T is Very High, Doc Wants to Try TRT

Pharma TRT
41

Wow, I’m gone all day and this kinda blew up, didn’t mean to start a fight but the robust debate is very much appreciated! I’ll try to catch up.

You’re very perceptive to assume I had a visit to a phych, yes I did , maybe a dozen years ago, because of the overlap in symptoms I thought it might be prudent to see what they thought. Your analogy of the hammer and the nail fits those guys really well, “try some Wellbutrin or Prozac” I asked why? are my blood levels low? You seem to think TRT Docs are handing out too much candy, from my experience I think the phych guys are worse. I ran the other way, really don’t like drugs. To be fair, maybe I just got a Doc that wasn’t a good match for me. I think we’re all depressed to some degree, unless you’re full on manic. I’m looking elsewhere because my symptoms are so damn physical

I Google searched “Boron to lower SHBG” third line down by “Redcon1” I thought it was a good read, I’m sure you’re more knowledgeable than I, I’m curious to see your opinion.

Exactly my thoughts, and may I add, “within normal Ranges!” and “under an experienced Doctors supervision!”

Are we really arguing rather I had low T symptoms or not when I was younger, early 40’s, none, late 40’s starting to notice something changing, early 50’s, still capable of finishing near the top of 3+ hour offroad MC races but really hurting, and no recovery, down hill ever since.

I’m not even sure what permablasting is, would bringing my total and free T levels up closer to the top of the normal range be considered permablasting???I could raise my total by 31% and more than double my free and still be in the normal reference range. Seriously, would you rather see me experiment with prozac? Ok, that was below the belt, I appreciate your stance, what would you do if you were me?

I looked thru my records and could find none. I have an appointment in early January along with blood tests. I’ll run it by my Doc and see what he says.

Thanks for that, I feel better already!

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42

Don’t pay for FSH and LH now. That is something you want before taking testosterone. On the other hand, if your doctor is willing to run those, it says something about him.

Good luck.

43

Interesting topic.

I am going to give you my unexperienced opinion. I´m not on TRT and from time to time I suffer with I believe are low T issues (Total in 280 to 330 and Free T around 8 to 10). But, it´s not yet the time, perhaps because I haven´t found a decent doctor yet to work with the process.

Your total T is amazing. It would be nice to see FSH and LH values before you have started. If you ever come off TRT, just give it 2 or 3 months and re-acess.

Your Free T is a bit low. Perhaps, as explained, by high SBHG. Ths may be linked to your symptoms. I also have a really hard time recovering physically from everything. Still, I insist in trying to do exercise regularly.

What I would do is to understand how to decrease SBHG and take advantage of the T your body naturally produces.

If that doesn´t work, you may have to explore the route of replacing your natural production. But maybe this involves controlling other hormones that will also fluctuate.

Why not trying to control SBHG first ? Eventually stress increases SBHG, Fish oil and Boron may reduce it. If possible, just do an exam to check on your Boron levens in blood. This is what I would do before jumping on TRT.

Nonetheless, you are already 68 years old. This means you´re not young boy anymore and some things just become a bit harder to do as everything ages in the body. But, this doesn´t mean that you don´t need and deserve to be listened and seek a normal happy life. Of course you do. Good luck !

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This is not really an option. I haven’t seen any truly effective methods of ‘naturally’ doing this. Not with boron or anything else. A few points movement, maybe, but not anything significant without drugs.

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45

You may want to re-consider sharing this recollection. At this juncture, and given your labs, it really hasn’t aged well.

Ditto this one.

You’re acting like ‘those guys’–the ones who criticize and laud doctors solely on the basis of whether the doc tells you what you want to hear and gives you what you want to be given. The shrink who detected possible depression? A pill pusher. Your fellowship-trained endocrinologist who touted your better-than-normal T numbers as indicating euhormonal status? An automaton who can’t see beyond his lab sheet. OTOH, your ‘wellness’ (or whatever he calls himself) doc who drew labs for no apparent reason, but is willing to give you T? That guy, he’s a good doc–he gets it.

Why would using prozac be an ‘experiment,’ but jacking up your normal-to-high T levels isn’t?

I would talk to my PCP (assuming I respected/trusted them) about this long and unpleasant journey, ask for their help, and allow him/her to do their job.

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Thanks for joining in. That was my first thought also, Doc said I’d need to change my genetics. I don’t do fish oil (pills) but I try to eat a can of sardines most days.

I think I tried to not paint with a broad brush when I included “to be fair, the doc probably wasn’t good fit for me”

When I first tried to address this problem my PCP sent me to an endocrinologist, I told him I was eating a ton of soy products and from what I was reading at the time I was concerned it might be affecting my hormones’. He looked at me like I had two heads, said he’d never heard of that, I realized I needed to find a TRT specialist.

Not sure if that was said, but you’re right, jacking up T would be an experiment, just like trying prozac. I’d just prefer to experiment with levels of something that’s already in my body before resorting to a chemical. I regret that I’m in a spot that I’m willing to experiment, I pride myself on living and eating really clean, it took decades to get here, but I’m here.

I’ve done that over the years, I think it’s such a common complaint that they tend to push it aside. I’ll be seeing my PCP in late Jan. I’ll discuss my TRT doctor visits with him. Thanks!!

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One of the most nutrient dense foods out there. Get them WITH the bones and skin.

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Tiny tots, 12- 22 per can, little guys, only the heads are gone. Eat’em with non pasteurized sour kraut, and beet kraut, I’m addicted!

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That’s the polite version of ‘this guy won’t tell me what I want to hear, so I’m going to doctor-shop until I find one who will.’

Maybe he hadn’t heard about that because, contrary to the crap published on the internet, there’s actually no good evidence soy intake affects T levels in men. Only fringe-y ‘TRT specialists’ put stock in this sort of thing.

And am I correct in assuming you cut your soy intake when you decided it might be affecting your T level?

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You’re so far of base it’s almost funny. It’s been a long time but I remember the visit well. This jackass of a doc hands me a questionnaire and asked me to fill it out, it’s like three pages of questions like, “do you feel tired”, “ever think about killing yourself”, “how many days a week do you feel sad”, “do you do drugs?” ect., ect., ect.,. Then the ass says "I’m kinda behind do ya mind if I catch up on my dictation while you fill out the questionnaire? Then he sits six feet from me and starts playing a recorder really loud and talking into another for the whole time I was filling the form out, I couldn’t even think it was so annoying. Then he looks thru the forms, asked a few questions and offers me Wellbutrin, I ran and never looked back. Fifteen years later I have some family and friends talking about this new doctor in town that treats TRT, they rave about him. I’m very intrigued but I procrastinate for two years before I pick up the phone and make a call. Is That Doctor Shopping?? There’s my not so polite version.

Rather it’s true or not true was not my point at all! It was concerning that he had never heard of the controversy, when Even the “EyeDentist” on the internet knows about it, you would think anyone interested in TRT would have read about it somewhere, sometime.

You got me there!

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There are good and not so good doctors. They´re humans and professionals just like we all are. But just because they´re doctors it doesn´t mean they´re very good in what they do or that they own the ultimate truth about the cause of our issues and how to fix them, if possible. But we should defenetely trust them if we decide to work with them.

More than TRT alone, the important thing is to understand how the TRT doctor is going to approach your issue and how he will try to fix it. He may even conclude there´s nothing to treat or that the issue is not T related. It´s almost an art where the “pros” have to outweight the potential “cons” and requires a doctor very open minded, prudent and also reasonable in his decisions.

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Try the King Oscar sardines. Red cellophane. Delish!

Ive had the tiny tots too. ALL good stuff. People have no clue what they’re missing.