New bloodwork and stuff

[Sargovar]

Hey dudes, haven't been here for a while.. thought I'd post my new bloodwork and see what you think, especially regarding their implications to a possible adrenal maladaptation (the low sodium and potassium numbers rang some alarm bells), and the ever dropping total T.

I had a bad episode of crapping out blood a while back, and the associated faintiness and extreme feelings of weakness. I got my ass prodded & scanned and had a bunch of tests run, managing to sneak in basic thyroid values and total T (got them billed to the social healthcare sector). All signs seem to point towards a viral culprit for my bleeding episode, so that is no longer a major concern (it lasted a few days and hasn't happened since). All the endocrine stuff, however, still remains unresolved and untreated.

Since I took these labs in the morning right after the worst of the bleeding was occuring, I'm not sure how much that might impact the sodium and potassium values, or the total T.

Anyway, here are the results. The basic blood panel part looks good to me, but the rest.. not so good:

Blood panel:

fB - Leuk (leukocytes) - 5.1 (3.6-10-1)
B - Eryt (red blood cell count?) - 4.98 (4.3-5.7)
B - Hb (hemoglobin) - 153 (130-180)
B - HKR (erythrocyte volume?) - 0.44 (39-50)
E - MCV (average red blood cell volume?) - 87 (83-101)
E - MCH (average red blood cell hemoglobin?) - 31 (27-32)
E - MCHC (average red blood cell hemoglobin?!) - 351 (320-360)
B - Thromb (platelet count?) - 172 (150-360) <-- last time time this was 149

Other stuff:

Sodium (self-explanatory :P ) 138 (137-145) <-- on the low side? because of bleeding, perhaps.. or an underlying adrenal problem?
Potassium - 3.4 (3.3 - 4-9) <-- another low reading
Calcium - 2.34 (1.3-5.5)
CRP - less than 5 <-- could be anything from 0 to 4.99, but I guess this is ok
Free T4 - 19.8 (11 - 22) <-- highest reading yet.. thyroid hormones pooling in blood?
TSH - 2.78 (0.3 - 4.5) <-- high TSH reading leads me to suspect above. I should note that my FT3 is probably still high, too.. didn't get it checked this time, but last time it was 6.4 pmol on a range of 3.5 - 6.5.
Total Testosterone - 14.4, on a range of 14-38. That's 400ish ng/dl. Lowest reading so far. Terribly low for a young man, especially considering my symptoms and high LH (which was 8.8; above range).

I'm currently taking DIM & TMG, a bunch of vitamins & mineral supplements, supplementary protein, and that's it. I've done my best to eliminate plastic from my diet.. err, not that I've been eating the stuff, but you know what I mean. I am now using a glass bottle with a metal cap for my drinking water, only using ceramic containers to prepare and transport food, washing plastic wrapped vegetables extra carefully (scrubbing the top layer off, really) etc etc.. doing everything possible without crossing the bounds of neuroticism.

Other stuff worth mentioning.. I've taken my temperatures and blood pressure at home. Temps are a fairly steady 36.8 celsius (98.25 f) during the day. Blood pressure was definitely low, at least my diastolic blood pressure. I got readings such as 117/55 and 119/63.

I'm thinking I definitely need some testosterone, at least (adrenals need to be further studied, I reckon). Many of my lifts have come down, and my body composition seems to be worsening in spite of lifting and trying to eat as clean as humanly possible. My libido has definitely waned, and I no longer get morning wood at all (boners are halfway decent otherwise). Hell, I'm 23 and I've never needed to shave, not once in my life. I can grow a goatee and a moustache, and a few sparse hairs on my chin line (and keep them trim by occasionally clipping them with scissors), but that's it. Also, I have virtually zero body hair and very sparse pubic hair, so I take it I've never had decent test levels. I have a fair amount of muscle mass, though.. god knows how I ever managed to pack it on (and it's probably not going to stay if I don't get more T in me, soon). The question is.. where am I gonna get it from? I booked one last appointment to a leading endo.. late next month, unfortunately, so I'm stuck waiting again. If he fails to comply, I am forced to seriously consider self-treatment. If it comes to that.. how reliable is the stuff you get off the streets, say, from a local bodybuilder who you're friends with and you trust?

[MacDonnell]

Dude, your T is quite low for a 23-yr old guy. Also, your TSH is pretty high. Do you have any symptoms of hypothyroidism?

[Sargovar]

Thanks for the reply, man.

Hard to say (regarding hypothyroidism).. every symptom and test result of mine just seems to blend into one inconclusive blob that raises more questions than it answers. My temperatures are fairly normal and steady. I don't feel cold, barring exceptionally cold weather (which is only normal). My package does seem to have shriveled up somewhat, though.. the boys aren't hanging loose any longer, so I guess that is one hypothyroid symptom. But my free Ts (both T4 and T3) are high; again, more inconclusiveness. I've measured my TSH 3 times - first reading was 2.49, second 3.4, and this newest one 2.78. I guess the fact that I haven't gotten one single reading under 2.0 means that at least my thyroid hormones aren't doing a very good job at a cellular level. Could low cortisol be doing this? I did get pretty low numbers on the saliva tests.. but then again, their accuracy has come under question lately, especially at Dr. John's forums (and I am inclined to agree, considering the implausable, wild readings I got for all the other saliva hormones). Maybe I should do a 24h urine cortisol test?

Sigh.. yet more contradictory stuff. You know what they say about adrenal fatigued people benefiting from sea salt? Well, I tried adding it to my diet, but it only made me bloat like nobody's business (my face started to look like a blimp). Obviously it wasn't doing what it was supposed to. Same thing with taking time off the weights. I only started to feel more achey, sore, fatigued and miserable during the 2.5 weeks that I abstained entirely from lifting. If your adrenals are worn out, you're supposed to feel better when you lay off heavy physical exercise. I didn't.

I don't know what's wrong with me.. I thought all this money and time invested into tests and doctors would've gotten me somewhere by now, but it's been a year and I'm still treading water. All I've managed to establish is that my T is on the low side and that my adrenals are probably not doing as good a job as they should be. I feel fatigued most of the time, I have almost zero sex drive, my lifts are going down the crapper, I can't grow a decent beard (or muscle; I seem to be losing it), and I feel like a perpetually sore, tired old man. I know I could lead a much, much more fulfilling life if I had the energy to do everything I wanted to..

Sorry for the lamenting.. I am trying my best to keep a positive attitude, even though it's probably not readily apparent.

[Sargovar]

Anybody..?
I really do feel like crap. And I hate what my life has been reduced to. It's a gorgeous, sunny spring day outside, and I feel so weak that I can barely get out of bed.

I've been taking some time off lifting again.. 4 days this time. I just feel progressively worse and worse.. my thighs twitch like crazy, I am dead fatigued and I keep breaking out in these cold sweats. It's like the moment I let my body 'heal', THAT is when I really start to feel terrible. Whatever mechanism kicks into gear after I've done a good workout really makes me feel energetic and alive, but it only lasts about 30 minutes. I feel doubly tired after a couple of hours, and kind of 'crash'. Maybe the temporary, workout induced cortisol boost elevates my sense of well-being.. I don't know. I wish I could feel that good all day.

I almost dread the endo appointment at the end of May. Being shot down AGAIN (would be the 3rd time in a row if it happens), or worse, being offered incomplete, half assed treatment.. I don't know if I can cope with that. It's pretty much my last hope, and it feels like nothing more than a fool's hope.