New Just Starting TRT

Hello All,

Lost my sex drive and erections about 6 months ago. 33 years old, 5'9 180, muscular, full beard and chest hair, always put on muscle easy. Started feeling tired and lost interest in hobbies etc. Joint pain, hot flashes, excessive sweating, anxiety/depression the whole bit.

Went to the doctor in June, and they just tested my total testosterone. It came back at a 10.3! They said they've never seen it that low. Reordered the test a few days later with total and free and my results were a 12.3 total with free at 0.30. Also did FSH and LH and those were low, prompting an MRI. MRI came back clear.

Before I left on vacation first week in July, doctor gave me a 300 mg shot of Testosterone and I almost immediately felt the effects, at least for a few days. 2 weeks later I did another 200mg shot and. Did not do another shot for a month and finally saw the Endo on August 13th. Started me on 100mg a week self-injections. Have done 2 shots since and can get an erection again and sex life is good, but still feel moody, depressed, and anxious. Blood work came back at Total testosterone around 240 and free testosterone was normal. Estradiol was also very low. I go back on October 12th for another review.

I wonder if my anxiety and depression is from the low T, or if it's because I'm worried I'm dying. Always been a bit of a hypochondriac and this to say the least has been rough on me. Glad to be on here I've read many posts and this place seems to have great info.

I'm wondering if I've always had low t, or if I have some weird disease. My endo is shocked that I don't have a pit tumor. Looking forward to reading up more, any insight to my results or input for that matter is greatly appreciated. Also wondering why my testosterone is still low by my free came back normal. Is that a good thing?

Jayko

At age 33 you low testosterone why? Did you asked your doctor if it could be fixed without taking testosterone for the rest of life? Some labs you should have

https://www.excelmale.com/forum/sho...-After-Initiation-of-Testosterone-Replacement

Am I right in thinking you had an MRI to rule out a pituitary tumour? What other lab work/tests can you provide (with reference ranges)? For example, SHBG, thyroid panel, cortisol...the complete list that Vince sent is a good reference.

Thanks for the quick replies.

The Endo says he specializes in hypogonadism. Both my GP and Endo seem to be conserned with finding the cause and not just putting me on TRT.

Yes, I did have an MRI of the pit and it came back normal. Other tests the first time on June 17th:

Complete blood panel - all normal
Comprehensive Metabolic Panel - all normal
PSA - normal
Urinalyisis - normal
TSH, 3rd Generation - 1.52 (reference 0.27-4.20) - normal
Testosterone - 12.11 (reference (249-836) critical LOW
Free T - 0.30 (reference 4.7 - 24.4)
% Free T - 2.5 (reference 1.6-2.9)
SHBG - 14.99 (reference 10-80)
LH - 0.409 (reference 1.4-7.7) LOW
FSH - 0.865 (reference 1.0 - 14) LOW
Prolactin - Normal
Cortisol (AM) - Normal
Iron Deficiency Panel - Normal
MRI - normal

Last blood test on August 13th 2015 (I dont have the exact results with me)
Testosterone - 240
Free Testosterone - normal range
LH - Low
FSH - Low
estradiol - low
Ferritin - Normal
Iron - Normal
Prolactin - Normal
CBC - all normal

He mentioned going with TRT for a 4-6 months and then maybe trying a restart with Clomid. But we did not go into much details on that. He mentioned that sometimes this just happens to people, even as young as me and sometimes they can never find a cause for it.

I have a 4year old and a 2 year old and had no problem conceiving, so he thinks it could have been an abrupt decline in the past few years.

So am I dying?!? Anything else I should be asking my doc or looking for that you guys know about?

Did you take anabolics, oral T booster supplements, painkillers, prednisone, and other medications in the past 2 years? Have you been exposed to weeb killers, pesticides, or any pollutants? Have you had a head injury?

I hope you can bring your total testosterone above 600 ng/dL. It is not hard to do with 200 mg per week of testosterone injectiosn.

Hi Nelson,

No anabolics or T boosters. I used to take creatine. I had surgery earlier this year and was prescribed Norcos for pain, but I only take them on occasion (once a week for occasional pain). Dr. said typically I would need to be on 7-10 a day for the narcotics to damage my pit. No weed killers or pesticides except round up for around my house. Nothing out of the ordinary.

He only has me on 100 mg per week, said he wanted to start me out slow and then increase if necessary at my 2 month appointment. I'll let you know where I'm at in a few months.

Thanks everybody for the info, I really appreciate it!

Your TT of 240 ng/dL was only after two shots? I am confused. Why would a doctor not wait at least 4 weeks of weekly shots?

I think it is nuts to keep someone at 240 ng/dL of TT until "the next appointment". He/she can change the dose without seeing you.

Be careful with the Norco. Some people's HPTA is more sensitive than others and you may be one of them.

Hi Nelson,

I recieved the first two shots from my regular doctor. One shot at 300mg on June 26th and then two weeks later 200mg on July 10th. He didn't want to give me another shot until I met with the Endo. So I went a month without recieving any testosterone and tested at 240 ng/dL with the endo on August 13th.

Now I've had two weekly injections of 100mg with the Endo starting August 13th and will do so until my next blood test in October. Sorry it was confusing I was seeing two doctors, the waitlist for the endo was almost 2 months.

So, your protocol, going forward, is 100mg of testosterone on a weekly basis?

Yes, that is correct. I will be doing self injections of Test Cyp weekly at 100 mg until my next appt in October. Then I guess we'll see where we go from there.