Jump to content
  • Welcome to the TransPulse Forums!

    We offer a safe, inclusive community for transgender and gender non-conforming folks, as well as their loved ones, to find support and information.  Join today!

Blood tests in advance


Recommended Posts

Hi. I have an appointment in February that I am hoping will lead to authority to see an endocrinologist for HRT. I believe the blood tests can potentially be done via GP, but I was wondering if anyone here got them done before their first appointment with the specialist. My theory being that if I can go to this appointment with the blood test results, I can maybe reduce the overall wait time? My understanding of the blood tests required are as follows:

 

Full blood count

Urea and electrolytes

Liver function

Fasting blood glucose or HbA1C

Lipid profile

Thyroid function

Serum testosterone

Serum estradiol

Serum prolactin

LH and FSH

 

Source: This book (recommended read)

 

Is it worth me seeking these tests so I can take them with me on the day, do you think?

Link to comment
  • Admin

I did not get my blood tests done in advance.  Perhaps doing so would have saved me a week or two and a second visit with the doctor.  I don't recall near that many tests being required, either.  The problem is, if you leave something out that the doctor wants, you'll then have to get yet another test done.  If you get tests done in advance and the doctor only needs 2-3  of the tests on your list, you've potentially wasted money on unnecessary tests.

 

A week or two delay in starting HRT doesn't seem a big price to pay for getting exactly what your doctor needs and wants. I'm also doubtful that a lab would do the tests without a doctor's order, so at minimum you would have to see your GP anyway.  In the end its up to you.  Good luck!

 

Carolyn Marie

Link to comment

I believe mine were done in advance as a baseline and to make sure there weren't existing issues that would be negatively impacted by HRT

Link to comment
14 minutes ago, Carolyn Marie said:

The problem is, if you leave something out that the doctor wants, you'll then have to get yet another test done.

 

Yeah. This was the main reason I didn't just book all the tests for tomorrow and you're right; it probably won't add more than a week or two. 

 

Thanks for the replies. :)

Link to comment
  • 2 weeks later...

Your list seems a little bit long for lab orders.  For myself, I just waited to see the doctor first to get the lab order paper so that way I have what the doctor wants ordered for labs and then I went for labs and 2 weeks later I started on hormones.  If you want to try to go in advance for labs, you can try to call the doctor you have an appt. with and see if maybe they can email you the lab orders to take with you to a lab clinic or place like that some where.  I know for myself now, I go to a lab clinic now for my labs a week prior to my checkups and my doctor just sends over the orders to the lab clinic and I just do a walkin and gets labs and walk out.  I dont know if they have something like that where you are or if maybe you can contact your doctor and see if you can get the order that they want.

 

Hope that this helps out

Link to comment
On 1/16/2019 at 2:17 PM, Amy LeBlanc said:

I went for labs and 2 weeks later I started on hormones

 

Oh wow. I would love it if it's that quick over here. My latest fear is that I've read some doctors here require a social transition before HRT which is sadly not possible for me at the moment. 

 

That being said, the other day I got asked to speak to a GP who is experienced in gender dysphoria before sending off my referral to the GIC over here (NHS). But as an unexpected and absolutely wonderful bonus, he also booked me in for blood tests, so I'm super excited for that. 

Link to comment

I know for myself before even starting HRT, and seeing an Endocrinologist I was seeing a gender therapist first and she normally does 4 sessions before the final word and if you get a letter from her or not to see a Endocrinologist to start HRT.  Well, I continued to see her for a year before starting HRT and then I still see her.  And she helped me out with finding a doctor and with the doctor she helped me out.  When I was seeing my therapist and then to my doctor to start HRT, I was part time transitioning and later went full time.

 

But I know everyone transitions differently and there are different ways in all parts of the world and what doctors and therapist all look for

 

 

Link to comment

See your doctor first... He will redo any previous labs you bring in. I had labs done for my primary. Routine labs. When I saw my Transition specialist, two days later, he ordered new labs. Exactly the same labs... Fasting and nowhere  near the list you presented.

 

Plus you left out the four main ones for transitioning. Tests for estradiol and testosterone. 

 

Point is see your doc first!

 

Huggers, Michelle

Link to comment

I know that talking med dosages are against policy. What about specific labs results; can we share them?

Link to comment
  • Forum Moderator
Just now, Michelle F said:

I know that talking med dosages are against policy. What about specific labs results; can we share them?

 

Lab results are fine Michelle, although they are personal, for example blood E numbers are shared here occasionally by some.

 

Hugs

 

C -

Link to comment

I'm finding in the various groups I've been involved with that E and T levels and the nutrients that are affected are major topics as some people don't eat the foods nor the supplements necessary to replace the nutes that meds leach from your body.  Electrolytes, vitamins and minerals specifically...

Link to comment

I just found out yesterday from Autumn Ashphodel that the vitamin D3 I was taking was too little for this time of year and I thought I was doing good because a nurse told me how much to take but that’s a maintenance level and in winter time it’s not enough. Probably why I got a cold. So yes vitamins and supplements can help replenish or keep from being depleted of vital nutrients.

