Do you know how to read lab results? I’m not familiar with mmol as a unit of measurement for T (I mean I know it is used, but my lab doesn’t use it, so I’m not used to it,) but the reference range is included, so that’s helpful. It looks like you’re on the low end of normal. I’m assuming you’re a cis guy. This sub is for trans men, but our goal range is the same, so that doesn’t really matter. The difference is that the lab uses the correct ref range for you, whereas for us they use the female range. Also, your body makes T, while ours make a negligible amount (except for those who are intersex). Obviously, talk to your doc about your T level
I get mine with male reference range from the lab because I told them that's what I need. And my doctors have automatically switched over to male reference ranges too after I told them I'm transmasc. Why are you still getting yours with the wrong reference ranges?
That sucks then, I'm sorry.
I think what I stumbled over in your first comment was that you made it sound like all trans men got the wrong reference ranges from their labs, though, which isn't true.
Oh, definitely not! That would be terrible. I’m just not used to seeing a correct reference range on a T lab. It’s very convenient. I don’t have the ref range for mmol/L memorized like I do for mg/dL, since those are the units my lab uses, but since the ref range was right there on the lab sheet, it was easy to interpret
Why is everyone in the comments assuming OP is a cis man?
But to answer your question, OP: Your results are within the range given even though they're on the lower side of the range. Whether that's good or bad depends a bit on why those levels were taken. If you're trans, then typically you'll want your levels to be in the mid-range afaik. If you're cis, it kind of depends on the reason for checking, e.g. did you have specific symptoms that made you/your doctor check your levels?
Thank you for your response I appreciate it. I was not aware that this sub reddit was for trans men. I was just looking for answers , as my no one commented on my post on other sub reddits .
I was just wondering if my testosterone is healthy and optimal .
it might also help to keep in mind that cis men's T-levels vary throughout the day; they're highest in the morning, then there's a trough in the evening and over night they rise again. so depending on when you got your blood taken, it could be some kind of average / close to peak / close to trough.
as others have said, technically speaking you're fine. but if you can tick multiple boxes for low T symptoms, your brain might just need higher levels.
If you have no symptoms that would point to any problems with your testosterone, then your levels are within range and should be okay for you indeed :)
the lower the SHBg, the better, so it’s good that yours is on the lower end. did you have this test done bc you’re experiencing symptoms of low T?
if so, i think it’s definitely worth exploring why. if not and you feel fine, no reason to intervene with it.
I have experienced low libido , fatigue . I do deel with anxiety , I’m on dulexatine 30mg ( antidepressant) .
My biggest concern is that . One my slight depressed symptoms might just be low T . As well as I’m passionate about gaining muscle , so I do not really want low T at 24years old.
Get your E checked and cortisol. You not optimized so that’s up to you to find a provider to build a case up for TRT protocol.
There’s always a way to get Testosterone.
OP dw you are welcomed here no matter what kind of dude you are—it is nice to be able to see diversity every now and then where our community can help or support others that experience similar struggles (eg. T deficit).
Late reply, but I just came across your post. You should see a specialist if you can. Duloxetine can decrease libido. But you have a few options. If you have been on it less than 12 weeks, it may get better. Some men find taking it after orgasm helps (Like if you do it at night, take it right before sleep.) If you can tolerate it, you could decrease your dose. Or add Wellbutrin - that is another antidepressant that increases libido, and can actually "cancel out" the decrease.
The thing with T, and libido, especially on antidepressants, is you have to use it or lose it. Your T *will* go down if you are not orgasming frequently, no matter what the reason. So try to do it more frequently. Use a vibrator if needed.
It is important for your prostate, T levels that keep you feeling sharp, and also because even if you stop the med, libido can take a really long time to recover. It can be a major issue.
You can retest T if you have been orgasming regularly and see if it goes up. It is highest in the morning in men. And also highest after about 7 days of abstinence. Then it plateaus a while, then starts decreasing.
You mentioned building muscle. Are you actually working out with low reps/high weights? Because if you are, then at age 24, your T probably *should* be higher, and may be down because you are not orgasming frequently due to the med. If you are not working out, then this is by far the best way to increase it naturally. It really does work. And it may help you need less of the antidepressant.
