Well, I called my urologists office but couldn't get to talk to him so I made an appointment for March 1. I plan on staying on the 5 mg dose as the Dr prescribed from now until I can get another consultation with him and hopefully another blood test. The only reason I doubled the dose once was because I felt that the original dose was not working as fast as I thought it should. I was feeling more frustrated while on the TRT than the frustration prior to starting treatment. I guess it was primarily a lack of understanding and false hope. I must learn to be patient as I have the rest of my life to try to get it right.

The rants about statins are (i think) potentially dangerous. If you have high Cholesterol its all well and good to change your diet, work out more etc but... Many people have this problem from genetic issues and diet etc will not do enough. Taking COQ10 if your on statins is (I think) a good suggestion but.... Also If you have the rare issue of muscle damage from statins? That different. Otherwise PLEASE get medical advice from a doctor you trust not "phil"

MrT

If you are having issues with the 5 mg dose try applying it in a different place. I did the body and shoulders thing , and found that I got aches in my shoulders. I switched to applying on my thighs, and it seems so much better. No body aches, and I also don't seem to smell like Androgel to others.

I think the absorbtion is better on the thighs, and further is closer to where the real thing should have come from.

Raymar

thank you for the advice. My GP did a blood test and recommends doubling my dose for lovastatin and doubling my dose of Gemfibrozil plus taking fish oil OTC twice daily as both cholesterol and triglycerides are too high. I think I will at least try the Testim on the thighs as I still have no libido on 5mg. I don't get another Urologist appt until March 1 so hopefully I can get another blood test for T and other hormone related issues then and see what my level is on when I'm taking the 5 mg. It's a slow process but I must be patient. The current dose gives me a little better feeling of well being but is much less than desired.

Batman (imported) wrote: Fri Feb 18, 2011 4:44 pm Some people don't absorb gels well and they aren't effective. Personally when I was diagnosed as low, I tried Testim and it caused skin irritation and I switch to injections.

The injections are so much easier and much more effective. A good source of information can be found on the Yahoo group hypogonadism2 the guys there know virtually everything you need to learn to treat the problem.

Good Luck

Batman

I agree regarding the injections. I do my own, so things are relatively easy in that regard. I found the gels irritating and messy. I sweat like a hog and I washed as much gel off as I ever got through my skin. All in all, a much easier (and cheaper) route.

Speed

How long did it take for the injection to make a difference and how much did your T rise from one injection? How much was your first and subsequent shots. I just don't know of the T level will increase immediately or slowly accumulate. I wish I couls get a one time boost and then be able to maintain it with the gels.

gjvr2001 (imported) wrote: Thu Feb 24, 2011 3:46 am How long did it take for the injection to make a difference and how much did your T rise from one injection? How much was your first and subsequent shots. I just don't know of the T level will increase immediately or slowly accumulate. I wish I couls get a one time boost and then be able to maintain it with the gels.

I think you are being very impatient about all this. It's been a week since your first posting and you've already changed dosages and are contemplating changing meds. Testosterone is not something that that causes instant effects if added or deleted. Why do we tell guys to try chemical castration for 6 months or more if they are considering castration? Because it takes that long for the effects to manifest themselves. So why do you think a couple days is adequate for it to make a difference when you started it?

My T level was 44 when my urologist gave me a prescription for Testim. It took a few days for it to get here from our mail-order pharmacy so I was anxious to start it. On one tube a day, it took until day 10 before I woke up with an erection. Yet you whine that you're not happy after a couple days. I like to quote Charles Dickens, "Bah, humbug". Pie in the sky is nice but you still can't eat it.

I think you are right. I just didn't know whether T built up over time or was basically only what you put in daily. I guess it must build up gradually instead of instantaneously. I was starting from a pretty deep hole and willchangemy expectations .

The body's hormones all inter-react with one another.

Whether you are taking androcur or siterone to reduce testosterone, or taking a testosterone gel or injection to increase testosterone, you really need to allow 90 days for the rest of your body's hormones to interact and balance out.

Death is a light switch that turns everything off.

Hormones on the other hand are like a very slow dimmer switch.

You need to move them slowly, be patient, and wait.

Seeing results over a long period of time is difficult, like watching the grass grow. So keep notes on your mental, physical, emotional feelings, look back on them, and you should discover that indeed, the grass is growing.

Gels work well for me here using 10%, I have noticed if you have good HRT it is about the same as before, however it takes a lot of work as well as money and or co payments as well as time and effort to keep things up.

The Compounding Testosterone Gels as well as creams I think work best, it just depends on the person what may work for one may not work for another.