got my blood results back please look at and comment~

[powerlifterty16]

No wonder i'm so tired all the time!!! Cortisol is HIGH, and test/free test is LOW. i'm 23, fyi. I woke up at 10am and the blood was drawn around 1pm.
the estradiol was not the sensitive assay(but it hink it's better than nothing)...and estradiol was low, dhea was good, and prolactin was low....but cortisol and test were terrible. I have no free testosterone. The fact that i got to a near 315 bench with these numbers is honorable LOL..only took me around 10 years.
Lab Test Results
dhea, serum



Test Low Normal High Reference Range Units
dehydroepiandrosterone (dhea) 606 31-701 ng/dL








Test Low Normal High Reference Range Units
prolactin 3.7 4.0-15.2 ng/mL




Test Low Normal High Reference Range Units
lh 5.2 1.7-8.6 mIU/mL




Test Low Normal High Reference Range Units
cortisol 24.4 2.3-19.4 ug/dL





Test Low Normal High Reference Range Units
estradiol 9.8 7.6-42.6 pg/mL

testosterone,free and total



Test Low Normal High Reference Range Units
testosterone, serum 339 348-1197 ng/dL
free testosterone(direct) 10.1 9.3-26.5 pg/mL

[kelkel]

Well, high cortisol can suppress testosterone but you are really low for your age. What history can you relate that would cause this and have you had any medical evaluation for it? AAS usage, etc...

[austinite]

What time of day was your blood drawn?

[HRTstudent]

Cortisol, if blood, is useless unfortunately. Get a 24 hour if you're concerned.

The T is low,but it's also later in the day, not when standard ranges are designed to test. Does it mean it's not too low? Not necessarily, but it would be a mistake to take this single reading and act on that. You need a follow up lab on this. Your LH isn't bad though.

What was your reason for getting these tests done?

[powerlifterty16]

ive had 24 hour urines in the past and they were very high as well. The blood drawn was 3 hours after i woke up, how is that later in the day? Come on, it's obviously low man.
IDK how to lower cortisol
My tsh was also 2.8 which is kind of high right?
Not to mention i have no free t.

My symptoms are, after nearly a decade of weightlifting, i;ve struggled like hell to put on muscle and strength, i have chronic headaches, no energy, libido is poor but not 0, anxiety/shyness.....prob some more that im not thinking of.
also....if you are still convinced this lab isnt accurate, when i was 19 my test was 277, and nearly all my labs have been around 470 ...with one exception at 21 being 535 PEAK.
I have borderline bilateral varicoceles, buut my urologist, and ''anabolic doc'' claim they arent causing me harm..so who knows? Noone has done a sperm analysis.

if my tone sounds rude, i dont mean it that way, im just frustrated.

my 57 year old hypogonadal dad has 320 total test, and slightly worse free test....nothing is normal about this...and i lift weights which means i should be more anabolic....my dad is stressed all the time with work

Cortisol, if blood, is useless unfortunately. Get a 24 hour if you're concerned.

The T is low,but it's also later in the day, not when standard ranges are designed to test. Does it mean it's not too low? Not necessarily, but it would be a mistake to take this single reading and act on that. You need a follow up lab on this. Your LH isn't bad though.

What was your reason for getting these tests done?

[powerlifterty16]

i see the urologist in 2 weeks...im getting a brain scan on thursday as well. what should my plan of action for the urologist be? I need your help guys as i'm not sure what to do.

i value your opinions

[kelkel]

I think I remember a conversation in the past about your varicoceles. I think your plan should be to find the cause first and not just treat the outcome. It may take time and several doc's but at your age it is well worth it. Time really is on your side, even though it may not feel like it. Yes, 2.8 TSH is high in most of our opinions but not with many docs, unfortunately.

Vitamin C will help with cortisol. It helps to suppress the release of it from your adrenals.

[crashfirepm53]

ive had 24 hour urines in the past and they were very high as well. The blood drawn was 3 hours after i woke up, how is that later in the day? Come on, it's obviously low man.
IDK how to lower cortisol
My tsh was also 2.8 which is kind of high right?
Not to mention i have no free t.

