Cross-table-C-spine-Chem-20-Coag-Panel

[judecorp]

I finally connected with the nurse case manager at my doctor's office to get the results of the lab work I had at my physical exam over two months ago. Don't ask me how it took so long, because I'm just glad I finally got my freaking health info. I had a bunch of blood work for routine physical stuff (CBC, cholesterol, blood sugar, etc.) and also some hormone tests for the whole no-periods thing. I had suggested PCOS to my last doctor but she didn't really take me seriously, and eventually agreed to refer me for a pelvic ultrasound which showed no cysts. I mentioned that to my new doc who told me that one can have PCOS without cysts. But anyway...

So most of my bloodwork was totally fine which was nice, but I apparently have elevated testosterone. This is linked to PCOS so I suppose it's possible that I have it, but the whole thing got me thinking. How long have I had elevated testosterone? (I've never been tested for this before, only estrogen, progesterone, TSH.) Is it possible that I've had elevated testosterone my whole life?

It's interesting because of all of the gender dysphoria stuff I have going on. Am I genderqueer because I have elevated testosterone? Do I buck the system because I have more boy hormones? Can our identities really boil down to chemicals and molecules? I realize that testosterone can explain acne, and body hair, and all of that... but does it control who I think I am and what I feel like? If my T-level went down to "normal" range, would I be girly? Would I still think the same way, act the same way, dress the same way, look the same way?

She wants me to take birth control pills again. Would fake estrogen and progesterone "turn me back"? Aaah, questions. As always, I'm full of questions. I wish I could just give all my extra testosterone to mostlyhere.

~//~

Also, my cholesterol was higher than it was two years ago, and that makes me sad. I need to get back into some sort of shape, and also stop eating all of the crap that is always at work. I need to talk to Jen tonight and see if a gym membership cost is within our budget. Maybe I'll get a brand new body all around and I'll somehow be able to make babies.

Comments

[jost.livejournal.com]

Maybe I'll get a brand new body all around and I'll somehow be able to make babies.

Have Y, Will Travel!

cYb3r

[judecorp.livejournal.com]

Yowza!

[communista.livejournal.com]

There's a PCOS community I'm a member of, they seem to be helpful. Also I made a future mommies community, you're welcome to join that too.

I have PCOS, the kind with yummy cysts (I lost a tube thanks to a 40 pound one that went horribly awry, when I was 12). Check out that PCOS community in my info :)

Love you!!

[judecorp.livejournal.com]

Boo for yummy cysts! :(

I see the pcos community on my /friendsfriends sometimes thanks to you and some others. Maybe I'll join it if I ever talk to my doctor. After all, who knows what she's thinking, since it took me two months to catch the nurse case manager. ;)

What is this future mommies community? A long time ago, thatpatti made one called making_babies.

[communista.livejournal.com]

Eventually I'll join Patti's community, but I remembered seeing that it was for people trying to conceive, or about to conceive. Mine is for people who are looking to do so in a year or two, and merely want to share ideas on maintaining health and financial security before TTC. :)

[judecorp.livejournal.com]

Yeah, I noticed that after I commented to you and I even joined your community. :) But I haven't done an intro yet. (I'm shy!)

[wlscbone.livejournal.com]

why do doctors want to immediately hand women birth control anytime some part of the female anatomy is involved in the ailment?
anyway- i think that chemicals have alot to do with our make-up, but ultimately they aren't everything. we are more than the sum of our parts, i suppose.
good luck with the getting healthy stuff. i need to do that.

[judecorp.livejournal.com]

Yeah, I'm not a huge fan of birth control. I took it for a couple of years a while back and I felt like it really made me a moody mess. (Then again, maybe I was just a moody mess and blamed it on the BC, who knows?) Then I started taking Provera every 6 months to get my period, but it was really hard on me mentally - I felt like it made me totally whacko for a week and also messed with my head in other ways. So I haven't done it in about 1.5 years. I know this is bad for endometrial cancer and all of that. Aaah, dilemmas.

We should all get healthy. How fun!

[mostlyhere.livejournal.com]

Thanks. I wish you could too.

[judecorp.livejournal.com]

Then again, if it gave it all to you, how would I KICK YOUR ASS??!?! :)

[mostlyhere.livejournal.com]

olex = giant wimp.

[judecorp.livejournal.com]

olex = cute

[mostlyhere.livejournal.com]

;)

[vorpalbla.livejournal.com]

"Am I genderqueer because I have elevated testosterone? Do I buck the system because I have more boy hormones? Can our identities really boil down to chemicals and molecules?"

The evidence seems to be saying yes. But is that any different from "Maybe I'd be happier if I had more serotonin"? Unless you truly believe in the immaterial soul as a source of personality...

FWIW, I don't think you "buck the system" because you have more boy hormones. Even you were flowing with estrogen and lusted after men constantly--I think you'd buck the system in some other way.

[judecorp.livejournal.com]

Well I meant bucking the gender system but you are definitely right that I'm sure I would be out Damning The Man no matter what! :)

[vorpalbla.livejournal.com]

You should get a T-shirt or bumper sticker...

