Medical Concerns

[Paolo]

I will throw this into the discussion, and it's not a political statement designed to hijack the thread!

I did have a question from a member about health care in the United States. In regards to "Medical Concerns," for those that do not live in the USA, this is VERY concerning issue.

There is no national health care plan in the USA. The Affordable Health Care Act attempted to remedy this. Like most other government programs, it became bogged down in red tape and "pork". It was a great idea. It didn't work for a lot of people. In fact, it soon became known as "The UNaffordable Health Care Act."

Medical problems here in the USA can cost the patient a LOT of money. A few years ago, a simple broken arm viewed and treated at the ER was costing about $7k/USD without any insurance.

In the USA, one may have insurance through their employer's plan. Many do not offer it. It costs a lot. I quit my 2nd last job over the costs.

One may also pay for their own plan, out of pocket.

Some may enroll in the government's ACA plan, also called "ObamaCare". It works for some; not for all.

There are also individual states with health care plans for select groups.

MANY others have no coverage at all.

The last time I visited a doctor, it was for a simple earache. A bad one. I paid about $300 to get my ears cleaned, total. It took about 15 minutes.

One dental crown? Over $1,000

These are local prices. Prices may vary.

And something more involved like a cataract (eye) surgery? $12,000 USD, cash. We found this out through a billing error with my grandfather. They didn't put in that he had MediCare and also other coverage.

This is posted for those that didn't know.

Please, let's not turn this into a political thread about US health care now. This is information only.

Replies not related to the medical concerns as initially posted by emryspup will be removed and/or edited.

Thank you.

[plix (imported)]

yes, it is so confusing how much effects of no T vary. some eunuchs do not complain about insomnia at all, saying that they sleep even better without T. I've gone through few chemcastration periods. For me one of the first signs of very low T is debilitating insomnia along with lack of morning erections. First 2 months are usually the hardest. I just can not sleep. I stay awake all the night, aware of my surroundings no matter what I do. I totally lacked that wonderful feeling of freshness after a good sleep. Over months my sleep improved and I was able to sleep in short sleep spans of 1-2 hours, waking up around 5 times during the night. Sometimes waking up only twice. But still, my sleep was shallow and not satisfactory.

But I did not experience depression. Instead I felt happy about being castrated. One of my friends pointed out that I look much happier than year before. Over time I think I developed dopamine deficit. That made me feel much more indifferent about my surroundings and events around me. I just didn't care much. And I felt kind of joyless. I experienced so called brainfog during the first 2 months. And also I enjoyed so called "eunuch calm" at times. Interestingly I had no weight gain. Even vice versa. First half of my eunuch day usually looked very energetic. thanx to coffee. And second half of the day I was suffering from bad sleep and lack of energy and motivation to do anything. Still it wasn't too bad. For me, insomnia was the worst side effect of low T.

Interestingly when my T levels were below 20ng/ml I felt properly castrated. At levels around 50ng/ml I started to feel libido returning.

What I find most interesting is that when I was younger, I had no problems being without hormones and even did very well. So I'm thinking there could be something else going on, but I have no idea what it is.

I do wonder how well my adrenal glands are functioning. A few months after my surgery, my T levels were measured at 37. Much more recently and the last time I was not taking anything that converts to T, they were measured at 14. Could that possibly suggest a decline in adrenal functioning? My understanding has always been that non-testicular output of T occurs primarily in the adrenals.

My insomnia isn't so much the inability to sleep at all, though it can take a bit longer to fall asleep without hormones. With me, it's that I wake up, usually about 4 to 5 hours after falling asleep but occasionally 6, and am unable to fall back asleep. I feel fine when I first wake up, but the lack of a full night's sleep catches up to me later in the day.

My depression likely involves other factors as well since I can sometimes experience it even with hormones. However, lack of hormones definitely seems to exacerbate it in my case, especially in recent years.

But you're right - it's confusing yet interesting to see how lack of hormones can affect each one of us so differently.

[Valery_V (imported)]

What I find most interesting is that when I was younger, I had no problems being without hormones and even did very well. So I'm thinking there could be something else going on, but I have no idea what it is.

I do wonder how well my adrenal glands are functioning. A few months after my surgery, my T levels were measured at 37. Much more recently and the last time I was not taking anything that converts to T, they were measured at 14. Could that possibly suggest a decline in adrenal functioning? My understanding has always been that non-testicular output of T occurs primarily in the adrenals.

My insomnia isn't so much the inability to sleep at all, though it can take a bit longer to fall asleep without hormones. With me, it's that I wake up, usually about 4 to 5 hours after falling asleep but occasionally 6, and am unable to fall back asleep. I feel fine when I first wake up, but the lack of a full night's sleep catches up to me later in the day.

