Question: I need some guidance, i went to an internist and she ran labs checking what was happening with my testoterone and thyroid. I was on androgel at the testing and my testoterone level went from 332 before androgel to 257, my estrogen went from 60 before androgel to 181 out of range while on it. Her solution is to raise my testoerone supplement to double before I was taking 2.5 gram androgel for those lab tests, and now she wants me to take arimidex 1mg 3x a week to reduce estrogen. my tsh was 1.21 on the testing and she wants me to increase my levoxyl from 25mcg to 100mcg and she wants me to continue with my cytomel 5mcg 2x a day but she wants me to take the second one before bed-she thinks that will reduce my high appetite in the evening. I see an endocrinologist who agree with all the prior meds levoxyl 25 and cytomel5 and androgel 2.5 grams and I see him wednesday, but my family doctor thinks that the internist use of arimidex is a radical approach with possibly bad side effects for me and wants me to wait on her ideas until i see the endocrinologist this week. What do you think of the internist treatment including use of arimidex and cytomel at night. I am worried about taking too much medicine and side effects from all this. If i was going to take arimidex is that dose the usual for men with breast enlargement low libido and conversion ot testoerone to estrogen. Finally couldnt i reverse this process by just stopping testerone supllmentation with androgel. Help me understand what is best for me please.

I see my endocrinologist who diagnosed me as hypothyroid a year ago, I had a tsh of 4.55 but was napping all the time, cold often, and my nails were breaking easily. When I went on levoxyl these symptoms went away gradually but i gained 14 pounds in six months and then I added cytomel to my levoxyl and my mood picked up a bit, so I felt better but the weight remained desptie low cal diet and working out 6 days a week, my wife puts it well when she says you eat very little, are at the gym or walking daily and yet you lose not a pound, have breast enlargement, and have no real muscle build up. I am upset that I have this belly fat and breast enlargement, and my blood sugar cholesterol and trigylcerides are all now elevated but not to the point of must have meds for that. I have alwasy had anxiety, panic and ativan helps with that, I was in counseling for years. I get worn out by these problems and sometimes get depressed, a big problem is that before I was diagnosed with hypothyroidism and started levoxyl, both prozac and wellbutrin worked well for me. The weirdest thing is now that I am on the meds for thyroid these antidepressants dont seem to work?????My wife suggested I consult the internist because she used to work for her. Personally I like my endocrinologist but he never does much other than say your tsh is now 1.21 so the levoxyl and cytomel are now working, then he put me on androgel for breast enlargement. On a low dose like one pump it helps my libido but when I take more than that I get depressed and I am hungry at night so I have to have a small meal at night. But it has domne nothing for my breast enlargement of belly fat muscle tone or any of that after six months of daily use. I went to the internist and am thinking of just staying with her and using the arimidex because I must do something, I do not feel well and all my endocrinologist wants to do is "take more testoterone." I am very skeptical of taking testoterone as prescribed by either one because beyond a low dose I seem to feel worse. I have grown to not trust my doctors much because all they do are blood works and then alter does of thyroid meds or testoterone . I mean I dont like being heavy or depressed or nervous and I am not sure swhat to do or which ofthese two doctors to trust. I welcome your suggestions and that is how i feel and i really want to know why antidepressants dont work for me since i take thryoid meds, my endocrinologist always says I am trying to manage your moodswith proper hormone balancing, So far not so good. Thank you. You must have brought all this out in me because I am actually distrubed by all of this, and often feel I wish I could go back to no hormones and just take prozac and ativan, but I know there is something wrong with my thyroid functioning and for sure estrogen is doing something bad to my body. Thanks again.

PS My family doctor missed all of this hormone stuff, he never ran a blood work on me in 20 years, he never did an ekg on me, fianlly I had heart tests because the specialists recommended it. So he helped for years wit hte anxiety and depression but missed the boat on hypothyroidism, hyponadism, and bph which are all my diagnoses besides anxiety and dysthymia. The reason I see all these specialists is because he never checked for any of these problems Isuffered from symptoms of all of these for years. So I don't want to see all these doctors but see no alternative. I just really need to decide between giving the internist the time to treat me or stick with the endocrinologist and hope for the best. My neurpsychiatrist that I saw before for the anxiety and depression actually recommended that I consult specialist for the above symptoms and all said I should get a new family doctor but she was fine with how he managed my emotions and the medicines he used so she turned my care over to him but actually weanted me to go to and intenist and then specialists for urology and endocrinologist and cardiologist with the internist managing the MH med. That is the whole story.