erraticpattern
New Member
I'm hoping someone here has some answers and possibly some potential solutions. The story goes as follows:
I am a 26-year-old male who has always been a high-functioning individual. I have been working on my PhD in computer science while simultaneously working on a Master's degree in Bioinformatics and Computational Biology. I've been on TRT since 2011 and have felt great aside from the libido issues I've had associated with it. My normal hobbies are things such as whitewater rafting, hiking, mixed martial arts, and powerlifting. Normally, I am a very busy and active individual who loves life. However, since April 1 of this year, I have been in an absolute psychotic mess incapable of functioning as a normal and healthy human being.
In February of this year, I visited a naturopath in my area to get my hormone levels checked and optimized. He found that my cortisol was low, as well as my DHEA and pregnenolone. He wanted me to go on all three, but I, being a minimalist when it comes to medicating, agreed that I would try the DHEA and pregnenolone, and maybe add-in the cortisol later. I wanted to keep the amount of variables as small as possible so I could determine what affected my body and how. On February 24, I started with 50mg of pregnenolone MLM per day and 25 mg of DHEA per day. The first week, these drugs made me feel very "off". I felt somewhat intoxicated, but my naturopath told me to just stick with it. By the second week, I felt fantastic. My energy was insanely high and I was unable to sit still -- I had to keep doing things and getting things done. My naturopath told me to increase my pregnenolone MLM to 100mg/day after the second week. Once I did this, my physical and psychological condition began to deteriorate. I started feeling very dizzy, nauseous, short-of-breath, and as though my senses were over-stimulated. It's difficult to describe, but I felt my vision and hearing had been amped up to an uncomfortable level. I started having these mini panic-attacks (I didn't know what they were at the time) and episodes of delirium. I told my naturopath on March 27, and he told me I could stop them. That day was my last dose of pregnenolone MLM and DHEA. A few days later, on the morning of April 1, I woke up in a state of delirium and what I can only describe as some kind of anxious psychosis accompanied with intense nausea and dizziness. My entire mind had been altered in an awful way, and I ended up in the ER thinking I was dying. An MRI of my brain showed no lesions or tumorous masses, and an echocardiogram of my heart showed healthy functioning and nothing of concern. March 31 was my last dose of testosterone (200mg), and I've taken absolutely nothing since then.
Since then, I've had an amalgam of symptoms that feels as though my entire mind and nervous system is shutting down and/or going haywire. I've had three episodes of that anxious psychosis and unbearable akathisia that have lasted for 10-14 days (this last one being the longest and most intense, going on nearly three weeks at this point), with short breaks in-between them. During the breaks, the nausea, dizziness, vertigo, and feelings of vestibular dysfunction are still there in full-swing. I've also developed chills, sweats, "brain zaps", and very intense full-body neuropathies with a progressing sense of derealization and intoxication. Whatever is going on appears to be progressing, and the many doctors I've seen so far have found nothing wrong in their many tests. I feel as though I am losing my mind and, quite frankly, the functioning of my nervous system in general (shortness of breath, loss of balance and coordination, diarrhea). In my mind, it feels as though sections of my brain have been permanently damaged. The anxious psychosis and suicidal ideation are the worst things I've ever experienced, far more agonizing than any kind of physical pain (and I say that as a guy who's broken just about every bone in his body).
I still have my rational mind about me, some days moreso than others, but have yet to receive any kind of answers as to what's happening to me. Corticosteroid-induced psychosis seems a possibility, but it doesn't usually present clinically like my symptoms given the length of time this has gone on, the relapsing episodes, the neuropathy, and the tinnitus. The closest thing I've been able to find symptom-wise to what I'm experiencing is SSRI withdrawal syndrome, and I can't help but wonder if the neurological mechanisms responsible for such could also occur after significantly altering the neurochemical environment with pregnenolone and/or DHEA. Endocrine disturbances can also wreak all kinds of havoc on the body, so that's also a possibility.
Selected labs are below. I do have others (e.g. tested negative for lyme disease and heavy metal toxicity) and can post them if requested. The ferritin and thyroid levels are likely wonky since I wasn't able to eat anything for nearly a week before getting the test. My t4 to t3 conversion depresses rather quickly when dieting, so the results on those don't raise my eyebrows too much.
Test Value Range
IGF-1 165 116-353
ACTH, PLASMA 22 <=45
FSH, SERUM 1 <=18
LH 1 <=10
SHBG 13 11-80
TESTOST, FREE 28 (L) 47-244
TESTOST, % FREE 2.5 1.6-2.9
TESTOST, SERUM 83(L) 175 - 781
TESTOST, ADULT 110(L) 300-1080
DHEA-S 184 85-690
IRON 121 50-170
IRON BIND CAP 372 240-450
% SATURATION 33 20-50%
FERRITIN 211(H) 50-200
PROLACTIN 9 3-13
CORTISOL, TOTAL SERUM 12.1 7.0-23.0
T3, TOTAL 83(L) 87-178
FREE T4 1.3(H) 0.6-1.2
TSH 1.27 0.4-3.98
NEUTROPHIL % 46.0(L) 50.0-70.0
LYMPHOCYTE % 43.6(H) 18.0-42.0
POTASSIUM, PLASMA 3.3(L) 3.4-5.0
AMMONIA 38(H) 11-32
SGPT/ALT 67(H) 10-35
Alkaline Phosphatase 50(L) 53-128
I am a 26-year-old male who has always been a high-functioning individual. I have been working on my PhD in computer science while simultaneously working on a Master's degree in Bioinformatics and Computational Biology. I've been on TRT since 2011 and have felt great aside from the libido issues I've had associated with it. My normal hobbies are things such as whitewater rafting, hiking, mixed martial arts, and powerlifting. Normally, I am a very busy and active individual who loves life. However, since April 1 of this year, I have been in an absolute psychotic mess incapable of functioning as a normal and healthy human being.
