Low Testosterone at 18 Years Old

Pharma / TRT Testosterone Replacement
1

Hello. I decided to give it a go and sign up here, to ask some advices maybe. Basically I am turning 18 at the end of this year. My problem is, I have had gradually worsening feeling over the last one or two years. It escalated to a point where I have terrible brainfog and mental functioning is poor. NOTHING like it used to be. I used to be very sharp and clever, outgoing etc. liked by everyone.

I got also depression and anxiety, sweating, sleeping problems, pretty weak and maybe a little high pitched voice. I don’t got libido pretty much at all, and rarely any morning wood. Obiviously you are supposed to have a lot of testosterone in your system during puberty. I look a little bit younger than others in my age also, but thats not anything to worry about.

It has been hard for me to believe that this is all becouse of depression. It just came out of nowhere and gradually worsened during the year. Had to stop studying because I couldn’t concentrate and had terrible anxiety.

Thyroid hormones checked several times, all good. Then I asked doctor if it would be possible to check my testosterone levels. He didn’t seem to take my concerns seriously, but got me the blood test scheduled. It was only total testosterone taken. It was 11 nmo/l, which is about 320 ng/dl. Doc said all good.

Decided to go to an urologist and ask about his opinion. Checked my testicles and then sent me to take some more blood tests. I believe i got LH, FSH, SHBG and prolactin tested. I am not an expert with these. Doc called today and said all seemed good, no need for any further investigations. I haven’t got the test results still, going to have them in the next couple of days.

Well I don’t really know what I should do. My overall feeling is just horrible. Its like im just alive, nothing more. Everyday I wake up and go to sleep. That’s it. It really pisses me off, because its like I am completely the opposite like I used to be.

I THINK, I am not sure but the causes of low T is probably because the stress I’ve been having over myself for the past year, (don’t know if it just lowered it more from already lowish) and binge drinking alcohol when I was 15-16. I feel really hopeless, tried going to gym like 5 months from last autumn to winter. My feelings stayed. Have been trying to get good sleep but I just can’t. I constantly wake up or just sweat in my bed with my stress.

Tried meditating, no help with reducing stress. Been taking magnesium, zinc and multivitamin, plus St Johns Wort to my “depression”. Don’t know if my levels would be even more lower if I hadn’t took all these supplements.

Basically I am just asking, would it be possible that all this is really caused my Low testosterone levels or am I just paranoid? Is my concerns valid? I have not developed deep voice like my other family members have.

I am afraid if these levels stay this way, my condition is going to worsen. Should I book another appointment to another doctor or just try to maintain somehow with these feelings and find some other reasons from out of nowhere?

Thank you.

PS: Sorry if the text is hard to read or understand, I don’t know, my brain really doesn’t function like it should be.

2

therapy.

3

You write very well.

Have you read the advice for new guy’s sticky? - carefully? - <<<<<<<<<<<<<<

Please post lab results and ranges. Need thyroid lab data, docs really are mostly clueless about thyroid health.

Read the thyroid basics sticky. Are you getting iodized salt? Always? Check AM and mid afternoon body temperatures.

Cholesterol data can be good to have as some have too little and cholesterol is the foundation for all of your steroid hormones.

Get and retain all lab data. You have to manage your own health care.

4

Allright. I checked out the stickies you told me. Thank you for advice! And yes, I have been eating seaweed iodine capsules 1 per day, forgot to mention that. Body temperature is in fahrenheits about 98.06-98.4 throughout the day. Always been like that normally. Blood pressure is also on the lower side if thats anything to inform. Also been taking fish oil capsules.

