I am adding anastrozole to my protocol. Pre TRT my estrogen was 14. I have patiently been going no AI for over a year. I have tried lower T dosages. I have small gyno that has worsened with TRT that occasionally becomes inflamed. Erections are worse than before TRT. Cialis doesn’t work anymore. My torso always looks kind of watery. Overly emotional at strange moments, like when talking about scenes in movies. Libido substandard. If my E2 gets to the 50s my penis literally becomes numb. Like I could flick it and I wont even feel anything. I state this to convey the idea that perhaps I am very sensetive to E2.
protocol is 50mg EOD. (180 weekly)
All on the labcorp ranges
TT 1350
FT 26
E2 37
SHBG 39
So my plan is to take .125mg of anastrozole ED. This works out to .875mg a week. Does anyone have any thoughts on this? Flame away or offer support. I’d love to hear any and all input. So despite the title, I actually do care about your input.
I think for some, high FT is needed, which sometimes comes with too high of an E2. It’s as if your body doesn’t make the correct proportion of FT to E2.
The natural solution? Lower the test amount. BUT, this sometimes takes away the libido or the pros of TRT.
So an ai may be necessary.
I think try it, but lower your ai amount.
ALSO, have you thought that your E2 is actually too low for your TT amount?
With E2 at 37, if you are going to do this start with 0.125 EOD at most. Maybe just do Monday and Thursday to start. Start low then wait and see how you feel. Small adjustments are much easier to dial in than large ones.
I have never thought my E2 was too low because at one point I was having insane high E2 symptoms (tried HCG). Like my dick had shriveled up into nothing and I couldn’t even feel it. I ordered bloodwork to see what was up and my E2 was at about 59.
I had an incredible honeymoon phase. I also had a smaller yet profound honeymoon phase when I raised my dosage from 140 to 180. I hypothesize that my T to E ratio increase temporarily, but as my body caught up to aromatizing, the ratio again balanced out which leaves me feeling high E2.
I just did the same thing. I increased my T dose for mood improvement but libido didn’t feel nearly as good as the lower dose. I decided to add 0.25mg Adex / week and libido fired right back up to full force within 2 days. Been on it for almost 3 weeks now and it’s working great for me with no negative sides.
I would recommend you start with 0.25mg / week and work up if you need to. Get blood tests done before each dosage increase so you know where your levels are as a reference point.
I think that is a better starting place than 0.875 mg a week. My Dr told me, that he expects a ~10 point drop in E2 from 0.125 mg of adex a week. That seems like a lot, but then again many crash their E2 with adex.
I have noted all the input on starting with a lower dose. Thats what I am going to do.
The good thing about E2 is that even if I crash my estrogen, which I have done before in a previous life with Letrozole, it will rebound pretty quickly. I have seen plenty of people on here stating that it takes a long time to recover from crashed E2. I do not understand this idea unless they are talking about Exemestane.
I followed the advice of everyone online claiming AI’s should be avoided at all costs and wound up not feeling well at all. Tons of water retention, mild BP elevation, dick problems, bad sleep, sore nipples. I started anastrazole as prescribed at 0.125mg twice weekly with injections and all these issues were resolved quickly. Then I increased test to 200mg/wk and feel even better.
Long-term, AI is not an ideal solution, as it is active in many tissues throughout the body, including arterial walls. My long-term plan is to lean out to an absurd degree and then try dropping the AI. My biggest complaint was nipple soreness from aggravated pubertal gyno. I suppose I could deal with forking over money and several weeks of recovery and just get the glands cut out. Seems obnoxious, though.
I think the stigma around the AI is that guys come on here all the time saying their TRT makes them worse, then we come to find out they’re on 1-3mg of Adex per week. Start low and intelligently and you shouldn’t have a problem.
There was a very pro-AI creed here a few years ago, and then there was a “No AI ever” movement. Personally, I think that it’s best to start with no AI or HCG, and figure out what the test does to you alone and get it dialed in more or less. If you find at that point that you need an AI for some reason (You do you, body chemistry varies) then ease into it with the smallest possible starting dose and be hesitant to up it. A lot of guys walk out of clinics with a 1 or 2 mg a week anastrozole prescription and can’t figure out why their E2 is <5 and they feel like crap.
Alright. I think I am going to split the difference and dose MWF. I wonder how long it’ll be if I start to feel better probably a couple weeks is think.
I haven’t measured it. I just know that my symptoms are resolved and I don’t have any joint pain which is a hallmark of low E2. Will be interesting to find out next time I get my bloods.
My experience, if I took the AI and felt better in a few hours, I knew I fucked up and took too much, and indeed spent a week or so feel low. If you’re doing EOD, give it 5-10 days and you should start feeling better
I don’t get joint pain. I’ve knocked mine to “<8”, which means they couldn’t measure it. No joint issues, no clicking. What I did get was two pulls in a week in the gym. Left pec and a hamstring (If I remember correctly). Don’t rely on “Hallmark” symptoms.