23 years old, low libido, need your input

[southpaw41]

Hey guys Im new here but would like to hear your input. Ill try to keep this as short as I can. Im 23, 5 10, and 165-170ish

Currently my symptoms are as follows:

-Low libido/slight impotence (spontaneous erections are non-existent, morning erections are non-existent or weak)
-Fatigue during the day
-Trouble focusing/concentrating at work
-Little facial/body hair growth
-Slight depression at times (I think due primarily to my low libido/impotence)
-Poor fertility

Medical History

-Grade II Varicocele left side since I was 14-15 (now 23; conventional surgery done on 2/11/10)
-2 extremely small micro adenomas on pituitary gland (so small MRI couldnt specify if they were in fact micro adenomas or not but I will assume they are)

Labs prevalent to symptoms (these are all from May 2010 or newer)(*I have more extensive ones listed below*)

-Prolactin 12.6 & 13 & 11.4 (1.8-14.4)
-TT 543 & 532 (280-800)
-Free T 14.5 & 15.5 (9.3-26.5)
-Hemoglobin 13.9 (12.1-17.)
-Cortisol 22.5 (4.3-22.4) High
-Estradiol 35 (10-52)
-SHBG 21 (no scale given)
-DHT 22 (30-85) Low
-Vit D 25.8 (32-100) Low
-IGF-1 312 (116-358)
-FSH 10 (0.9-15)
-LH 5.3 (1.5-9.3)

So basically the last couple months have been a runaround with various doctors getting nowhere. Finally got in touch with a good doctor and what a relief. My meeting with him and his colleague went very well.

We uncovered that my college years put an enormous stress load on my hormones and body in general. Like most college students I didnt take the best care of my body; eating crap, drinking all the time, smoking occasionally, poor sleep, staying up late, overtraining at the gym, and class work load all put stress on my system. Additionally I lost a very close friend during my time in college which may have been the straw that broke the camels back.

Currently they think my problem lies in my adrenals or thyroid. Adrenal fatigue or reverse T3 syndrome make the most sense at this point. They think my hormone system crashed in college and never fully recovered.

They recommended 10,000iu/daily of liquid vitamin D drops, replaced my GNC Mega Men multi vitamins with better absorbing ones, and recommended I eat more greens until our next meeting. I cant seem to get enough greens in my diet so Im supplementing with green vibrance.

Im really hoping these problems stemming from my adrenals or thyroid and can be corrected but I have my doubts. I think that my varicocele and pituitary micro adenomas have to be playing a factor. Here are my more extensive labs let me know what you think.

**VAP Cholesterol Profile**
LDL Cholesterol 70 (<130)
HDL Cholesterol 46 (>=40)
VLDL Cholesterol 22 (<30)
Cholesterol, Total 138 (<200)
Triglycerides 154 (<150) *HIGH*
Non HDL Chol. (LDL+VLDL) 92 (<160)
apoB100-calc 72 (<109)
LDL-R (Real)-C 52 (<100)
Lp (a) Cholesterol 10 (<10) *HIGH*
IDL Cholesterol 7 (<20)
Remnant Lipo. (IDL+VLDL3) 19 (<30)
*Clinical Consideration* Probable Metabolic Syndrome (Flag=Abnormal)

*Sub-Class Information*
HDL-2 (Most Protective) 10 (>10) *LOW*
HDL-3 (Less Protective) 36 (>30)
VLDL-3 (Small Remnant) 12 (<10) *HIGH*
LDL1 Pattern A 5.2 (no range)
LDL2 Pattern A 2.0 (no range)
LDL3 Pattern B 26.4 (no range)
LDL4 Pattern B 18.8 (no range)
*LDL Density Pattern* Abnormal

**Celiac Disease Complete Panel**
Immunoglobulin A, Qn, Serum 242 (70-400)
Deamidated Gliadin Abs, IgA 3.1 (0.0-10)
Deamidated Gliadin Abs, IgG 1.0 (0.0-10)
t-Transglutaminase (tTG) IgA 1 (0-3)
t-Transglutaminase (tTG IgG 1 (0-5)