-age - 17
-height - About 6ft (184cm)
-waist - cant tell, dont have anything to measure currenty.
-weight - 145lbs (always been skinny, never been over about 152 lbs
-describe body and facial hair - I got armpit hair, some hair in the ass area, little leg hair, one or two hair around nipples, no visible facial hair, some pubic hair. If I shave, pubic hair grows back really slowly, 2-3 months i’d say. Also pubic hair is fairly light and not that thick.
-describe where you carry fat and how changed - I dont know my bodyfat precentage but I am skinny, always had hard time to gain weight.
-health conditions, symptoms [history] - don’t got any health conditions, went to a teraphist few times talking about my ‘depression’, wasn’t any help. My symptoms, which got me thinking bout low T are sweating, fatigue, no intress in anything, hard to sleep, depression, anxiety, hard to concentrate, bad memory, slow grow rate of body hair, fairly high pitched/weak voice, brainfog.
-lab results with ranges
Glucose level was 5.5 (range of 4-6)
Thyroid hormones:
TSH: 1.87 (range of 0.50-4.90)
fT4: 16.06 (range of 10-21)
Serum Testosterone was 11.4 (which is about 330ng/dl) (range of 1-38.5 for under 18, but for over 18 [turning 18 soon] its 9.0-38.5 nmo/l)
I will get the rest of the testosterone linked hormones bloodtest results probably in monday. Also had some other bloodtests like hemoglobin taken, they were normal.
-how have morning wood and nocturnal erections changed - morning wood is not a common thing for me, also if I am able to get an erection, it is not easy to maintain. I don’t even remember when the last time I had continuosly rockhard erection.

So here is some information. I am pretty sure that these symptoms are caused by low T, but everybody else just seems to say that everything is fine. I don’t really know what to do. I don’t want low T to prevent me from growing up as man.

5

TSH is too high. How many mg’s iodine per day and for how long. If you were needing .75/1.0 grams of iodine replenishment, how many days would that take? If TSH is going to drop when you take iodine, that can take time to happen. I can see why doc thinks that your thyroid is good. Thyroid is enlarged, sore, lumpy?

Need LH/FSH to know more. If LH/FSH are low at your age, check prolactin. If prolactin is elevated, then a scan for a pituitary adinoma is justified, see the advice for new guys sticky. If LH/FSH are good, then its a problem with the testes.

6

Young man…you are the product of a “gimme generation” of pharma-marketing commercials to make you feel like something is wrong with you when there isnt. You barely have pubic hair as your stats suggest. You may have a delayed puberty. Dont worry about growing up and being a “MAN” to fast.

Im double your age and old enough to be your dad and dont worry im not going to lie and tell you T and other things dont work…they work …very well. But you need to give yourself at least a couple years after your 18th birthday of eating 6x a day and weight training and let your muscle maturity and body catch up naturally. Dont take any prohormones or A.A.S. it may interfere with your bodies natural process and endocrine system.

If your worried about looking older for the LADIES,just hit the weights and eat alot of clean food,you will be just fine…remember supplements,low T and all the AAS in the world isnt a substitute for hard work and a good foundation which includes,eating 6-8x a day and free weight training. Your body will start to adapt when you do. Its referred to as the “S.A.I.D.” principle…SPECIFIC ADAPTATION (to) IMPOSED DEMANDS…

Your a teenager and your getting lab tests done and your dont even have facial hair yet? Just be patient,you always want to be older,til your my age and your have lower back pain and a mortgage,insurance and tons of responsibilities…enjoy your youth and dont worry about LOW TESTOSTERONE…if your 20 and your looking small even after 2years of eating and training hard naturally…well then its up to you to decide whether the risks are worth the rewards.
Go eat and train!!!

7

Allright. Thank you very much for the answers. I have recently just started taking the iodine capsules. 1 tablet contains 150 micrograms of iodine. And yes, I admit that I can be too into looking at things too fast. I dont really like to be on TRT this young. I am just curious if I have somehow stunted my natural growth from all the bad lifestyle habits i’ve had, plus the excessive stress. I will post rest of the results probably tomorrow anyway for further discuss. Im just little worried about my lack of voice change, seems like it changed but never fully deepened. Delay might be the case also. The brainfog and anxiety is still there which is awful but I would of course first like to go natural way if possible. Then if symptoms and lack of physichal appearance still exists later on, I will consider other ways.

I just want to make sure I have not permanently stunted anything with the stress and lack of sleep within a year, just delayed if anything. Thats what I am interested in, that this could still be hhanled in natural ways. But as I believe you guys have large knowledge on this area, I would be happy to take all advices about raising testosterone naturally and having more masculine appearance. I will start eating more and continue training first at home with my weight gear here. And I believe its not too late to testosterone take effect on voice? Thanks for the answers and will be getting rest of the test results tomorrow.

