I am 34 years old and have arthritis. The different medications that I am on to control the arthritis caused my testosterone levels to fall way below that of a normal man. My levels were so low that they were just above female levels. First I started taking Androgel (rubbed onto the skin 2 times a day) and really hated it. For some reason all of my skin, not just where I applied the Androgel, turned pink like I had a sunburn.
Now I am on injections of Testosterone Cypionate 1.5 cc every 2 - 3 weeks. I inject the stuff at home. I get a 200 mg/ml vial every 4 months but it seems like once the vial has been used for a couple months, the potency of the testosterone seems to lessen.
I am very careful with not contaminating the medicine. I clean the top of the vial before and after each shot. I keep it in it’s box and out of sunlight. I keep it in the closet since it is not supposed to be refrigerated.
I thought that maybe I was just getting used to the testosterone but I just got my first shot out of a new vial and it is much stronger. Has anyone else noticed this? Is there anything I should be doing to ensure the potency of the testosterone?
And also what do you mean by more potent or powerful, whatever. I doubt it’s actually getting less effective over that short of a time period. Perhaps it has more to do with the way your timing the injections.
The gear is not changing, but you are. Injections should be more frequent and once per week is not often enough for many.
You may feel empty before your next injection and that period can get longer and longer. (I am a bit extreme, I inject 28mg EOD with insulin syringes; which eliminated the roller coaster effect. With weeking 100mg injections my down time reached 7 days and I felt no boost when injecting.)
You are self injecting. You can control how often yourself and see how your mind and body feel with changes.
No explanation for why you feel a boost with a new bottle of Test cyp.
On typically gets a lift after a few weeks, then very horny for a month or so, then that changes as more and more T converts to E and the E causes the liver to increase SHBG that then soaks up free testosterone. The low FT and increased E kills the positive effects of the T and libido can suffer. When you loose morning wood, E is the probable cause. Such E levels do not need to be out of ‘normal range’ and may be a normal ‘high mid-range’. So the lab work is not going to get any changes for you. Tell the doc!!! Otherwise he will treat your lab report instead of you.
The high spikes from injection larger amounts every 2 or 3 weeks also is believed to increase E and SHBG to a greater extentcompared to the same amounts per week in more frequent injections.
If you do not like your nuts shrinking or the way, for some, that the ache, then you need HCG. And for the E you need an anti-aromatase (anti-E) such as Arimidex.
Correct, I get a 10 mL multi-dose vial and inject 1.5cc usually on the 18th or 19th day after my last injection. I take the testosterone to replace what I am missing. I don’t really have the roller coaster effect that everyone talks about. The only high I get is on the 2nd day after the injection. On that day I have a good bit of energy. For me that is saying something. Before starting the testosterone therapy I was VERY lethargic. I didn’t want to get up and I was always very tired. I would also suffer for hot flashes multiple times a day. When you combine that with the regular pain of my arthritis, I was not a happy camper. I still am tired but I am not nearly as tired as I was. The shots really help! I thought about splitting my injections up into a weekly thing, but that would be a pain.
What struck me as odd was how much stronger the new vial was than the one I was using for the last few months. I felt a much greater energy surge on the 2nd day that I was getting with the older vial. THe vials are the same Rx and maker. I was just wondering if anyone else ever noticed a potency difference if the vial was in use over a few months time. I thought that maybe air got into the vial and maybe did something to it. I don’t know if it is sensitive to air or not.
Thanks for your help and I hope you have a great Holiday Season!
[quote]E-man wrote:
KSman wrote:
I inject 28mg EOD with insulin syringes.
Do you use suspension? If not
then how the hell do you get an oil based to fit through a 28-31 gauge slin pin?
[/quote]
I have gotten oil through a 27g pin, but it took quite a while. I’m sure it would go through a slin pin, just heat it up so it’s less viscous. It would still take a while.
[quote]ecellis wrote:
What struck me as odd was how much stronger the new vial was than the one I was using for the last few months. I felt a much greater energy surge on the 2nd day that I was getting with the older vial. THe vials are the same Rx and maker. I was just wondering if anyone else ever noticed a potency difference if the vial was in use over a few months time. I thought that maybe air got into the vial and maybe did something to it. I don’t know if it is sensitive to air or not.
[/quote]
Yes!
I’ve just had this exact same experience with my 3rd vial of Watson brand T-cyp. I felt great during the first two vials, but during the 3rd vial the treatment really started to feel ineffective and I was starting to consider some anti-E (even though my bloodwork has me at mid-range for E2) or increasing my injection frequenty from 100 mg/week per KSman’s suggestion.
Fortunately, my 3rd vial finally ran dry and I’ve just started on my 4th vial and BAM! I feel great again. I really think something was wrong with that 3rd vial and it took me a few weeks to notice it. Hard to believe a major pharmaceutical would put out bogus T-cyp, but it seems to be the case this time. Even harder to imagine taking it back to Walgreen’s to complain!
[quote]E-man wrote:
KSman wrote:
I inject 28mg EOD with insulin syringes.
Do you use suspension? If not
then how the hell do you get an oil based to fit through a 28-31 gauge slin pin?
[/quote]
For HRT, the amounts are small. And 28mg is 0.14ml. The #29 gauge is small, but the .5" length reduces the flow restriction as well. The time to draw up the the test cyp is slow as the pressure is limited by the partial vapor pressure of the BA which boils to vapor at first and then reincorporates. Injection time is 10-15 seconds for the 0.14ml. The .5ml syringe has a small piston that generates high pressures when injecting; which reduces the time to inject compared to a larger capacity syringe. This all works very well for me and I can inject my T on the same days as my HCG EOD.
The .5" needles are not appropriate for those who carry fat on their legs. The .5" needles are long enough for IM injections for these small volumes. I feel so much better compared to weekly injections. Most injections are comfortable and blood free.