**CBC w/ Differential/Platelet**
WBC 5.5 (4.0-10.5)
RBC 5.08 (4.10-5.60)
Hemoglobin 14.1 (12.5-17)
Hematocrit 42.6 (36-50)
MCV 84 (80-98)
MCH 27.8 (27-34)
MCHC 33.1 (32-36)
RDW 13.6 (11.7-15)
Platelets 192 (140-415)
Neutrophils 54 (40-74)
Lymphs 34 (14-46)
Monocytes 10 (4-13)
Eos 2 (0-7)
Basos 0 (0-3)
Neutrophils (Absolute) 2.9 (1.8-7.8)
Lymphs (Absolute) 1.9 (0.7-4.5)
Monocytes (Absolute) 0.6 (0.1-1)
Eos (Absolute) 0.1 (0.0-0.4)
Baso (Absolute) 0.0 (0.0-0.2)
Immature Granulocytes 0 (0-1)
Immature Grans (Abs) 0 (0.0-0.1)

**Comp. Metabolic Panel (14)**
Glucose, Serum 91 (65-99)
BUN 18 (5-26)
Creatinine, Serum 1.05 (0.76-1.27)
eGFR >59 (>59)
eGFR African American >59 (>59)
BUN/Creatinine Ratio 17 (8-27)
Sodium, Serum 141 (135-145)
Potassium, Serum 4.3 (3.5-5.2)
Chloride, Serum 102 (97-108)
Carbon Dioxide, Total 27 (20-32)
Calcium, Serum 9.6 (8.7-10.2)
Protein, Total, Serum 7.2 (60.-8.5)
Albumin, Serum 4.6 (3.5-5.5)
Globulin, Total 2.6 (1.5-4.5)
A/G Ratio 1.8 (1.1-2.5)
Bilirubin, Total 0.6 (0.0-1.2)
Alkaline Phosphatase, S 76 (25-150)
AST (SGOT) 19 (0-40)
ALT (SGPT) 14 (0-55)

**Allergen Profile, Basic Food**
Levels
Class 0: <0.05 (Negative)
Class 0/I: 0.05-0.07 (Equivocal)
Class I: 0.08-0.15 (Increasing)
Class II: 0.16-0.50
Not going to list the rest of the classes I don’t fall into those categories

Milk (Cow) <0.05 Class 0
Wheat <0.05 Class 0
Corn 0.08 Class I *Abnormal*
Peanut <0.05 Class 0
Soybean <0.05 Class 0
Pork <0.05 Class 0
Beef <0.05 Class 0
Fish/Shell Mix <0.05 Class 0
Egg, Whole <0.05 Class0
Chocolate, Cocoa <0.05 Class 0

**Catecholamines, Plasma**
*Catecholamine Frac, P*
Norepinephrine, P1 266 (0-874)
Epinephrine, P1 28 (0-62)
Dopamine, P1 18 (0-48)

**Iodine, Urine**
Iodine, Urine 420 (no reference given)

**Dehydroepiandrosterone Sulfate**
DHEA-Sulfate 299.3 (211-492)

**Thyroxin (T4) Free, Direct, S**
T4, Free (Direct) 1.29 (0.82-1.77)
TSH 3.600 (0.450-4.500)

**ACTH, Plasma**
ACTH, Plasma 35.1 (7.2-63.3)

**Hemoglobin Alc**
Hemoglobin Alc 5.6 (4.8-5.6) *Some warnings about diabetes here*
It says “Increased risk for diabetes: 5.7-6.4”

**Homocyst(e)ine, Plasma**
Homocyst(e)ine, Plasma 6.6 (0.0-15)

**Prolactin**
Prolactin 13.6 (4.0-15.2)
This blood draw was on a Thursday morning and I did not engage in sexual activity since the Saturday before (6 days)

Thyroxin (T4) 6.8 (4.5-12)
Ceruloplasmin 17.7 (16.2-35.6)
Thyroid Peroxides (TPO) Ab 6 (0-34)
Reverse T3 261 (90-350)
Triiodothyronine, Free, Serum 2.9 (2.0-4.4)
Progesterone 1 (0.2-1.4)
Ferritin, Serum 132 (30-400)
Prealbumin 34 (20-40)
C-Reactive Protein, Quant 0.4 (0.0-4.9)
Antithyroglobulin Ab <20 (0-40)
Cortisol-AM 27.7 (6.2-19.4) *HIGH*

 

[Kwirion]

Wow! So many labs results.. impressive. You may need House M.D. for this ;-) (no offense)

About optimal levels of hormones etc: Print Friendly

Prolactin above 8 kills libido.
DHEAs too low for optimal energy levels and any sexuality.

Adrenal fatigue - WTF?

reaserch the forum threads for more information. Maybe other forum members can help you more.

What with your diet, you sleep well? Healthy lifestyle now?

