HCG monotherapy - Need advice

[theheat]

I'm not sure why the Dr went that high on the HCG without BW in the next few weeks to see how I was responding. I had a total T of 405, so her thought was to go the HCG monotherapy route rather than TRT. She thought with some lifestyle changes and HCG she could get me up into the 600 range on my own without having me on TRT, which she said is a lifelong commitment. I told her that I wanted my T in the optimal range (800-1,200), and I wasn't sure if we would be able to achieve it with the HCG alone. She only added the T cream after I told her my libido crashed about 4-5 weeks ago.

Does DIM really work, and are it's effects comparable to a pharm like Arimidex? I felt with the 1,000 IUs of HCG 2x a week and with already high E that the DIM was going to be insufficient so I added the .25 Arimidex 2x a week, not realizing it would be so effective. I also didn't realize that E was necessary for male libido, so I learned the hard way. I have read other posts where guys said their E went way up with 1,000 IUs of HCG a week, and they had a hard time getting it down even with Arimidex. Is it possible that my E could still be high, and wouldn't that cause libido issues as well?

I also read other posts where guys say that they can tell if their E is high or low by their libido, joint pain, bodyfat, nipple sensitivity, etc. Judging from that, I would say mine is low as I have lost weight/BF (but not strength) and I have a little joint pain, in addition to the low libido.

My original BW had the following:

TSH 1.63 range 0.4 - 4.5
T4 free 1.2 range 0.8 - 1.8
T3 free 3.7 range 2.3 -4.2
Total T 403 range 250-1100
Test. Free 60.2 range 46-224
Test bio.avail. 134.2 range 110-575
SHBG 27 range 10-50
DHT 27 range 16-79
LH 3.1 range 1.5 - 9.3
PSA 0.7
Estradiol, ultra sensitive 35 ref. Range < or = 29
I also had a cortisol test where it was within range during the day but it spiked at night (when I get home from work).
I.e. it was 3.5 where the range is 0.6-1.9
I'm 46, 6'3" 250lbs 18% BF at the time of the test 3 months ago, but I'm down to 235 now with lower BF (not sure of the %).

[kelkel]

My original BW had the following:

TSH 1.63 range 0.4 - 4.5
T4 free 1.2 range 0.8 - 1.8
T3 free 3.7 range 2.3 -4.2
Total T 403 range 250-1100
Test. Free 60.2 range 46-224
Test bio.avail. 134.2 range 110-575
SHBG 27 range 10-50
DHT 27 range 16-79
LH 3.1 range 1.5 - 9.3
PSA 0.7
Estradiol, ultra sensitive 35 ref. Range < or = 29
I also had a cortisol test where it was within range during the day but it spiked at night (when I get home from work).
I.e. it was 3.5 where the range is 0.6-1.9
I'm 46, 6'3" 250lbs 18% BF at the time of the test 3 months ago, but I'm down to 235 now with lower BF (not sure of the %).

Thyroid looks good with what you posted but always good to see RT3 and Antibodies as well.
SHBG mid-range which is ok but you could work to reduce it some based on your T levels. I would.
DHT is low as T is low.
LH is low. Have you cycled or used pro-hormones sometime before this blood work?
Need an E2 Sensitive Assay to be accurate.
Take 1-2 grams of C daily. It will help with your cortisol.

Know that cortisol, prolactin and thyroid issues all can impact T production. Your T is currently low as your LH (from your pituitary) is low. LH signals your testies to begin production and they're not getting much of a signal, quite honestly. If all potential causative factors can be ruled out, and there have not been any recent cycles it may just be time for TRT. Another thought would be to simply run a SERM (s) for a brief period and see if it bumps up LH production.