I would be interested in the experiences on testosterone replacement therapy on this forum.

My questions are:

What do you take as TRT (e.g. by injection as a long-term depot or daily as testosterone gel or spray)?

As far as I know, there can be incompatibilities with artificial testosterone. Have you had your testosterone tolerance tested beforehand, and if so, how?

Did you have your testosterone level tested several times before the surgery? If so, what level did you choose afterwards compared to the highest measured value (lower, same, higher)?

The background is that my urologist claims that the levels are difficult to adjust after surgery and has warned me about side effects. Since I would definitely like to start testosterone replacement therapy after surgery, I would therefore be interested in other opinions and practical experiences of surgically castrated men here. Thanks!

From my experience, injectable testosterone on a weekly basis is the most effective method of maintaining one’s level of testosterone after castration and is by far the most economical way too. It can be easily injected by oneself or by a partner without any pain. The results should be monitored by your urologist bi-annually through blood tests. Too much testosterone causes health risks, while too little does too.

In my case, my testosterone level was below the recommended amount before I was castrated so my urologist had to experiment over time what amount worked best for me. Typical weekly injections can range from 100 to 200ml. Of course, that will counter the effects for wanting to be castrated so a smaller amount might work for you too, without the lethargy and weight gain associated with low testosterone,

Thank you very much for the answer. My thought was to first start with values that correspond to the old highest testosterone values (free and total testosterone). Then in the next step I would successively experiment with a lower amount of testosterone and see if that reduces my too high sex drive.

I had actually favored daily testosterone gel, because with it you can change the values yourself very easily and the fluctuations usual with injections (high at the beginning and then less and less) are avoided. In addition, there is bioidentical cream without side effects of the pharmaceutical stuff. But daily creams are of course very inconvenient, which is why I would like to have an alternative.

You say that injections of 100 to 200 ml are possible. Did you mean 100 to 200 mg, which is about half an ampoule to almost an ampoule?

I miss typed. Half a ml/cc would be 100 mg. I’ve been down to 25 mg weekly for six months recently. It was very debilitating for me. 75 mg might be a good weekly start. I didn’t notice any fluctuations in the effect throughout the week.

I’m on testogel 50mg. Works fine for me. It keeps me at around the middle of what is considered normal range for my age.

I was given two options, either testogel or Nebido injections, but was advised by my first endo that gel worked best, as it would give me the most stable level.

Many thanks to all

I've been on Androgel since 2015 when I was 44. My T Level was around half of the bottom of the normal male range, and barely above normal female range (if I remember correctly), which means it was my adrenal glands producing most of it. In my case, it's genetic.

Two pumps/packets of Androgel 1.62% a day had me mostly functional as a human and a male most of the time. I've had difficulty with the prescription (refills not getting to the pharmacy, insurance refusing to pay, etc), so I've occasionally had to ration doing a lower dose, or skip doses. It feels awful and it takes over a week to feel normal once I go back on it.

My dose has been increased to 4 packets a day, and I feel much better. The doctor had to do some paperwork gymnastics to get the insurance to pay for the increased dose. I don't know what my numbers are now (only the 2nd month on the higher dose) but my guess would be the middle of normal male range.

My father is 80 and has been on TRT for 50 years, but he recently told me the gel/cream didn't really do much for him so he had to switch to injections pretty early on.

Previous posts removed at users' request.

Some confusion and/or a language barrier apparently existed here, and to avoid confusion for any newer readers, the posts were removed.

I have been put on Androgel since for about 10 years already. The doctor prescribed 2 pumps a day. It brought my T level to mid-lower quartile of normal range. And it brought back too much libido for me.

I have cut the dosage to 1 pump a day for several years. The T level remains barely within the lowest end of normal range. My libido level feels more comfortable, which means, I may like to play a bit but no urge to climax for 2 to 3 weeks. However, my latest bone density scan showed worsening osteopenia. I will have to discuss with my endo again about dosage or alternatives.

There are a few different versions of pump T gel, w/ different strengths per pump... (I used to use it) You might see if there is a version that will give you somewhere in the middle between the two... The other option is to switch to E, which has it's own set of issues...

WheelyCurious