 

[southpaw41]

Wow! So many labs results.. impressive. You may need House M.D. for this ;-) (no offense)

About optimal levels of hormones etc: Print Friendly

Prolactin above 8 kills libido.
DHEAs too low for optimal energy levels and any sexuality.

Adrenal fatigue - WTF?

reaserch the forum threads for more information. Maybe other forum members can help you more.

What with your diet, you sleep well? Healthy lifestyle now?

Thanks for posting that link looks like there is a ton of useful information there.

Yea my prolactin is on the high side and that is a problem. Unfortunately from my research there is no way to naturally lower this level. Perhaps I will need to go on something for that. Don’t know much about DHEA or how to raise that.

As far as my lifestyle now..
-work full time at a semi-stressful job
-diet (self-made protein shake every morning with either fruit and/or oatmeal). Trying to incorporate more greens(thats why Im taking green vibrance) and low GI foods. I drink mostly water and/or green tea throughout the day.
-sleep: usually takes me 20 minutes to fall asleep. I do toss and turn occasionally. Usually go to bed around 10:30-11 wake up 7:20
-Been lifting since I was about 16. Usually at the gym 3-4 times a week doing a mix of lifting and cardio. Pretty much have been in shape my whole life.
-take multi-vitamins, vitamin d, green vibrance daily

I have been pretty sick lately (2 full weeks) and found out I have mono today. So my symptoms are even worse than normal but hopefully I can kick it completely in the coming weeks.

 

[Chris.N]

From all the symptoms you are having they mainly point to Low T. But your T levels look good. I would maybe recommend seeing a Endocrinologist and get another blood test early in the morning. Have you previously used AAS ? If so you may need to cycle some HCG to get your libido and everything back on track.

 

[Kwirion]

Yea my prolactin is on the high side and that is a problem. Unfortunately from my research there is no way to naturally lower this level. Perhaps I will need to go on something for that. Don’t know much about DHEA or how to raise that.

About lowering prolactin: https://thinksteroids.com/community/posts/552648
More info about prolactin: https://thinksteroids.com/community/threads/134295246

Exercises should raise DHEA: [ame="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/DHEA"]Dehydroepiandrosterone - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia@@AMEPARAM@@/wiki/FileHEA.png" class="image"><img alt="" src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/0b/DHEA.png/177px-DHEA.png"@@AMEPARAM@@commons/thumb/0/0b/DHEA.png/177px-DHEA.png[/ame]

You should find good endo / urologist.

PS What with AAS/DS use, any PCT?

 

[southpaw41]

From all the symptoms you are having they mainly point to Low T. But your T levels look good. I would maybe recommend seeing a Endocrinologist and get another blood test early in the morning. Have you previously used AAS ? If so you may need to cycle some HCG to get your libido and everything back on track.

All of my bloodwork was done early morning 7-8ish. My current doctor doesnt think my symptoms are being caused from testosterone issues because my levels arent bad.

No I have never used any form steroids/tesosterone in my life

 

[southpaw41]

About lowering prolactin: https://thinksteroids.com/community/posts/552648
More info about prolactin: https://thinksteroids.com/community/threads/134295246

Exercises should raise DHEA: Dehydroepiandrosterone - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

You should find good endo / urologist.

thanks for posting the links Ill take a look at them. I have had zero luck wih with endos. I havent brought up these issues to my uro who did my varicocele surgery (i was more concerned with fertility at the time).. I am however working with a good doctor now who is looking at my problem from all angles. I meet with him again Friday Ill submit a post on how that appt goes.

 

[poisonesspimp]

You need to lower you prolactin, supplement with vitamin d, your really low should be much higher. Cortisol is high, just like mine. Any stressors?

 

[southpaw41]

You need to lower you prolactin, supplement with vitamin d, your really low should be much higher. Cortisol is high, just like mine. Any stressors?

yea def gonna discuss prolactin more with my doctor on Friday. Currently I'm taking 10,000 ui of vit d drops daily. Most of the stress in my life is coming from this issue. I think about it pretty much all day and find myself surfing forums like this in my free time. Getting this issue resolved will take alot of stress out of my life

 

[Kwirion]

thanks for posting the links Ill take a look at them. I have had zero luck wih with endos. I havent brought up these issues to my uro who did my varicocele surgery (i was more concerned with fertility at the time).. I am however working with a good doctor now who is looking at my problem from all angles. I meet with him again Friday Ill submit a post on how that appt goes.