8

But yeah about the pubic hair, its been there since 13, just really reslly slow growing.

EDIT:

Here comes the rest of the test results:

FSH: 2.7 IU/l(1.4-18.1)
LH: 4.48 IU/l (1.5-9.3)
Prolactin: 195 mIU/l (53-360)
SHBG: 35.10 nmo/l (17.0-66.0)

What does those say to anybody here? Normal or not?

9

Also wondering if I need to take free t also, or are those other lab tests enough.

10

Anybody got any opinions about the rest of the test results I posted? Advice would be really welcome.

11

At 150 micrograms, it will take 5000 days to get .75grams of iodine. You cannot fix a deficiency with a dose like that, read the sticky.

FSH/LH seem OK, consistent with your T levels.

SHBG seems consistent with lower E2 levels. Suggest E2 labs as E2 can be directly manipulated if needed and SHBG cannot. Prolactin is good, so that is not a source of your problems.

In a situation like this, perhaps a SERM based HPTA restart might get things moving. Suggest Nolvadex, not Clomid.

Check total cholesterol to see if too low. 180 is ideal.

12

Hello! I am back with some more information. So I went and did some more bloodwork lately. Today I had appointment with a dcotor. We discussed about my bloodwork. I was surprised founding that my current total testosterone is suddenly doubled. Without doing nothing. Last time it was 11 nmo/l (330ng/dl), now it was 24 nmo/l (690 ng/dl). My overall feeling is still shitty and brains are not working at all. Libido is also low and erections are hard to maintain.

BUT, my SHBG was still about the same, 3 points lower tough. LH has raised a bit, from 4.5 to 4.6, so yeah. So is this really normal that all the sudden just testosterone is almost doubled from the last time without doing nothing different, except keep taking the vitamins and some zinc.

Now I will come to my thyroid hormones. I see KSMan is very knowledgeable with these. My free T4 has raised nearly 4 points. From 16 pmo/l to almost 20 pmo/l, upper reference range being 19-21, depending on the lab. TSH has went from 1.87 to 2.2 mU/I. Now they also took free T3, which was 5.9 pmo/l. I see the upper reference range goes to 6.8 pmo/l. Are these thyroid labs normal or do these indicate to hyperthyroidism?

I really appreciate all the answers! Doctor said that all my symptomps are just depression and that I should start eating SSRI’s. He thinks my bloodwork are excellent. What do you think?

13

Please edit your post above and put labs in list format with lab ranges, need more than upper limits.

Excellent labs? what about CBC and fasting cholesterol [can be too low]

Hyperthyroidism: Your body temps were low. And now? rT3 can lead to higher TSH and T3, T4 with low temperatures. Stress can lead to adrenal fatigue and elevated rT3. See the thyroid basics sticky.

14

Here are my labs now along with the ranges. Some units might differ, becouse I live in Europe. But reference ranges are here:

Cortisol, was taken at 10am, should been taken at 7-9, so it is (lower?):
Cortisol: 564 nmol/l (150-650nmo/l)
LH: 4.6 U/I (1.5-9.3)
Prolactin: 239 mU/l (50-300)
SHBG: 32 nmo/l (15-48)
fT3: 5.9 pmo/l (2.6-6)
ft4: 19.7 pmo/l (9-19)
TSH: 2.2 mU/l (0.5-3.6)
Total Testosterone: 24 nmol/l (690ng/dl) (10-38)
Free Testosterone was calculated in strange way for me. They dont have ref. ranges for this. It says Testo/SHBG = 750, doctor told me it was normal.

Here are my current labs. Anything abnormal? Reasons for my testosterone to raise could be taking zinc, magnesium, D3, multivitamin, and l-tryptophan with b-vitamin complex and not drinking alcohol for almost 5 months. Im just afraid that if I have keeped my testosterone down for long time that this could have harmed my growth and masculinity. My anxiety is still there, maybe little less than before. Brainfog is continuing, cant concentrate, think clearly, memory is poor etc. Libido is still on the low side. What should I do now on?

