hormone levels

[Kellsie]

This may not be the place to post this but I just got my results back from my endo. 
My Testosterone level was 1.8 ng/ml and I was asked if I was taking any kind of hormone supplement.
I am waiting for my E and spire.  The doc thought I was lying and I do not know why.
Keep in mind I am 38 y/o MTV.

[Chloe]

I just got my results back from my endo . . . Keep in mind I am 38 y/o MTV.

Kira, while interpretations of 'normal' vary your T level is either virtually non-existent and in the middle range for females in your age group already /or/, and more likely, someone is reading the test results incorrectly:

Age Female
1 month to puberty
Less than 10 ng/dL (less than 0.35 nmol/L)
Premenopausal
10–70 ng/dL (0.35–2.43 nmol/L)

Age Male
7 months to 9 years
Less than 30 ng/dL (less than 1.04 nmol/L)
20–39 years
270–1,080 ng/dL (9.00–37.48 nmol/L)

nmol/L ?

[Meshi]

Just talked to a surgical nurse about this.  Last time i was tested it was 70, which was 6 months ago and im on estradiol and spiro .  She told me a natural womans is usually between 20 and 60, so 70 is on the high end.  For yours being 1.5 it i think would be very unusual imo if you werent on any hormones.  Actually you prob dont need any except for maybe just spiro.  Mens test levels are usually in the 100's usually around 300 or above, so yours are exceptionally low..  Id get it rechecked..Do you have atrophy or can even perform??  You dont have to answer, but even me when i went in 6 months ago, i  had very  little libido, so you must not have much if any with that low of count.



_{Dosages removed}

[Kellsie]

Michelle
Actually I can perform.  My T level is 1.8ng/ml and my prolactin level is 9.44.  My doctor is still going ahead with estradiol and spire but still questions whether or not I am taking supplements.
I told her and my wife told her I was not taking anything as I am a healthcare provider myself and I have to much to lose.  I am still trying to figure out why I am being questioned.  I have never taken
Anything that wasn't prescribed with the exception of alcohol;D

[Kellsie]

It is just frustrating Becca. I was just asked if I were intersexed as well.  I am just trying to be me and I am being completely honest.  This journey just seems so long.  I am glad I am not alone.

[Hannah]

No you arent alone, and if your doctor is a crappy halfwit like it sounds then you join a special club of people who have to work extra hard to survive. It's not the best club to be in but we do have pretty good cookies at our meetings. Is this guy witholding your prescriptions because of your low testosterone levels? That makes no sense at all.

I dated a guy for a while who had low testosterone levels. Granted they weren't as low as yours, but they were like 70-100, which is low for a normal guy. He was quite fully developed, had a large frame and deep voice and he performed just fine  He was a pretty decent person too, until his doctor started supplementing his t level.

There's all sorts of things that could be causing your low level, I hope that doctor isn't holding your scripts until they figure it out because meh, that could take a while.

[Kellsie]

No she isn't withholding my scripts but it is just frustrating.  I am just fortunate that I have friends here at Susans.  Or should I say sisters LOL.  I actually get my scripts the first of next week and I am excited.  Do you have any advice?

[Steffi]

I actually get my scripts the first of next week and I am excited.  Do you have any advice?

Yeah.....Take 'em! 

[jayjay]

It is just frustrating Becca. I was just asked if I were intersexed as well.  I am just trying to be me and I am being completely honest.  This journey just seems so long.  I am glad I am not alone.

Or maybe the lab just goofed.  You might want to have them do the bloodwork again, because mistakes do happen. 

And there are plenty of intersex conditions, some of which are the major ones you read about, but there are also plenty of minor ones as well.  It turns out that the X and Y chromosomes don't always act as neatly as the high school bioolgy textbooks make it sound.  Sometimes just little pieces of one end up in the wrong spot.    I supect that I have one of these low grade intersex conditions because of my large breasts and short stature , but don't know where to find a anyone who knows enough about this stuff to get it tested for.

