About to Start a New Protocol

[Astro]

No. Actually not cheaper. My Xyosted is 100% covered by insurance.

My new doctor is out-of-state and can't write prescriptions for California. The drugs are shipped to me--also from out-of-state. I'm paying for everything (drugs, needles, lab tests). My TRT has gone from "free" to "spendy". I might be able to get some reimbursement for some of it (like some of the lab tests). But I doubt I'll get help on anything else.

Looking at the big picture--this is really pretty stupid. The insurance company would save a lot of money by approving my switch from Xyosted to syringe injecting. I will try to reach out to them and explore what it might take to get coverage, but I'm not holding my breath.

 

[Astro]

HCG two weeks in. I started HCG on 6-June. I was prescribed 1,000 IU/week (500IU E-3.5D). My Testosterone dose has remained unchanged for 9 weeks at 75mg Test-en/weekly.

I was cautious with HCG because I'd seen other men post about bad reactions. I got the sense (from one of this Forum's polls) that about 30% of HCG users had bad reactions. I started low at 200 IU. I had no site reaction, no physical reaction and no mental reaction. My second dose (3.5 days later) was increased to 400 IU. Still no adverse reactions, so I repeated this for the 3rd and 4th dose. Had diarrhea about 2-hours after this last dose. I ate some unusual foods the day before, so I couldn't blame the HCG with any certainty.

I wanted to get onto my Doctor's protocol (500 IU/ E-3.5 days), so for my 5th dose I took 500 IU at 6 PM. Within a few hours I became agitated and nervous. Later that night I could not sleep. Around midnight I took a small dose of Melatonin (1.5mg--which usually knocks me out) and still could not sleep. When I got up the next morning (and all day long) I was a wreck. I was still agitated, felt mildly hung-over, felt "off" like when you have a cold or flu, my "awake resting heart rate" increased from about 68/70 (normal) to about 80/82 and I also had a mild headache. I skipped going to the gym that day and I was generally unproductive all day. I mostly just lounged around feeling awful.

This reaction was about 70% gone the following day, but I still did not feel normal. I still felt "off" but I went to the gym anyway and did a moderate workout (moderate weights and no cardio). The day after that I felt nearly fine.

I don't want to give up HCG too soon. I understand there may be a period where my body makes adjustments. Today was time for my next dose. So I dropped it way down to 160 IU. This is even lower than my original starting dose 2 weeks ago. I'm hopeful this won't produce significant side effects. My understanding is that 300 IU/week is about the lowest dose that keeps the testes "functional".

I can also report that over this first 2 weeks I have experienced some positive effects. My libido (which was at zero), is showing small signs of recovery. I found myself admiring some of the women at the gym. I'm also experiencing daily morning wood.