@Cataceous - are you still on your GnRH protocol? What have you tweaked about it over time?
Yes, still on the GnRH protocol with 20 mcg 5.25x daily along with TRT and enclomiphene. For the last two months I've taken 5 or 10 mcg kisspeptin-10 along with each GnRH dose. This has correlated with a significant enhancement of nocturnal erections, in a dose-dependent manner.@Cataceous - are you still on your GnRH protocol? What have you tweaked about it over time?
This might be only tangential or even irrelevant to your post but here it goes. Before going on TRT, I went through a period where I was eating salmon burgers/canned salmon several times a week and taking fish oil, too, all at the recommendation of my then psychiatrist, in the hope of stabilizing my untreatable bipolar illness. Also using several tablespoons of olive oil, daily(cooking & salads). I also had ED for 7 years. Had labs drawn by my endo. TT was 668. FT 110 E2 34. Lipid profile was excellent. This was Kaiser Mid-Atlantic. I was fortunate to get a most basic, though inadequate, hormone panel. My point; no exogenous T to suppress GnRH, LH, FSH. I did have sexual desire, sometimes intense, attributable to elevated mood.I've felt a blunting of emotions during two conditions: with a combination of high testosterone and high estradiol; and with very low estradiol. With normal testosterone and high estradiol I felt an amplification of emotions.
It would be great if GnRH were this "missing piece" for libido, but when is anything TRT-related ever that simple?
You're addressing the issues I've been dealing with for years while on TRT, though what I experience is being emotionally flat, near constant sadness and cognitive blunting. Higher dosing of testosterone makes it feel like my brain is separated from my body; I feel less connected to myself and to my surroundings.As you’ve probably experienced at some point, there’s definitely something that causes blunted emotions, especially with higher doses. It’s almost like things that should make a person sad simply don’t have an effect. I think it could possibly factor into libido as well because there’s such a vast amount of chemicals and neurotransmitters that play a part in arousal. Perhaps this missing piece could actually play a bigger role in libido than testosterone, estrogen or dopamine.
Most of it I’ve dealt with by simply going lower with the dose. I only use 60mg per week and all aspects are much better.You're addressing the issues I've been dealing with for years while on TRT!
Lowering my dose is something I was pondering. How often do you inject?Most of it I’ve dealt with by simply going lower with the dose. I only use 60mg per week and all aspects are much better.
Once a week. I’ve tried splitting the dose but have to do 72-80mg to feel the same.Lowering my dose is something I was pondering. How often do you inject?
Thanks.Once a week. I’ve tried splitting the dose but have to do 72-80mg to feel the same.
I suspect you get similar benefits to this local production by simply having a lot of estradiol floating around the body and letting it diffuse across the blood brain barrier. I also don't think high levels of GnRH are as helpful for dementia protection in humans as this study suggests. Why?Conclusion: GnRH prevented the Aβ-induced memory deficit, which may be mediated through hippocampal E2 levels enhancement.
In a significant majority on TRT there is nearly complete suppression. This is evidenced by low levels of LH and FSH.... Question: Testosterone and E2 suppress GnRH; not for every man, but for a % of men.
AI monotherapy has been proposed as a way to increase endogenous testosterone, and there's at least one study on anastrozole claiming success. However, the long-term effects are uncertain.Why not, without testosterone, microdose or ultramicrodose anastrazole, whether daily or 2 or 3 times a week? ...
I suspect you get similar benefits to this local production by simply having a lot of estradiol floating around the body and letting it diffuse across the blood brain barrier. I also don't think high levels of GnRH are as helpful for dementia protection in humans as this study suggests. Why?
Well, who has the highest GnRH levels? Menopausal women. Who has the highest rates of dementia? Menopausal women. How do you reduce their risk of dementia? You give them estradiol:
Systematic review and meta-analysis of the effects of menopause hormone therapy on risk of Alzheimer’s disease and dementia
IntroductionDespite a large preclinical literature demonstrating neuroprotective effects of estrogen, use of menopausal hormone therapy (HT) for Alzheimer’s disease (AD) risk reduction has been controversial. Herein, we conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis of HT effects on AD and...www.frontiersin.org
Before starting on testosterone in 2013, I did have inconsistent, but strong erections. My total, pre TRT, was 360 ng/dL. There were significant marital problems which shutdown desire for my wife, as well as the emotional toll of no longer being able to work due to bipolar illness. Now I'm my wife's caregiver.
I did my due diligence on testosterone therapy. It wasn't just suddenly deciding. I either read or was on multiple forums. Maybe, for me, I'm considering that testosterone is the source of problems, rather than benefits. Still trying to figure it out.