"Even if I was doing a man, I'd still be Damning The Man!"

[judecorp.livejournal.com]

I'm not as bumper sticker crazy as you. :)

[jadefu.livejournal.com]

Well, I have elevated testosterone because I *DO* have PCOS with cysts and almost every other textbook symptom.

Have you also checked out www.pcosupport.org for more info?

[judecorp.livejournal.com]

Yeah, you'd pointed me to that info a long time ago and I read it. I'm still waiting to hear from my doctor about whether she wants to see me again or what she wants me to do... but since it took 2 months to even get my test results I'm not holding my breath.

Argh.

[hopemcg.livejournal.com]

Maybe if you found out as a wee one and had grown up with less T you would have been a different person? Probably you have had too many years of both nature *and* nurture to end up wearing pink frilly dresses on a regular basis.

My good friend at work has been trying to get pg for a couple of years. The doc has given her a tentative dx of PCOS even though she doesn't have cysts. She has been taking a drug that is typically given to diabetics (something about PCOS and insulin levels) in the hopes that she'll pop out eggs more regularly.

[judecorp.livejournal.com]

Well I doubt I would ever have worn pink frilly dresses, since there are tons of pictures of me as a wee lad making horrible faces at the froo clothes I was forced to put on. FUN TIMES.

The drug is probably metformin/glucophage, and it seems to definitely work for some people with PCOS. I wonder if they're going to give her a drug to make her ovulate, too (like clomid).

Hmmm, I wonder if I could pop out a kid someday?

[hopemcg.livejournal.com]

Yeah, glucophage is what she calls it. It gaves her the shits big-time when she was first getting started with it.

She has done clomid, had tubes scraped, done IUI and I think maybe some other drug to induce ovulation (a shot rather than a pill). It makes me so sad to watch her. Before I met her, she had just had a miscarriage (almost 3 months along), so her biggest frustration is knowing that she CAN get pg because she has before.

[judecorp.livejournal.com]

Ugh, that is so crazy and stressful. When I was 8, I decided I didn't want to have babies and I only wanted to adopt. I still want to adopt, but I think about how much I want to breastfeed babies and how much easier that is to do when you're actually pregnant, and my mind starts whirring.

I doubt I could ever get pregnant though, even if I wanted to, and I don't know if I could seriously go through the heartache so many people have. It would break my heart.

[hopemcg.livejournal.com]

Yeah, we haven't even started yet and I terrified even now that my body will let me down. I've always thought of myself as a very fertile person. What if I'm not? That's part of how I've always defined myself. I guess I need to just operate under the assumption that all systems are go until proven wrong. Still, it does make me inclined to want to start earlier than the fall...

[judecorp.livejournal.com]

I don't know, I also believe you're a very fertile person. You're like clockwork! :) I think you are going to be one of those people that doesn't have a lot of problems, though I can see why you would be nervous since you have a pretty wonky timeframe in which to do this stuff.

I haven't had a naturally-occuring period since August 2002. So yeah, I'm screwed.

p.s. I think Meggie should get a job at Smith College so we can all live in Western MA together.

[hopemcg.livejournal.com]

She was looking into colleges in western mass the other day, so you could possibly get your wish.

[judecorp.livejournal.com]

YAY!!! !!! !!!

!!!

[serenity-coach7.livejournal.com]

Hmmm.. Your post has got me thinking.... Although I am so straight it is scary and I have elevated T too due to PCOS ... So Welcome to that Club... but thanks for making me think today beautiful

[judecorp.livejournal.com]

I like making you think. I find it interesting how many people on my friends list have PCOS. I guess if my doctor decided I have it, I'll be in good company!

[carina-s.livejournal.com]

BOY HORMONES!

[judecorp.livejournal.com]

COOTIES

[poopsmoothie.livejournal.com]

funny story:
when my ex-housemate glasshaus started T, he was using some bizarro cream kind that he rubbed into his skin. unfortunately, *his* skin wasn't the only place it ended up-- it also rubbed off onto his partner, glitterdyke. She figured out what was happening when she started to grow random long body hair and smell like glasshaus.
so she asked him to stop turning her into a boy, and he started injecting. the end!

[judecorp.livejournal.com]

Dude, that's funny!

[estrange.livejournal.com]

I see you're an exploding dog fan - just like me!

I'm glad you finally got your test results back - man that took a long time. I have elevated testosterone too - we are manly women RAWR! ;)

[judecorp.livejournal.com]

Yeah I'm a huge ED fan but I didn't know about the icon community until it popped up on my /friendsfriends page thanks to you! So, thanks! :)

We are manly and we will KICK ASS!

[estrange.livejournal.com]

How funny you found it on the friendsfriends page - I should look at those sometime! Are you a fan of Kurt Ashley? I found an icon community for him too.

[judecorp.livejournal.com]

Nah, I'm not so much a Kurt Ashley person. Say, whatever happened with your second go-around of Survivor-LJ?

[estrange.livejournal.com]

My survivor game... well it's a long story. I ended up quitting because I was playing with too many friends. Friends + survivor = don't mix.

[judecorp.livejournal.com]

Oh. Yuck. I'm sorry. :(