Switching from Nolva to Arimidex Early

I had everything lined up for my first cycle, 500 mg test cyp per week split up into E3.5D doses. All my stuff was known-good (pharma or well-known underground lab) except for aromasin in powder form. I received the latter just before starting and did not test it until I had begun, because subconsciously I think I wanted to start no matter what. Tests showed it to be definitively fake. I started taking 10mg nolva ED 6 days in with hopes of soon procuring an AI.

So now I’m 2 weeks in, everything is great minus night sweats and heart palpitations (not associated with raised BP, and resting pulse is only up 10 bpm) that are improving each day, and I’m wondering how to transition. I’ve just started arimidex at 0.33 mg EOD and understand the nolva will make it a bit less effective. How do I go about transitioning to straight arimidex?

I I think understand the difference between SERMs and AIs… It is too late for the E2 already in my system, so the SERM needs to deal with that (protecting select tissues). I need the AI to deal with future aromatisation.

I am currently thinking I should keep taking nolva ED for another week to deal with most of the E2 already floating around, all the while taking EOD arimidex to prevent much new E2 from being synthesized. Does this sound right?

I’ve also read nolva somewhat inhibits anastrozole and letrozole. Perhaps slightly increased arimidex is warranted just till maybe 3 days after the last nolva dose?

I’ll be getting E2 re-checked in two or three weeks. My pre-cycle level was on the low side at 18 pg/mL.

I’m also using hCG (250 iu 3/wk) and have plenty of novla and clomid for PCT.

I would taper off the Nolva, like 10mg e3d or something like that. Don’t increase your arimidex straight away. It’s powerful and you can easily go too far very fast. Just listen to your body in the meantime while you wait for blood work. Ultimately e2 being higher is better than being lower (if you have to be stuck with one or the other). Low e2 symptoms are nasty.

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Ok, I’ll taper off nolva. I won’t increase arimidex beyond 0.33 mg EOD unless I know it’s necessary (after bloodwork). Thanks again!

Nothing calms the mind like a fresh blood test. If I may ask are you going for a T to E2 ratio or are you trying to stay in a range?

Day 48 I have only taken three 0.125 anastrozoles at random times and I have no high E2 symptoms. My joints feel wonderful yet I have really intensified my workouts do to recovery happening in less than 24 hours. I guess you can tell I’m in the ratio camp(15-25%) and don’t target a TRT E2 level.

Jan-2019-Mini-Blast02

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I’m experiencing the same positives, plus the night sweats and palpitations, but they seem to be getting better each day. These could be low or high E2, but given how good everything else is, I think it’s just my body getting used to the new hormone balance. Those two symptoms suggest thyroid to me, but I could be wrong. My physiological stress response is also a little extreme right now–minor concerns get my heart pounding, so I’m meditating more. All this heart stuff probably sounds scary, but any exercise, from light cardio to HIIT, has it feeling great and at a typical rate.

I’m actually totally ignorant of my T levels. If I ever begin TRT, I want it to be when I know something is up and I really need it. I don’t want to be tempted to go the TRT route before I truly need it. Obvious downside is since I don’t know my baseline, I won’t know with 100% certainty if I’ve returned to it post-PCT, but I will be following the standard regimen and am not worried.

I haven’t really considered absolute level vs ratio of T to E2 before–my plan is to err on the side of too much E2, though. That’s because my E2 was already low or borderline, and also because I haven’t experienced any weirdness this cycle that I can definitively say is related to high E2. I don’t think I’m gyno-prone, for example.

I’m thinking E2 test in 3 weeks, same day I become eligible to give blood again. Might as well open up both my median cubitals on the same day… By then the nolva will be long gone and my E2 levels will be based almost entirely on the T dose and the anastrozole dose–two variables to keep things simple.

I was considering not even taking an AI until bloodwork since I’ve come this far, but this is a good time to test my sensitivity to anastrozole, and I feel like I couldn’t possibly mistake an E2 crash for something else if it does happen. It’ll be educational!

I hope you will post your test results and keep us posted on your cycle.
I really enjoy learning from others and offering a simple mans(no doc) opinion.

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Definitely will, and me too. Thanks!

As far as night sweats Im running 300mg test E3D with a front load. They didn’t start til after the first week and they lasted up until not long ago… I’m not sure what mine were caused from honestly. I think the extreme increase in hormones was a big part. I also was eating a lot of simple carbs right before bed which I stopped I now give my self a few hours I think that helped. I still get some mild sweats once or twice a week but it’s nothing like the puddle I was waking up in before. Also this might be conicendental but they also stopped after my first 3 doses of adex 0.3 E3D which I started around week 3-4 of cycle.

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Hmm, it’d be interesting if mine also stopped (or lessened at an increased rate) shortly after starting arimidex since I am earlier in my cycle than you. It’d suggest high E2 was the cause, or just E2 in relation to other hormones. It’s funny, though–same side, just about the same dose, and we both started an AI sort of late.

I have a 12 or 13 hour fast between my last meal and breakfast (which is shortly after I wake up), so not sure if I can do much more there… Mine began improving around the time I started taking dandelion root and consuming much more water–to many variables changing at once, so it’s really difficult to say. It’ll be fun to see how the first week with the AI goes, though.

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Ya il know for sure. I only took the adex for about 5 injections I just stopped. I wanna see if the sweats come back. That was the only symptom of elevated E2 I had and I’m not even sure that was related. If it comes back il start back adex if it doesn’t I feel great and I don’t like adding more shit to my body if it’s not a must

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Cool, doesn’t sound like a bad plan if that’s the only high E2 symptom you experienced.

So I had no night sweats at all last night. I went from still having moderate ones (they started out severe) to sleeping like a fairly normal person, about 24 hours after my first anastrozole. Think it’s safe to say my E2 was high.

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I’m going to relax on the E2 concerns till bloodwork. Night sweats are gone after 0.33 mg anastrozole taken twice EOD, and now I’m going to back down to 0.2 mg E3D–the anastrozole is going to get more effective when the nolva is all gone from my system, and I’d rather have high E2 than crash it. I’ll still be taking DIM since I’ve taken it all along so as not to confuse the results of changes to anastrozole dose.

I’m actually happy I experienced some sides, because I can now be reasonably certain high E2 first manifests in me in the form of night sweats. The volatile heart rate when met with minor emotional stress that wouldn’t normally phase me came on a few days after the night sweats, but is now gone as well. Heart rate remains slightly elevated, but apparently that’s just how I deal with high T. I’m not sure that will go away, but it’s possible once my levels plateau in a couple weeks.