HRT month 5, need some input

[r1]

Hi All:

I'm 30 years old and after 3 consecutive low Testosterone scores (low 200's), I got on HRT. My interests in it were primarily for low sex drive and mood swings. Initially, I was getting depotestosterone (2ml/200mg) every 3 weeks.

Over the course of the last 4 months, I've had my levels checked three times: 907, 1018, 1241. All tests were done 4-7 days after the injection. 1241 was the most recent test and was done about 6 weeks ago. I felt incredibly anxious and agitated during that week.

My doc is content with those levels, but I started noticing a pattern. About half the time, it seemed that I would get some pretty terrible anxiety and agitation for the first week after the injection. This didn't happen every time, but not knowing if it would make me uneasy. In addition, I also felt really aggressive and short-tempered (not good when you've got a toddler!).

The doc cut me back to 1ml/100mg every 3 weeks. He said that it would help with the "roid rage" effect that I was sometimes seeing. He was right. However, now I feel like shit by the time week 3 rolls around. I feel really tired, depressed, my mind feels cloudy, etc.

Should I be getting 1ml/100mg more frequently? I am getting my next injection tomorrow (it has been 26 days...I had to to stretch it a bit due to the holiday).

If I could learn to self-inject, this process would be much simpler. Seeing this doc a huge hassle...50 miles in the opposite direction of my job. The wife tried to learn, but she tried so hard to not hurt me that she hurt me real bad.

Thanks!

 

[SCOTTY-TWO-HOTTY]

Yeah Bro- I think since you're the one who's noticing how your hormone level is effecting you... it would just make sense that you're the one who should be adjusting the doses.

I'm 34 years old. After two unsucessful attempts at getting my HPTA back on board... I too have jumped on HRT. However, it is my own HRT (although I am medically supervised by a Doctor with regular physicals & blood work). I just steer clear of gear and doses that give me bad sides... and take care of myself.

 

[hrt39]

Welcome to HRT, R1derful,

I am now 40 and been on it about 1.5 years. I have never noticed any "roid rage", nor do I know anyone else, that has ever had true "roid rage". Roid rage is 99% media bullshit meant to give AAS a bad name. It is part of the disinformation campaign that has been going on for 30 years about the harmful side effects of steroids. You must just be extremely sensitive to your bodies hormonal fluctuations. You didn't mention if you work out, how intense, and/or how often, etc. The dose that you are now on 1 ml/100 mg every 3 weeks is enough to cut off your natural production, but wouldn't be enough to do much else with, in my case anyway. As Depotestosterone is just a Test Cypionate brand name and has a real 4-6 day half-life, you must be fluctuating a lot, as you wait 3 weeks for a shot. You definitely need to learn to do your own injections. If I were as sensitive, as you seem to be, I would inject a 1/2 ml - 200 mg/ml on Monday and the same amount on late Thursday or early Friday. The smaller dose at one time should be much smoother to your system.

 

[GoinDeep]

I'm 42 and been on for 9mos. I do 100mg. every Monday morning. I started with the one shot every two weeks and noticed the high and low effect. Feels like your on a rollercoaster ride. Balance is the key I think. You have to adjust the treatment until you reach a comfortable level.

 

[Triple J]

To keep levels steady inject about once every four days

Having levels jump all over (like when you do bi-monthly inj) can lead to a variety of side effects all bad

 

[JKurz1]

Are you guys making gains in the gym while on HRT?

 

[kahbab]

i was just wondering the same thing.

Are you guys making gains in the gym while on HRT?

 

[r1]

Hi again, Guys.

I was making pretty good gains in the gym at 200mg every 3 weeks. "pretty good" is a relative term. I'm not making gains like some of the others, but my body feels like it is 18 again. It feels more responsive to exercise. Over the course of my last 12 week program, I put a solid inch on my arms and could do 18 pull ups in strict form (vs 13 or so at the start).

I did a blood test this morning of total Test + %free test. My last injection (100mg) was 25 days ago. I've never had my levels checked right before my next injection, so I'll be interested to see how much the levels drop.

I saw my doc again today and his recommendation was to do 100mg every 2 weeks instead of every 3 weeks. I'll give that a shot (hehe). He's willing to work with me as long as I'm willing to work with him.

Thanks again for all of the feedback. It is much appreciated!

