Sorry for the great wall of text. Please bear with me, or you can skip to the “Testosterone” heading.
Background:
I am 33 years old, and I’ve had a chronic Auto-Immune Disease since I was about 20. (viral induced Reiter’s Syndrome). I saw many doctors that were absolutely useless.
It wasn’t until I was 27 and went to an infectious disease specialist that I was diagnosed and figured out how to treat my symptoms. I took Aleve for about a year, and eventually most of my arthritis symptoms subsided. I still have to use steroid cream (2% hydrocortisone) on my skin in various places, and .12% betamethasone valerate foam on my scalp to treat scalp psoriasis. I also have nail psoriasis, but not a lot has been effective for that.
I gained weight slowly over time due to poor diet and lack of exercise. I’m 5’10 with a narrow frame. At one point I weighed over 210lbs. I had little muscle mass and most of the fat was around my mid-section. I eventually decided to start eating right. Since I couldn’t really exercise, I wanted to stop compounding the problem. By diet alone, I dropped down to 155lbs. I felt good enough that I started doing light exercise, and gradually started doing more and more in the gym. I started eating more and lifting heavier weights. I’m back up to around 167lbs, with a lower body fat%. I still have more belly fat than I think I should.
Over time I have grown accustomed to feeling pretty bad. Granted, I feel slightly better now than I have my entire adult life, I still feel pretty crappy.
Testosterone:
I’ve known for over a year now that I’ve had low T. I was seeing an IM doctor just to get my other scripts, and I told him about some other problems I was having. He tested my T and it was low. He offered treatment options, but I didn’t take him up on it. I took some free samples and a script of Cialis instead.
My Low-T Symptoms:
Low Libido
Difficulty achieving and maintaining erections.
Difficulty reaching orgasm.
Don’t remember what it’s like having “morning wood”. It’s probably been 10 years.
Brain fog. Basically I can’t concentrate and have a poor memory.
Depression. I’m a pro at hiding it.
No motivation. I have absolutely zero motivation to do anything. I only do things because I have to.
Irritability. Borderline extreme.
Overly Emotional.
I started seeing a new doctor, whom I actually like. When I first saw him, he ran a huge panel of tests to get a big picture. He also noticed the low t (among various other things), and said I’d feel a lot better from treatment. I still didn’t take him up on it until a year later. He is very easy to work with, and I get the impression he will work with me. From what I’ve read form other people that’s a big deal.
So I finally took him up on treatment. I opted for the injections. He put me on .2 of 200 test cyp twice a week.
I received the first shot 2/21 in the office.
2/22 was amazing. It started when I woke up in the morning. I had a RAGING hard on. I wasn’t expecting to notice anything the very next day, but I can’t recall ever feeling so good. I was clear minded and didn’t have a ‘brain fog’. I was in the best mood I could ever hope for. I was motivated and energetic enough to start and finish a pretty big project I never would have started otherwise. Every single symptom of low t was GONE. Things happened that I didn’t even know to expect. WOW!!
2/23 I felt good overall (a little better than normal) but it wasn’t quite the same as the day before.
2/24 I was back to ‘normal’ and I was due for shot #2. It took me about 5 hours to purposely shove a needle into my thigh, but I managed to do it without issue.
2/25 I still felt pretty normal. Not good or greatâ?¦ not bad eitherâ?¦ just alright.
2/26 I felt awful. I was extremely irritable, depressed and emotional. I normally feel pretty crappy on a daily basis so I’m accustomed to “sucking it up” and dealing with it, but this was much more extreme than anything before. Worst day ever.
2/27 - not as bad as the day before. Still not normal, but it was more tolerable.
2/28 - I felt pretty decent again. Slightly better than normal. Shot #3
3/1 - still felt pretty good
3/2 - still feeling pretty good.
Okâ?¦. Soâ?¦. Why the extreme roller coaster at first? Why did the sexual effects disappear after 1 day and yet to return?
It seems like something is still off.
Picture is Hormone Panel Pre-TRT.
