No HCG. I tried it a few months ago but felt worse on it.
After a couple more weeks on 2mg valerate/day I’m continuing to feel better.
If libido, sensitivity, and EQ were all 9’s prior to low-T symptoms several years ago (and they all bottomed out at 0-1 at the peak of symptoms), I’d say libido is back to a 7 or 8; sensitivity back to the same; and EQ is probably back to a 5. Since starting daily valerate, each of these ratings are much better than they’ve been at any point since starting TRT a little over two years ago.
A couple of weeks after I kicked up from 1mg to 2mg, so around 6 weeks after I started EV.
EQ is still not ideal but better than before, and libido and sensitivity are nearly back to pre-TRT.
I definitely still see some of the perpetual confounders some have on our hormonal journey where we have discordant desire and erections. Sometimes hard as a rock but lacking desire; sometimes horny as a teen playing tonsil hockey but with whiskey dick; and sometimes it syncs up right.
All in all though definitely the best I’ve felt in years. I think my sleep is better too, and it’s been easier to add muscle at the gym. Strangely, the little bit of acne I’ve had since going on TRT also disappeared on my face since going on E2V. Still have a little on my shoulders but it’s no worse than it’s been since going on TRT 2.5 years ago.
I don’t know that there’s clinical support for this, but having appropriate ratios of E2 and Free T feels like its a thing. If you got low levels of free circuclating sex hormones (both T and E2), boosting T may help some but resolution or continued improvement may require ensuring E2 levels are also adequate (either via aromatization or supplementation).
I’m interested to hear about this. I’m having a similar libido issue, and suspect low SHBG to be my problem. Everything else is perfect with my bloodwork. Getting SHBG checked on Monday. The last time I had it checked my SHBG was 12 with a lab range of 10-50.
Yea so taking e2 pills causes a rise in SHBG - I’m curious to see if the correlation between everyone feeling great on e2 is because they had low SHBG and this raised it. Or if it truly is just that some people feel good with high e2 levels. The reason I think it’s more the SHBG though is a few stories have been from people who have ran high e2 before through HCG or large T doses and this was not what made them feel good - it was the exogenous e2.
Anyone who has pre/post labs to show their markers before and after please chime in.
OR also if you don’t have labs but were low SHBG and e2 helped also please chime in.
Can anyone explain though in that can’t we use a lower dose and everything is fine. Is it a like for like exchange in that lower SHBG dudes have more free androgens and don’t need too much TT compared to higher SHBG guys that need more to have more free androgens. Or is it simply not a like for like exchange how I am thinking?
Brief dumbed down TLTR version please if anyone can.
Edit: to explain further, why should the goal be to go higher dose and “improve” SHBG, rather than lower the dose and stay lower SHBG? Granted FT and other stuff remain similar or the same with only TT being different.
P.S - I do hope some blood work is done, but so far I am glad there is some clarification here in that it’s a not a pro E2 loving agenda. It’s specifically ORAL E2 pills that are doing something as a whole, otherwise simply raising E2 by other means including HCG would be the simple solution.
Just my guess, but SHBG isn’t just a prison cell for testosterone (and other sex hormones). It’s transport into the cell, where the T separates and hits the AR. It’s a bus taking Test along for the ride, delivering it to tissues. It has a regulatory effect on sex hormone action. I would thinking having more SHBG than less, esp when we can modulate TT with injections, would be the better way to go