Sonny

 

[poantrex]

Welcome to HRT, R1derful,

I am now 40 and been on it about 1.5 years. I have never noticed any "roid rage", nor do I know anyone else, that has ever had true "roid rage". Roid rage is 99% media bullshit meant to give AAS a bad name. It is part of the disinformation campaign that has been going on for 30 years about the harmful side effects of steroids. You must just be extremely sensitive to your bodies hormonal fluctuations. You didn't mention if you work out, how intense, and/or how often, etc. The dose that you are now on 1 ml/100 mg every 3 weeks is enough to cut off your natural production, but wouldn't be enough to do much else with, in my case anyway. As Depotestosterone is just a Test Cypionate brand name and has a real 4-6 day half-life, you must be fluctuating a lot, as you wait 3 weeks for a shot. You definitely need to learn to do your own injections. If I were as sensitive, as you seem to be, I would inject a 1/2 ml - 200 mg/ml on Monday and the same amount on late Thursday or early Friday. The smaller dose at one time should be much smoother to your system.

There are some androgens that definitely cause "roid rage". Fina and Anadrol being two of them....so I wouldn't necessarily dismiss it.

But I have never had "rage" from test alone. If anything, I feel more confident and laid back while on test.

Riderful: 3 weeks is way too infrequent. I would try to push for more frequent injections, most NiH studies are showing this is key to more stable
blood levels, and thus fewer mood swings.

 

[mrplunkey]

I do 10 week cycles consisting of 200 mg of depo test (test cypo) every week. Works great for me. I may inch-up to 300 mg/week, but if I were to go past that I'd definately split the injections up into 2 per week.

You're getting great advice on learning to do your own shots. I had a MASSIVE aversion to needles and was a wreck during my first glute shot. Four weeks into it, it's laughable -- I can't wait to do the sticks (to the point I wake-up early and excited the morning of the injections).

And finally... mix that low dose of depo test with some HGH (i.e. 2-4 IU's per day) and watch the magic begin. I'm personally convinced that mixing lowish doses of test + lowish doses of HGH = massive mojo.

Thanks,

 

[JKurz1]

I do 10 week cycles consisting of 200 mg of depo test (test cypo) every week. Works great for me. I may inch-up to 300 mg/week, but if I were to go past that I'd definately split the injections up into 2 per week.

You're getting great advice on learning to do your own shots. I had a MASSIVE aversion to needles and was a wreck during my first glute shot. Four weeks into it, it's laughable -- I can't wait to do the sticks (to the point I wake-up early and excited the morning of the injections).

And finally... mix that low dose of depo test with some HGH (i.e. 2-4 IU's per day) and watch the magic begin. I'm personally convinced that mixing lowish doses of test + lowish doses of HGH = massive mojo.

Thanks,

How are your gains?? Sex life???

 

[kaorialfred33]

I have been on TRT for about a year and a half. I have noticed the e4days injections keep me active and happy. I also noticed that without a good diet and a solid execise plan, you won't see jack. Now in the early days did notice high sex drive and sides, now today there is none.
Injecting 2 cc of test cyp is done by my trusting wife. We are now rotating spots and the shoulders seem to handle the shots quite well. Find a good doc that's for sure. I have heard of so many guys who docs start them out with cyp only to bring them back to a gel or patches.

Good luck and don't forget your diet!!!

 

[mrplunkey]

How are your gains?? Sex life???

Even before HRT, I lifted 5 days a week, ate pretty clean and slept ok-ish (not great, but I got decent sleep). Therefore, my sex drive was pretty solid. The HRT increased it some, but not a ton.

As far as gains... this one is tricky. I went in at 237 and 13-ish% BF, but I had total fits getting much below 13% before (I had this area in my mid-section I called "the swamp" that I fought for 15+ years). Now, 10 weeks later, the swamp is totally gone. I'm 10% or less BF, but I still weigh around 235-237. In terms of gains, I used my first cycle to break a massive 10-year one-body-part-per-day rut -- I basically did a lot more support exercises. Even de-emphasizing squats and bench, my squats went from 455x4 to 455x8 but my form went from "iffy" to downright good-looking reps as well. My bench went from 275 x 6 or 7 to 275 x 8 or 9.

There were a lot of other things going on as well (I changed my grip dramatically, I engaged a chiropractor to improve my range of motion in my shoulder diminished by a 12+ year old surgery, I didn't realize you needed to eat everything you could get your hands on during your cycle, etc. etc.).

Bottom line: My low-dose HRT produced minor increases in libido and strength, but i'm downright giddy over the body composition changes. My next cycle (coming soon!) will have a little more test, some deca and some winny -- that's the one where i'm looking to see dramatic strength gains.

Thanks,

 

[r1]

UPDATE

I got my blood test results back today. They screwed it up and only tested free testosterone. Level was 48...I forgot the units. They didn't check total Test and now they can't since the blood is 6 days old and I already got an injection since then.

