Question about Libido/Performance 7 Months In

Pharma / TRT Testosterone Replacement
1

Hello all. Long time lurker, would like to thank everyone here for the incredible knowledge base and now have a question.

Bit of background on me.
41yrs old, working out regularly last 20yrs, good shape around 17%bf.

Started trt about 7 months ago after being tired of fatigue, poor mood and general lack of drive. Had blood test and it confirmed what I had always suspected. T level of 330.
Started trt with 200mg of test cyp.
Was one of the lucky ones who took right away week 1. Felt like a million bucks on day 3 and had tons of energy, positive mood and incredible workouts. Was truly a life changing experience like someone turned on the lights.

FF a few weeks and blood tests confirmed it, T level of 1086. E was high too at 46. Doc put me on ai at .25 x3 day after injection.
Things going well, in the following months the big boost I felt tapered off but still felt good. Next blood work was t in the 900’s and E at 30’s.

Next test T in the 800’s.
Then I felt like I hit a wall, tired and just bla. Next blood work showed that the boys stopped production and I was down the low 500’s. Doc put me on hcg 250 units 2x per week. After week 2 of this I felt the boys get back to normal size and energy restored to acceptable levels.

All this time my libido was insane. Probably because I really never had a problem in that area to begin with but the trt turbo charged it. Having sex 5x per night with my gf was the norm. After climax I was ready to go 10 mins later and had very strong erections.
Due to have my bloodwork checked again in about 2 weeks.

Here lies my new issue. The last few times with my gf I had a huge drop in performance to the point she even asked what was wrong, even asked if I was not attracted to her anymore. I was able to perform fine for round one but after that I was done, no more erection or anything. Performance was fine the one time but going from several times a night with constant wood to one time and limp rope after freaked her out…to tell you the truth it freaked me out even more.

Anyone else encounter a similar situation? Plan on talking with my doc this week and getting his input and maybe see if we can do blood sooner to get a complete picture but got to tell you that this is freaking me out. Is like going from a pornstar and back down to a one performance night. am sure worrying about it isn’t making it better either. Also noticed that the workouts are hit or miss, sometimes good but other times just going thru the motions and generally beat after.

Sorry for the long post but I didn’t want to miss anything. Any ideas or suggestions? Thanks in adavance.

2

More often than not, a libido issue while on TRT is related to estradiol. Either it’s too high or too low. So I’d be curious to see where your E2 is on your next set of labs.

That doesn’t mean that there couldn’t be a separate issue causing this, it’s just commonly attributed to E2 values.

3

[quote]AlwaysUp wrote:
More often than not, a libido issue while on TRT is related to estradiol. Either it’s too high or too low. So I’d be curious to see where your E2 is on your next set of labs.

That doesn’t mean that there couldn’t be a separate issue causing this, it’s just commonly attributed to E2 values.[/quote]

Thanks, I am thinking the same thing. Called the doc this morning and they said they will do blood this week when I drop in for my weekly treatment.

4

[quote]Under20073 wrote:
Next test T in the 800’s.

All this time my libido was insane. Probably because I really never had a problem in that area to begin with but the trt turbo charged it. Having sex 5x per night with my gf was the norm. After climax I was ready to go 10 mins later and had very strong erections.[/quote]

Okay, well, that just gives pretty much all the rest of us an inferiority complex. :slight_smile:

5

[quote]seekonk wrote:

[quote]Under20073 wrote:
Next test T in the 800’s.

All this time my libido was insane. Probably because I really never had a problem in that area to begin with but the trt turbo charged it. Having sex 5x per night with my gf was the norm. After climax I was ready to go 10 mins later and had very strong erections.[/quote]

Okay, well, that just gives pretty much all the rest of us an inferiority complex. :slight_smile:
[/quote]

LOL, just read my post again. Does kinda sound bad, sorry.
If it helps she does not live with me and we are both pretty busy during the week so we usually see each other on the weekends so we need to make the most of the time, haha…I couldn’t do that every night I would be dead, am not 18 anymore.

6

Test prolactin.

7

[quote]Igs wrote:
Test prolactin.[/quote]
Thanks, will do that.
Not very educated on prolactin, what would cause an abnormal level and what would be the action to regulate it?

8

How long before you began your protocol did you start dating? I find that I can nail a new gf 3 times every night without a break for about the first 6-8 months. After that I get maybe a little bored? It seems to get routine after that and I normally only go once.

9

[quote]C27 H40 O3 wrote:
How long before you began your protocol did you start dating? I find that I can nail a new gf 3 times every night without a break for about the first 6-8 months. After that I get maybe a little bored? It seems to get routine after that and I normally only go once. [/quote]
Have been dating about 3 months now so it’s still fairly new. Began trt 7 months ago Should add that have been feeling kinda “off” throught the day this week out of nowhere, kinda of lethargic yesterday.
My appointment for my draw is Thursday so guessing i should have results Monday.