In February of this year, I visited a naturopath in my area to get my hormone levels checked and optimized. He found that my cortisol was low, as well as my DHEA and pregnenolone. He wanted me to go on all three, but I, being a minimalist when it comes to medicating, agreed that I would try the DHEA and pregnenolone, and maybe add-in the cortisol later. I wanted to keep the amount of variables as small as possible so I could determine what affected my body and how. On February 24, I started with 50mg of pregnenolone MLM per day and 25 mg of DHEA per day. The first week, these drugs made me feel very "off". I felt somewhat intoxicated, but my naturopath told me to just stick with it. By the second week, I felt fantastic. My energy was insanely high and I was unable to sit still -- I had to keep doing things and getting things done. My naturopath told me to increase my pregnenolone MLM to 100mg/day after the second week. Once I did this, my physical and psychological condition began to deteriorate. I started feeling very dizzy, nauseous, short-of-breath, and as though my senses were over-stimulated. It's difficult to describe, but I felt my vision and hearing had been amped up to an uncomfortable level. I started having these mini panic-attacks (I didn't know what they were at the time) and episodes of delirium. I told my naturopath on March 27, and he told me I could stop them. That day was my last dose of pregnenolone MLM and DHEA. A few days later, on the morning of April 1, I woke up in a state of delirium and what I can only describe as some kind of anxious psychosis accompanied with intense nausea and dizziness. My entire mind had been altered in an awful way, and I ended up in the ER thinking I was dying. An MRI of my brain showed no lesions or tumorous masses, and an echocardiogram of my heart showed healthy functioning and nothing of concern. March 31 was my last dose of testosterone (200mg), and I've taken absolutely nothing since then.
Since then, I've had an amalgam of symptoms that feels as though my entire mind and nervous system is shutting down and/or going haywire. I've had three episodes of that anxious psychosis and unbearable akathisia that have lasted for 10-14 days (this last one being the longest and most intense, going on nearly three weeks at this point), with short breaks in-between them. During the breaks, the nausea, dizziness, vertigo, and feelings of vestibular dysfunction are still there in full-swing. I've also developed chills, sweats, "brain zaps", and very intense full-body neuropathies with a progressing sense of derealization and intoxication. Whatever is going on appears to be progressing, and the many doctors I've seen so far have found nothing wrong in their many tests. I feel as though I am losing my mind and, quite frankly, the functioning of my nervous system in general (shortness of breath, loss of balance and coordination, diarrhea). In my mind, it feels as though sections of my brain have been permanently damaged. The anxious psychosis and suicidal ideation are the worst things I've ever experienced, far more agonizing than any kind of physical pain (and I say that as a guy who's broken just about every bone in his body).
I still have my rational mind about me, some days moreso than others, but have yet to receive any kind of answers as to what's happening to me. Corticosteroid-induced psychosis seems a possibility, but it doesn't usually present clinically like my symptoms given the length of time this has gone on, the relapsing episodes, the neuropathy, and the tinnitus. The closest thing I've been able to find symptom-wise to what I'm experiencing is SSRI withdrawal syndrome, and I can't help but wonder if the neurological mechanisms responsible for such could also occur after significantly altering the neurochemical environment with pregnenolone and/or DHEA. Endocrine disturbances can also wreak all kinds of havoc on the body, so that's also a possibility.
Selected labs are below. I do have others (e.g. tested negative for lyme disease and heavy metal toxicity) and can post them if requested. The ferritin and thyroid levels are likely wonky since I wasn't able to eat anything for nearly a week before getting the test. My t4 to t3 conversion depresses rather quickly when dieting, so the results on those don't raise my eyebrows too much.
Test Value Range
IGF-1 165 116-353
ACTH, PLASMA 22 <=45
FSH, SERUM 1 <=18
LH 1 <=10
SHBG 13 11-80
TESTOST, FREE 28 (L) 47-244
TESTOST, % FREE 2.5 1.6-2.9
TESTOST, SERUM 83(L) 175 - 781
TESTOST, ADULT 110(L) 300-1080
DHEA-S 184 85-690
IRON 121 50-170
IRON BIND CAP 372 240-450
% SATURATION 33 20-50%
FERRITIN 211(H) 50-200
PROLACTIN 9 3-13
CORTISOL, TOTAL SERUM 12.1 7.0-23.0
T3, TOTAL 83(L) 87-178
FREE T4 1.3(H) 0.6-1.2
TSH 1.27 0.4-3.98
NEUTROPHIL % 46.0(L) 50.0-70.0
LYMPHOCYTE % 43.6(H) 18.0-42.0
POTASSIUM, PLASMA 3.3(L) 3.4-5.0
AMMONIA 38(H) 11-32
SGPT/ALT 67(H) 10-35
Alkaline Phosphatase 50(L) 53-128
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