I have been off Testosterone for a year !

[broker]

Its been a year and a week since my last shot of T, i was doing 90 mgs per week. I felt good on T, no doubt but was tired of using a drug and then constantly worrying about side effects. I was doing mild steroid cyles for about 14 years and my T levels never seemed to come back so i started using T for 6 months per year at 90 mgs and no steroids. I did this for about 10 years and my T levels never recovered fully.
This year, i decided to stay off for a full year and i actually feel normal. I think it takes a long time for your brain to re adjust, not just the hpta. Im starting to wake up with erections amd notice my libido as well as energy is getting better.
For me, i guess i never went completely off long enough. I am not using clomid or hcg, nothing !
I am refraining from any blood work at the moment since i am strating to feel good. If i get a somewhat low reading, it may have a mental effect on me which may cause me to jump on despite feeling better.
For now, i am waiting it out and i feel good. I have always heard one needed to stay off for at least a full year, maybe longer, i just never had the patience to do it. I kept saying “ im wasting valuable time, what if i never recover”? This time i maintained some focus and discipline and it seems to be paying off. I work out with weights 4x per week and do cardio. I also try and stay away from heavy weight, that can result in injury although i didnt lose that much strength.

 

[Vince]

Congratulations on your healing, I hope you continue feeling good.

 

[sh1973]

Just out of curiosity, how long did you feel bad?

 

[broker]

I never felt horrible. My libido was very low and energy somewhat low but i still worked our. Also, i expected to feel bad since my natural T production was very low from doing synthetic T. That said, when you come off therapeutic dosages of 100 mgs per week or lower, the crash isnt severe. Sure, your T levels are shut down but thats not the only issue many guys face. The BIGGEST issue is when guys take high dosages and their brain/ body become accostomed to very high levels of testosterone. This is when the bad crashes seem to happen and most have a hard time dealing with that kind of withdrawl. Since so many guys are now used to very high levels of Testosterone, even normal levels now feel like low levels. It takes a long time for the body to re adjust. It can take over 2 years for some guys. Thats why bodybuilders are very quick to embark on a life time of t replacement. Remember, of course you will feel better doing 200 mgs per week opposed to only 100 mgs but what natural 45 year old is walking around with natural T levels over 1000!!!! No one. The basic range for T levels are 350 - 850. 600 is smack in the middle of that. Some labs are higher but 350-850 seems like a realistic range for 18-70 year olds. The majority of very heathy and very active 45 year olds dont have levels of 800 either. Thats what a leading, well known urologist who specializes in androlog told me.
Far too many guys are chasing a high. When their body adjust to their new level of T from replacement therapy, many want to experience what the first month of T felt like and want higher dosage. Think “ chasing the dragon”. Your body is now accostomed and readjusted to its new T level. All things being equal, there is no therapeutic reason to raise the dose if the blood work is good.
Some guys dont ever know how good they actually felt on a small dose of T until they go off.

 

[Nik]

Corredor how old are you?

 

[broker]

I am 50

 

[Nik]

Wow!!! Congratulations its me 35 years protocol actuality 10mg daily .

 

[Nik]

Sorry mi inglish is bad

 

[eli]

Can you get bloods? I've been off for a year and half and I feel like shit, probably going back on TRT. waiting for bloodwork to see if there has been improvement, if yes, i'll wait longer

 

[Vitamin_C]

Thanks for your feedback, testosterone is really just one piece of the overall puzzle for wellness. Some put too much stock into it being a panacea, too much doom and gloom associated with stopping TRT etc. I've read many successful stories about restarts with medication or natural restarts with a gradual taper.

 

[Airborne Warrior]

Surely you could argue those who have come off TRT successfully and now have decent levels of testosterone shouldn't really have been on TRT in the first place?

 

[eli]

Surely you could argue those who have come off TRT successfully and now have decent levels of testosterone shouldn't really have been on TRT in the first place?

Some of us come from roiding backgrounds where we just don't wanna go off of test or roids, i didnt want to go off but in my case TRT didnt work because controlling e2 was a bitch due to my low shbg, before touching steroids tho I was a healthy horny strong man so I don't think I had problems with T before starting roids, i just was impatient and tried to take a shortcut then got addicted to roids

 

[lowe2sucks]

Some of us come from roiding backgrounds where we just don't wanna go off of test or roids, i didnt want to go off but in my case TRT didnt work because controlling e2 was a bitch due to my low shbg, before touching steroids tho I was a healthy horny strong man so I don't think I had problems with T before starting roids, i just was impatient and tried to take a shortcut then got addicted to roids

so you basically feel worse with e2 problem compared to low testo?

 

[Airborne Warrior]

Some of us come from roiding backgrounds where we just don't wanna go off of test or roids, i didnt want to go off but in my case TRT didnt work because controlling e2 was a bitch due to my low shbg, before touching steroids tho I was a healthy horny strong man so I don't think I had problems with T before starting roids, i just was impatient and tried to take a shortcut then got addicted to roids

Same here. I was a competitive bodybuilder in the 90's and suffered in later years due to AAS abuse, hence why I started TRT last year. Wish I'd started it 20 years ago.

 

[eli]

so you basically feel worse with e2 problem compared to low testo?

Well I'm trying to see if I can recover my natural T. I've been off a year and half, getting bloods done every 6 months to see if T is improving. Last time Free T was 12 (9-26) lh and fsh have recovered

 

[tropicaldaze1950]

I'm 68. I stopped shots a year and a half ago because I saw little improvement. But, for six months, this year, I began to feel like I was slowly dying. Weak, exhausted, depressed; all of which I chalked up to non-restorative sleep, a serious aspect of my untreatable bipolar illness. This past fall I was back in Maryland and went to my urologist. My TT was 268, FT 54, E2 21. I'm back on shots, having started at 30 mg, daily(210 mg weekly) and now doing 47 mg EOD(140 mg weekly). I feel so much better, even with sleep problems. Though erectile function is currently quite erratic, my libido is strong and physical strength has improved. Never going off T, again.

 

[lowe2sucks]

if you are bipolar you can rapid cycle on trt

 

[tropicaldaze1950]

There is a risk but off of trt I was worse, in regards to depression. My urologist knows about my bipolar and my former psychiatrist, a researcher at the NIMH, who also is board certified internal medicine and familiar with HRT/TRT, was okay with it. My diagnosis was initially rapid cycling but over the past few years, I've 'transitioned' to mixed state. Nothing is simple or easy when one is afflicted with bipolar illness and sometimes there are trade offs that have to be made. I don't respond to any class of psych meds or off label medications. Focusing on hormones(T, thyroid and adrenals) is the strategy we're just beginning to address.