Bloodwork Concerns and Confusions...

[Allum]

I'm going to try to make this as straightforward as possible...

Started TRT about 5ish months ago due to low levels. Started at 150mg weekly which put me at a 1300TT trough and my E2 was low 50s (no AI). My libido still wasn't there all the way so my doc bumped me up to 200mg to see what it would do. That put me at a 1700TT trough and low 80s for E2 (still no AI). I felt great and it was clear I was a hyper responder... My energy was good and my libido was fantastic. I've been on 200mg weekly for about 2.5 months now. My blood markers had never looked better TBH. Lipids were perfect, CMP great, and CBC was fantastic (besides my RBC. It's always been elevated slightly even before TRT). The only thing that was elevated was my Prolactin which was 18.6 ng/mL. Doc suggested taking P5P to lower it and I said why not. Fast forward to a month of taking it and my levels are totally out of line. I've noticed my fatigue is crazy high along with my sex drive is down the drain. The only thing I have done differently during this timeframe of taking P5P is:

1. Take P5P
2. Started injecting into my ventro-glutes instead of strictly my delts
3. Started cutting for events/summer around the corner

I assume it's the P5P increasing these levels. I will say the E2 test I got before and this most recent one aren't sensitive so I assume the numbers are a bit out of line. I'm going to lower my TRT dose to 160mg (or lower?) weekly and discontinue P5P. I ordered some Grapefruit Seed Extract in hopes to lower my HCT and RBC. I usually drink a decent amount of water but this week in particular I drank extra because I didn't want to be dehydrated for the blood test. And yes, I do cardio for 30-45min daily. BP currently states 118/80.

Posted below is my bloodwork (200mg weekly) pre and post-P5P: *I didn't get TT or SHBG tested on the most recent test due to me testing it last month*



Pre P5P:










POST P5P (Most Recent Bloodwork):







I meet with my doctor next week but any knowledge/advice/suggestions are appreciated...

 

[Hellacious]

Drop P5P and get your estrogen under control. 150mg should make you feel fine, just don’t think you waited long enough and then added more test and now your numbers are up

 

[mc0209]

Are you donating blood often? Ferritin is a bit low imo. As far as e2, you could lower your dose, pin more often (daily or eod), maybe try some natural estrogen control supps (DIM, Calcium d glucorate, etc) or just use very small amounts of aromasin.

 

[Allum]

Are you donating blood often? Ferritin is a bit low imo. As far as e2, you could lower your dose, pin more often (daily or eod), maybe try some natural estrogen control supps (DIM, Calcium d glucorate, etc) or just use very small amounts of aromasin.

I've never donated before. For some reason, my Ferritin has always been low even prior to TRT. I'm going to lower my dose along with pin 3x per week instead of 2x.

I was thinking about trying DIM to see if it would help with estrogen control. I took a .25mg and a .5mg tab of Arimidex to see if my lethargy and loss of libido were from E2 but I didn't feel much of a change these last few days. So I'm not too sure it was that (unless I just need a higher dose of an AI)

 

[Allum]

Came back to update on bloodwork. Dropped dose back down to 150mg weekly, increased injection frequency to M/W/F, and also started taking Grapefruit Seed Extract. I didn't test my ferritin this time around because the last 5 blood tests it's been low. RBC and HCT stayed the same. I was reading somewhere that it takes 3 months for new RBCs to be formed. Maybe I just didn't give it enough time.

I'm cautious of donating just because my ferritin is borderline out of range already without any prior blood donations. As per the original post, while my RBC is high, it's not too far off from what it has been prior to TRT.