 

A good way to look at it is: because it’s a second puberty the body is going to scream for nutrition and it’s even worse because the body is bigger than a young person going through puberty. Plus as we age the body is even more depleted of stored nutrients. Our diets are somewhat sterilized of vital nutrients in this day and age unlike our ancestors. So all this kind of makes it imperative to be so much more health and diet conscious or we eat food uninformed based on impulse and cravings. A diet of high calorie intake and low nutrition can complicate transition in many ways. It’s not always the quantity but it’s always the quality.

Link to comment
  • Forum Moderator

I think D3 recommendations are all over.  I've heard high doses and low.  My doctor has me on it but not too high. 

Link to comment

I would recommend checking with the prescribing physician about labs before getting any lab work done. My endo, who I haven't seen yet, always used the lab from his hospital and will not authorize prior to the intake appointment. I would have happily gotten the labs done before hand. Finding out that info was well worth the phone call. 

Link to comment

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
  • Who's Online   6 Members, 0 Anonymous, 116 Guests (See full list)

    • Evelyn J
    • Miss Cormac
    • Susan R
    • VickySGV
    • MaybeRob
    • awkward-yet-sweet
  • Recently Browsing   0 members

    • No registered users viewing this page.
  • Forum Statistics

    • Total Topics
      80.5k
    • Total Posts
      767.2k
  • Member Statistics

    • Total Members
      11,942
    • Most Online
      8,356

    taxicab
    Newest Member
    taxicab
    Joined
  • Today's Birthdays

    1. Amyjay
      Amyjay
      (58 years old)
    2. bettyjean
      bettyjean
    3. Breanna
      Breanna
      (52 years old)
    4. Emily Ayla
      Emily Ayla
    5. JET182
      JET182
  • Posts