[Hannah]

Kira punkin, I read your other post about starting hrt and it sounds to me like your doctor is setting you up on what would be post op doseages for the rest of us because of your absurdly low testosterone levels. Obviously you can't get the information here, but if I were you I'd do some research on this and make sure that's what you want. I don't have much trust for Navy doctors, and I seriously doubt cross gender hormone therapy is the area of expertise, or even experience, of anyone in that va hospital.

With that said how are you feeling after week one? 

[shanetastic]

The last time I did my testing I think my T levels were at 12 or something so that does seem rather low, but I mean it is what it is so you shouldn't have to really worry about it.  Your doctor should trust you and your answers

[Kellsie]

I feel good.  No major mood changes yet or breast tenderness.  I just checked out the doses for mtf. And found out I have been started out on the low side.  My dr is actually from the Unit. Of Michigan gender clinic, and I have a follow up visit with her in Nov.
Post Merge: September 01, 2009, 04:22:44 PM
I am curious Becca, I have found the recommended dosages and my endo prescribed a 60 day amt. For 30 days so I called and left a message for her.

[Steffi]

I posted this link elswhere here, but it is very informative and seems to make perfect sense, so is worth a read. http://www.gires.org.uk/assets/Medpro-Assets/Progesterone.pdf

You asked what to expect?
At 5 weeks, I suddenly noticed whilst in the bath that my nipples were stuck out like two halves of a small egg and were quite tender with quite hard tissue underneath, not at all soft and squidgy.
Over the next 3 to 4 months, that spread out and softened a bit and squidgy fat accumulated and slowly rose into a small but recognisable breast-shape.
I assume that you're also on anti-androgens....... the time it takes for them to work varies depending on which ones you are taking.
Dutasteride (I took) or Finasteride take a while,ramping up in effect over 10 to 12 weeks.
Spontaneous erections cease - you can still get it up if you're determined enough.
- Your testicles will shrink by about a third ..... I also noticed that they seemed a lot less sensitive to the pain of being squeezed too.
Your sex-drive will lessen and become much less "urgent"   Ejaculation will cease except for perhaps a little drop of clear fluid ....... and the thrill is a whole lot less too.
As I replied to my GP "These days, I can have a LOT more fun blowing the hair-drier onto the back of my neck!" 

Emotionally........ I felt positively serene within 8 weeks. The flavour of my anger changed, losing that male "Grrrrr..." factor a real lot.
I became much more weepy........ sad films and tales of someone elses suffering made me fill up.......sometimes I could hardly manage to relate a  sad tale or event to someone without starting to cry.  After a while, that lessened a lot, but for a few weeks it was a little difficult. 
That said, I wasn't actually HURTING when I cried......... but I couldn't help crying anyway! - and you're finally going to properly understand what women mean when they say "I'm crying because I'm happy"     

Hormones made me feel WONDERFUL for a while and they still make me feel pretty damned good now too (11 months later)
I'm now almost A cup.  I still cry sometimes, but a lot less...... more like just-another-woman now.

That was my experience....hope it helps     

(btw..... I hope you took my previous flippant remark in the way it was intended....just humour    )

[Hannah]

I became much more weepy

My god aint it the truth. I had to get up and stop my favorite show last night because one scene after another was making me cry, hard, and I was missing it. Get a grip Becca, it's just a show, and a goofy one at that!

I'm glad you are informing yourself Kira  It never fails to amaze me how completely people trust their doctors, who in the end are just as fallible as other humans. If yours is in fact from a gender clinic it sounds like your'e probably in good hands, but definitely be informed and know what you are putting in your body and what it does and maybe even how it does it if that's your thing.

