Hello to everyone! I am a new member here. I have been reading various topics with regard to trt but first time posting something here. As the title says my major problem is social anxiety. I was using anabolic steroids for many years in the past (almost non stop) but I never had serious social anxiety problems like now. My issues started after I stopped the use of anabolic steroids, I tried to restart my natural production without success for a year and a half and during this period I had many many symptoms, so I thought it was time to start trt to find some relief.
Unfortunately trt made things even worse and my anxiety became unbearable so I decided to go to a psychiatrist for the first time in my life, they tried many medicines on me without success or even worsening my condition. Finally after many medicines and trial and error we found a medicine that helped slightly (cymbalta 120 mg) so that I can be borderline functional at least. I have done thorough bloodwork and other tests and everything came back fine. My thyroid is an issue but it was like that since 2012 and I never had problems back then (my tsh levels fluctuate from 1,7-5,7 throughout these years) the rest of the tests were always fine ft3, ft4, antibodies and ultrasound.
Lately I decided to lower down cymbalta dosage from 120 to 60 due to side effects which I know is too fast and at the same time I increased my testosterone dosage from 120 mg per week divided into two injection to 150 mg per week divided into two injections again.That puts me above normal range, my shbg is at the bottom of the range and my e2 is twice as high as the normal range, my prolactin is OK (I will post bloodwork later, because I don’t have them with me now). I have definitely noticed some pros by reducing the antidepressant and increasing the testosterone (less fatigue, less brain fog) but on the other hand my social anxiety and anxiety in general is getting worse.
My major issues are mental that means inability to concentrate or hold a conversation with someone and feeling nervous and not myself around people in general. Of course lowering the dosage of an antidepressant in half is gonna bring some withdrawal symptoms but I would like to know if someone had a bad experience with hi estradiol levels (with regards to anxiety) and if it gets better by using a very low dosage of an antiestrogen like arimidex. I don’t wanna crash my estrogen obviously but at the same time I don’t wanna lower my testosterone as I can feel some benefits from the higher dosage. Thanks in advance for any replies!!!
I used to inject 20 mg eod but my estrogen were still out of range and my social anxiety still high, I gave this protocol more than two months before I moved to twice a week injections. The only way for me I guess to lower my e2 levels without an ai is to go on a super low dosage like 60-70 mg per week which will put me between 300-550 testosterone in best case scenario sth that obviously is not an option, that’s why I was thinking to introduce a very small dosage of anastrozole like 0,125 mg twice a week after injections and lower my dosage a bit down to 120 mg per week split into two injections. I know that the new trend is against using aromatase inhibitors and obviously the less medicines you take the better it is but I would like to try it and see if it has any positive effect on my social anxiety. What do you think?
Hi!!! I have tried many things (supplements and pharmaceuticals) the only one that helped slightly was cymbalta high dosage 90-120 mg per day but it has many many side effects that’s why I decided to lower the dosage down to 60 mg. I have tried thc and cbd but they don’t help that much, but from what I have heard cbd needs time to work so I might give it one more try.
Inject daily. There’s a reason why its great for mitigating issues that come with large spikes. Im low SHBG and have to inject daily. Estrogen levels are nice and steady too.
Hi!!!You inject intramuscularly I guess with insulin needle probably on the shoulders. If I inject daily even 10 mg will be enough I guess. I can’t understand how I was able when using steroids to inject a gram a week without antiestrogens and now I can’t handle such a low dosage. Do you take aromatase inhibitors? Did you have anxiety problems?
I’ve never understood this. If I’m ailing and there’s something that will help me, I’m going to take it. Seem silly to suffer cos you’ve got a 2 drug limit. Assuming there aren’t glaring and horrible side effects, I don’t care how many meds I take
Ive had similar issues with anxiety. High dose oral pregnenolone 100 mg twice per day and 8mg of progesterone cream twice per day has helped very much.
No I haven’t used drugs or alcohol for more than 3-4 years. The only medicine I take is cymbalta 60 mg (lowered recently from 120 due to side effects). I drink two coffees a day and smoke 5-8 cigarettes. What is weird is that when I was 10-12 years younger I used to do stupid things like doing hard steroids like trenbolone and cocaine and weed at the same time and I never had anxiety problems. I can’t understand what changed after I remained hypogonadal for a year and a half. Also psychiatric drugs tend to make me worse especially antipsychotics and benzos the less I take the better I feel. As for the second question, no I haven’t tried Sq injections so far.
