Having to come off of all hormones. Too fast? advice please?

[mkt]

Hi there! I started seeing an anti aging doc about 3 years ago.. or about when ere i joined this forum actually and have been taking huh, testosterone, dhea, progesterone and pregnenolone since then, all in low anti-aging doses. I've felt greater. i think i look pretty great, better than before i started and certainly younger than most people my age which is 47. not the point though, carrying on:

about 3 months ago, around the time i stopped using hgh (causal in any way?) i started having terrible insomnia that bled into photosensitivity, vertigo, then sort of migraines that i naturally decided must have been a brain tumor... multiple doctors and migraine meds later, turns out i have a terrible sinus infection i couldn't detect and that might have been causing all of it... 2 weeks on antibiotics and the symptoms are better but not quite right....

i found a new homeopathic doctor to test my blood. (while waiting on ENT and MRI and visiting the urgent care about 3x per week for a toreador shot) That the doctor i was using for my hormone meds didn't care where i was in my cycle when she tested me tipped me off that maybe they weren't all THAT specific. they also weren't testing thyroid and i'd developed some terrible dark bags under my eyes (those are now gone - was probably the sinus infection)

much of the above is superfluous.

But here's this
my blood tests came back

Evidently my testosterone is sky high:
Total 348
Free 2.53
Bioavailable 59

Estradiol to Progesterone 314:1.4

I also have low insulin levels which could explain the added strange food sensitivities Ive been experiencing. I either have a migraine or go into a near coma with sugar or carbs. All of this just since March

I just read that elevated testosterone can cause..... drum roll... insomnia, headaches, dizziness, insulin resistance and and and.. near everything that's happening to me. oh and add some nice acne in the last month.

so this doc has just said stop taking everything. we'll retest in a month and can always put back but we need to get to a baseline.

i'd love this group's feedback. are those levels high? has anyone had these experiences? do i just STOP or taper off more slowly? will i have withdrawals? i am NOT interested in another hormonal crazy month. i just vacant afford it with my work.

help?

[kelkel]

The sides you mentioned can happen to men on cycle. And yes, your test level is high. It's actually at the bottom of the Labcorp's scale for men. Female scale is around 8-48 ng/dl. Your FT is between 2-3% which is where a male's should be. So, I can understand those side effects occurring. When it comes to tapering off testosterone, it will do that on it's own No need to taper down yourself. Yes, I imagine you will feel sides from this but that's normal when hormones are in flux.

My 2 cents anyway. Hopefully some of the female members chime in soon. Best of luck mkt.

[mkt]

wow. shouldn't i be growing hair somewhere awkward? alright then. i will just stop. i was only taking 2mg of test crew per day. weird it spiraled out like that.

[thisAngelBites]

Insulin resistance would mean that your body is not responding to insulin, and that glucose is not entering your cells, which would make your body make MORE insulin - so we would expect to see high insulin levels. I can't think how insulin levels would have anything to do with food sensitivities - which doctor told you that?

Otherwise there is not enough information here to really tell you much of anything (other than your testosterone is high). It would be helpful to know everything that you were taking, and all of your blood results (along with the units/reference ranges). Are you perimenopausal? Are you taking any female hormones? All this stuff is relevant.

Why did you stop seeing the anti-aging doctor who prescribed all this stuff and choose to go to a homeopath instead?

And sorry, I'm confused about some things you said. After the AA doc, you said you "felt greater"? Does that mean that on that doc's protocol, you felt ok, but you have felt better and were not satisfied with their protocol? And what is a toreador shot??

Post up the rest of the info and I will see if I can help in any way.

[Bonaparte]

Androgens increase insulin sensitivity, while GH decreases it. The former is good, as it combats diabetes.
And it is dubious that your test levels are that high just from the 2 mg of test cream (since those T levels are roughly equivalent to 30-40 mg of injected testosterone weekly). What were they without the cream? Any chance they drew blood from your cream application site?

[mkt]

Hi sorry all. Haven't been back on here. The test levels are definitely that high. There was some other sex hormone binding thing that was very high. It'd be easier to scan the entire test and post it wouldn't it. I'll try that. I was in fact applying cream on the insides of my arms where the blood was drawn now that you mention it Bonaparte but they do wipe before they draw.

I'm still off all hormones (they are all listed above btw) and am a wreck. It's as though i have some horrible inflammatory disorder. And food allergies all of a sudden. And migraines all of a sudden. The only thing that makes me feel better is toradol (not toreador sorry for the typo previously) a shot given commonly for migraines. It's a very very strong NSAID.

I now can't help but wonder if this might be the result of nearly 4 straight years on HGH. I only stopped in March. And Am I perimenopausal? hard to say with my hormone levels being so weird right now - one of the reasons we're stopping everything is to try to get a baseline. I'm 47 so it's certainly not out of the question. But i felt pretty well until about April (again about a month after I went off HGH) and then i developed some insomnia, photosensitivity, migraines... sort of everything i am now thinking is generally an inflammatory response. Since going on antibiotics for a sinus and ear infection, the horrific vertigo at least has ended but i still get dizzy pretty easily.

thoughts?

[Simon1972]

your post sounds like you are overanalysing and suffering anxiety- nobody here can help unless you post up bloodwork.

you need to be short- sharp and accurate with your responses so we can read and advise- you glossed over thisangelbites questions.

get the bloodwork together and post here- if i can say one thing- go back to an anti aging dr, stay away from naturapaths - they are not drs and are prepared to let you suffer while you pay $. i wouldnt be suprised if you were going thru menopause and its messing with your hormones-your hrt would be all over the place while your body finds it balance.

hang in there.

[GirlyGymRat]

your post sounds like you are overanalysing and suffering anxiety- nobody here can help unless you post up bloodwork. you need to be short- sharp and accurate with your responses so we can read and advise- you glossed over thisangelbites questions. get the bloodwork together and post here- if i can say one thing- go back to an anti aging dr, stay away from naturapaths - they are not drs and are prepared to let you suffer while you pay $. i wouldnt be suprised if you were going thru menopause and its messing with your hormones-your hrt would be all over the place while your body finds it balance. hang in there.

I know of a lady who went the homeopathic route for menopause. She was messed up for a year. I am not saying all homeopathic doctors are bad just as not all Anti aging doc are good.

Female hormones are complicated.

[Arete]

Also besides all of the information on the anti aging supplements you have been taking have you looked at your diet. A lot of the symptoms like migraines, sinus infections, gut problems can be related to food allergies. Doctors never ask but what you eat also greatly affects hormones. Since you are also looking at natural ways to have a healthy body you might look at some real food eating sites that suggest eating or eliminating certain foods from a diet. Words to type in might be paleo, FODMAP, Primal and the symptoms you have. Also the stomach is 80% of your immune system so when you take a dose of NDAIDS and antibiotics it kills your gut bacteria which help with everything. Doctors love to prescribe a pill but in addition to supplements the diet is very important.

[GirlyGymRat]

I believe the OP is female. There's a natural detox protocol I the females only forum. I am looking into doing it once I finish my cycle.

You have to request pink access in sticky at the top in new members forum.