Posted by dmlvt on January 4, 2007, at 9:15:40
Hi,
I see my pdoc tomorrow and I have a physical with my PCP next Tuesday. I am a male who has just turned 45. I am also an endurance athlete who competes in events that take 24 hours or longer to complete. Despite the long hours I spend in exercise, I constantly fight battles with my weight, and I am currently about 25 pounds heavier than I would like to be. I can easily gain weight while running 70 or more miles per week.
As part of my doc visits, I want to talk to both docs about looking for underlying physiological causes of my depression and anxiety. I think that low testosterone and hypothyroidism are both areas that should be examined. Possibly cortisol as well.
I was planning to ask the docs to do a TSH, T3, T4 and testosterone (free and total) test. I wasn't planning on asking them to look at LH, FSH, or SHBG levels right now.
I do clearly show some of the symptoms of low testosterone, but some of them could simply be side effects of the AD medication that I'm taking. I currently take a low dose of Cymbalta, a low dose of Ativan and some Ritalin daily. I would describe my mental state as stable, but sub-par, meaning that I would probably feel better with a higher dose of some of the medicines, but I'm trying to keep my meds to the bare minimum at present.
Does anyone else have any tests that they have found helpful in looking at potential root causes for depression and anxiety?
I may be grasping at straws here, but the concept that a hormonal problem could be behind my weight battles and depression is certainly appealing.
One last note - a CT scan of my sinuses a few years ago showed some small tumors on the hypothalamus and pituitary gland. The doc didn't think it was anything to be alarmed about and there was no concern about a prolactinoma.
Thanks in advance for any thoughts.
DML
poster:dmlvt
thread:719227
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20070101/msgs/719227.html