Just found out i have low SHGB - not from insulin issues - am i 100% screwed?

[audiognostic]

so apparently my free T is WAY out of range high.. like 29 on a max 20 scale relative to my 700 total T.. this is NOT good

This is the result of low SHBG.. im going to get it checked how low it actually is, but for that ratio, surely in the single digits based on the nebido website calculator

they say that SHBG is the carrier hormone of testosterone to reach the target tissues, and you only get enough testosterone to target tissues as your SHBG can handle, and raising your T dose only lowers SHBG further ..

I couldnt figure out why after 3 months of TRT with total levels ranging from 700 to 900 i was not getting morning wood, not much body odor, and my libido was sporadically good, and basically nonexistant otherwise...

so i just got hit with this low SHBG thing.. apparently this is often the result of insulin resistance/ metabolic syndrome, i have gotten all the tests done to prove 100% definitively this is NOT the case for me..

heres the problem, i CAN NOT for the life of me have sex.. PERIOD... and with low SHBG i am basically very non responsive to TRT.. i feel a little better.. but not better enough to have good erections, consistent libido, energy, or all those "hey i feel good" type effects people on TRT have..

Also, it seems IMPOSSIBLE to raise SHBG.. like literally.. tehre is no way to do it .. ever.. period..

and its so hard to find anything about it and TRT because almost all the data on low SHBG people talk about insulin and metabolic syndrome issues

I jsut want to know if anyone else has dealt with this, and what they have done to have any degree of success with TRT??

I thought screw it just stop TRT, go back to Novladex/serms which raised my SHBG to normal levels, i got morning wood, i got body odor.. but on SERMS i got no libido again.. so its either no libido and ed.. or no libido and ed.. and this is an uncommon problem.. i can find no answers..

i feel ****ing stuck..

what the hell man..

 

[Vince]

Many members here who have low SHBG, inject daily, I would think it's worth a try. I don't have low SHBG but I did switch to daily shallow IM injections. It's working for me.

 

[Vince Carter]

Those are pretty classic numbers for indicating low SHBG but as said needs to be tested and verified. This is not a problem...don't fall in the trap of pre-diabetic, insulin restitant, or fatty liver...sure you should have a basic health screen for these issues but they're not tied to low SHBG, which just requires a different approach to HRT, that's all. Plenty of reading material on EM of how to cope with low SHBG.

 

[CoastWatcher]

First of all, relax. I can say that because I had a terrible attack of anxiety when I learned my SHBG was low. I heard all the dire warnings, as Vince Carter noted, about fatty liver, diabetes, insulin resistance and the fact that it would impede my efforts to correct my low testosterone, probably causing it to fail. I knew, just knew, I was doomed to hypogonadism and serious illness. I wasn't.

I was screened for all of the ominous issues, and wasn't moving toward any of them (though my A1c was high and I workd to bring it down). I was able, with daily injections, to generate and maintain total testosterone values at the 1000 level - I have overcome low testosterone and the only price I pay is a few minutes injecting every morning - less time than shaving. Most men, the vast majority, don't deal with SHBG being low with daily injections - twice weekly or eod shots deal with it. There are options.

Low SHBG is one factor that you and your doctor have to consider in designing a protocol. It is not an automatic ticket to poor health or TRT failure. It can certainly be managed.

All the best.