Can Low Testosterone Levels be Labile?

Pharma / TRT Testosterone Replacement
1

i have about 2 weeks until my second blood test but have a questions

can my current level be labile. some days I feel fair and somedays like today I feel like shit despite caffeine. today was the first day I quit a work out. there was extra life stress today and I was extra snappy with kids and over all pissy. could higher stress lower my levels for the day. or could I be more pissy because my level dipped even more… some days a beautiful women walk by and ill stare at her ass. other days I could care less. I take tribulous on days my wife may want sex but most days that doesn’t even help. I do notice that my grumpy mood tends to revolve more around home life than work life.

well thanks for letting me Rant

2

Think of a grumpy old man when you think of low testosterone, low testosterone can make ordinary normal daily stress seem like a much bigger deal than it should to be. Low testosterone causes stress and stress causes low testosterone, the question is which comes first.

The majority of men start to have symptoms of low testosterone when dipping below 500 ng/dl and studies show levels below 440 ng/dL is where CVD risks is higher. A good doctor should consider your symptoms and not just fixate on your labs, labs only tell part of the story.

What was your first lab results?

3

157 total. free 21. I have a thread down below. follow appt not until jan 15

but yet still get morning wood 6.5 days a week lol

4

In your case I don’t think you really need two lab tests because you are so profoundly low there’s no way in hell I anyone would expect to see your levels anywhere close to normal. Even if your second test was normal I doubt it would stay there for very long because you have already scored very low.

You never see healthy men dip quite that low.

5

that’s whats still got me thrown off. I feel not normal but also not clinicly depressed. ive been able to loos weight and work out. last month was a tipping point. workouts gone down hill. sexdrive short and even my 11 year old asked me why I was so angry. my mental focus is what has me scared. im a Nurse I can afford to loose my memory or have any more fog than I already do.

System lord. how much can my levels be effected by diet or caffeine. im up to 800-1000g a day just to feel productive.

6

does this place keep a list of recommended doctors in California, central california

7

Nope. A lot of guys have had success with Defy Medical, an online TRT clinic.

8

that’s cash pay right. that’s all over the phone isn’t it?
I work for local hospital. have great insurance. all labs no co pay, just called and test C and androgel is covered with with prior approval and regular co pay. called insurance and local endocrine is covered and the girl on the phone uses him and recomended him.

9

sounds great

10

Most of the excellent hormones doctors are private, it’s going to be extremely difficult to locate a knowledgeable TRT doctor who takes insurance, you could waste years and never really fine one.

I went with Defy Medical because I didn’t want to waste anymore time.

11

ok thanks. ill wait and see what pcp says. mabey start with him and go from there.my get my labs tomorrow then go pick up the results my self Thursday. I know they said wait until next month but first labs were on 12/1 but I don’t know what difference two more weeks will make.

12

There’s your first mistake, trusting a PCP with TRT, it’s not expected to turn out favorably. Finding a knowlabe TRT doctor under insurance is unlikely.

13

one month untill i see pcp. two months until I see endocrine. how much faster and more expensive will defy be.

14

Get the diagnosis and then you can decide, but everyone here can pretty much predict what’s going to happen that it wouldn’t surprise anyone, actually it would surprise us if you found someone up to date on TRT.

Defy is between $100-$150 per month if you average it out over 12 months.

15

HAH, jokes on you, i’m a grumpy old man regardless of my hormonal status. (17 years old, back problems, like to take afternoon naps frequently, takes beta blockers)

It’s protocol for insurance, I know there’s a lot of insurance bashing on this forum, but we need to think about it logically. Health insurance companies, like all for profit businesses, are in it to make money. The harder it is to get TRT subsidized on health insurance, the less people they have to treat thus more money for them, it’s not a bad thing, it’s just business

If you were taking 800 grams of caffeine daily you’d be extremely, extremely dead. I’m assuming you meant 800-1000mg/day (which is still a very large and potentially dangerous amount of caffeine to consume, seriously lay off the caffeine, take afternoon naps like I do. Get home from work, go to sleep, eat, train, then go back to sleep. (Although with a wife and kids this may not be viable)

I’m just curious here (not criticising or anything), what exactly is up to date in you’re opinion. Doctors, even the experts on TRT will have differing opinions on how to use TRT, what to prescribe (doses, ester, method of administration). If a doctor prefers troches or patches does that mean he’s out of date? Maybe he’s just seem a trend in that it works for his patients. Or is an up to date doctor one that will prescribe you everything under the sun (test, HCG, HGH/peptides + AI)

To me, out of date simply means the doctor still prescribes testosterone (enanthate and cypionate) in 2-4 week injection intervals. Or they won’t give you forms for adequate bloodwork (CBC, E2 etc)

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16

correct 800-1000mg of caffeine. work 12 hour shifts. naps not an option. b/p and heart rate normal despite caffiene

17

How’s you’re stomach (I get real bad cramps when I have caffeine)

18

This is very good. Everyone talks about “evidence based medicine” these days. I do not think many understand that it involves more than reading the literature. There are three elements.

One, consider the wants, needs and expectations of the patient. That means shared decision making. Many doctors ignore this.

Two, the best available evidence in the literature. Some rely excessively, even exclusively, on the literature.

Last, and possibly most important, the experience of the clinician. That means what they actually see in their practice carries more weight than what they read about. If one has 500 patients on test gels, and most are very happy, he won’t shift them to injections solely on the basis of a journal article with statistics that injections are better.

I know an orthopedist that stated 95% of what he does is based on his own experiences, not the literature.

19

There are 40 million people in California. You can find a good Dr to help you with this.

I live in NYC metro area. I have a very good Dr.

We can agree that even defy has trouble dialing in many guys. I particularly think their starting protocol are nothing to write home about. They prescribe stuff that is all not covered because they send it to you from a compound pharmacy.

To OP keep reading . You already made a good move and joined this forum. Educate yourself and advocate for your self. Also many guys get the t prescribed and sort of customize how they inject. This is not medication with an established protocol.

Also @rabbit91476 an sure you can get all the labs u want.

Try to get

Total t
Fee t
Estradiol sensitive
CBC
CMP
A1c
Ferritin
Am cortisol
Acth
Dhea s
Shbg
LH
FSH
Prolactin
Lipid panel
TSH
Free t3
Free t4

20

Here in the UK is near impossible to get TRT. Doctors over here are behind the times and seem uninterested in educating themselves as they get nearly zero training in TRT.

I’m jealous I don’t have an expert on hand to track my bloods and offer advice, I had to educate myself online and from mates at gyms and track my own bloods. Close to 15 years on TEST now… there’s been ups and downs but overall I think I’ve done alright lol

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