Hi all,
I'm a long-time member of All Things Male forum (although I haven't posted there for a year or so). Decided to try this forum out now (even though I registered a long time back) since you guys have a separate sub-forum for clomid.
-- Really condensed history ---
History of low-T due to secondary hypogonadism. Took regular clomid for about a year. Currently taking enclomiphene.
--- End of condensed history ---
-- More detailed history (if you're interested) ---
I've a history of (secondary) hypogonadism, although for a long time I couldn't find a doctor who viewed my borderline low testosterone sympathetically (~250 ng/dL back when I was 30), and when I did finally find an endocrinologist who agreed low T was an issue, he was apparently not clued enough to put me on a TRT decent protocol [his protocol was Sustanon-250 injections, once every 3(!) weeks; I got only three shots, but as you can expect, my own T-production shut off and due to the low frequency of injections, I didn't feel any benefit at all - btw those three shots are all the injected testosterone I've ever taken in in my life.]
Following the botched treatment attempt I started doing my own research (and reading through the AllThingsMale forum) and getting tests done, I realised I probably had secondary hypogonadism (very low LH and FSH). I then got an "advice-only consultation" with Dr. Crisler over the phone and he agreed after seeing my labs that I seemed to be secondary, and he suggested I try clomid (12.5 mg/day to begin with). (I had already bought clomid+arimidex from India in anticipation.)
Clomid increased my LH and consequently T-levels, and I began feeling better. My estradiol was quite high though (in retrosopect due to the botched TRT protocol I believe, rather than excess aromatisation after just one month on clomid). Dr. Crisler suggested to double the clomid and introduce arimidex. For some reason I find arimidex intolerable (both physically and emotionally) and I felt really bad after continuing this protocol for a while (although I didn't pin the issue down on arimidex until later). Anyway, giving up on the arimidex and cutting back on the clomid pretty soon I felt good again, so I continued with this protocol (12.5 mg clomid every day, no AI) for a year. My T was at a decent level (~600-700 ng/dL), and I also felt much better than I had in the previous several years, "pretty decent" is how I would describe it [a big step up from feeling like absolute crap]. Note that I did feel the "estrogenic" sides of clomid that most users complain about, but like I said, it was still a step up.
Then I got a bit greedy; my SHBG had crept up (from about 18 before clomid to around 30), and I had read about danazol, so I decided adding 50 mg danazol EOD along with the clomid. The six or so weeks period that followed was my "golden age", the closest I've felt to "awesome", especially in terms of mood and energy. Unfortunately things went down sharply after that; I began to feel bad again - retrospectively, my guess is that I felt so good at the start because of all the SHBG-bound T being released as free-T, until the stores were depleted, and danazol being a steroid must have suppressed T-production as well; tests confirmed that LH and T (and SHBG) had gone way down again.
Anyway, after taking a year-long break, I restarted clomid and stayed on it for a couple of months. I felt it wasn't working as well as the first time though, although this time I also took with it calcium d-glucarate and DIM (which Dr. Crisler recommends).
A few months ago I got hold of a supply of Enclowin (an Indian brand that lists "enclomiphene" as the main component). I've been taking that ever since instead of regular clomid.
I haven't had the opportunity/funds to get labs done, but subjectively I'm feeling better, and I can say that I don't feel the estrogenic sides I remember having from clomid, so I feel it is the real deal (rather than just mislabeled clomid). I've attached a photo of the blister pack btw.
I take 50 mg once every 4 or 5 days (basically because it's a 50mg gel capsule so I can't split it).
As I said, I'm starting to feel fairly good again, but I do feel there is much scope for improvement.
To put the time period in perspective, I'm 38 now.
--- End of history ---
I have some miscellaneous questions:
1) I ordered LifeExtension Pregnenolone (100 mg) a while ago, but didn't take it. Is there any benefit of trying it? What should I watch out for/what improvements can I expect? What would be a good dose to start with, and if it's much lower than 100 mg (as I expect) how can I make do with the 100 mg capsules I have?
2) I would like to try to cautiously introduce danazol again, does anyone have any pointers? Maybe a lower dose would prevent T-suppression? (The obvious thing I can see is to keep track of labs and make sure things don't start slipping, although that's an expensive affair.)
3) What are the implications of high DHEA-S? I remember when I had labs done after around one month of clomid+danazol (i.e. during the "golden period") that my DHEA-S was above range. Is there any correlation between that and feeling good?
Sorry for the long first post and hodge-podge of questions!
