Just got my test results. Need advice

[goolapsh]

I am on 100mg cypionate injection per week, injecting mwf. I tested Monday morning before shot and results are as follows:
TT-495
Free t-125 (35-155)
DHT 18 (16-79)
Estradiol 23
Shbg 10
I feel better on injections but had a higher sex drive I think on the cream. I also had higher dht levels on the cream. Not sure what to do at this point. I prefer the injections because of the bettter mood I’m having and the convenience of it. My nurse has offered to increase my dose but wanted a second opinion.

 

[Vince Carter]

So was this a Mon morning blood draw before your injection?

Note too your SHBG is very low and even though your sensitive (was it sensitive test???) E2 @ 23 is possibly too high for you.
Probably need to get off M/W/F and on to EOD, just split up that 100mg even more.

 

[goolapsh]

So was this a Mon morning blood draw before your injection?

Note too your SHBG is very low and even though your sensitive (was it sensitive test???) E2 @ 23 is possibly too high for you.
Probably need to get off M/W/F and on to EOD, just split up that 100mg even more.

Yea I didn’t have the sensitive test, but I’ve had both the regular estradiol test and the sensitive test and they always read in the low 20s or 19. They are pretty consistent every time too and I’ve had multiple estradiol tests. I will say that 23 is the highest reading I’ve had so far. What do you think about dht and libido. I’ve read that you’ve used the cream on your scrotum in the past to raise dht. Has this had any effect on your libido? I was thinking of maybe getting off injections and going back to the cream but at a higher 20%. Was on 10% before.

 

[goolapsh]

Yea I didn’t have the sensitive test, but I’ve had both the regular estradiol test and the sensitive test and they always read in the low 20s or 19. They are pretty consistent every time too and I’ve had multiple estradiol tests. I will say that 23 is the highest reading I’ve had so far. What do you think about dht and libido. I’ve read that you’ve used the cream on your scrotum in the past to raise dht. Has this had any effect on your libido? I was thinking of maybe getting off injections and going back to the cream but at a higher 20%. Was on 10% before.

Yea it was a Monday morning blood draw before injection.

 

[ratbag]

Some TRT specialists prescribe shots + cream in order to increase their DHT. This is a now considered a common protocol.

 

[Vince Carter]

On a M/W/F that Mon AM is def your lowest point so you can be assured your E, in particular, is higher during the week.

What I would do...25mg EOD. See if that can get your E to come down a little bit.

Yes you can use a cream for DHT, works very well for me @ 12.5mg-25mg per application, has to be used daily though if you want the benefit of it. I find I can apply it and have a verified DHT boost but I return to baseline within 24hrs.

 

[goolapsh]

Okay thanks Vince. I’m changing it up to EOD 25mg. I also have a 50mg cream that I’ll apply half of to my balls. See if that helps with libido. Thanks man. I’ll report back in a month.

 

[goolapsh]

Okay thanks Vince. I’m changing it up to EOD 25mg. I also have a 50mg cream that I’ll apply half of to my balls. See if that helps with libido. Thanks man. I’ll report back in a month.

Vince, I’ve been applying the 50mg t cream to my nuts and each day I’ve done that I’ve had trouble sleeping that night and subsequently feeling like shit the next day even when applying it in the morning. I’ve since split my injections to EOD 25mg. I remembered also when I took creams before I had this same insomnia issue if I applied too much or if I applied it at night. Seems like the cream is more stimulating/activating for me than the shots (maybe because of the fact that cream testosterone isn’t esterified and goes directly to work), which I don’t necessary like because of the insomnia issue. I may try applying to inner thigh instead to get the dht boost. I think for me insomnia might be the sign I’m taking too much, but still I’m not seeing any improvement in erection quality/libido. What are your experiences with the use of the cream?

 

[Vince Carter]

Id halve the cream application and see how that effects you.

 

[Tman]

goolapsh,

I am following your story. I've had similar thoughts about cream vs injections. I actually felt better most of the time on a gel, but my body would crash in the afternoon (low SHBG). If I could find a cream that could keep me somewhat steady (reason for switching to shots), I would jump on it. I was on Fortesta before.

 

[optimizely]

Vince, I’ve been applying the 50mg t cream to my nuts and each day I’ve done that I’ve had trouble sleeping that night and subsequently feeling like shit the next day even when applying it in the morning. I’ve since split my injections to EOD 25mg. I remembered also when I took creams before I had this same insomnia issue if I applied too much or if I applied it at night. Seems like the cream is more stimulating/activating for me than the shots (maybe because of the fact that cream testosterone isn’t esterified and goes directly to work), which I don’t necessary like because of the insomnia issue. I may try applying to inner thigh instead to get the dht boost. I think for me insomnia might be the sign I’m taking too much, but still I’m not seeing any improvement in erection quality/libido. What are your experiences with the use of the cream?

TBH, I think your insomnia issues are related to estrogen conversion. I believe when you are applying additional testosterone you are building up excess estrogen and thus having insomnia. Your SHBG is 10. That’s about as low as they come. Your body can barely handle any estrogen. Seems pretty logical if you really think about it.

 

[eli]

goolapsh,

I am following your story. I've had similar thoughts about cream vs injections. I actually felt better most of the time on a gel, but my body would crash in the afternoon (low SHBG). If I could find a cream that could keep me somewhat steady (reason for switching to shots), I would jump on it. I was on Fortesta before.

Why not apply morning and Afternoon?

 

[goolapsh]

Why not apply morning and Afternoon?

Just an update. I had my blood work done a week after applying the cream. I did have e reading of 35, which is high for me (normally run about 19-26) so yea that’s why I was having insomnia. I stopped the cream and may just slowly bump up my t through injections only and see if that helps libido and erections. Don’t know if I’ll ever go back to creams just because I do overall feel better than I did on creams and the creams don’t get my t high enough for long periods. They do for short periods of time and then by the next morning it’s completely gone. I confirmed this though blood test. Creams my t would go as high as 700 about a couple hours after applying and by next morning back to 300. Whereas the shots I can keep the t levels up longer.

 

[Tman]

Why not apply morning and Afternoon?

Why not apply morning and Afternoon?

I had some success with that, but my GP was completely against twice dosing. So, the script would not support it.