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Dr. prescribed 5mg of Androgel

coachrob

coachrob

New member
After complaining for about 6 months to my PCP about libido, fatigue, and lack of sexual drive. He finally tested my testosterone and I was below the baseline of low. So he prescribed 5mg of Androgel and told me to come back in 3 months for a follow up and blood test.

He said I would notice a difference rather soon. It's been 2 wks and nothing. No increased energy, sex drive, hard-ons, nothing. I am frustrated with the whole ordeal. This has been going on for all most a year. I finally had some hope that I was getting somewhere and now no improvement.

Should I wait out the 3 months or should I go ahead and call him and complain that it's not working yet? He did tell me that if the Androgel doesn't work that he would send me to a urologist to see about taking shots. I just don't want to wait 3 months for nothing and he just up my dose to 10mg and wait another 3 months before he finally sends my over.

Any advice is greatly appreciated. I know I may sound a little eager. I'm just tired of busting my tail off for the last year and no results in the gym or bed room! This sucks.
 
coachrob said:
After complaining for about 6 months to my PCP about libido, fatigue, and lack of sexual drive. He finally tested my testosterone and I was below the baseline of low. So he prescribed 5mg of Androgel and told me to come back in 3 months for a follow up and blood test.

He said I would notice a difference rather soon. It's been 2 wks and nothing. No increased energy, sex drive, hard-ons, nothing. I am frustrated with the whole ordeal. This has been going on for all most a year. I finally had some hope that I was getting somewhere and now no improvement.

Should I wait out the 3 months or should I go ahead and call him and complain that it's not working yet? He did tell me that if the Androgel doesn't work that he would send me to a urologist to see about taking shots. I just don't want to wait 3 months for nothing and he just up my dose to 10mg and wait another 3 months before he finally sends my over.

Any advice is greatly appreciated. I know I may sound a little eager. I'm just tired of busting my tail off for the last year and no results in the gym or bed room! This sucks.
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If you have other underlying issue then the T gel will probably not absorbed reducing your level lower then what you started. No one should be put on androgel for 3 months with out checking labs after 2 weeks to see if you are absorbing, but this is typical of an endo. Here is some gel see you in 3 months. The Dr's who I consult with are suggest to check with in 7 -10 days to see if there needs to be adjustments or if its even absorbing. Majority of them I suggest to start out at 10 grams this will reduce up to 4-6 weeks waiting period for a person. With in 14 days the Dr will know what the next step is. In the approach I use with drs, I do not want people to have to suffer, but get the optimal results or move on to the next step of treatment. How, when and where you apply the gel in relationship to the test is crucial to get the most accurate information when testing. After 14-21 days on 10 grams of gel, it is highly advisable to the Dr to get a 24 hour urine to see how one is metabolizing it.
 
^^^

There should be an initial follow-up after 2 weeks as you should be "feeling" rather fast if it is being absorbed as it should.

I have a buddy whos Dr. prescribed testin gel daily + test cypionate shots 3 times a week......yes you read that correctly.

-Matt
 
Thanks, I have called and talked the nurse. Just waiting on a call back as usual. I don't want to be just another patient that gets the bare minimum treatment. I want to fix my problem and get back to feeling half way decent again. I know he will eventually send my to a urologist. I just hope he goes ahead and sends me. I'm in Ft Worth, TX. If there's anyone with a Dr referral. I would appreciate it.
 
coachrob said:
Thanks, I have called and talked the nurse. Just waiting on a call back as usual. I don't want to be just another patient that gets the bare minimum treatment. I want to fix my problem and get back to feeling half way decent again. I know he will eventually send my to a urologist. I just hope he goes ahead and sends me. I'm in Ft Worth, TX. If there's anyone with a Dr referral. I would appreciate it.
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I have colleague in Austin, TX which takes insurance possibly and is on the ball with this stuff.
 
I would be interested in his info. I go to Austin about every other month. I would be willing to make the drive. My Dr returned my call and said to give 2 more weeks and come in for blood work. So, I'll give it that long and see what my numbers are then. If you could send me your colleagues info. I can go ahead and contact my insurance and see if they will cover my visit to him. Thanks
 
I hope this helps. I went to my GP and had some blood work done about two months ago. My test was 167ng, really low. He gave me a perscription at a compounding pharmacy for 5% bio identical test cream. It really didn't kick in for awhile. I was actually doubting the the stuff myself, until I missed a few consecutive days of use. I started using again and feel good. My low t symptoms are still there but much improved. I going back for bw next month.
 
