A quick read of the forum gives the impression that the TRT world is full of men with low libido, no energy, low T problems,ED, Iodine deficiencies, thyroid problems, not enough E2, too much E2, problems with their health care providers, dosing isues, shrinking testicles, etc… Need I go on?
I want to start a thread that tells the story of those that have passed through all the problems and come out on the other side. Has it been worth it? Are you a better man? Splitting
a stack of wood before breakfast and then chasing your wife around? Or is it more subtle than that?
OK. What was it like before you started? And now? How long have you been on TRT? Worth the cost/effort? How long did it take to get it “dialed in”? What is your TRT protocol and how has it changed over time?
Well I am not on the other side yet, but things are getting better. It is really hard to remember how I really felt in my prime. I am sure I will never have the sex drive that I had then, but that might not be a bad thing. There were times when I was younger that all I would think about was sex.
As far as the other things, like the ability to thing clearly, learn new things easily, be confident, feel masculine, high energy levels, elevated mood, etc,etc,etc. They are all getting better every week. I am still in the early stages of getting things figured out for a correct treatment plan, and I still have room for improvement. Just the improvements from adding HCG alone has given me a positive outlook for the future. I started it for the reasons most do, and was surprised with additional effects of elevated mood, sense of well being, and over all feeling a lot better then before.
I think you are onto something. We tend to focus on how much better we used to feel, and how we feel now is not satisfactory, and so on. Instead of being grateful for the improvements we have made. I can see how it could possibly become like an addiction of sort. However I have noticed in the last several weeks I have been content, I have not been thinking about things near as much, or spending a lot of times on the forums looking for a answer that is not there. lol
Bottom line is since finding this site about 6 months ago, I have made more improvements in that time then I have in the last 5 years.
I’ll have to agree with cobra. I think we have a tendency to focus on how good we used to feel, without appreciating how far we’ve come since we discovered our respective conditions and started down a path to recovery.
I have come a very very long way in the past year. There were times before I began TRT that I could barely get out of bed. I had a pretty high stress job and just blamed it on that. Turns out that job may not have been as high-stress as I thought!
Over the past year slow and steady improvements have been made. I’ve lost 30 lbs and put on some muscle. I’ve noticed ladies will do a double take at me sometimes. That’s positive reinforcement.
Before there was ZERO libido. My wife actually got so used to not having sex it’s apparently still weird for her for me to want it now. Regardless, it’s awesome to want to have sex after not giving a shit about it for so long.
I still have a little ways to go. I have yet to find the correct delivery system for the T yet, which is my fault because I tried everything else before finally succumbing to injections. So I’ve got like three different kinds of test. delivery systems going on right now. I’m guessing another 2 month to get on an even keel.
Anyway, I think I’m a success story. I’m better in every facet of life than before I began this journey. I think anyone who is experiencing symptoms and qualifies would do well to start TRT.
It is a bit of a juggling act to get dialed in. Once you are in,and balanced there is no
looking back. Feelings of optimism, energy and happiness. The libido boost was nice too.
Getting to this point has its ups and downs, but I would never go back to the way I was feeling pre-trt.
People who come here are typically having problems or they are starting their journey and land here while doing research. And people who have been here and have reached an agreeable end point probably don’t come back after a while. We never see someone drop in and say they found a doc who has them on TRT and things are perfect. The forum is centred around helping guys who have problems. So the outcome is not surprising. In any case, this forum is a heavy hitter on the internet for the appropriate search terms. The intent has grown from a narrow definition of TRT issues to include common other problems that affect male health.