The "free" was right at the edge of normal. The range was like 49 to 240 or something like that.

It's my understanding that low level of "free" testosterone will kill your sex drive and dull you mentally, no?

Thanks,
Sonny

 

[easy]

UPDATE

I got my blood test results back today. They screwed it up and only tested free testosterone. Level was 48...I forgot the units. They didn't check total Test and now they can't since the blood is 6 days old and I already got an injection since then.

The "free" was right at the edge of normal. The range was like 49 to 240 or something like that.

It's my understanding that low level of "free" testosterone will kill your sex drive and dull you mentally, no?

Thanks,
Sonny

I'm 30 and have been on TRT for 2 yrs. My doc had me at 200mg/e2wks and my levels were all over the place. As a result my moods and energy levels were also all over the place. I recently switched to 100mgs/e5days and finally feel normal again. You really need to do your own inj. There isn't anything to it. You can hit quads easily. Ass inj are also pretty easy if you lie down. Next time you go in just ask the nurse to show you proper technique and then let the doc know your tired of spending so much in gas to drive out of the way. Also, I hope your not paying a copay every time you get a shot. My doc tried that shit for a while but I told him the visits wern't nessesary if he would just let me do it. Hope this helps.

 

[r1]

Another update:

Due to some miscommunication between myself/the doc/the pharmacy, the dosage levels of DepoTest that I'd been getting were actually twice as much as I thought.

I thought I was getting 200mg every 3 weeks. I was actually getting 400mg every 3 weeks.

The doc was using 200mg/mL DepoTest. I ASSumed that he was using 100mg/mL because that's what the pharmacy had been sending me.

Shit...makes a lot more sense now.

Sonny

 

[Paulo]

what I was about to add, you partially addressed. There's a vast distance between free testosterone and serum(total) levels. It is my understanding that often when testosterone aromatises, the higher estrogen levels in the body can actually raise your SBHG thus impacting your free testosterone levels. This is possibly why you may have high range total test levels but still feel off. It may be wise to run an aromatase inhibitor alongside. However, I would strongly suggest that you get a more comprehensive hormone panel done, including Estrogen, Prolactin, free test, total test, LH, FSH, etc.

Only then will you have a better idea of what is taking place in your body. This is the problem with standard MDs, is that they often only associate total test levels with hormonal health.

 

[matt muscle]

Another update:

Due to some miscommunication between myself/the doc/the pharmacy, the dosage levels of DepoTest that I'd been getting were actually twice as much as I thought.

I thought I was getting 200mg every 3 weeks. I was actually getting 400mg every 3 weeks.

The doc was using 200mg/mL DepoTest. I ASSumed that he was using 100mg/mL because that's what the pharmacy had been sending me.

Shit...makes a lot more sense now.

Sonny

Yeah mate..that would explain why you felt so anxious for a week after shots, plus that would increase your estrogen levels.... thus making you feel wrong and lower free T. I have been on TRT for a couple of years and my current mix is 125 mgs of sustanon every 7 days plus 2 shots of 250ius of hcg a week....this works very well. Hcg is a great compliment for many guys on TRT if thier balls are still capable of reasonable function which mine are... plus who wants permantly shrunken gonads which feel like they have died??.... hcg will rectify this beautifully.... however SMALL doses only!!!

Most doctors who are experienced with dealing TRT patients realise now that the old method of injecting once every 2-4 weeks causes too many ups and downs..... weekly injections done at home are the go. The Hcg injects can be done subcuteanoulsy in the abdomen which is far less hassle.

you will need to monitor your blood levels for awhile... especilly for estrogens (E2)... however, how you feel is a good indication of how its all sitting...
sexual dsyfunctions are a good indicator that your body is not happy with your current medications/dosage.

A question for all you guys on TRT.... how are your ejaculate levels since being on testosterone replacement?.... normal or signficantly lowered? has anyone found anything that has corrected this other than clomid?... as you cant take this med on a permanent basis while on TRT I dont think...
Hcg has improved it for me... but it still is no way what it used to be pre steriods and HRT.

Cheers.

 

[r1]

Thanks for the feedback, matt. For awhile, I was trying out http://www.pluspills.com. I was skeptical of course, but man, they made me feel like i had a piece of steel in my pants and also made me shoot silly string.

Since all of the recent ups and downs though, I haven't been messing around with it, so I'm hesitant to recommend them. I got on them initially in hopes of ironing out my yo-yo sex drive. When my drive is there, they are awesome pills. When it isn't, it doesn't matter because I don't feel like pokin' anyway.

Sonny