What to check for in a blood test

Good morning gents,

I am busy filling in a Pathcare bloodtest form and need to confirm whether I am ticking the right boxes. This test will be used to visit a urologist just to get some feedback on all my shit. The last time I checked bloods (2016) my E2 was very low and so was free-test. I want to do a comprehensive checkup but also not crash my budget for the upcoming months.

This is what I have:

DHEA-S
TOTAL TEST
FREE TEST

I am considering adding Prolactin and Progesterone to this, any thoughts?

FSH
LH
E2 (Estradiol)

Total PSA (prostate)

Redbloodcell count

I want to check up on my thyroid, but not sure what exactly is needed. Is TSH sufficient?

Anything I'm missing? I read through the thread on TRT and added what I thought was necessary.

Regards

Are you checking to see if you are a TRT candidate, or just checking where you are after a cycle?

If it's pre TRT then its good to do a full range and establish as many baselines as possible so that would include DHEA -S, PSA, Iron/ferritin, haematorcrit and haemoglobin, thyroid panel and SHBG, unfortunately that's expensive. I wouldn't worry too much about DHT and progesterone but prolactin is probably a good idea.


Thyroid has a lot to do with hormone production. Ideally a full thyroid panel but if you're on a budget then at least TSH, T3 and T4. SHBG isn't critical unless you pick up a huge difference between free and total test but it's probably worthwhile testing for a base reading. There are actually a lot of tests you could do to establish baselines but I would say these would do if you're on a budget.

It’s to see whether TRT would be beneficial or whether I’m a candidate, realized I didn’t really clarify this in my post. As mentioned the last time I did bloods by test was way below what it should be for my age. My estro was basically also so low it couldn’t be picked up on the test. Dr exclaimed that I should be happy with that as my estro is “even lower than it should be”, as if that’s a good thing. :pinch:

I Haven’t followed up since due to money restraints, I have some savings atm on my medical and thought it a good idea. I still train consistently but have been very passive and apathetic for the last couple of months. I’m a teacher and my energy levels are making things really difficult. I’m still very active and involved in all aspects but inside I generally feel like shit, and have been for a long time. Thanks for the geedback.

That helps thanks.

Can you post your last set of results with ranges?

Low E2 is not a good thing at all. If you are a candidate for TRT it may also be good to run Hcg along with Test or even Hcg alone for awhile to bring up your E2 a little and that may be enough.

www.anabolicsteroids.co.za/forum/5-post-...please-advise#202186

That's the link to the original thread, had to do some digging. Please let me know your thoughts.

Thanks.

A few comments. Your LH was slightly high which shows that your body was trying to pump LH to stimulate natural T production, it's in range but slightly high. Your low prolactin levels are not something to be concerned with and I wouldn't worry about retesting.
Total T is on the low side and so is your SHBG but this is related to your low estrogen.

For what its worth, the average total testosterone level in males your age is 20.7 to 22.7nmol/l (from 3 different tables I have found). You were 13.3.

Free Testosterone, sourced as above, is 405 to 450 pmol/l. You were 310.

Numbers are an indication only, Dr's should treat symptoms not numbers.

E2 at less than 61pmol/l puts you at less than 16 pg/ml which is too low even with the above comment. Typically you would aim for between 22-30pg/ml. But its more the ratio between estrogen and testosterone that is important. If you go on TRT and raise your test then your E2 will rise as well and it may even push towards 40. It depends a lot on how you're feeling and your personal "sweet spot", symptoms not numbers.

I would think that you have a case for some sort of TRT. Your T levels are def on the low side for your age and combined with such a low E2 it's not surprising you feel kak. The E2 is probably the biggest cause of the issues you're feeling right now. My suggestion would be to see an endocrinologist and let them diagnose and treat, but endo's don't come cheap.....

If you insist on doing something yourself you could run 100mg Test C per week plus 250iu Hcg 3 times per week, Hcg only for 4 weeks. This will raise your test levels and your E2. Then after 6-12 weeks do bloods again to see if you have stabilized. I'm not suggesting you self treat. If thats what you decide to do, research a lot and see what information is out there so you can evaluate my comments and make a call.

