New to TRT - Experiencing Negative Sides

Hi guys…

Healthy guy here (41m) 5’10 - 160 lbs.

Lift hard 3x a week , Jiujitsu (competitive) 4x a week sometimes 2x day.

Due to unusual T binding and low T - (Slow recovery lethargy etc) my Uro put me on 100mg a week to start (I pin 2x a week)
Been on it for 6 weeks.

Side effects

  • Crazy Heartburn from day 2.
    I read that Test C raises ghrelin and other stomach acid producing peptides… but it still doesnt make sense.

  • Feeling… hypoglycemic at times, sugar is fine. Had labs drawn at 4 weeks just to be sure and I test my sugar every day. Not diabetic, I just have the eq. (Was a paramedic for many years before going into another career)

What am I doing wrong?

Ranges for e2 are 10-32 I think my e2 tanked.
Could that be the cause?

My labs last week:

Two things could be happening. 1 is your T levels are up and things are changing within you. Your growth is changing exponentially and you’re going to need more food and vitamins to sustain the change. You’re clearly putting in some work, by week 12 you should be dialing in and getting some idea of what works for you. The 2nd thing that may be happening is that you’re on too low of a dose. 100mg is a starter dose and not enough is great way to feel like you’re going the wrong way. I hope you’re not on AI

Hey thanks for the reply!

Yeah, there’s changes alright… some days I feel like dropping the protocol all together. Hearthurn is really debilitating. But those first couple of weeks felt AMAZING. Im talking, gym and two training sessions plus work and family and not tired at 11pm.
Shit is amazing.

So you think I should continue for like another month? Would AndroGel be any different? Patches? SubQ? Implant?? Maybe switch brands? Idk… Im desperate to keep my therapy protocol and feel good.

Yeah, I spoke to a Nurse Practitioner friend of mine and said the same thing. Increasing to 120-140mg a week would = more aromatization and estrogen would level out.

Does anyone else experience heartburn on TRT or any of the issues I mentioned?

Thanks again guys!

Oh and no AI. Just TRT and omeprazole.

Did you add Omeprazole before or after TRT?

This is the source of your heart burn, been on them myself and causes all sort of deficiencies!

The proton pump inhibitors work by decreasing the amount of acid made in the stomach, if it goes too far and you eat, not enough acid to dissolve your food.

Your estrogen is low, the problem is those ranges aren’t standardized for adults. I have seen countless men diagnosed with osteoporosis at an E2 level of 16. LabCorp’s sensitive E2 reference ranges bottoms out at 20.

Skip it, it offers little control over your levels and most men don’t absorb well enough. You should either stay on this protocol or simply adjust the dosage because injections offers the most control over side effects management and desired levels.

Thanks!
Ok so pretty much… my e2 IS way low. So by increasing T dosage can contribute to more aromatization and more E2 right?

I started omeprazole on day 2 of T due to indigestion and heartburn… although… I did have gerd in the past. I know I’ve always had "sensitive stomach, but never thought TRT would increase ghrelin and other acid-producing peptides that would mess stuff up…

So what would you recommend?

I’ve had Gerd issues in the past BUT they went away when I quit caffeine.
They came back on day 2 of TRT and started omeprazole again… it sucks.

I believe a legit side effect is ED on this. Just double check

I use omeprazole, and just use a half tab a day. I figure try out a small dosages, and if it works, then it works, and there is less chance for side effects, and you save some money (not the cheapest OTC drug). Every once in a while I do use some Tums if I have drinks or specific foods.

Thanks I will…

Any sides of heartburnwith low e2 that you know of?

The idea is to use no omeprazole at all!

I’ve never read low E2 causes heartburn, but it wouldn’t surprise me.

In your case, your E2 is definitely low and the obvious solution is to increase the dose a bit, or stretch out your frequency of shots so that you have larger peaks, and therefore, larger E2.

You could always go once weekly shots. This should increase E2 a bit. Your SHBG is ideal imo.

The truth is that bowel problems and lower back pain are linked. When my diabetes was out of control, I had lower back pain in addition to bowel problems. Now that my diabetes is under control, the bowl problems and lower back pain are gone.

What about a peak in testosterone causing acid reflux or something? If you google testosterone or trt and ghrelin or stomach acid increase, there’s a bunch of literature sources explaining how it increases peptides that could in turn increase stomach acid. Am I the only person on earth that experiences that on TRT?

I suppose its possible, especially since you’ve read about it. Just no personal experience.

It could happen but rare. Definitely happens with Tren. You could simply try eating a bit of protein before a meal. This prevents your stomach from overloading you with acids that will cause reflux. Read about it since Im no expert in this field. Your TRT is going to cause a few odd things while you get back into a better place, but stop looking for a hormone to blame. This is how people start messing around with AIs and doses which perpetuates a state of fluctuation with no relief and a series of other side effects.