57. previous throat cancer, thyroid damage from radiation treatment and my T levels are in the tank. Yea, I'm over weight, and have sleep apnea. Started using a CPAP about 1 1/2 years ago and started getting weekly T shots about a year ago. My energy level went up greatly. Hated the shots so recently went to daily rub in 50mg. DR laid out the risk/reward and I get tested regularly. Getting scheduled for my next colonoscopy too.

He didn't think at all he just stuck his foot all the way in his mouth!

JG are you a fireman? I had no idea.

My Doctor talked me out of it. I have all the symptoms you named and at 61 would love more energy. I still want to do a lot of stuff but my energy is in the tank. Who's a good doctor to check into this?

Bobcat1
You don't have to see a specialist, go to your general Dr., they will run labs and get your T number then offer your various options such as patches, gels, shots, or implants. I can't speak to the implants, I can to the patches and gels. To me they sucked, most certainly the patches, and my T numbers continued to decline. I told my DR I wanted to do the shots, she gave me the script and I wish I had went this route much earlier. I don't know how you feel about exercise, me being at a computer all day I have to do something to work out and go to the gym three times a week. Just my $0.02 here, you will see added benefits if you eat right. There may be some that knock this but it works for me and I am in no way endorsing the name on the product. I start my mornings with 6 to 8 oz of water in a blender, add a tablespoon of honey, 3/4 cup of uncooked oats, two scoops of ON PRO isolate and hydrolyzed protein and 5 to 7 scoops of Rich Piana's egg white crystals. Before this is was two sausage,egg, and cheese taquitos with a DR Pepper at Whataburger (I called them colon cleansers), no more of them now. During the day I make a couple shakes with Piana's Real Food Sweet Potato supplement. Then what my wife cooks for supper which is generally chicken or something healthy. She maintains a body weight of 98lbs to 100 lbs, has for the 20 years we've been together. Do I eat like this 100%, no. I do like my ribeyes and taters, some shots of Patron, etc. You don't have to eat like a nut, just be reasonable.

At 57 years old, I now weigh 265, down from 290, in about 40 to 45 minutes at the gym I have moved a combined weight of between 33,000lbs to 35,000 lbs (weight X reps) just on my upper body, chest, arms shoulders, back. I have a bad lower back, bad right knee and bad left ankle so I have to watch how heavy I lift. Being a short guy at 5'9", I have a 55" chest that continues to grow. Try to walk three miles or more when I get the chance. Sometimes this is every day, sometimes it is a couple times a week depending on my travel schedule. Fyi, I no longer count the weight, just do what I feel like and try to push it when I can. Key word here is "feel" like it which usually means a good night of sleep the night before. I found I enjoy the workouts more when I don't try to compete with my last workout, just go till I start to drop on numbers of reps or have to go to lower weight.

Before the T therapy it would take me several days to recover from one of these workouts that I generally do late at night. Being on the shots I am now ready to go the next night or the second night after. They help repair your body much faster, feel much better, overall energy is much better. Again, just my 2 cents, if you pair the T replacement with at least some plan for eating decent and add a little exercise you will see better results.

I hear there is a Dr in Celina all the Fireman use.

go to labcorp.com fill in code for the test when making an appointment.

https://www.labcorp.com/test-menu/search?page=1&letter=T

Probably cheaper than doing it with insurance and nobody but you and labcorp have the results.

Biote is a bio-identical hormone treatment for men and women. Most commonly they insert pellets into the fat layer under the skin. It works very well.. the wife has been on it for a year, no more fibromyalgia, no more hot flashes, tons of energy.. I did the first treatment in June and for guys it's only every 6 months. Alot more energy, generally feel better. BCBS won't cover it and it's not cheap. But it is worth every penny. You get labs done, find out the exact dosing needed and it's about a 10 minute procedure.

Be careful with supplements, you have no idea what is really in them..

The pellets are the best alternative to the shots IMO. Some people may need them every 2-3 months though, everyone is different. Especially nice for someone uncomfortable with giving themselves the weekly shot. Can't imagine driving to a doc and paying to get it done every week. They also have test shots that last 2-3 months (Aveed is the most common name)

Zinc and Magnesium is a good combo to boost T levels. Especially if you combine them with healthy diet changes and resistance training. High intensity strength training will do you best to boost T.

Sleep is huge. Alot of undiagnosed sleep apnea around these days. On top of already hectic schedules that cut sleep times. REM sleep is when your body does all its repairs, the less you get of it the sicker your body will be no matter how fit you look.

Clomid is an oral med that has been clinically proven to boost T when taken regularly in low dose form.

Injections are a pain, but prob the cheapest, quickest, and most effective way to boost your T. Implantable aren't as cheap, but work well. Topicals are garbage for the most part.