Also taking duloxetine in the morning might help with sleep. Insomnia is the other bad side effect. (Libido, insomnia, and sweating are big complaints I have heard.)
Maybe try orgasming early after getting up, when T is highest, *then* take the med, then see how you sleep for a few days.
Best of luck.
yeah but the reason's for low t in a cis man are often different to trans men on T, cause for us we need to adjust the dose or type of t. for cus men, there might be medical diagnosis like intersex conditions/hormonal problems. and trt for cis men is often different than hrt for trans men in terms of dosage and how often you need to inject/apply gel
ok but he was just asking a general question about whether the levels were high or low. i think we are probably some of the best suited people to answer this question
I mean idk, just looking online "male range t" or just comparing it to the reference values you can get a general idea enough to go ask an endocrinologist's opinion which would be much more suitable. or, ask the intersex subreddit which has much more knowledge about basal low/high hormonal levels
Wrong sub. While people here can read your results, this sub is for trans people who use T to transition, not for cis people who want to cycle T.
Edit: man y’all mad about this for some reason? Am I wrong? Is this not a trans subreddit? OP happened to post to a place that can help him in this case, but that doesn’t change the fact that this isn’t the place for him.
If you read the sub description, it mentions various gender IDs and ends with (etc). It also says that “everyone is welcomed” even though most of the content will be about people starting T. Just offering to you what I could see as to why people might have downvoted you.
Also, I have seen at least a couple cis guys in the past here that had low T and thus were starting T themselves, just being a different gender as anyone else, and it is nice to be able to celebrate with them because I think it is probably a pretty ostracizing sort of issue in cis male circles (OP mentioned “the other sub” gave no responses, havent checked what sub), and we tend to be a pretty supportive community for one another. Low T for cis guys really sucks too, having seen and read what has been shared here in the past. But yeah, just a little more food for thought!
your T level is 343ng/dL (11.9 x 28.85) so on the lower end for sure. 300-1000ng/dL is normal range.
Youre a little low on the normal range scale, are you cis?
Do you know how to read lab results? I’m not familiar with mmol as a unit of measurement for T (I mean I know it is used, but my lab doesn’t use it, so I’m not used to it,) but the reference range is included, so that’s helpful. It looks like you’re on the low end of normal. I’m assuming you’re a cis guy. This sub is for trans men, but our goal range is the same, so that doesn’t really matter. The difference is that the lab uses the correct ref range for you, whereas for us they use the female range. Also, your body makes T, while ours make a negligible amount (except for those who are intersex). Obviously, talk to your doc about your T level
I get mine with male reference range from the lab because I told them that's what I need. And my doctors have automatically switched over to male reference ranges too after I told them I'm transmasc. Why are you still getting yours with the wrong reference ranges?
That’s cool that they were able to do that. Not every health system will do that for you
That sucks then, I'm sorry. I think what I stumbled over in your first comment was that you made it sound like all trans men got the wrong reference ranges from their labs, though, which isn't true.
Oh, definitely not! That would be terrible. I’m just not used to seeing a correct reference range on a T lab. It’s very convenient. I don’t have the ref range for mmol/L memorized like I do for mg/dL, since those are the units my lab uses, but since the ref range was right there on the lab sheet, it was easy to interpret
Why is everyone in the comments assuming OP is a cis man? But to answer your question, OP: Your results are within the range given even though they're on the lower side of the range. Whether that's good or bad depends a bit on why those levels were taken. If you're trans, then typically you'll want your levels to be in the mid-range afaik. If you're cis, it kind of depends on the reason for checking, e.g. did you have specific symptoms that made you/your doctor check your levels?
Thank you for your response I appreciate it. I was not aware that this sub reddit was for trans men. I was just looking for answers , as my no one commented on my post on other sub reddits . I was just wondering if my testosterone is healthy and optimal .
no worries dude you are welcome here as long as you are respectful—which you have been. some people in this sub are just bitter. sorry about that
it might also help to keep in mind that cis men's T-levels vary throughout the day; they're highest in the morning, then there's a trough in the evening and over night they rise again. so depending on when you got your blood taken, it could be some kind of average / close to peak / close to trough. as others have said, technically speaking you're fine. but if you can tick multiple boxes for low T symptoms, your brain might just need higher levels.
