Someone has low T levels, they go on TRT for 4 months. They then quit TRT (for fertility reasons, but that is not important for the context of this question), and use just 300IU’s of hCG a couple times a week.
Since the HPTA is suppressed, is it possible that this person will feel much worse than they did pre-TRT at least for a while?
For the first little while I felt okay, but the last 2 weeks have been deteriorating rapidly to the point of being barely functional at work.
I would get your T measured. I don’t know the bell curve of getting off exog. T. You might add an AI/other ancillaries and see how you feel/test for increase of T and consider raising the dose of HCG (maybe).
I tried a T break a few times, to see if things were better with resumed. Really felt bad with dropping T levels. When I resumed T, there was not a great return, but a low recovery. I am not surprised that you do not feel well.
You are also greatly HPTA compromised already and are suffering from a bad PCT post cycle, if we can borrow a page from the body builders.
Research showed that 250iu hCG SC EOD restored a measure of testicular function in young normal guys who were HPTA repressed with 200mg/week T injections. That sounds great, but your testes may not be working as well as young normal guys. So your response to hCG may not really be useful from a T production point of view.
[quote]KSman wrote:
I tried a T break a few times, to see if things were better with resumed. Really felt bad with dropping T levels. When I resumed T, there was not a great return, but a low recovery. I am not surprised that you do not feel well.
You are also greatly HPTA compromised already and are suffering from a bad PCT post cycle, if we can borrow a page from the body builders.
Research showed that 250iu hCG SC EOD restored a measure of testicular function in young normal guys who were HPTA repressed with 200mg/week T injections. That sounds great, but your testes may not be working as well as young normal guys. So your response to hCG may not really be useful from a T production point of view.[/quote]
This more or less confirms what I thought. Any general advice on where to go from here? If my doc suggests returning to my previous protocol, any issues that you can see by doing so? Any questions you’d be asking him?
While hCG may not lead to youthful T production, it may still be very protective of basic testicular structure, even if not leading to good sperm counts. I assume that one can then add HMG when trying to conceive. A SERM can also increase FSH and might be used in cycles to provide some support periodically. A SERM can be used every day when trying to conceive. Such SERM use may be much more available and affordable alternative to HMG.
[quote]KSman wrote:
While hCG may not lead to youthful T production, it may still be very protective of basic testicular structure, even if not leading to good sperm counts. I assume that one can then add HMG when trying to conceive. A SERM can also increase FSH and might be used in cycles to provide some support periodically. A SERM can be used every day when trying to conceive. Such SERM use may be much more available and affordable alternative to HMG.[/quote]
Thanks for that. However, priority number one right now is to restore some degree of feeling healthy. No point in looking at conceiving feeling like this. So my question is really will simply returning to my previously working protocol be a sufficient answer to this?
[quote]KSman wrote:
That is really your only recourse. Another point, if your sperm count is up and you penis is not, that is conceivably useless ;}[/quote]
testicular extraction? lol, i kid, i kid. i get your point.
I ran out of testosterone 3 days ago and I was just informed by one of the biggest online pharmacies that there is a problem with my order and they won’t be able to fill it until they talk with my Doc who’s office just closed for the weekend. I have been injecting 50mg 2x weekly SQ. It will be 6 days without before I can get any. Should I up the dose of HCG until then or is 6 days not really enough to worry about?