My symptoms are, after nearly a decade of weightlifting, i;ve struggled like hell to put on muscle and strength, i have chronic headaches, no energy, libido is poor but not 0, anxiety/shyness.....prob some more that im not thinking of.
also....if you are still convinced this lab isnt accurate, when i was 19 my test was 277, and nearly all my labs have been around 470 ...with one exception at 21 being 535 PEAK.
I have borderline bilateral varicoceles, buut my urologist, and ''anabolic doc'' claim they arent causing me harm..so who knows? Noone has done a sperm analysis.

if my tone sounds rude, i dont mean it that way, im just frustrated.

my 57 year old hypogonadal dad has 320 total test, and slightly worse free test....nothing is normal about this...and i lift weights which means i should be more anabolic....my dad is stressed all the time with work

I know how you feel. My highest bench was 345 after 15 years of lifting. I do have really long arms though. Gaing muscle now is impossible. Trying to keep whay I got is hard enough.

[powerlifterty16]

kell, the urologist claims he saw a normal mri, and when he examined me he didnt feelthem so who knows...and anabolic doc claims they are too minor to do anything....idk

im shocked my dhea is so high though...i guess part of me is working properly...low end estrogen, prolactin, and high dhea..and decent lh.

The testosterone is pathetic though, as well as the cortisol. I've been trying to fix myself since iwas 18, so i may just say fugg it and try hcg or something if the doctor will prescribe it.

i guess i could add in 1000-2000mg of c per day....i have some pills here.


at crashpm..are you currently on trt? If so, why is it still hard to put on muscle? I'm hoping once my t goes up, my muscle gaining will be better. It's so annoying staying the same, or getting weaker year after year, while everyone else progresses.

[The Deadlifting Dog]

The blood drawn was 3 hours after i woke up, how is that later in the day? Come on, it's obviously low man.

OP - Peak testosterone levels occur around 8am. You got your level checked "later in the day" at 1pm.
Your peak level could easily be 100 points higher. See the attached chart of testosterone levels in healthy men.

I am not saying that you don't have low test. It's just not as low as you think.

Also, you said you have been trying to fix the problem since you were 18.
What did you do to try to fix the problem??? Any vitamins, PHs, test boosters, AAS???

Also, very importantly, do you take any medications of any kind?

[kelkel]

Good questions and observations by DD. You never did answer mine either from my first post regarding AAS, meds, etc. You still need to find a better doc and work on your TSH. What was your shbg level out of curiosity?

@ Crashfire. Why do you feel gaining muscle is impossible? What gives?

[powerlifterty16]

hi guys, im writing a quick reply now because im about to lift..if i missed anything ill write more....later ...

i would like to first address the 8am thing. 8am is relative./ if i stayed up all night and then got my levels tested at 8am, they would be lower than if i slept, and then woke up at 10am and got tested at 10:30. 8am basically means when you wake up. My uro said i should get it tested 1-2 hours upon awakening. I'll admit i woke up at 10am, and by the time the blood was drawn it was about 1:15...but that is still close to when i was first awaken.

If my blood is 100 points higher at 8am though, that is still bad imo. the 5th percentile for 25 year olds is 470...and im only 23 lol. Plus, even if it's 470 for 1 hour of the day it's still extremely low the rest.

What I meant by trying to fix myself was that i've gotten several testosterone/hormone blood /urine tests, and brain mris from the time of 18-21. i got sick of it, took a break, and am now starting again. I have never taken aas. I did take an herbal test booster called tbol(not the steroid) but i stopped after like 3 weeks...that was prolly around 21-22.

but my past labs have all been 277-535 with the mode being 470.

regardless my damn cortisol is high....which pisses me off LOL. any opinions on if phosphatidyl is worth it?

[crashfirepm53]

Good questions and observations by DD. You never did answer mine either from my first post regarding AAS, meds, etc. You still need to find a better doc and work on your TSH. What was your shbg level out of curiosity?

@ Crashfire. Why do you feel gaining muscle is impossible? What gives?

Building muscle has always been tough for me and I truly think my test levels have been lower than normal even in my late teens though there is no real evidence to that. Recovery from workouts left me sore for days and even extreme muscle fatigue. While true I am extremely tall and extremely skinny (then) results were hard to see of say 10lbs increase on a 6'7" frame.
After starting the Letro 3 days ago and I already feel the results (not sleepy/ tired 24/7 and way less emotional). I know my estrogen was high so decreasing should increase my free test or at least make it accessible. I will see in the next few days at the gym if my strength, fatigue and recovery improve. I expect they will.