Good luck! I know how hard is to find right doc..

But I have finally found good one - with open mind - I showed him all priceless infos from this forum and I have special treatment now.

 

[hardasnails1973]

Thanks for posting that link looks like there is a ton of useful information there.

Yea my prolactin is on the high side and that is a problem. Unfortunately from my research there is no way to naturally lower this level. Perhaps I will need to go on something for that. Don’t know much about DHEA or how to raise that.

As far as my lifestyle now..
-work full time at a semi-stressful job
-diet (self-made protein shake every morning with either fruit and/or oatmeal). Trying to incorporate more greens(thats why Im taking green vibrance) and low GI foods. I drink mostly water and/or green tea throughout the day.
-sleep: usually takes me 20 minutes to fall asleep. I do toss and turn occasionally. Usually go to bed around 10:30-11 wake up 7:20
-Been lifting since I was about 16. Usually at the gym 3-4 times a week doing a mix of lifting and cardio. Pretty much have been in shape my whole life.
-take multi-vitamins, vitamin d, green vibrance daily

I have been pretty sick lately (2 full weeks) and found out I have mono today. So my symptoms are even worse than normal but hopefully I can kick it completely in the coming weeks.

This may explain your elevated cortisol levels,. And may explain your high 5ha1c
It would be crucial to get cortisol saliva test done to see how the infection can be affecting your cortisol levels through out the day time. Your cortisol level may be falsely elevated due to being pissed off coming into the blood draw.

If your cortisol levels are off then this will cause a build of of thyroid in th blood and elevate TSH which you are expereincing ..So if your cortisol saliva is low then this could explain your elevated tsh. Addressing adrenal will help push thyroid into the cell causing the levels to drop in the blood potentially revealing the true hypothyroidism that may be hidden. It may be advisiable to have primary to run glucose insulin tolerance test to look at this high levels to rule out prediabetic state. With 5.6 your blood sugar is averaging about 130-140 during the say time which is not good and little on the high side. So It would be advisble to follow up with Dr O to see what the next steps are to help rectify the thyroid issue due to potential adrenal issues..

 

[hardasnails1973]

yea def gonna discuss prolactin more with my doctor on Friday. Currently I'm taking 10,000 ui of vit d drops daily. Most of the stress in my life is coming from this issue. I think about it pretty much all day and find myself surfing forums like this in my free time. Getting this issue resolved will take alot of stress out of my life

Stop obessing over it and let the experts handle it..
I did not get better untill I stopped looking on forums as I was a dog chasing my tail.

 

[southpaw41]

This may explain your elevated cortisol levels,. And may explain your high 5ha1c
It would be crucial to get cortisol saliva test done to see how the infection can be affecting your cortisol levels through out the day time. Your cortisol level may be falsely elevated due to being pissed off coming into the blood draw.

If your cortisol levels are off then this will cause a build of of thyroid in th blood and elevate TSH which you are expereincing ..So if your cortisol saliva is low then this could explain your elevated tsh. Addressing adrenal will help push thyroid into the cell causing the levels to drop in the blood potentially revealing the true hypothyroidism that may be hidden. It may be advisiable to have primary to run glucose insulin tolerance test to look at this high levels to rule out prediabetic state. With 5.6 your blood sugar is averaging about 130-140 during the say time which is not good and little on the high side. So It would be advisble to follow up with Dr O to see what the next steps are to help rectify the thyroid issue due to potential adrenal issues..

I did the saliva hormone test on 8/8/10 (I am assuming this is the saliva cortisol test). That was the first day I became ill with mono had a 102 fever that day. So perhaps that test will have to be redone but I have yet to get the results.

I have never been “pissed off” coming into a blood draw. If anything a little nervous about the needle but I don’t even experience that anymore after so much blood work.

And yes I will discuss the rest of these issues with Dr O

 

[southpaw41]

Stop obessing over it and let the experts handle it..
I did not get better untill I stopped looking on forums as I was a dog chasing my tail.

Yea I agree this is something I need to work on. Its tough though these are some serious symptoms for someone in their low 20's, or any age..

