Low Test levels for life?

[Lawd]

Hi guys,

For a few years now I've suspected I've had low test lvls, depression, low sex drive, very hard gainer etc etc.
I went a saw a Anti-aging Doc as I was told he could help me out. I got one lot of bloods done and from there he sold me everything from Sust to hgh and Deca. Very pricey but had the desired effect on and off for a couple of years. Recently my wife and i were trying for a 2nd child without any luck. I finished my last cycle of test mid Oct, by mid Dec I got my test and sperm count done, test was very low and sperm was ZERO. All production stopped. Over the next 2 months I had a total of 4 tests, sperm count came back but test stayed low so I have been confirm as having a medical condition. The doctor wouldnt help with HRT while we were trying for another kid.
So, wife is finally prega's which is great and I went back to GP yesterday (not anti aging doc) due to the 4 low test results she has prescribed me with Testogel (Androgel).
So now she has told me that the government will cover most of the cost of it for LIFE, $35 a month for 30 sachets on going.
Finally a question, is this shit any good?
Do I really have to do it for life or should I be looking into other options?
Do I need to worry about PCT? If so, do I need to take a break?
I'm really looking forward to feeling better and getting some results in the gym again. The last 3-4 months have been very average without anything in the system.
I still have the option to go to Anti Aging doc.
Any input would be appreciated.

 

[Pharm_Fed]

Unless you like feeling like crap, HRT is for life. I've never used the androgel because is requires daily administration, transfers easily and is expensive (my insurance doesn't cover it). I don't know anything about the gov't paying for it, I've been on HRT for a year now and that was never brought to my attention. I prefer injections, it's only once a week and it's the least expensive prescription to fill.

 

[Lawd]

I'm in Australia, good medical down here. If it's a confirmed medical condition the Govt will help out.
I preferred inj but my doc is concerned with the highs and lows with my depression crap.
I'm also concerned with tranfer as I have a 2 year old the wife is preg so I now have to be VERY careful.
I think I have a case for inj, doc said it could be an option but they have to administor it everytime, she wanted to try the gel for 6 months first.

 

[Pharm_Fed]

Well, it sounds like the doctor is willing to work with you, give it a shot, and if you don't like it at least you tried. My doctor worked around the ups and downs by having me do my injections once a week instead of every other week. This prevented the drastic peaks and valleys. I feel great all the time now.

 

[Lawd]

Sounds good, what dose weekly? I was talking Sust250 7-10 days which was great but I'm guessing the govt supplied would be about half that.
I did ask if I had to undergo more blood work but she said unless there was a problem she didnt think it would be required so I was considering cycling Sust250 once or twice a year and then back to the gel.

I'm having trouble getting my head around rubbing what smells like rubbing alcohol on every morning or a direct inj.
Anyone used the gel?

 

[Pharm_Fed]

I am on Test Cyp 150mg per week.

 

[The Dude]

I'm on HRT, but I'm prescribed a ton. 20ml of 200mg per ml cyp a month. I wouldn't use the gel if it was given to me. ESPECIALLY with a kid. If the smallest amount rubs onto your child it can cause an acute early (very early) onset of puberty. That is an unacceptable risk IMO. 150mg a week will probably have you feeling relatively good. Alot of people look at HRT the wrong way in my opinion. You are beating nature and all of its age associated disease and wasting. Enjoy it! Finally some science that's actually worth a shit is being applied!

 

[Lawd]

Thanks Dude, I just spoke to my doctor re the Gel and my kid and wife, she didnt seemed to be too concerned. I just left a message with a local clinic to get some advice, now that I've been confirmed and diognosed with low test I may be able to see a specialist.

 

[bigghorn]

Thanks Dude, I just spoke to my doctor re the Gel and my kid and wife, she didnt seemed to be too concerned. I just left a message with a local clinic to get some advice, now that I've been confirmed and diognosed with low test I may be able to see a specialist.

Yeah bro my dad was prescribed the androgel and it's nothin but messy and a pain in the ass. Hopefully you can just get prescribed injection at least once a week or so. I took over his gel used all of it and too low a dose.

 

[MMX2]

I was initially prescribed androgel as well and it did very little to raise my test levels.

 

[MMX2]

An update- as I mentioned in a post has week I finally went to a doc for HRT- a real doc that deals with it on a everyday basis.
So what I found out- did labs two weeks ago - they took 5 vials of blood.
Test level was 375- very low.
Cholesterol was a little out of range.
No diabetes or early signs of it.
No prostate issues or early signs of it- last doc had me testing for prostate cancer every 6 months.
They found some estrogen in the system. This can be fixed with Arimidex.
They suggest 6 months on then 6 weeks off with HCG and Clomid therapy.
Thyroid numbers were off, so T3 will be prescribed.
Blood pressure was high- 150/101- will take two weeks to get this down to be able to start HRT - knowing that you will get some increased BP from it- I did not tell him I was already doing 500mg week so that might explain some of it.
He also prescribed Metformin as wel for glucose control.
All in all I was pretty happy, was not happy about the BP, but I can fix that.
Will keep you guys posted.

 

[The Dude]

How long were you off the 500mg of test when you tested at 375ng/dl? Also if you are chronically low, what it the point of doing 6 months on and 6 months with Clomid and HCG. Your body doesn't make enough and it never will. Why put you on a rollercoaster with test then HCG and Clomid instead of putting you on a dose of test that keeps you at 1000ng/dl and some diazide to lower BP?

 

[JonnyMie]

what where your estridiol levels?

 

[JonnyMie]

There's enough studies where imo i can see the use of clomid, but HCG at this point seems like a step backwards. You want Clomid to raise LH to act on leydig cells so why would you introduce a synthetic competitor to the real thing?

 

[MMX2]

How long were you off the 500mg of test when you tested at 375ng/dl? Also if you are chronically low, what it the point of doing 6 months on and 6 months with Clomid and HCG. Your body doesn't make enough and it never will. Why put you on a rollercoaster with test then HCG and Clomid instead of putting you on a dose of test that keeps you at 1000ng/dl and some diazide to lower BP?

I had laid off 12 days before they took the blood work.
I agree with you 100%-he said that was what a normal recommendation but that with it being that low he would think I would have to stay on pretty much for life.

 

[MMX2]

what where your estridiol levels?

61 pg/ml

 

[JonnyMie]

If you're trying to get natural test back for fertility reasons it'd be nice to see blood work on FSH, LH, free test and estridiol for a better picture, and him prescribing arimidex for this also sounds foolish for many reasons ... arimidex + a SERM??

They found some estrogen in the system. This can be fixed with Arimidex.
They suggest 6 months on then 6 weeks off with HCG and Clomid therapy.

 

[JonnyMie]

yeah that is high but the ratio test to estridiol is way off, and it sounds to me like this doctor is picking therapies for symptoms and combining them ... I don't know what that really says for what you should do, but it's a question to ask him/yourself

 

[Lawd]

Does anyone know what the conversion or how the Test level numbers work?
You all talk about 300-1100 sort of numbers, here in australia the numbers I have been given for normal are 60-130 and mine are in the 15-30 range. Is it just a decimal point?

 

[JonnyMie]

you'rs are measured in nmol/l .. here we measure ng/dl .. I'm not sure what the conversion is but hopefully that helps you search for it ... in fact over here Oct 17, 2011 "normal" definition was raised to 348-1197 ng/dl from 241-827 ng/dl.

Does anyone know what the conversion or how the Test level numbers work?
You all talk about 300-1100 sort of numbers, here in australia the numbers I have been given for normal are 60-130 and mine are in the 15-30 range. Is it just a decimal point?