[crashfirepm53]

kell, the urologist claims he saw a normal mri, and when he examined me he didnt feelthem so who knows...and anabolic doc claims they are too minor to do anything....idk

im shocked my dhea is so high though...i guess part of me is working properly...low end estrogen, prolactin, and high dhea..and decent lh.

The testosterone is pathetic though, as well as the cortisol. I've been trying to fix myself since iwas 18, so i may just say fugg it and try hcg or something if the doctor will prescribe it.

i guess i could add in 1000-2000mg of c per day....i have some pills here.


at crashpm..are you currently on trt? If so, why is it still hard to put on muscle? I'm hoping once my t goes up, my muscle gaining will be better. It's so annoying staying the same, or getting weaker year after year, while everyone else progresses.

I am on trt for several years. I think high estrogen levels as well as low free test levels is to blame. Soon we will see. The changes from the Letro so far are literally life changing.

[powerlifterty16]

idk why my free t is so low if my estrogen was only 9...true it isnt a sensitive assay, but if anything, my estrogen would be lower on sensitive asays?

[powerlifterty16]

6'7 is badass man. How do you like it? I'm 6'2 and love being tall

Building muscle has always been tough for me and I truly think my test levels have been lower than normal even in my late teens though there is no real evidence to that. Recovery from workouts left me sore for days and even extreme muscle fatigue. While true I am extremely tall and extremely skinny (then) results were hard to see of say 10lbs increase on a 6'7" frame.
After starting the Letro 3 days ago and I already feel the results (not sleepy/ tired 24/7 and way less emotional). I know my estrogen was high so decreasing should increase my free test or at least make it accessible. I will see in the next few days at the gym if my strength, fatigue and recovery improve. I expect they will.

[powerlifterty16]

my friend thinks im converting all of my dhea into cortisol......so maybe i have an adrenal issue but what the hell can be done?

i doubt any dr would figure this out might as well go on the sauce.

depressing.

or ill try phosphatidyl if you guys think it's worth it.

[kelkel]

Your E is low as your T is low. The difference between the sensitive assay and other test can be drastic, at least with what I've seen. When it comes to phosphatidylserine I'd say yes. It seems to be a good choice to make.

The effects of phosphatidylserine on endocrine response to moderate intensity exercise

[powerlifterty16]

but it was my understanding that the female assay overestimates the e2? so if anything my e2 is low...which i guess means idont aromatize?

ok, so ill order some phospoho from amazon...now brand seems to have good reviews. Ill take 500 mg per day.

I will get my brain mri this week.

When i go to the urologist, i will tell him im not happy with my numbers, and tell him i think i have an adrenal issue. I will tell him i think my dhea is converting to cortisol instead of tesst.

and then im confused on what ishould have him do?
More labs? I prob wont start the posopho until iget my new labs.

[powerlifterty16]

never had shbg done.

[The Deadlifting Dog]

Powerlifty,

Do you take any prescription medications?
Do you use any recreational drugs?
Do you use any OTC medications? (Advil, allergy meds, aspirin, etc...)

[powerlifterty16]

no to all questions! no alcohol ever also

[powerlifterty16]

I think my main issue is adrenal or thyroid. It's weird though, iwas looking at ld blood work, and my tsh varies so much. one lab it was 3 something, and then another lab it was 1.3 or so lol.

When it was 20 my tsh was 3.22,
freet4 was 1.0(.8-1.8)
..total t3 was 110(76-181)

when i was 21 my tsh was 1.13,
t4 was 8.39(5.41-11.66),
free t4 was 1.21(.7-1.24)
t3 was 159(94-170)


regardless my cortisol has always been high . My plan is to tell the dr, that i feel my testosterone is too low for my age(even if he disageees), and that my cortisol has always been high. I will tell him I think I may have an adrenal or thyroid problem, and may be convertting dhea into cortisol instead of testosterone. I'll ask if he can do repeat labs, as well as tsh, free t4, and free t3, as well igf 1.

Im going to supplement with phosphoatiyl regardless, and then get the endo to check my labs.....if none of them want to find the root cause,

[powerlifterty16]

bump...any thoughts on my next step when i go back to my urologist?
I'm going to ask him to recheck the testosterone total/free, estadiol, cortisol 24 hr urine, thyroid, lh, fsh igf 1, cholesterol
and i think im going to ask if he can check me for klinefelters =(

but if the results come back again that my cortisol is high ,test is low..what should i have him do? My lh was 5.6 or so wouldl clomid be an option? The high cortisol is really pissing me off =(