On Friday, I got my blood panel results back and conferenced with the Functional Medicine nurse. The results of my blood work showed that I have been running on empty for a very long time.
If you recall, in my original 2015 post, they found I had no progesterone, almost no estrogen and low testosterone too. I was put on birth control (artificial progesterone), but nobody ever followed up with more blood tests. Why? I’ll get to that.
After taking matters into my own hands and doing a lot of research, I reached a point where I knew I needed a professional who specializes in hormones to help me out. Through an incredible network, I got a FM to email me an order for bloodwork that I was able to have done at a local clinic (most states don’t allow people to just get their own blood panel done... so check your state regulations to find out if you can do this without a RX).
My bloodwork showed that I have no progesterone, barely detectable estrogen and extremely low testosterone.
My levels: Estrogen <15, Progesterone < 0.5 , Test 15 / Free 0.6
Click HERE to see what are considered normal levels.
The nurse went on about how shocked she is that I am able to train and perform at the level I do without any hormones! I will be starting with a local FM very soon so that I can start on bioidentical HRT to bring me to "normal" levels and hopefully LOTS of the issues I’ve been facing over the years will improve.
There is no "why" yet... but based on my own research (and conference call w the FM & coach), it is very likely that my hormone levels have been an issue since puberty. To me, thinking about that is quite frustrating and painful. Knowing that 3/4 of my life have been spent fighting battles with depression and other health issues that could possibly have been prevented had doctors early on simply sent me for a blood panel and looked at these numbers instead of prescribing medications to bandaid my depressive symptoms!
So why didn’t anyone test my blood before? The answer is pretty simple: money. These days doctors make tons of money through pharmaceutical companies. Sending a person off for a blood test may seem like the simple basic place to start; nevertheless, because doctors are sold on pharmaceuticals with large dividends, prescriptions have become their go-to... instead of finding the underlying problem, they put a bandaid on it. Even when you hear terms like "chemical imbalance" being thrown around for people with ADHD, Depression, Anxiety etc... the likelihood that the actual chemical/hormone levels have even been assessed is slim to none!
I cannot emphasize how important it is to take your health and well-being seriously. Be an advocate for yourself and don’t be afraid to ask WHY! Ask you doctor to check your blood before (and after) taking any new medications... you might even learn that you don’t need those meds! Here are more links about why you should get your blood tested.
https://www.everydayhealth.com/news/things-your-doctor-wont-tell-you-about-blood-tests/
https://www.womenshealthmag.com/health/a19929267/blood-test-results/
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