Hello,
I am almost 90 days into TRT and having some reservations.
Background : I am 40, 6,4. 320 lbs. Eating healthy and moderate weight training with light cardio. I work 14 ,14 hr shifts with one week rest in between. Initial test was low 300’s.
My doc has increased my dosage from .3 to 5ml every three days recently . I have been on for 7 weeks at new dosage .My initial labs showed high estrogen (55.4). I started DIM and Myomin supplements that I take twice daily. My most recent test shows E2 is still high at 65 pg/ml. Doc wants me to double up on the supplements by MG.
My question is: is the high E2 bad enough for my health that I should scrap TRT. Is there any supplements that other have found useful?
Many thanks for the help
Update:
My most recent labs show my E2 has almost doubled to 113 pg/ml. My only changes since last labs was swapping to sub Q every three days instead of IM. And adding resverstrol and NMN to my daily supplementation.
This spike is very concerning to me and frankly doesn’t make sense.
I am eating cleaner than before as well.
Nope, you shouldn’t scrap TRT for an elevated estrogen. My estrogen has been between 49-70 pg/mL (210 lbs) in the past and I have no problems at all. I’m surprised your estrogen isn’t higher given your higher body weight.
Men typically run higher estrogen on TRT compared to naturally.
Where did you get the idea that higher estrogen is bad for you?
I don’t have the faintest clue what this means, this isn’t a TRT protocol/dosage. This is volume of medicine minus the strength.
I read that E2 at high levels can lead to * Increased abdominal fat, Loss of muscle mass ,Low libido, * Increased abdominal fat, depression. One Doc even claimed it raises your risk of type 2 diabetes. I am currently considered " pre diabetic". I am adding resveratrol to my supplementation.
The problem with some of these studies, websites is there’s no context and they are completely missing the mark, and there is only an association of high estrogen with high abdominal fat, loss of muscle and low libido.
So take me for an example, I’ve been sedentary my entire life, gained crazy amount of body fat, induced low-T and type 2 diabetes as a result. The high estrogen didn’t cause all of my health problems, so you see how high estrogen is associated with poor health.
The poor lifestyle, lower testosterone and diabetes caused the higher body fat, loss of muscle, lower libido and depression. The high estrogen is the smoke, not the fire.
While it’s true some men with have symptoms of high estrogen, some men are less genetically prone to side effects of high estrogen.
Estrogen is a paracrine hormone, estrogen levels in tissue can be many times higher than serum levels. Estrogen also decrease tissue inflammation and improves peripheral insulin sensitivity.
Low-T is a risk factor for developing type 2 diabetes, so stopping TRT isn’t recommended.
In general, E2 increases as T increases. The more testosterone, the more estrogen. Unless you are having an issue (gyno) you are fine.
Your biggest issue is your weight. Focus on getting it down to reasonable levels and getting your BMI in line. This by itself will take care of most of your “issues”.
You dont need DIM and Myomin. Your doc told you to double up on these? Your “doc” should know better than to panic on rising E2 as he is increasing your T dosage. Frankly, it sounds like “doc” doesnt know what he is doing - I would find a new one.
i’m on a similar dose (200mg/week) and e2 around 60. as others said ignore it completely. e2 is good for you lol
i do take DIM as well, it doesn’t lower e2 but helps to remove other estrogens you don’t want so I would stick to it.
Yes , .5 is what I meant. I’m also hearing from my friends that are on TRT that it is high. My most recent labs were T @ 828. And free T @ 26. Maybe I should pinch it back a bit and see how it levels out.
Those levels are fine. I would not change anything unless you are experiencing adverse effects. Focus on the results you get and how you feel, rather than the dose others use.
Update:
My most recent labs show my E2 has almost doubled to 113 pg/ml. My only changes since last labs was swapping to sub Q every three days instead of IM. And adding resverstrol and NMN to my daily supplementation.
This spike is very concerning to me and frankly doesn’t make sense.
I am eating cleaner than before as well.
Boom. Finally someone posted what I always say to folks in the first place. Drop the fluff, stay there, learn to eat, train, manage your stress, etc and only then when you ticked all boxes naturally start testing if you really need TRT in the first place. Most of the time once folks drop the excessive weight, everything comes back to life and more then you ever thought possible. Focus on this and start working. Best of luck!
I switched from IM every three days to SuB Q into my fat gut. I have noticed an acceleration in my hair loss significantly. Could this be due to the high E2?