Good luck.

Thanks for the feedback, I'm going to do bloods then see the doc. Hopefully he's not a dipshit, my GP referred me to him and she said that he's very good, especially when it comes to hormonal deficiencies. I live on the outskirts of society so I have to use what I have.

Took a while but had my bloods done. Please can I get some input on the results:

Your Total testosterone has pretty much stayed the same since your last test, its the high SHBG that's giving you less available testosterone than before. Your other results look reasonable, your E2 has come up and looks in a good range. In my opinion your TT is low and so is your free testosterone, it will still be on the lower side, even if your SHBG comes down a bit, which it will with testosterone supplementation.
What does your diet and training look like at the moment? The key question is how are you feeling? What does the doctor say?

Mfezdro, thanks for checking in!

My diet in general is really clean. I eat a lot of protein and carb sources come from either white rice (I don't bloat on this) or some form of complex carbs or potatoes. Eat a lot of red meat (rump) chicken (with skin) and eggs. I could drink more fluids but in general my eating is sorted in terms of clean calories. Calories are under maintenance (at the moment) as I've been trying to cut down some body fat for a couple of weeks now.

My training has always revolved around bodybuilding. However, about 2 months ago I started doing more body weight focused training and a lot more cardio. When my ankle isn't fucked I run. I also cycle quite a lot and have started doing crossfit. I would say volume isn't too heavy, maybe frequency and intensity has increased. I train 5/6 days a week (in a good week).

Irrespective, since before changing to the crossfit and conditioning training, it feels like I don't recover well from workouts (even if my eating and sleep is fine). DOMs are more prevalent. I tend to get very fucking tired at work (I'm a teacher, this makes days very rough) even if I've slept well and everything else is in check. I'm not very focused either. In general I feel o.k, but I don't feel like myself... difficult to explain.

One of my other concerns is how I relate to my fiance and our sex life (which can be good at times, but suffers because of my low drive). I lack those primal urges which I had a few years ago... it's there but very timid and underwhelming. I'm still young but have the sex life of an old man...

I train like I'm still 24, eat less but still clean, but physically feel a lot older than I should. Joints also hurt like hell at times.

I haven't seen the endo yet, these tests were done through my GP and she said my test is fine (which they always say because it falls within range.

*** EDIT:

Although I state that I train 5/6 days a week, like I'm still younger, etc. I train a lot smarted and know when my body needs rest. I'm definitely not overdoing it.

From what you’re saying, you could be a candidate for TRT. I wouldn’t just jump in there, rather get an opinion from an endo. But also don’t put to much faith in the outcome. Very few are up to speed with the latest in research. If you do go to the endo I would suggest to them that your research shows you may be a candidate, read up and print material to back that up. Particularly around age related levels, injections vs topicals, twice weekly injections, no hcg and no AI added in. Assuming you’re not concerned with fertility. But see what they say and let us know on here.
For the record my levels were similar and I started TRT, it made a huge difference to me, having said that I was in early 40’s when I started. Your levels should be way higher at your age.

Thanks bud. I have an appointment for the 14th of August so it'll be a while before I get any answers. I hope there's some sort of solution that will follow.

In the past it felt like my mental and physical strength grew together, whereas now I'm mentally strong but physically lacking. Don't know if I'm just too hard on myself or if it's because of the T.

Did you go directly to pathcare or did you need to get referred by a doctor?

You can go to most labs in a private capacity, the one I use is the one that advertises about being half the price of "other" labs... They either email you the results or you can go back and get a printout of the results. I've been doing this for many years now and it's as painful on the vein as it is in the wallet.

Oh, so it's cheap?

It all depends on how comprehensive you want your test, my main annual lab work that looks at everything does get expensive (about 4k) and my 3 monthly tests that just monitor lipds, test levels, etc come in around 600 bucks