Like Matrix says and both of us have been saying this for yrs. When you go on a starting dose of Androgel or Testim do labs in 2 weeks you can end up lower then you started. You can feel better in the first 10 days then when your bain sees the T in your blood it will stop sending the LH and FSH message to your testis that tells them to make T. So now your levels before going on the gel are gone and all your left with is what the starting dose of gel is doing. I talked my self blue in the face so I made a file here is a copy of it.
===============================================================================
Starting on Androgel or Testim.
Yes this happens a lot you start on a low starting dose 5 grams when your brain sees the testosterone in your blood even just a little it slows down even stops sending the LH and FSH message to your testis to make the Testosterone you were making. So let’s say your labs for Total T were 350 you add this dose of gel your brain sees this and you lose the base level you had before the gel.

Now lets say you need more then 5 grams most do so now all you left with is what the gel is doing so lets say it's doing 200 so you lost 150.

The reason you feel good is your levels go up that 200 the gel is doing in the first 2 weeks so your levels go up to 550 in theory. The brain sees this and you fall back.

Why can this happen it might be how your putting on the gel, with Androgel you need to spread it over your upper arms and shoulders and down your back as far as you can reach this is half of your dose then do the other side. Just spread it over the area but don't rub it in.

The other thing is it's not getting through your skin good so you need more. If you have a thyroid problem your skin will become thicker and gels and creams don't get through the skin and you need to switch to shots.

I tell men when they go on Gels to retest in 2 weeks because you can end up feeling worse. Most men just need more gel. Dr.'s that tell men to go on 5 grams of gel and come back in 8 to 12 weeks for labs don't know much about the use of gels. Dr.'s that treat a lot of men for low T on gels see this happen and test them again in 2 weeks.
When you go to do labs get up and shower that morning go do your labs and then put in the gel after your blood test so you don’t spike up your labs. If you can’t do labs in the morning shower put on the gel but don’t get any gel on the spot they take the blood from. Do your labs about 6 hrs later.

Call your Dr. and tell him this and that your not feeling good you were but fell back.
 
Well put fill, glad to see you posting on here. People are so much more grateful for sure. I enjoy the stability of this board ..

pmgamer18 said:
Like Matrix says and both of us have been saying this for yrs. When you go on a starting dose of Androgel or Testim do labs in 2 weeks you can end up lower then you started. You can feel better in the first 10 days then when your bain sees the T in your blood it will stop sending the LH and FSH message to your testis that tells them to make T. So now your levels before going on the gel are gone and all your left with is what the starting dose of gel is doing. I talked my self blue in the face so I made a file here is a copy of it.
===============================================================================
Starting on Androgel or Testim.
Yes this happens a lot you start on a low starting dose 5 grams when your brain sees the testosterone in your blood even just a little it slows down even stops sending the LH and FSH message to your testis to make the Testosterone you were making. So let’s say your labs for Total T were 350 you add this dose of gel your brain sees this and you lose the base level you had before the gel.

Now lets say you need more then 5 grams most do so now all you left with is what the gel is doing so lets say it's doing 200 so you lost 150.

The reason you feel good is your levels go up that 200 the gel is doing in the first 2 weeks so your levels go up to 550 in theory. The brain sees this and you fall back.

Why can this happen it might be how your putting on the gel, with Androgel you need to spread it over your upper arms and shoulders and down your back as far as you can reach this is half of your dose then do the other side. Just spread it over the area but don't rub it in.

The other thing is it's not getting through your skin good so you need more. If you have a thyroid problem your skin will become thicker and gels and creams don't get through the skin and you need to switch to shots.

I tell men when they go on Gels to retest in 2 weeks because you can end up feeling worse. Most men just need more gel. Dr.'s that tell men to go on 5 grams of gel and come back in 8 to 12 weeks for labs don't know much about the use of gels. Dr.'s that treat a lot of men for low T on gels see this happen and test them again in 2 weeks.
When you go to do labs get up and shower that morning go do your labs and then put in the gel after your blood test so you don’t spike up your labs. If you can’t do labs in the morning shower put on the gel but don’t get any gel on the spot they take the blood from. Do your labs about 6 hrs later.

Call your Dr. and tell him this and that your not feeling good you were but fell back.
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pmgamer18 said:
I try things are slow at my Yahoo H2 forum and I feel like crap doing this keep my mind off my pain.
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Phil another way to help pain may be through modulation of serotonin receptors with such medicine as Lyrica. Just a thought..
 
I appreciate all the info. It really explains what I'm feeling right now. He still wants me to wait 2 more weeks. I just get frustrated easily at getting the bare minimum. It's just like any thing else you pay for. You always want the top performance.

My TSH was a little elevated on my results. Which he said he wasn't too concerned about. Due to everything else being where it needed to be. But, I'm wondering if that may be why I'm not absorbing the gel enough.

