My TRT Experience...

Hey guys, newbie here. I bit the bullet and went to a clinic today. Their focus is on ED but they also advertise TRT…

I talked to the Doc for about 3 minutes. He asked me my symptoms. He mentioned using creams and I said since my job involves being in the water and I sleep with a partner, creams probably wouldn’t work…he agreed. Then he sent a tech in to draw blood. The tech said the results would be back in a couple days (I will post in full when I have them) but the Doc “felt” I was Low-T and we could start. He gave me 200mg T-Cyp on the spot.

I mentioned injecting at home and the Tech said I could do that, he would give me four pre-loaded syringes each month. He gave me a dose (1cc/200mg) to take home and see if I can pull it off next week. Otherwise I can come in for injections. So I guess I’m on 200mg/wk. I forgot to bring up Arimidex or HCG.

My stats:

26 y/o male
6’2 185lbs (this is my heaviest ever and has come with a lot of work and diet. I was 166 in January and that was my average for the last few years. However I’m fairly certain much of my gains are water and fat. I have always been skinny and weak.)
est. 18-20% bodyfat
Full facial hair, moderate chest/leg. No back hair.
My symptoms are apathy, irritability, low libido, low energy, difficulty maintaining/gaining weight. Occasional male problems…

My questions:

  1. Is this dose OK? It seems most of the people on the board are on 100mg/wk. The dosage was never really discussed, maybe it will be reduced after the labs come back? I’m looking to correct a likely deficiency and improve my quality of life, not get freakishly huge. I am NOT willing to put up with severe side effects or sacrifice my health in any way…should I wait to see how I do on 200, or ask to be cut back?

  2. Should I insist on Arimidex and/or HCG? I completely forgot to bring it up…it wasn’t offered or discussed. I have read some opinions that insist everyone should be on them, others that say not everyone automatically needs it. I am mainly concerned with future fertility issues–not looking to have kids right now but may want the option in 5 years. I feel confident from what I read that, worst case, I could go off T and restore sperm production–but I’m still nervous.

  3. Should I insist on bi-weekly injections? From what I’ve read in the “official” literature, weekly is fine. Would I gain any real benefit from bi-weekly? Should I just see how I feel for a month or two?

Thanks guys. Again, labs to follow when I have them.

While it is important to treat symptoms and not just numbers, it is important to use bloodwork to find the cause of the symptoms. I am suspicious of clinics that are willing to just hand out T without doing a thorough work-up.

In terms of dosage, starting at 100mg/week and then adjusting is preferred; 200mg/week is a high starting point.

Biweekly injections are not preferrable; most tend to opt for semiweekly injections.

[quote]Daedalus wrote:
While it is important to treat symptoms and not just numbers, it is important to use bloodwork to find the cause of the symptoms. I am suspicious of clinics that are willing to just hand out T without doing a thorough work-up.

In terms of dosage, starting at 100mg/week and then adjusting is preferred; 200mg/week is a high starting point.

Biweekly injections are not preferrable; most tend to opt for semiweekly injections.[/quote]

Daedalus, what he meant by biweekly injections was injecting twice per week. Mis-communication there.

[quote]randallh1989 wrote:

[quote]Daedalus wrote:
While it is important to treat symptoms and not just numbers, it is important to use bloodwork to find the cause of the symptoms. I am suspicious of clinics that are willing to just hand out T without doing a thorough work-up.

In terms of dosage, starting at 100mg/week and then adjusting is preferred; 200mg/week is a high starting point.

Biweekly injections are not preferrable; most tend to opt for semiweekly injections.[/quote]

Daedalus, what he meant by biweekly injections was injecting twice per week. Mis-communication there.[/quote]

Biweekly means once every two weeks. Semiweekly means twice per week. It is best to know the meaning of words before using them to prevent miscommunication.

You’re not going to “get freakishly huge”, so don’t worry about that. You will feel better though. 200mg/wk is high to start, as mentioned. Your workouts will improve, and over time, your body composition should change for the better.

I personally feel it is silly to do TRT without hCG, but I like my balls. That’s just me. There are those on here that say you don’t need it/only for fertility/etc. Whatever. I’ve seen what they look like when you don’t use it. It looks fucked up, believe me. As far as AI - at some point you will more than likely need it, so yes, you will want to ask about it. If they won’t prescribe, there are other means.

First off, read the stickies and educate yourself. This is your health, and long term well-being. You need to know what’s up, so you can make sure that you and your doc (together) make the right decisions. Get your labs and post them up here.

Thanks for the responses guys. Yes, I meant twice per week (semi-weekly.) Whoops! I should have my labs soon and will post them.

Got my lab results back…unfortunately they only tested total T and PSA. I asked for another draw for a full panel so I’ll have that soon.

Anyway, my total T was 302!!! Not OK for an otherwise-healthy 26-year-old man. PSA was 0.4

I know these two things don’t tell the whole picture and I need the full panel, which I will get. But with that one number I am positive I made the right decision by doing this and it will only be an improvement in my life.

[quote]Daedalus wrote:

[quote]randallh1989 wrote:

[quote]Daedalus wrote:
While it is important to treat symptoms and not just numbers, it is important to use bloodwork to find the cause of the symptoms. I am suspicious of clinics that are willing to just hand out T without doing a thorough work-up.

In terms of dosage, starting at 100mg/week and then adjusting is preferred; 200mg/week is a high starting point.

Biweekly injections are not preferrable; most tend to opt for semiweekly injections.[/quote]

Daedalus, what he meant by biweekly injections was injecting twice per week. Mis-communication there.[/quote]

Biweekly means once every two weeks. Semiweekly means twice per week. It is best to know the meaning of words before using them to prevent miscommunication.[/quote]

Not to start a pissing contest, but biweekly can mean once every two weeks (fortnightly) or twice per week (semi-weekly)…unfortunately it is acceptable to use it for both accounts…also one is more prominent in England vs. America but I forget which is which…

Regardless, fortnightly is worse than weekly, and preferred is every 3 days or every other day…Based on the half life of Cyp, I would think E3D is fine, but I am not on TRT and a lot of guys on it prefer EOD…your mileage may vary…