp 100mg 1x week. Arimidex 0.5mg 1x week. Crestor 10mg 1x per day, Tricor 100mg 1x per day, baby aspirin 1x per day. Here are new lab numbers.
Labs taken on 9/3/11, Five days after last injection.
Estradiol: 15 (11.6-41.2)
Testosterone: 442 (241-827)
DHEA: 303 (61-1636)
Cholesterol: 224 High
Triglycerides: 139 Normal
LDL: 162 High
HDL: 35 Low