I've lost 70lbs last year, but the past 6 moths have been a living HELL for me. My diet is good and killing my workouts. All I've accomplished is no gains or losses, limp noodle and lack of sex drive. I'm all most to the point of going back to being fat again. At least I could get a hard-on.

Right now, it doesn't matter if I eat 1000k or 3500k. No physical changes or energy change. That's why I had my T checked and came back low. I hope I'm on the right track and it's not a underlying issue with my thyroid. I really hate wasting time. I'm not getting any younger.
 
Have you read about the sides from Lyrica I don't know what is worse pain meds or them kind of meds for Fibromyalgia and I don't have this. I asked my Dr. about it when this all started up and he said no it would not help.
 
coachrob said:
I appreciate all the info. It really explains what I'm feeling right now. He still wants me to wait 2 more weeks. I just get frustrated easily at getting the bare minimum. It's just like any thing else you pay for. You always want the top performance.

My TSH was a little elevated on my results. Which he said he wasn't too concerned about. Due to everything else being where it needed to be. But, I'm wondering if that may be why I'm not absorbing the gel enough.

I've lost 70lbs last year, but the past 6 moths have been a living HELL for me. My diet is good and killing my workouts. All I've accomplished is no gains or losses, limp noodle and lack of sex drive. I'm all most to the point of going back to being fat again. At least I could get a hard-on.

Right now, it doesn't matter if I eat 1000k or 3500k. No physical changes or energy change. That's why I had my T checked and came back low. I hope I'm on the right track and it's not a underlying issue with my thyroid. I really hate wasting time. I'm not getting any younger.
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Coach I would keep digging because majority of cases I have dealt with in this regard are not hormone related, but something deeper at the cellular level.
 
Matrix or anyone else with info would be greatly appreciated. I called my Dr today and scheduled appt. I been on the Androgel for 3 wks. The past week I have really fallen backwards. Everyday I workout, the following day I'm highly fatigued. I have backed off working out a lot the past week and a half do to this. Is this common and how do I explain to my Dr it's not working.
 
coachrob said:
Matrix or anyone else with info would be greatly appreciated. I called my Dr today and scheduled appt. I been on the Androgel for 3 wks. The past week I have really fallen backwards. Everyday I workout, the following day I'm highly fatigued. I have backed off working out a lot the past week and a half do to this. Is this common and how do I explain to my Dr it's not working.
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get a blood test done to.confirm. Needs.to.be done.properly..
 
I'm curious as to how I can even get a dr to presribe test/shots/trt.

Wonder if after a cycle make an appt and he'll see I have low test and put me on shots ;) doubt it though.
 
AaronJP1 said:
I'm curious as to how I can even get a dr to presribe test/shots/trt.

Wonder if after a cycle make an appt and he'll see I have low test and put me on shots ;) doubt it though.
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This is not what HRT was designed "legal steroids", you choice to partake in this lifestyle, now you have to deal with the consquences along with it. IF you are going to play you better be prepared to pay..
 
The Matrix said:
This is not what HRT was designed "legal steroids", you choice to partake in this lifestyle, now you have to deal with the consquences along with it. IF you are going to play you better be prepared to pay..
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Gotcha, I read your signature as well. So
I'll go by what your sig says and what my doc says.
 
The Matrix said:
get a blood test done to.confirm. Needs.to.be done.properly..
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I could not agree more with Matrix. get the bloodwork done, Dr. is more likely to make a move from conclusive bloodwork , instead of how you feel. It's sad but true.
 
GTB said:
I could not agree more with Matrix. get the bloodwork done, Dr. is more likely to make a move from conclusive bloodwork , instead of how you feel. It's sad but true.
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Majority of Dr's sadly treat by numbers and why people usually end up coming find their way to me. Once I know there location then I can refer them out to a Dr who is willing to work with them. Together they can work together to get to come up with resolution. Dr's I stay away from recommending are the one with mentality "its my way or highway" because there will only be confrontation down the road. I hear about it from people all the time. Just because you graduated from Yale or Harvard university and can past exams does not make you automatically a good dr. Question is can you apply what you have learned? Having a good concepts of applications and proper bed side matter will separate one from the rest of the cookie cutter medical professionals. When dealing with these cases there is always something so simple which is over looked contributing to the problem, but Dr's have a hard time seeing it. Having a second pair of eyes is not a bag thing especially dealing unique and detailed cases.