You are right about that! I am just a bit concerned about my cholesterol levels and the possibility to crash my e2 levels but I guess if I start really low dosage like 0,125 twice a week I am gonna be fine, I am not sure if it is gonna help my anxiety but it is worth a try. I am not sure if I should take it after my injections or the next day though. Also is it ok to cut the pill with a pill cutter and weight it on a microgram scale to adjust the dosage?
I asked because of personal experience. Guess you can rule that out, lol. Some believe, anecdotally, that subq levels the release and mitigates spikes of both T and e2. However, I do not believe there are any studies to support this (doesn’t mean it is not true).
I have injected subq and noticed no difference in my t-levels (DR. did not test e2).
I would encourage meditation, breathwork, and yoga. Hope it works out for you - anxiety is a bitch.
I think being occasionally anxious is part of being human, but I definitely feel relief. Both high and low estrogen have negative impacts on mood.
Too low and I am totally disconnected and uninterested in my wife and other relationships. Low e2 makes me feel emotionless, empty, uninterested, dehydrated etc.
High estrogen isn’t great either, but I’d prefer it over low. It can at times make me feel more emotional and hold some water weight.
Right now I injected 24mg of test cyp sub-q every day. I also rotate between kisspeptin-10 and gonadorelin because I can’t can’t tolerate hcg.
If I take anastrazole, it’s never more than 1/4mg once per week. As I said, pregnenolone 100 mg once in the am and once in the afternoon and once in the evening. 8mg progesterone cream applied to nuts, once in the morning and once in the afternoon/evening.
The nice thing about progesterone is can help mitigate and block some estrogen if it’s high.
What’s interesting, is that I tried progesterone when I first started TRT and it made me feel “bad/off”, so I abandoned it. Now, about 5 years later, it definitely makes me feel better. I have theories why that I wont bore you with.
Thanks for the info!!! I will definitely check them out. Have you tried the intravenous injections or just the supplements? Have you been on antidepressants, I am on cymbalta but they don’t help a lot and I have many cognitive issues, I want to come off of them!
I have taken 20 different psychiatric medicines within two years. Honestly they didn’t help and made things worse. The only one that helped was klonopin but I built tolerance so fast and it was awful coming off of it. The other one that helped a bit is cymbalta but it has many side effects and the cons definitely outweigh the pros so I want to come off of it and optimize my hormones instead. Do you think progesterone cream and pregnenolone might help me to come off of it (I am on 60 mg now). Also what is weird is that yesterday for a few hours before my shot (I lowered the dosage to 60 mg twice per week now) I was feeling much better, today which the day after my shot I feel a bit more anxious again, I think it has something to do either with my testosterone (I can’t handle high level anymore) or e2 they go way too high. What do you think? Is it worth to give a try to anastrozole small dosage?Maybe 0,125 mg twice per week, I am not sure though if I should take it along with my injections or the next day.
I havent had any experiences with klonopin, so I can’t give any feedback there. I wouldn’t change more than 1 variable at a time. If you do, any changes experienced on your end will leave you wondering what was responsible.
I’ve experienced what you described; feeling better after allowing my levels to drop, whether it be from delaying my injection or through dose reduction.
It takes time for e2 levels to rise after T levels rise, so I doubt it’s that if we’re talking about the same day after injections. I also wouldnt assume your e2 is high without get a male sensitive e2 test. If it’s not high, you’ll create more problems for yourself by taking an AI.
Testosterone is adrenergic, so at a certain individual dose for everyone, it will increase heart rate, blood pressure and essentially, put your heart and mind more into fight or flight.
You have 2 options to try:
Lower your dose
Keep your dose the same and first only introduce progesterone cream 8 mg twice per day to your testes. See if this helps and make no other changes for a month so you know the effects. If that helps and solves the issue great, be content.
2b. After a month, you could try adding pregnenolone if you’re experiencing brain fog. I’d start with 100 mg in the AM. One issue you could run into by high dose pregnenolone is it does convert to progesterone and high levels of progesterone can cause issues too. Read those 2 articles I posted.