therapeutic phlebotomy from high blood count?

[qkcam]

has anyone else had to have their blood taken out due to increased red blood cell count?   my dr doesnt want me to go over 45% hematocrit..    i have heard mixed messages in the trans community as far as how dr's deal with this issue..     

at this  point i have to go everyother month and my testo levels are only in the 200s.    sometimes i am wondering if it is worth it all.   i dont like those giant needles   to get a pint out. 

[LordKAT]

Donating blood does help decrease the count. So does drinking lots of water, or so My doc suggested. Smoking makes it worse, thickens your blood somehow.

I have those same raised levels to worry about.

[Cindy]

This is a common treatment for haemachromatosis

[qkcam]

i dont smoke and i do drink tons of water.. but still the rbc #s are higher than my dr feels safe.. she doesnt want my numbers to get above the female range..  most transguys i know  dr's say they are "safe" in the male range..  but since there are really no studies.. i dont know what to believe.  the hematologist i worked with said the only studies are on primary polycythemia  (increased red blood cells)     and  nothing on 2ndarey ..(which is increased rbc from steroids- which is what transguys get and men that take testo replacement sometimes)         

and the odd thing is  i didnt change my dose- but a month after they took the first pint of blood my hematocrit when even higher..   the hematologst said the studie for primary polycythemia say it is safest to keep levels NOT above 45% .   so that means lots of  blood donations..or a very low dose of testo.     
i have already started decreasing my dose.. and feeling it emotionally- very depressed and really feel like i dont have much left to live for.      i already have alot of disablitys and my family doesnt really talk to me anymore-      so  i can't work.. and at t his p;oint i can't even work out because of my other health issues..    and i go to tranmasc  group s and often the topic is on sex    and that makes me even more depressed.     

thanks for letting me get this out somewhere.

[Mosaic dude]

Maybe see if you can get a second opinion.   I've never heard of a doctor saying a transman's numbers shouldn't be in the male range.

[qkcam]

they are concerned because when i was on a "full dose"  10 yrs ago  they thought i had a TIA.. which is like a temporary stroke.. but  even with all the testing it came out inconclusive-    so i feel like it might be like playing russian roulette..           

it is  a tough decision to make.. and considering my HDL has dropped very low  even lower than "male range"  to 28       that makes it all more complex..     it is like i am my own guinea pig-   
and hard to know what to trust or do. 

i am going to try to see another dr..  one of my primarys said i should raise my dose.. my endo said ok..but i would need more phlebotmys    another clinic that treats transfolks  i saw them a few months ago and they said they dont have an aswer for me as to what is safe either.   

so it is a crap shoot..