    • Susan R
      Love it! This is great news. We need more of this to combat the excessive hate-filled rhetoric and misinformation. 👍
    • Susan R
      The experience was the same for me @April Marie. I slept much deeper and I woke up each morning feeling so much more restful sleeping with forms solidly in place. For me, wearing breast forms at night started when before I was a teenager. I had no access up to modern breast forms and certainly no way to buy mastectomy bras back then. I wore a basic bra my mom had put in a donation box and two pairs of soft cotton socks. I have some crazy memories of things I did in my youth to combat my GD but regardless, these makeshift concoctions helped me work through it all.   All My Best, Susan R🌷
    • awkward-yet-sweet
      Colorado isn't exactly a Republican place, and won't become one anytime soon.  I think those folks might be better off not spending their time playing Don Quixote.    We certainly have our share of California "refugees" moving into where I live, so I wouldn't be surprised to start seeing Coloradans too.  I suspect the trend over the next few years will see the blue areas getting more blue and the red areas getting more red as anybody who can relocate tries to find a place where they fit better.   
    • awkward-yet-sweet
      Well, at least it'll be a place some folks could choose.  Options are a good thing.
    • awkward-yet-sweet
      My family would have gobbled that jar up in a minute or two.  When we do have pickled herring, its usually for Christmas.  I didn't grow up with that particular dish, but I grew up in a Greek family so I like just about any kind of fish if I can get it.  However, ocean fish and freshwater fish taste so different.  We usually have more catfish and tilapia to eat than anything else.    What I can't quite get used to is the tons of cabbage my GF insists on eating.  When you live with a Russian, there is always cabbage soup.  Always.  When I first moved in with her, breakfast was "shchi" for soup and either bread or "kasha" which is a bowl of boiled buckwheat with butter and salt.  Those dishes can be made in any number of ways, some are better than others.  In the winter, it can even be salty and sour like kraut.  Not exactly sauerkraut, but packed in tubs with vinegar and salt so it keeps partially for the winter.  But I drew the line when the cabbage soup included pieces of fried snake one day.  😆
    • Ashley0616
      Good evening to you as well @Mmindy   That is awesome that you have support from her side. My dad has communicated with me once and that was because he was forced to. His new wife wanted to spend time with my kids. He hated me so much he was in the process of taking my rights away as a parent to my two boys. He was talking to a lawyer and I called him out on it. I don't love him at all. I'll respect him because I wouldn't be here without him but I wished I had another father. My uncles don't talk to me and unfriended me on Facebook. Almost all cousins except for two are still Facebook friends but they don't give me any support. My mom said she won't support me with that but she has said that she loves me. I have nieces and nephews that are still Facebook friends but they have yet to talk to me. I have one sister that supports me out of three. The other's disrespect me by deadnaming me. They have never called me their sister. I think for them they think it's still a phase. They don't ask questions about me being trans. I have to bring it up and on the look of their faces they don't look comfortable about it. 
    • Mmindy
      Good evening @Ashley0616,   I just got offline with HP tech support trying to get my printer tool box icon locked to my tool bar. This is one of the most important features of my printer that I like because it keeps track of ink, paper, and scanned documents. I'm diffidently not a computer geek.   I'll catch up with the other bookmarks next week. We leave to go home for the Easter Holiday with our families. Saturday with her side, and Sunday with my side. What's odd about that is I'm out to more of her side and they're reluctantly supportive. My side on the other hand are less supportive, and my sister just under me in age will not acknowledge my being there. She will be constantly moving to keep from dealing with me. I'm dead to her.   Hugs,   Mindy🌈🐛🏳️‍⚧️🦋  
    • Ashley0616
      I used to follow baseball and the team I would cheer for is Boston Red Sox. My favorite player was Papi. He was an awesome guy and even held a child during the National Anthem. I haven't watched baseball for a long time. It just died off to me. 
    • Ashley0616
      That stinks that nothing transferred, and no bookmarks were saved! 
    • Ashley0616
      I'm doing patches for now but I think soon I'll go to shots because it's hard to alternate when you are doing two xx patches at once. Unless she gives me Estradiol and progesterone
    • Sally Stone
      Go Cleveland Guardians!  I love baseball and I loved playing it when I was younger.  
    • Sally Stone
      My view is we are "dependent" on government, because as a society, we are too lazy to stay actively involved. So, we let politicians do our bidding for us.  I think we'd be in a better place government wise if we policed the actions of our politicians.  We elected them; they work for us.  Sadly, we are allowing them to run amok.  We are where we are because we have chosen to let politicians make all decisions without us.  Remember "by the people, for the people?" That was the intent of our democracy.  Today, however, it is "by the politicians, for the politicians," the people be damned. 
    • Mmindy
      "Play Ball! Batter Up!" is the closing line of the National Anthem as far as I'm concerned. It's the call of the Home Plate Umpire and signals the start of the game. I grew up in the TV and Radio broadcast of the St. Louis Cardinals. Harry Caray, Jack Buck, Tim McCarver, and Mike Shannon, were the voices on my transistor radio. KMOX 1120 AM pushing 50,000 watts of Class A clear-channel non-directional signal. It could be picked up all across MO, IL, IN to the East. KS, OK, CO to the West. IA, MN to the North, and KY, TN, AR to the South. There has always been a rivalry against the Chicago Cubs, in the National League. As for the American League, I have to pull for the Kansas City Royals. I've also been a Little League Umpire, and fan of everything the Little League stands for. Going to Williamsport, PA and seeing the Little League World Series is in my top 10 things to do on my bucket list.   Mindy🌈🐛🏳️‍⚧️🦋
    • Mmindy
      Good evening everyone,   I don't think my mother ever cooked a meal that I didn't like. We also had a kitchen where mom fixed the food, dad filled your plate, and you eat it. It wasn't until our baby brother was born that we could have Pop-Tarts for snacks. Before that all snacks had to meet mom's approval, and in her opinion wouldn't prevent you from eating supper.   Well my day started off on a good note, but has become frustrating because my IT person didn't transfer my saved videos I use for teaching. Then I found out that they didn't save any of my book marks for websites I use frequently.   Best wishes, stay motivated,   Mindy🌈🐛🏳️‍⚧️🦋
    • MaeBe
      The number is relative to method of deliver, the time of the dose, and when the blood is drawn. However, I do want to keep away from DVT and other potential issues. I assume I may be getting backed down from my current dose, but my doc told me to stick with the higher dose, so? I also wonder if this has anything to do the my breast growth and mental changes that have been happening over the past few years, like I have some estrogen sensitivity so a little goes a long way or something? I don't have enough data to postulate, but who knows!   With weekly, subcutaneous, shots you expect to see big swings of serum level estradiol from shot to peak to trough. My doctor is interested in mid-week testing (for E and T levels only), which would be post-peak blood serum levels but they will be higher than trough. Most, if not all, resources I've seen online is to measure at trough (which I might do just to do it next time) along with a SHBG, LH, and other metrics.   This is from transfemscience.org for Estradiol valerate in oil, which is very spiky compared to some other estradiol combinations. It's also for intramuscular, which will have a slower uptake and is usually dosed in higher volume due to the slower absorption rate from muscles. They don't have subcutaneous numbers, which I would expect to see similar spikes but higher levels at similar doses due to the relatively higher absorption rate direct from fat.   Are you doing pills, shots, or patches? And when you do get your levels checked are you getting that done when your levels are lowest or some other time?
  • Upcoming Events

Contact TransPulse

TransPulse can be contacted in the following ways:

Email: Click Here.

To report an error on this page.

Legal

Your use of this site is subject to the following rules and policies, whether you have read them or not.

Terms of Use
Privacy Policy
DMCA Policy
Community Rules

Hosting

Upstream hosting for TransPulse provided by QnEZ.

Sponsorship

Special consideration for TransPulse is kindly provided by The Breast Form Store.
×
×
  • Create New...