Hi all -
I'm a 34 year old guy and this is my first forum post. I took finasteride for five years (started at 23, stopped at 28) without noticeable sides and prior to quitting cold turkey, I took dutasteride for a number of months without noticeable sides on either drug. After cessation, I didn't experience sexual sides right away; it was a gradual process over the period of several months in which it became not only more difficult for me to achieve erection, but also nearly impossible for me to get fully hard and stay hard. Along with erectile dysfunction, I have a loss in libido and in general very rarely feel horny unless I'm with my girl.
Today, I'm pretty consistent in my symptoms. ED, low libido, low energy levels, occasional anxiety. Physically, my penis changes shape often -- sometimes taking an hourglass shape and other times shrinking up with a feeling of hardness/fibrosis.
4/9/2011
Testosterone, Serum
Result - 422 ng/dL, Flag Reference Range - 249-836
Dihydrotestosterone
Result - 40 ng/dL, Reference Range - 30-85
7/2/2011
Testosterone, Serum
Result - 82 ng/dL, Flag Reference Range - 249-836
Dihydrotestosterone
Result - 60 ng/dL, Reference Range - 30-85
2/25/2012
Testosterone, Serum
Result - 412 ng/dL (348 - 1197)
LH
Result - 3.3 mIU/mL (1.7 - 8.6)
FSH
Result - 1.3 mIU/mL (1.5 - 12.4)
SHBG
Result - 22.7 nmol/L (16.5 - 55.9)
Vitamin D, 25-Hydroxy
Result - 33.5 ng/mL (30.0 - 100.0)
9/30/2014
Testosterone, Serum
Result - 500
Bioavailable Testosterone
Result - 51.6%
SHBG
Result - 28.3
Dihydrotestosterone
Result - 38
LH
Result - 5.3 (1.7 - 8.6)
FSH
Result - 1.3 (1.5 - 12.4)
Genova Labs taken 10/2014
The results from my Genova labs seem to indicate that I may have impaired Thyroid function due to my FT3/RT3 ratio of 16.7, while > 20 seems to be suggested as an optimal ratio.
My salivary Cortisol doesn't seem to be too bad, but I can say that I'm generally pretty tired in the morning and afternoon. Around evening is when things pick up for me, and I tend to stay up fairly late (midnight, 1 AM). Normally, I do not have trouble falling asleep or staying asleep.
My DHEA-Cortisol ratio worries me as well. It seems very low in the reference range.
Looking at my Anabolic/Catabolic balance, I'm not sure what to think. I seem to be predominantly catabolic and that would make me think that I'm having an issue with too much cortisol. My 11B-HSD index value is something that I don't understand (and even my anti-aging doctor says he doesn't know what it means!), but I'm wondering if it means I'm not properly converting cortisol to cortisone.
My doctor was also useless in explaining things like glucocorticoids and why my values are all over the place. He's convinced that my cortisol levels are fine and that I don't need to be worried about them.
Thoughts about how to bring my levels back to normalcy will be greatly appreciated.
Thank you,
Dave
I'm a 34 year old guy and this is my first forum post. I took finasteride for five years (started at 23, stopped at 28) without noticeable sides and prior to quitting cold turkey, I took dutasteride for a number of months without noticeable sides on either drug. After cessation, I didn't experience sexual sides right away; it was a gradual process over the period of several months in which it became not only more difficult for me to achieve erection, but also nearly impossible for me to get fully hard and stay hard. Along with erectile dysfunction, I have a loss in libido and in general very rarely feel horny unless I'm with my girl.
Today, I'm pretty consistent in my symptoms. ED, low libido, low energy levels, occasional anxiety. Physically, my penis changes shape often -- sometimes taking an hourglass shape and other times shrinking up with a feeling of hardness/fibrosis.
4/9/2011
Testosterone, Serum
Result - 422 ng/dL, Flag Reference Range - 249-836
Dihydrotestosterone
Result - 40 ng/dL, Reference Range - 30-85
7/2/2011
Testosterone, Serum
Result - 82 ng/dL, Flag Reference Range - 249-836
Dihydrotestosterone
Result - 60 ng/dL, Reference Range - 30-85
2/25/2012
Testosterone, Serum
Result - 412 ng/dL (348 - 1197)
LH
Result - 3.3 mIU/mL (1.7 - 8.6)
FSH
Result - 1.3 mIU/mL (1.5 - 12.4)
SHBG
Result - 22.7 nmol/L (16.5 - 55.9)
Vitamin D, 25-Hydroxy
Result - 33.5 ng/mL (30.0 - 100.0)
9/30/2014
Testosterone, Serum
Result - 500
Bioavailable Testosterone
Result - 51.6%
SHBG
Result - 28.3
Dihydrotestosterone
Result - 38
LH
Result - 5.3 (1.7 - 8.6)
FSH
Result - 1.3 (1.5 - 12.4)
Genova Labs taken 10/2014
The results from my Genova labs seem to indicate that I may have impaired Thyroid function due to my FT3/RT3 ratio of 16.7, while > 20 seems to be suggested as an optimal ratio.
My salivary Cortisol doesn't seem to be too bad, but I can say that I'm generally pretty tired in the morning and afternoon. Around evening is when things pick up for me, and I tend to stay up fairly late (midnight, 1 AM). Normally, I do not have trouble falling asleep or staying asleep.
My DHEA-Cortisol ratio worries me as well. It seems very low in the reference range.
Looking at my Anabolic/Catabolic balance, I'm not sure what to think. I seem to be predominantly catabolic and that would make me think that I'm having an issue with too much cortisol. My 11B-HSD index value is something that I don't understand (and even my anti-aging doctor says he doesn't know what it means!), but I'm wondering if it means I'm not properly converting cortisol to cortisone.
My doctor was also useless in explaining things like glucocorticoids and why my values are all over the place. He's convinced that my cortisol levels are fine and that I don't need to be worried about them.
Thoughts about how to bring my levels back to normalcy will be greatly appreciated.
Thank you,
Dave
