So I started TRT about 5 weeks ago now (with a starting total testosterone level of 223 mg/dl), and my doctor - who it seems knows very little about TRT - prescribed 200mg every 2 weeks, though I knew enough to split that into 50mg 2x/wk.
I was surprised to feel positive effects during the first week since I thought I wouldn't feel anything until weeks 6-8, but things petered out after that. And in fact, I've noticed increased moodiness and achiness the night before my 4th-day injection, which I assumed meant that the dosage wasn't adequate to hold me over.
To recap the pros so far:
I figured that they would be laughably low, and possibly even lower than when I started (since natural production probably went lower with the introduction of exogenous test).
That night, I got good sleep, or at least better than what I was having before I upped the dose, so I was feeling confident that it was the right move.
...until I received the test results which showed:
Total Testosterone: 1363 ng/dl (!)
Free Testosterone: 28.6 ng/dl
SHBG: 45 nmol/L
So I'm shocked and baffled that my total testosterone jumped all the way from 223 to 1363 with just 100mg/wk, but of course the main point is that I FEEL like the dosage isn't high enough but the numbers seem to be screaming the opposite.
And it seems like even the guys who take more than 200mg/wk still tend not to go higher than 1200ng/dl unless they're into some serious bodybuilding (from what I can tell).
I'm going to try switching to daily injections instead of 2x/wk, but it seems reckless to stay at 150mg/wk when my numbers are blaring at 100mg/wk. So I'm really at a loss and feeling like my doctor will be even more clueless. (He didn't even know if pharmacies could give out needles in my State.)
I know that most results show up in 6-8 weeks, so I'm not there yet, but it sure seems odd that I would have such high levels without some of the best benefits. And from what I hear, after the first bump in week 1, things tend to go back to 'baseline' after that. But...if this is baseline, it's not good enough!
Anyone else been in the same boat? Any advice?
P.S. FWIW, I initially had my thyroid levels tested, and everything came back normal. So that doesn't appear to be a factor.
I was surprised to feel positive effects during the first week since I thought I wouldn't feel anything until weeks 6-8, but things petered out after that. And in fact, I've noticed increased moodiness and achiness the night before my 4th-day injection, which I assumed meant that the dosage wasn't adequate to hold me over.
To recap the pros so far:
- Increased energy
- Less/no fatigue
- Less back pain
- Increased libido <-- only during first week or so and then faded away
- Increased erection quality <--- mostly during the first week, but still some moderate improvements
- Morning wood <--- happened nearly every day during the first week, and now rarely, if at all
- Sleep went back to normal and felt great during the first week, but now have trouble sleeping again.
- Moodiness/irritability
- Low libido, possibly even lower than before I started TRT
- No more/rare morning wood
- Sleep issues returned
I figured that they would be laughably low, and possibly even lower than when I started (since natural production probably went lower with the introduction of exogenous test).
That night, I got good sleep, or at least better than what I was having before I upped the dose, so I was feeling confident that it was the right move.
...until I received the test results which showed:
Total Testosterone: 1363 ng/dl (!)
Free Testosterone: 28.6 ng/dl
SHBG: 45 nmol/L
So I'm shocked and baffled that my total testosterone jumped all the way from 223 to 1363 with just 100mg/wk, but of course the main point is that I FEEL like the dosage isn't high enough but the numbers seem to be screaming the opposite.
And it seems like even the guys who take more than 200mg/wk still tend not to go higher than 1200ng/dl unless they're into some serious bodybuilding (from what I can tell).
I'm going to try switching to daily injections instead of 2x/wk, but it seems reckless to stay at 150mg/wk when my numbers are blaring at 100mg/wk. So I'm really at a loss and feeling like my doctor will be even more clueless. (He didn't even know if pharmacies could give out needles in my State.)
I know that most results show up in 6-8 weeks, so I'm not there yet, but it sure seems odd that I would have such high levels without some of the best benefits. And from what I hear, after the first bump in week 1, things tend to go back to 'baseline' after that. But...if this is baseline, it's not good enough!
Anyone else been in the same boat? Any advice?
P.S. FWIW, I initially had my thyroid levels tested, and everything came back normal. So that doesn't appear to be a factor.
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