I tested low for dhea 2 (3-10), was also low in cortisol. However, my progesterone was very elevated >1000 (65-500), and my testosterone was also elevated 35 (8-20). How can my dhea be low, but testosterone be high? If I supplement with dhea, do you think it will just convert into more testosterone? The doctor thinks dhea will help me have more energy and to use it with Cortef (for low cortisol) because the two may work synergisticly. However, I just don't want facial hair. I already have some pale peach fuzz there (that no one really notices), but I don't want it to get worse. If I tried the dhea, if I got facial hair, does that go away when you stop the dhea, or would I be stuck with it? Anyone have any experience with that?
Do you think most of my testosterone is coming from my ovaries, as well as the excess progesterone? Or perhaps I have some sort of enzyme deficiency that gets stuck with lots of progesterone but little cortisol and dhea? My doctor does not even know what to think because everyone he has treated with adrenal fatigue typically has low reproductive hormones. Everything I have read also indicates that. (Progesterone is made into cortisol, so the body generally favors cortisol production which lessens progesterone, etc.) I don't have insurance or the money for more comprehensive testing...
Anyway, the bottom line is, my dhea was low, so the doctor suggested dhea supplementation. Should I or shouldn't I?
Hi,
I dont know if I can really answer your questions. However, from what I've read about DHEA (which I bought a few months back) says its ok to take, but in small doses. It does have something to do with testosterone so I dont know if that'll raise it or not.
Most pill are sold in 25mg doses which some think that is too much! Some only take it for a short period of time to sort of get the engine running smoothly. These things you may want to consider.
Did your doc mention PCOS and testerone? Elevated testosterone is common in PCOS.
You might try 7-Keto DHEA. It's a downstream metabolite of DHEA & considerably more expensive, but it doesn't convert into sex hormones. Still quite energizing.
The facial hair ... you can pluck one or two stray hairs. If you get them on DHEA, & stop the hormone, they won't keep growing back.
Thanks for the replies. No, my doc never mentioned pcos. He does know that I had ovarian cysts when I was 16 which I was hospitalized for (because they were painful and making me sick). My sister recently had to go to the ER because of severe abdominal pain, and they found out she had an ovarian cyst that ruptured. Does pcos run in families? I don't know enough about pcos. From what I have read, it seems that people with pcos have irregular periods, have a hard time getting pregnant, etc. However, my periods have always been regular and I have two kids. I think pcos has something to do with too much insulin or blood sugar. My blood sugar is normal so far, although I can't skip meals because I feel shaky or light-headed (probably due to weak adrenals). I have never seen pcos mention high progesterone. In fact, I thought pcos involved low progesterone. I wonder if there are variations to pcos, or if one has to fit the classic syndrome.
Elmhar,
I guess if the hair won't come back if I stop dhea, then perhaps I could try a small dose. The doctor gave me 5 mg. Would 7-keto dhea be the equivalent same strength mg for mg?