[Meshi]

If you noticed im from MI, and i dont really condone U of M.  Imo it is a total gender thing, just setup to get more insurance $ from patients seeking gender therapy.  I heard not so good of news with the surgeon they will recommend for SRS.  He is horrid ive heard.  I know tho it is hard to find a good endo for MTF TG.  I got one from my therapist but she isnt accepting new patients.  Im not saying U of M has a bad program, but it is def based on using all their phases for you to stay within their group.  I myself would get a second opinion on those results.  I think it odd that this dr is willing to put you on hrt without knowing the actual cause of your abnormal test results.  I mean it prob wont hurt you, but then your next blood test wont be a true baseline, because the estradiol/spiro willl effect the test levels you have now without having a second evaluation.  If she isnt specialized then she imo is just experimenting.

[Hannah]

Yeah the whole thing sounds fishy. The concept of using the va for transition spooks me. I've always kept my military record and trans stuff as far apart from each other as possible. If someone really wanted to it wouldn't be to hard to connect the dots, but I see no reason to poke the bear. I know it sounds paranoid but sometimes the wackos are right you know.

[Valerie Elizabeth]

This may not be the place to post this but I just got my results back from my endo. 
My Testosterone level was 1.8 ng/ml and I was asked if I was taking any kind of hormone supplement.
I am waiting for my E and spire.  The doc thought I was lying and I do not know why.
Keep in mind I am 38 y/o MTV.

That testosterone level is very low for a male.

The unit you gave is 1.8 ng/mL. Since the above chart is in ng/dL, you need to convert it to ng/dL which is 1.8 * 100 = 180 ng/dL.  As is quoted above, this is low for a male and very high for a women.  So, if you're results were given in ng/mL than your testosterone is low, but by no means non-existent.  I would recommend that you find out what is causing your testosterone levels to be low in the first place.  You want to know if there are underlying problems.  Lastly, I am not a doctor, so please take my advice (and my math) for what it's worth.  Talk to a real doctor before you make any decisions.

Here are the formulas for those who are curious.
1 dL = 100 mL
1 ng = 1 ng

So,
1 ng/dL = 1/100 = 0.01 ng/mL

To convert ng/mL to ng/dL you multiply by 100. 
So,
1 ng/mL x 100 = 100 ng/dL

or to reverse the result from above 0.01 ng/mL x 100 = 1 ng/dL




To convert to Nmol/L you need to (basically) multiply ng/mL by 1000 and then divide by the molecular mass of testosterone (288.43).  So, (1.8 * 1000) / ~288.43 = 6.241nmol/L

Here is the work for this
Testosterone has a molecular mass of ~288.43g/mol
1 Liter is 1000mL

Since the weight of testosterone is given in g/mol we need to convert to nano grams (ng) and nano moles (nmol).
the conversion between them is this. 
ng * (g*nmol/ng*mol) * (mol/g) = nmol

the final formula works out to (where xx=288.43),
ng/mL * (1000mL/L) * (1g/xx mol) * (1 g*nmol/ng*mol) = nmol/L

or multiply ng/mL by 1000 and divide by the molecular weight of tesosterone (~288.43).


Sorry if that got confusing.  Basically, you're levels are low for males, high for females.  That math should be right, although it is pretty late (early?) so if you catch a mistake let me know.

Valerie

[Kellsie]

  crying.  I am just trying to do this....the VA is my only caregiver.  I do not have insurance or the money to go else where.  I only have Internet now on my phone so I cannot see avatars or where people are from, just names.  I am doing all I know to do and trying to take everyones advice and research for my self.  Keep posting on this thread as it does give me questions to ask.
Post Merge: September 02, 2009, 08:14:48 AM
If anyone wishes they can always email me at kckc92000@gmail.com your advice and love are appreciated.

[Hannah]

Oh punkin don't cry, these discussions always go like this. It's a really interesting topic, and it's easy to get wrapped up in discussion and numbers and banter and forget how important it is to the person who asked the original question, I'm sorry. The main thing is that you feel good and develop, and that your levels come back alright. The rest is just hens cackling, don't mind us sweety 

[Valerie Elizabeth]

Sorry if I upset you.  I just wanted to make sure you had solid information.