 

[poisonesspimp]

yea def gonna discuss prolactin more with my doctor on Friday. Currently I'm taking 10,000 ui of vit d drops daily. Most of the stress in my life is coming from this issue. I think about it pretty much all day and find myself surfing forums like this in my free time. Getting this issue resolved will take alot of stress out of my life

I feel your pain=[. You just wanna get it resolved I made a big step this summer and I changed my attitude and said screw it I'm gonna live my life I have already wasted enough of my time on this illness. Reconnected with some old friends and it's one of the most fulfilling thing I have felt in a long time. I felt like giving up before I was so tired of this I just wanted to get better already but it eased my pain seeing friends excersizing going to the mall laughing for once, it's like a god given gift that many of us with this illness don't see. We tend to shut all the good things out because our situation may be so unbearable. Being away from the forums let me clear my head and i'm happy I did it changed my perspective on this! No matter how bad it is you gotta realize that what you put in you get out. You work hard you get something out of it. I can tell you so many times I become obsessive about getting better I couldn't take it i'm 16 with no sex drive and it's not the funnest thing lol. I am getting even closer to getting better and it's because I have someone helping me I have people there to help now. I can rest my head and let them take care of it, that should be good enough man. You have to get yourself to chill out try going for a run. I enjoy going for a late night run I find I am the most motivated and all around it feels amazing. Whatever you can do to feel better and not let it affect you any more then it already is.

 

[cumkwakka]

how bout some proviron/mesterolone for your low dht?

your test seems reasonable and may go up a little with vitamin d supplementation and your e2 may rise but dht may still be low end of the range

supposed to be good for wood

 

[poisonesspimp]

how bout some proviron/mesterolone for your low dht?

your test seems reasonable and may go up a little with vitamin d supplementation and your e2 may rise but dht may still be low end of the range

supposed to be good for wood

I am sure other things would be more appropriate steps to take before taking proviron or mesterolone.

 

[southpaw41]

I feel your pain=[. You just wanna get it resolved I made a big step this summer and I changed my attitude and said screw it I'm gonna live my life I have already wasted enough of my time on this illness. Reconnected with some old friends and it's one of the most fulfilling thing I have felt in a long time. I felt like giving up before I was so tired of this I just wanted to get better already but it eased my pain seeing friends excersizing going to the mall laughing for once, it's like a god given gift that many of us with this illness don't see. We tend to shut all the good things out because our situation may be so unbearable. Being away from the forums let me clear my head and i'm happy I did it changed my perspective on this! No matter how bad it is you gotta realize that what you put in you get out. You work hard you get something out of it. I can tell you so many times I become obsessive about getting better I couldn't take it i'm 16 with no sex drive and it's not the funnest thing lol. I am getting even closer to getting better and it's because I have someone helping me I have people there to help now. I can rest my head and let them take care of it, that should be good enough man. You have to get yourself to chill out try going for a run. I enjoy going for a late night run I find I am the most motivated and all around it feels amazing. Whatever you can do to feel better and not let it affect you any more then it already is.

Thanks for the input man. This is definitely something I need to do but I'm really really hard on myself.. I spend a lot of time in the gym and out with friends which helps tremendously. I get the most relief from exercising I rarely think about this shit when I’m at the gym. Often though when I’m out with friends this is on my mind which affects my ability to have fun or enjoy the moment… I think it will help me a lot if I just trust the experts and concentrate on other things.

 

[Kwirion]

Stop obessing over it and let the experts handle it..
I did not get better untill I stopped looking on forums as I was a dog chasing my tail.

For example in my case local experts failed. Searching and reading forums - especially Meso helped me much with my problem.
In my country nobody checks Vit D deficiency and docs doesn't know about SERMs for secondary hypogonadism / PCT.

Many tips and info about healthy lifestyle and good diet are great too

So looking on Internet forums isn't always bad thing.

PS Sharing problems on forum can be therapeutic too..

 

[poisonesspimp]

Thanks for the input man. This is definitely something I need to do but I'm really really hard on myself.. I spend a lot of time in the gym and out with friends which helps tremendously. I get the most relief from exercising I rarely think about this shit when I’m at the gym. Often though when I’m out with friends this is on my mind which affects my ability to have fun or enjoy the moment… I think it will help me a lot if I just trust the experts and concentrate on other things.

That's great about working out. Yeah it's hard man but sometimes a fake smile is better than no smile at all. I came to realize how unhappy I was when all of this continued and did not resolve but even now I am not very energetic and feel very run down. At the same time though I have come to the conclusion that it will change when I am better and even if I'm putting on fake smiles now the real ones will come out soon enough. All I'm saying is that it's really easy to become a bummer around others because of this but you can still put on somewhat of a show to keep relationships and stuff. Keep your confidence up and clear your head. Going for runs with all the stress has been the most helpful thing I have done in a while. Friends are also motivating!