AK
I'm a long-time member of All Things Male forum (although I haven't posted there for a year or so). Decided to try this forum out now (even though I registered a long time back) since you guys have a separate sub-forum for clomid.
-- Really condensed history ---
History of low-T due to secondary hypogonadism. Took regular clomid for about a year. Currently taking enclomiphene.
--- End of condensed history ---
-- More detailed history (if you're interested) ---
I've a history of (secondary) hypogonadism, although for a long time I couldn't find a doctor who viewed my borderline low testosterone sympathetically (~250 ng/dL back when I was 30), and when I did finally find an endocrinologist who agreed low T was an issue, he was apparently not clued enough to put me on a TRT decent protocol [his protocol was Sustanon-250 injections, once every 3(!) weeks; I got only three shots, but as you can expect, my own T-production shut off and due to the low frequency of injections, I didn't feel any benefit at all - btw those three shots are all the injected testosterone I've ever taken in in my life.]
Following the botched treatment attempt I started doing my own research (and reading through the AllThingsMale forum) and getting tests done, I realised I probably had secondary hypogonadism (very low LH and FSH). I then got an "advice-only consultation" with Dr. Crisler over the phone and he agreed after seeing my labs that I seemed to be secondary, and he suggested I try clomid (12.5 mg/day to begin with). (I had already bought clomid+arimidex from India in anticipation.)
Clomid increased my LH and consequently T-levels, and I began feeling better. My estradiol was quite high though (in retrosopect due to the botched TRT protocol I believe, rather than excess aromatisation after just one month on clomid). Dr. Crisler suggested to double the clomid and introduce arimidex. For some reason I find arimidex intolerable (both physically and emotionally) and I felt really bad after continuing this protocol for a while (although I didn't pin the issue down on arimidex until later). Anyway, giving up on the arimidex and cutting back on the clomid pretty soon I felt good again, so I continued with this protocol (12.5 mg clomid every day, no AI) for a year. My T was at a decent level (~600-700 ng/dL), and I also felt much better than I had in the previous several years, "pretty decent" is how I would describe it [a big step up from feeling like absolute crap]. Note that I did feel the "estrogenic" sides of clomid that most users complain about, but like I said, it was still a step up.
Then I got a bit greedy; my SHBG had crept up (from about 18 before clomid to around 30), and I had read about danazol, so I decided adding 50 mg danazol EOD along with the clomid. The six or so weeks period that followed was my "golden age", the closest I've felt to "awesome", especially in terms of mood and energy. Unfortunately things went down sharply after that; I began to feel bad again - retrospectively, my guess is that I felt so good at the start because of all the SHBG-bound T being released as free-T, until the stores were depleted, and danazol being a steroid must have suppressed T-production as well; tests confirmed that LH and T (and SHBG) had gone way down again.
Anyway, after taking a year-long break, I restarted clomid and stayed on it for a couple of months. I felt it wasn't working as well as the first time though, although this time I also took with it calcium d-glucarate and DIM (which Dr. Crisler recommends).
A few months ago I got hold of a supply of Enclowin (an Indian brand that lists "enclomiphene" as the main component). I've been taking that ever since instead of regular clomid.
I haven't had the opportunity/funds to get labs done, but subjectively I'm feeling better, and I can say that I don't feel the estrogenic sides I remember having from clomid, so I feel it is the real deal (rather than just mislabeled clomid). I've attached a photo of the blister pack btw.
I take 50 mg once every 4 or 5 days (basically because it's a 50mg gel capsule so I can't split it).
As I said, I'm starting to feel fairly good again, but I do feel there is much scope for improvement.
To put the time period in perspective, I'm 38 now.
--- End of history ---
I have some miscellaneous questions:
1) I ordered LifeExtension Pregnenolone (100 mg) a while ago, but didn't take it. Is there any benefit of trying it? What should I watch out for/what improvements can I expect? What would be a good dose to start with, and if it's much lower than 100 mg (as I expect) how can I make do with the 100 mg capsules I have?
2) I would like to try to cautiously introduce danazol again, does anyone have any pointers? Maybe a lower dose would prevent T-suppression? (The obvious thing I can see is to keep track of labs and make sure things don't start slipping, although that's an expensive affair.)
3) What are the implications of high DHEA-S? I remember when I had labs done after around one month of clomid+danazol (i.e. during the "golden period") that my DHEA-S was above range. Is there any correlation between that and feeling good?
Sorry for the long first post and hodge-podge of questions!
AK