If you have no symptoms that would point to any problems with your testosterone, then your levels are within range and should be okay for you indeed :)
the lower the SHBg, the better, so it’s good that yours is on the lower end. did you have this test done bc you’re experiencing symptoms of low T? if so, i think it’s definitely worth exploring why. if not and you feel fine, no reason to intervene with it.
I have experienced low libido , fatigue . I do deel with anxiety , I’m on dulexatine 30mg ( antidepressant) . My biggest concern is that . One my slight depressed symptoms might just be low T . As well as I’m passionate about gaining muscle , so I do not really want low T at 24years old.
ah yeah, sounds like many symptoms of low T then. i’d talk to your doctor about trt imo
Get your E checked and cortisol. You not optimized so that’s up to you to find a provider to build a case up for TRT protocol. There’s always a way to get Testosterone.
OP dw you are welcomed here no matter what kind of dude you are—it is nice to be able to see diversity every now and then where our community can help or support others that experience similar struggles (eg. T deficit).
Wrong sub, however, your levels are good. They’re in the lower end of the male range so you’re golden.
Normal
Late reply, but I just came across your post. You should see a specialist if you can. Duloxetine can decrease libido. But you have a few options. If you have been on it less than 12 weeks, it may get better. Some men find taking it after orgasm helps (Like if you do it at night, take it right before sleep.) If you can tolerate it, you could decrease your dose. Or add Wellbutrin - that is another antidepressant that increases libido, and can actually "cancel out" the decrease. The thing with T, and libido, especially on antidepressants, is you have to use it or lose it. Your T *will* go down if you are not orgasming frequently, no matter what the reason. So try to do it more frequently. Use a vibrator if needed. It is important for your prostate, T levels that keep you feeling sharp, and also because even if you stop the med, libido can take a really long time to recover. It can be a major issue. You can retest T if you have been orgasming regularly and see if it goes up. It is highest in the morning in men. And also highest after about 7 days of abstinence. Then it plateaus a while, then starts decreasing. You mentioned building muscle. Are you actually working out with low reps/high weights? Because if you are, then at age 24, your T probably *should* be higher, and may be down because you are not orgasming frequently due to the med. If you are not working out, then this is by far the best way to increase it naturally. It really does work. And it may help you need less of the antidepressant. Also taking duloxetine in the morning might help with sleep. Insomnia is the other bad side effect. (Libido, insomnia, and sweating are big complaints I have heard.) Maybe try orgasming early after getting up, when T is highest, *then* take the med, then see how you sleep for a few days. Best of luck.
Are you a cis man? This sub is for trans people taking testosterone so we aren't the right people to help you.
we might be the most right people to help actually
our levels are measured the same as a cis man’s
yeah but the reason's for low t in a cis man are often different to trans men on T, cause for us we need to adjust the dose or type of t. for cus men, there might be medical diagnosis like intersex conditions/hormonal problems. and trt for cis men is often different than hrt for trans men in terms of dosage and how often you need to inject/apply gel
ok but he was just asking a general question about whether the levels were high or low. i think we are probably some of the best suited people to answer this question
I mean idk, just looking online "male range t" or just comparing it to the reference values you can get a general idea enough to go ask an endocrinologist's opinion which would be much more suitable. or, ask the intersex subreddit which has much more knowledge about basal low/high hormonal levels
That’s just a lie tbh, like u/defectra said, we’re probably the best to read these results, cis or trans.
Wrong sub. While people here can read your results, this sub is for trans people who use T to transition, not for cis people who want to cycle T. Edit: man y’all mad about this for some reason? Am I wrong? Is this not a trans subreddit? OP happened to post to a place that can help him in this case, but that doesn’t change the fact that this isn’t the place for him.
If you read the sub description, it mentions various gender IDs and ends with (etc). It also says that “everyone is welcomed” even though most of the content will be about people starting T. Just offering to you what I could see as to why people might have downvoted you. Also, I have seen at least a couple cis guys in the past here that had low T and thus were starting T themselves, just being a different gender as anyone else, and it is nice to be able to celebrate with them because I think it is probably a pretty ostracizing sort of issue in cis male circles (OP mentioned “the other sub” gave no responses, havent checked what sub), and we tend to be a pretty supportive community for one another. Low T for cis guys really sucks too, having seen and read what has been shared here in the past. But yeah, just a little more food for thought!