Mental Health Concerns On and Off TRT

(I do have a thread dedicated to my personal labs etc this is a general discussion)

Mental health and hormones definitely seem to have a direct correlation. My situation may be wildly unique compared to others or may not, however I am trying to find some common ground between members on here with their mental health issues and TRT and even SSRI medications.

I personally struggle with clinical depression constantly. I have been for about 3 years now. (ironically after abusing AAS) The most success I have had is getting off of TRT and during the 4 month stretch I was not feeling good, however I was able to maintain a livable mindset. Granted minimal to no sexual drive (or any drive in general) but I had a routine, hobbies etc. Within a week back into TRT I feel like i’ve lost interest in many things, stay inside more and simply do not feel mentally stable. Why this is I am sure I do not know, but it has me leaning toward an SSRI for simple reasoning. I welcome other members including former AAS abusers to indulge us on how they have handled or improved their mental health issues.

Life is scary when you don’t enjoy things you know you like. That is a strong part of the illness that I believe leads many people down a slippery slope. I am also always willing to help others who suffer so do not be shy, no judgement will be made.

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Dude I don’t have a lot for you, but I hope you get yourself on a level.
I used AAS for around 15 years and my mental health is fine. I’m not entirely convinced they have much of a negative effect on MH besides feeling crap if you don’t have enough but that’s my personal feelings on the matter.

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I’ve been living with heavy depression all my life, and I’ve been on TRT for the past ~11 months.

TRT helped my depression a lot, especially at first. My mood and quality of life are so, so much better now.

However, it’s been important to keep in mind that optimizing hormone levels is only one part of my overall mood. In my case, hormone-related depression was only a part of my overall mental health picture. And in fact, it was the underlying depression factors that exacerbated any testosterone-related depression symptoms. In other words, I was bummed with low test, but that wasn’t the cause of my depression, and looking to a chemical like test or SSRIs is never going to be the silver bullet for me.

My hormone levels and mental health are closely intertwined, and getting on TRT was one of the best things I have ever done for my well being, but it’s not a panacea. TRT got my energy, body, and libido to a much better place. That helps a ton. But I need to keep attacking the underlying reasons for depression - where I’m going in my career, fixing my long term financial situation, continuing to build a better social circle, etc etc.

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Well if you truly are mentally ill and at a point where it is impacting your every day life then your primary concern should be working towards becoming mentally healthy again. If trt helps then use that as one tool but honestly this is something you should go through with a psychiatrist as I am sure you probably have.

In my experience trt never affected my mental health unless my E2 become too elevated. That caused acute anxiety for me.

I have never used an SSRI but have several times been at point where I seriously considered them. Fortunately I have never had to take them yet but sometimes I think maybe I should.

Jordan Peterson has a lot of good stuff on dealing with depression and anxiety and he recently published a book 12 rules for life: An Antidote to Chaos. If you have time watch some of his videos and maybe check out his book. But first and first and foremost make sure you are seeing a psychiatrist

One last thing regarding Jordan Peterson. He said something along the lines of faking it until you make it. Even if your depressed. Wake up. Make your bed. Go to work. If you don’t have a job get a job. Enjoy your hobbies if you don’t have any get some. Go out with your friends and partner. If you don’t have any get some. You see the trend. Partake in all thing things a normal healthy individual would. Even if its hard and unenjoyable at first. Often time this is enough to pull people out of a depressive episode. I do this all the time if I am feeling depressed. The gym is very useful in that regard. Anyways best of luck James.

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Yes, I didn’t mean to imply that addressing mental health issues isn’t a top priority for me, or that I’m not doing other things to address it - I very much am.

Mental health is the #1 priority and goal in my life, both short and long term.

I was just saying that while TRT / hormones and mental health are intertwined and TRT helped me a lot, I am not simply taking exogenous test and hoping it will all sort itself out.

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All of the above info was a great addition to this thread. I personally take as many steps as I can to maximize my health each day. I’m thankful there are people out there who do NOT have to deal with constant mental issues. I did not always have these issues so I do know what it felt like to be healthy at one point. For me finding the balance is tough because my body is really finicky as I got older, but I look forward to getting on the forum to vent/ learn more from other people out there to move us all forward.

The truth to your statement is there are guys like you that have never had an issue (I am glad for you) and guys like me, in which I have had multiple friends kill themselves or attempt it due to what they feel like post abuse. I personally fall into the B category which sucks but you wouldn’t be wrong if you said some people have no negative mental effects. I appreciate your kind words on getting well, thank you for that.