Have been reading a lot lately while I wait for my lab results, and I am wondering why is it that all of us on this TRT forum are so sensitive to slight minimal dosage increases? BUT… A very large number of men running supra physiological dosages of Test (500 mg week) experience only positive effects, while many on TRT complain of “feeling worse” after changing their dosage from lets say 50 mg twice weekly to 60 mg twice weekly. How can it be that these small fluctuations result in such a huge difference for 6 weeks? I’m not saying it is all in our heads but the mind is very powerful and when someone fixates on something, it can almost become a reality. There are so many men using T that blast huge dosages and only feel better when doing so (increased confidence, libido, well being). Is it possible anxiety/anticipation plays a role into this?
My thought process is that many of us… anticipate these things and expect them to follow and as a result psychogenic symptoms occur.
What is everyone’s opinions on this? This takes me back to the debate of once weekly versus twice weekly. Majority of men on TRT that feel great are on 1 x weekly and do not participate on this forum.
I haven’t noticed that personally. It takes a healthy percentage change in dose to affect me and it does take time for the effect to occur.
Also not entirely true. I can tell you I generally feel better on a balanced dose of TRT than blasting. Especially toward the end of a blast cycle. Tons of probs blasting in the pharma forum logs.
Having not run anything but trt doses i dont know for sure but, I suspect what you’re reading is either 1." Look how awesome I am" or 2. “I’m willing to overlook the negative side effects for a short time so why mention them.”
The goals are very different, typically, from a guy on trt & a guy running a blast. The first generally wants to feel well, the second wants to swole.
It just seems most activity here is men experiencing side effects related to slight fluctuations in T/E2 levels… they refer to these fluctuations as being hypersensitive. But in reality T and E levels in healthy men fluctuate constantly… from AM to PM and from day to day. There can be wide swings in normal healthy natural men. I just think that trying to achieve a “perfect stable T/E level” is unreasonable expectation and also is not the natural curve of our endocrine system. I think trying to achieve perfection leads many to over thinking and worrying, and can give some not all anxiety surrounding TRT.
Thank you for that, I am referring to the horror stories I read on here about many never “dialing in”
“Dialing in” can be an obsession. These men think so much about trying to acheive an erection or have libido that they force it and anxiety surrounds/complicates the matter.They focus in on the issue so much that it becomes a real issue. Its psychogenic and very similar to performance anxiety.
Just like product reviews, most people only post when they have problems. So it seems folks are hyper sensitive to changes but I doubt that’s the majority. Just my thoughts of course.
I spend more time in pharmacy than TRT forums and can tell you plenty of men have problems with their blasts. Bloat… blood pressure… ED… anxiety… the whole gamut. But you also as @wolf359 said get “swole” so it’s a risk / reward thing.
I know a lot of guys on here have a lot of problems beyond TRT. I do too. It’s important to separate those issues. TRT won’t fix everything, unless low T is your only problem in life.
I would agree with this… that the majority who post about the matter are a minority and most likely have other external factors influencing the way they feel (chronic stress/ history of anxiety, worrying, over thinking)
This is exactly what I am thinking as well… But many with issues on TRT say they never “dial in” when in reality they are dialed in but basing the root of all their problems on being their TRT dosage… So they change the dosage around time and time again expecting a different result… This obsessive pattern is what leads to negative outcomes.
In reality, their problem lies elsewhere and is only complicated by the constant worrying.
A good point. I went through this exact same thing with sleep issues. to the point where no matter how many sleeping pills I took I’d get extreme panic attacks just thinking about going to bed and not sleeping. As a result my sleep and health went down the toilet for a long time.
The mind is very powerful… I have experienced similar situations myself. The best way to relate would be when I have had issues sometimes in the past getting an erection. I would think so hard about it and worry myself into a state of panic… the end result was exactly what I was afraid of. Not being able to get hard. However I have learned to relax and let nature do what nature does best. I just wish men on here tried to live their lives, instead of obsessing over 100 mg a week or 120 mg a week as an example.
I found early on with TRT that work stress, or any other major stress, is going to trump any benefits of TRT. TRT might help you have the mental and physical ability to deal with some of those issues, but only a little bit. It’s just one piece in the journey of self improvement.
Hell, I’m still too scared to go to the gym. Before TRT I ground it out in the gym for 5 years with no appreciable muscle gains. And I’m too scared to try it again, because spinning my gears again with no results will really damper my mood. I will do it when I’m ready. Like you said, trying to force things will usually have a bad outcome.
Yes I agree. some have other issues going on. But majority of men obsess over their dosage/frequency of injection. They are constantly looking for signs of low or high E2. The second they think they might be bloated (or have a softer erection) it sends them into a state of panic AND here comes another dosage change or “do I need an AI” thread… when in reality. maybe they didn’t sleep well the night before, or ate a bunch of sodium… instead they pin it on TRT and the fears compound and psychogenic symptoms manifest (actual ED due to performance anxiety or their fear of not being able to get hard)
I hate to resort to this, because if it is in your head it is real, to you, but I think you are right. Some of the things reported here are difficult to comprehend. Competitive weightlifters in the 70s and 80s typically took 400-600mg per week, I did 800mg sometimes and know some of the guys, usually larger, who did as well. Some of the smaller guys, weight classes 123, 132,148,165 might take only 200mg. We just did not see problems like some report here. I still maintain that a very small number of guys respond negatively, and most of the time it is due to being under dosed.
My goal is not to bash those who struggle but to introduce a new perspective. If TRT is indicated and you need exogenous T, by all means choose an appropriate protocol… but do not expect TRT to change your life if other factors are holding you back. Manage your stress, do not over think little things, expect a bad day every once in a while or a problem getting an erection every once in a while that is life (maybe you slept little, maybe you’re stressed, maybe you’re just perpetually over analyzing)… also libido is not meant to be a constant thing either. It is perfectly normal if your libido is hit or miss one day to the next… evaluate everything in your life and change the things you can control before you obsess about TRT… Just my 2 cents for whatever it is worth.
The man who have natural T have the gnrh and LH pulsatility and hormones are regulated with lots of little spikes, TRT induces long gradual spikes that occur on a longer time scale. You’re also dealing with fluctuating hormone levels on TRT dosing changes, a man with natural T would never have to experience leaving a state of homeostasis like a woman on her period.
When the body is not in homeostasis some men struggle to cope more than others.
I imagine some of these guys are dialed in and are waiting for TRT to cure their anxiety, TRT isn’t a panacea and instead put off getting treatment for their anxiety and TRT becomes the new obsession.
I was “clean” back in the day. Seems silly now. My hang up was 100 percent the illegality of it. Had I known my T levels qualified me for TRT, I would have been all over it. Virtually EVERYONE else was on. I know of maybe 2 guys that were not, and I am really only certain of one of them. No one had these issues. Everyone was on at least a gram a week, AT LEAST. The only complaint about high dose negatives I know of are from a guy that found 12 grams a week to be hard on the system. That’s not a typo. Everyone else felt no pain and had endless training capacity. The complaints only came when they were off cycle, how everything hurt and it sucked being off cycle. I also have a hard time believing the dose is really the issue for guys on TRT.