My depression likely involves other factors as well since I can sometimes experience it even with hormones. However, lack of hormones definitely seems to exacerbate it in my case, especially in recent years.

But you're right - it's confusing yet interesting to see how lack of hormones can affect each one of us so differently.

Adrenal glands

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adrenal_gland

https://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/health/ ... nal-glands

https://www.endocrineweb.com/endocrinol ... nal-glands

Adrenal Gland Disorders

https://medlineplus.gov/adrenalglanddisorders.html

https://www.yourhormones.info/glands/adrenal-glands/

[plix (imported)]

Adrenal glands

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adrenal_gland

https://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/health/ ... nal-glands

https://www.endocrineweb.com/endocrinol ... nal-glands

Adrenal Gland Disorders

https://medlineplus.gov/adrenalglanddisorders.html

https://www.yourhormones.info/glands/adrenal-glands/

Thanks so much for sharing!

[IdreamIcanfly (imported)]

I was castrated at age 20 after thinking it over for a few months beforehand. I was aware of most of the consequences but was still willing to take the risk. However, I'd be willing to bet there are some consequences that we still don't know about, so it's always a good idea to be sure that castration is something you are willing to live with for the rest of your life.

I live in the United States, so my experiences with affording T may be different from yours. Here, the only legal options are paying for it out-of-pocket, having private or public insurance pay for it, or acquiring it free through a patient assistance program sponsored by the pharmaceutical companies, and that last one is what I was originally able to do because of my financial circumstances. Now, I get it through my local health center's pharmacy at a reduced cost, again because of my financial circumstances.

My experience has been that injectable T is typically the most affordable form. However, some (such as myself) prefer the more stable levels that you get with gels.

The long-term health effects are certainly one of the riskiest aspects of castration. You don't really know how it's going to affect you until you've done it, and everyone's experience will be different. In my case, while I did fine back when I was first castrated with no hormones in my system, I now experience significant health problems at age 36 if I don't take any hormone replacement. I don't know exactly why. Some of this could be aging itself, or it's possible that some of my other glands (adrenal, thyroid, etc.) aren't doing as well as they used to.

In any case, the most significant health problems for me when I don't take any hormones include severe difficulty sleeping, depression, irritability, low energy, weight gain, and cognitive functioning difficulties. I also experience constipation, which may be surprising since I don't recall ever hearing that mentioned as a side effect of castration (and my doctor hasn't either), but it definitely happens to me when I don't take any hormones. I haven't yet figured out a way to deal with all of them that doesn't involve taking hormones (either T or E).

Just a lack of T never caused me to develop any breast tissue, but I did develop a small but noticeable amount from my times taking E.

My procedure was performed by a licensed doctor, so I wasn't too worried about that. However, I did develop an infection afterwards, so even going that route is not guaranteed to b

e free of problems.

Hope that helps!

yes, it is so confusing how much effects of no T vary. some eunuchs do not complain about insomnia at all, saying that they sleep even better without T. I've gone through few chemcastration periods. For me one of the first signs of very low T is debilitating insomnia along with lack of morning erections. First 2 months are usually the hardest. I just can not sleep. I stay awake all the night, aware of my surroundings no matter what I do. I totally lacked that wonderful feeling of freshness after a good sleep. Over months my sleep improved and I was able to sleep in short sleep spans of 1-2 hours, waking up around 5 times during the night. Sometimes waking up only twice. But still, my sleep was shallow and not satisfactory.

But I did not experience depression. Instead I felt happy about being castrated. One of my friends pointed out that I look much happier than year before. Over time I think I developed dopamine deficit. That made me feel much more indifferent about my surroundings and events around me. I just didn't care much. And I felt kind of joyless. I experienced so called brainfog during the first 2 months. And also I enjoyed so called "eunuch calm" at times. Interestingly I had no weight gain. Even vice versa. First half of my eunuch day usually looked very energetic. thanx to coffee. And second half of the day I was suffering from bad sleep and lack of energy and motivation to do anything. Still it wasn't too bad. For me, insomnia was the worst side effect of low T.

Interestingly when my T levels were below 20ng/ml I felt properly castrated. At level

s around 50ng/ml I started to feel libido returning.

As the hormones have chemically castrated me I raised these observations at my clinic appointment today. The Doctor was aware of constipation issues and commented that many think they have diarrhea and take over the counter meds that make things worse. Certainly in the UK bowel/bladder/penis issues are taboo with many males hence the rise in colon cancer deaths. In my case these episodes are linked to comfort eating as I feel bad which doesn't help the weight loss. I tick most of the other boxes too. I know this is thread necromancy but stuff like this needs to be talked about.