Gotta get your levels checked. It's nice if you can get both total and free T numbers. If your getting tested cuz you feel exhausted might as well have your thyroid, A1C, and fasting glucose levels checked as well.

Just a little info. Low T is real. T level drops are natural, and part of aging. So no matter your number if you feel fine, don't worry about it. But if you are feeling symptomatic, treat it. With what's available there is absolutely no reason to feel horrible related to a precipitous drop in your T level.

Asked doc about it, she said with high BP, no way in He11.

I turn 50 in a couple months and this thread is depressing me. I am also gonna need glasses this year.

[quote=pegasaurus]I turn 50 in a couple months and this thread is depressing me. I am also gonna need glasses this year.
[/quote

Oh hell no. I can't imagine being that old.

yeah one thing that hasn't been mentioned on this thread is the testosterone injection therapy comes with a 50% increase in sudden death via heart attack in men...

Got a source on that?

study showing increased heart attacks with testosterone therapy

So it breaks it down by age groups, the younger group showed a 36% increase while the over 65 showed over 100% increase.

Something to think about. There are plenty of studies that show decreased heart attack risk in people with treated low T...but that begs the question what really is Low T? By lab, low T has to be really low and most people being treated currently are not being treated base solely on labs. The reference range for testosterone in wide (somewhere around 40-600) so even though you aren't in the low level, you may have what dr calls low for you....basing things on symptoms rather than labs. In these patients, is there really low T or is it a lifestyle fix? More energy, more libido, ore lean muscle, less fat, etc, etc...lifestyle stuff that in reality doesn't mean low T, but because they can, dr treats as low T. You know why? because insurance pays for it.

This whole thing came about because drs. are being reimbursed less by insurance and they needed a way to make some money. This is also the reason most offices now offer some vitamins, genetic screening, etc...they make money off the stuff. You may ask how I know this. I am a doctor and I am tired of the sales pitches these people bring to me. It used to be "this is how this will help the patient". Now it is simply "do this x number of times per month and you can make this much money"

It is sad. It is true. I am sure there are some out there with true Low T, but most people on the juice are not truly low T.

I'm skeptical that they don't have any actual lab values to indicate there is an increased 'risk.' Old people have MIs. And like you said, the next study shows reduced 'risk.'

The experts can't even decide what part of an egg we are supposed to eat or if it's going to kill us all. They're not sure which is worse. High Cholesterol or the statins they prescribe for it.

As far as profit, the same could be said for treating a number of ailments. Chemo is a gold mine for doctors, but that doesn't mean it's a scam because some patients who are prescribed it lose their fight.

I definitely agree the normal range is a huge variation. So with a 'normal' range that big isn't the only option treating the symptom? You can take two patients with a a heart rate of 50. Both outside the normal range. One is dizzy, short of breath, pale, and diaphoretic. The other is perfectly fine and has always had a low heart rate. To say they both need or do not need treatment because they have the same value would be inaccurate.

Likewise, if a patient has a total T level of 300 presents with symptoms of fatigue, low libido, lack of motivation to work or exercise, then gets treated with T and feels better it's a win. The next guy in the waiting room might measure at 200 and feel fantastic

Never say never. I’m 53. Was listless, tired, no energy. I have an implant with small timed doses administered. Changed my life.

The TV/OTC stuff is junk.

Just to clarify, chemo and other high dollar drugs have what's called "pass through" coverage from insurance/medicare. Meaning the doctor gets reimbursed for only the cost of the meds as they cost the doc, so no money is made on chemo, even though the reimbursement looks really large. Just a cost of doing that business.

Wanted to clarify that in case you were wondering why there are not a zillion Cancer treatment facilities popping up at every corner, like there are with Low T centers...

You would know first hand better than me, but a quick Google search shows a lot of articles saying there is a huge profit.

As to heart attacks/heart disease, pick a study:

https://www.innovativemen.com/innovative...and-stroke-risk

Funny how we study medicine and make treatment decisions based on them when they have polar opposite results

A huge profit for the companies making the drugs for sure, but the doctors don't make any money on the drugs themselves. If you have evidence to support they do, then please show it. But my wife worked for an oncologist and they simply got pass thru coverage for the drugs and in many other fields of medicine there are meds and devices that get pass thru coverage. Very common. But there is no way to make extra money off these things, it is illegal and insurance fraud, and anyone that makes money off the drugs other than the manufacturer is illegal.

What studying of medicine do you do?

Most of the "scientific articles" out there are junk. You really need to sort through and find the well done studies and sort thru the garbage. Part of medical school and residency training involves figuring out which studies to trust and which ones are biased. NOt all biased studies are garbage, but if you set out to prove a point and set up the study to prove the point, this can be a bad thing. Kind of a self fulfilling prophecy in a way. So figuring out what to believe can be tough.