10

You inject once weekly right? Have you tried splitting your dose into twice a week injections?

11

Yes, injecting once per week and also recently added hcg the last 4 weeks.
Have heard there are benefits of splitting up the T dosage but really never felt the drag or dip so have stuck to one. I also go to the office to get my injection so 2x per week would be a real pain.

What gets me is that I just started feeling kinda bla, was fine with the once a week and dosage the previous months/weeks.
The more I read the more I am thinking it may be the AI I am taking. When I first started trt the doc did not have me on any AI, I felt great and had lots of energy. Then when my E was up to 46 he asked if I was having any symptoms associated with high E. I had some water bloat and nips were kind of sore. That’s when I was put on arimidex .25 x 3 days after injection. E numbers came down to 20’s. Starting to wonder if perhaps that is too low for me.
The other fly in the ointment is the hcg which was recently added after the boys below decided to shut down. Can physically feel they are back in business and I for sure feel better than when I crashed before starting it. But that is about the only other variable I can come up with.
Guess all will be shown when I get my draw. Would be great if it is something easy like dump the AI or decrease the dosage and get back to where I was.

12

Yes, it is quite possible that it is too much AI. Test results are not always helpful; most guys have to experiment based on symptoms. You can skip the AI for a week and see if you improve during that time. Then either leave it or restart the AI at a lower dose.

13

UPDATE
Went in a day early to get my blood drawn. Don’t have the full results in my hand but the doc called me with the results over the phone today. Test in the high 900’s, thyroid numbers good and E of 27. E sounds good but there is more regarding this.

As many have guessed he too is pointing to my estrogen levels making me feel worn out and crappy.
Oddly enough he said that the issue may be both too low and too high of levels like a see-saw.

He explained…i was doing .25 of arimidex for 3 consecutive days after my weekly injection. He is guessing that this is suppressing the level too much resulting in too little E. Then the next few days without it my test maybe swinging back converting resulting in high E levels. Then before you know it i go back in for my weekly injection and the cycle repeats.
He suggested reducing the arimidex frequency, rather than 3 days in a row starting the day after treatment he ordered me to try .25 day after then skip a day and on day 3 after take .25, done.

Will give it a shot, i can’t wait to be out of this funk and back to my old self.
Doc said i sbould notice thing relatively quick at 1 to 2 weeks. Will see.

14

You know brother,so many factors in ones life can affect your sex drive.Stress,diet,work,etc.I wouldn’t really worry about it.It happens to all of us from time to time.

More importantly,you said you couldn’t go a 2nd time? Just more reason to not worry.If it were that you couldn’t perform at all,it may raise a brow,that would warrant further attention but for a 2nd time? Nah.

Look at the outside factors in your life right now that I mentioned and see if any of those could possibly be the culprit before you start labeling the TRT as it.Stress especially can have dramatic sides effects on not only your mind but your little guy.Sometimes just getting a little time away with your lady can work miracles.Even if its just a day trip to a nice hotel.

Keep us posted with how it goes.

15

[quote]F.I.S.T. wrote:
You know brother,so many factors in ones life can affect your sex drive.Stress,diet,work,etc.I wouldn’t really worry about it.It happens to all of us from time to time.

More importantly,you said you couldn’t go a 2nd time? Just more reason to not worry.If it were that you couldn’t perform at all,it may raise a brow,that would warrant further attention but for a 2nd time? Nah.

Look at the outside factors in your life right now that I mentioned and see if any of those could possibly be the culprit before you start labeling the TRT as it.Stress especially can have dramatic sides effects on not only your mind but your little guy.Sometimes just getting a little time away with your lady can work miracles.Even if its just a day trip to a nice hotel.

Keep us posted with how it goes.[/quote]

Thanks a lot. Good points and I get what you’re saying.
But the more annoying thing is being so beat everyday when just a few weeks ago i had energy. Now by 5pm i am yawning and void of energy. It’s this lack of energy and feeling so tired is what really set of alarms for me. Agree about stress being a mf and really messing with ones health.

16

It is not all just hormone-related necessarily. Case in point - on weed I can go several times in the span of 2-3 hours. Without weed I can only go at most once on a given day. Yet weed isn’t a hormone.

17

2/11/15 Update.
Good news. Things feel a hell of a lot better. Looks like too much AI was to blame causing too low E and then too high E.
Thanks to everyone for chiming in earlier.
I still have some fatigue but am marking that up to no being in my 20’s or 30’s anymore, lol. Not normal to be yawing at 5pm till I go to bed but to hell with it I guess.
Much better workouts and just overall well being. Amazing how E levels can really put a damper on things. Guessing that next week I should really be able to gauge how I feel since it will give my body 2 weeks to be off the previous AI schedule that beat me down.