Plus here is my CBC back in the end of June:

Red blood cell count: 4.7 (4.3-5.7)
Hemoglobin: 148 g/l (134-164)
Platelet count: 121 (150-360)
Hematocrit: 42 (35-46)
White blood cell count: 5.9 (3.4-8.2)
(units may differ, im not sure)

EDIT: I have also been reading about adrenal fatigue lately. I am sure that the events that happened in my life 2-3 years ago put me on a lot of stress and finally I just couldnt handle all the stress. 90% of the symptoms I got. I have been feeling better of course with almost half a year rest from school etc. and been supplementing with different products, which seems to work. Here most of the doctors aren’t really open minded towards the rT3 and adrenal fatigue stuff. But this doctor I’ve been in contact would like to get the 24 hour salvia test done. I think high stress was/is the main cause to my testosterone levels fall and maybe other hormones too. Tell me what you think :slight_smile:

15

So can anybody say about my opinions and lab results? :slight_smile: I have meeting with naturopath next friday and gonna talk about adrenal fatigue and rt3 testing stuff. Been feeling better with this new magnesium supplement along with others I take. And are those home tests viable for diagnosing adrenal fatigue? Like using flashlight in dark and watch if pupils will change sizes, when they should stay small. Becouse my pupils start rapidly changing size after a while. Thanks!

16

Listen to me, Buck100. You are a 17 y.o. pubescent child with stone-cold normal labs under the care of a physician who knows and has examined you. There is no reason for you to tinker with your hormone levels, and irrevocable damage to your long-term health may result if you do so. For God’s sake, stop trying to diagnose yourself and GET OFF THIS SUBFORUM.

17

[quote]EyeDentist wrote:
Listen to me, Buck100. You are a 17 y.o. pubescent child with stone-cold normal labs under the care of a physician who knows and has examined you. There is no reason for you to tinker with your hormone levels, and irrevocable damage to your long-term health may result if you do so. For God’s sake, stop trying to diagnose yourself and GET OFF THIS SUBFORUM. [/quote]

Look, I know. But back then I really felt like shit and got a lot of symptoms which didn’t go away by just focusing on other things. just recently I have been seeing improvement in my overall feeling, with still some existing symptoms. Plus I used a lot of alcohol some time ago and wondered if that could have harmed anything. Just wanted to make sure, I am sorry if I annoy someone. I had my concerns.

18

[quote]Buck100 wrote:

[quote]EyeDentist wrote:
Listen to me, Buck100. You are a 17 y.o. pubescent child with stone-cold normal labs under the care of a physician who knows and has examined you. There is no reason for you to tinker with your hormone levels, and irrevocable damage to your long-term health may result if you do so. For God’s sake, stop trying to diagnose yourself and GET OFF THIS SUBFORUM. [/quote]

Look, I know. But back then I really felt like shit and got a lot of symptoms which didn’t go away by just focusing on other things. just recently I have been seeing improvement in my overall feeling, with still some existing symptoms. Plus I used a lot of alcohol some time ago and wondered if that could have harmed anything. Just wanted to make sure, I am sorry if I annoy someone. I had my concerns.[/quote]

I’m not telling you to leave the subform for being annoying (which you’re not). It’s because you are an adolescent, and thus have no business putting any prescription hormone-altering chemicals in your body (unless recommended by your personal physician).

19

My final post on the subject. As a father (you are the same age as my youngest) and a physician, I am imploring you to not do this–don’t start taking anything not prescribed by your doctor. You may end up regretting it for the rest of your life.

20

[quote]EyeDentist wrote:
My final post on the subject. As a father (you are the same age as my youngest) and a physician, I am imploring you to not do this–don’t start taking anything not prescribed by your doctor. You may end up regretting it for the rest of your life.[/quote]

You are absolutely right. I am NOT going to do anything like that on my own. All the supplements I have taken are available to everybody at stores. They have seemed to help. I originally created this thread becouse I really found out my T levels were low. But as the new bloodwork shows, I got normal t levels now. Those can of course change but Im not saying that my doc is wrong. Maybe this forum aint the right then, if my t levels are now normal but symptoms exists. Just tought that there are experienced people here that could comment on my bloodwork, plus I asked about the adrenal fatigue thing, but as said, this might not be the best place then anymore.

But no, I am not going to do anything that would mess me up.