Example
Even though you are testing at 500-600 2 hours after application. In majority of cases this may not be enough since you may end up at 300 by the mid afternoon. Some times its good to do a 2 hour peak and 24 hour trough to see how much you are utilizing and retaining. Then one needs to factor in e2, dht, and effects it may have other hormonal cascade as well as brain chemistry. Giving T is just 25% of the equation in alot of cases. It may make you feel good off the bat, but 6 months down may be a different story when you start killing your adrenals from higher test levels. All of this factors need to be check first before starting HRT, very few dr's do this. Then they need to be monitered 12 weeks after commencing of HRT to see if they have regulated. I have cases where hypothyroid does not get revealed till some times 6 months to a year after HRT is started. IT some times takes a long time to repair the damage at the tissue level to actually reveal something at deeper levels. These are typical cases I deal from Dr's. People get on HRT and are not properly monitored. After a specific amount of time things need to be re evaluated and adjusted. Once this is done then symptoms will get better. As always as many people here are starting to fine when I really get in their problem is that number one cause of issues is by their own lifestyles, or inablity to manages stress. Once correcting these issues along with identifying other imbalances, the body will go back into balance when given the proper environment. HRT for younger guys should only be a temporary bridge untill the under lying stressors are identified and removed.
 
So, after seeing my Dr yesterday morning. He pulled me off Androgel and took another blood draw. He said to give it a couple of weeks and let's see if this was causing my fatigue. I thought, " great! Here we go again."

Needless to say, he called me personally this morning. Apologized and explained that he's sending me to a urologist. My numbers were down 110 points less than from before I started the Androgel. Duh! No wonder I was wore the hell out. Like you said though Matrix. Their the ones with the degree, not me. The one who's over here suffering.

Anyways, I have a appt Tues with this Dr. Any advice on how to approach it? I don't want another half-a** effort on fixing my problem. I don't want to bare minimum and come back in 3 months BS. I understand to precautions they take, but I've been dealing with this for awhile. I'm ready to start feeling decent again.
 
I'll be praying that you get a Dr. that is at the very least sympathetic to your circumstances.
 
I am sorry but taking you off this what is this going to do your shut down now all this will do is make worse did you not read my post and starting on gels. If your levels fall on starting it it means you need more so if you started on 5 grams go up to 7.5 or 10 grams. Seeing an Endo or Uro is a waste of time and money they are the worst Dr.'s for low Testosterone. All you need to do is get your Total T levels up into the upper 1/3 of your labs range or when you feel best more is not better. And test and keep your Estradiol levels down to about 20 pg/ml. So if your over 30 pg/ml get some arimidex and follow this.
=========================================================
How To Take Arimdex and not go down on your Estradiol to Low.

What I found is if you go to low taking arimidex, it's the length of time your to low, if your too low say for 8 weeks it can take your body a longer time to make more Estradiol. Bottom line is to know how not to go to low. Keep a log on your dose and how you feel men going to low can't get it up taking Viagra. I went to low when I first tried Arimidex and did not know about going to low or how one feels to low, so I was low a good 8 weeks. I did not know I was low until my next labs.

The best gage I have found to control your Estradiol levels is to gage your night time and morning wood. At good levels or what I call the sweet spot you get your night time and morning wood back so strong it will wake you up and you can hang a coat on it.

Most men do good taking .25 mgs or 1/4 of a 1mg. pill, I use a pill cutter to cut the small pill in half then I stand it on the cut end and use a single edge razor to cut this in half. A good way to take arimidex is by how high your levels are. I tested over 90 pg/ml so we tried doing .5 mgs every other day after 8 weeks my next set of labs showed it did not move below 90, test said >90. So we did .5 mgs. every day in about 2 weeks I got some strong night time and morning wood back after not having them for many yrs.

I kept doing this dose and in 8 weeks my next set of labs said <20 back in the day labs were like this they did not have to good labs we have today they could not read lower the 20. My Dr. told me this looks to low to stop taking the Arimidex. The one thing I noticed was my wood stopped and stopping the Arimidex my wood came back in about 7 weeks my next test at 8 weeks was 24 pg/ml. So we went back on the Arimidex but the Dr. told me to take .5 mgs every 3 days I was on this dose not a week and lost wood. This is when I figured out going to low you lose wood. And the longer your too low the longer it takes to get levels back up.

I stopped the arimidex right away and got my wood back in 4 days. I then after playing with the dose for a time found the best dose is .25mgs every 2 to 3 days.

So lets say your labs are less the 50 pg/ml if your take .5 mgs you can go down so dam fast your miss the sweet spot of your wood and go to low. It's best with lower levels 50 and under to do less Arimidex .25mgs every 2 days if later your lose wood when it comes back go to every 3 days.

I have found estradiol is the hardest hormone to control, it goes up or down from month to month some times I need .25mgs every 2 days other times I need .25mgs everyday most of the time I do well on every 3 days.

So between wood and labs I do great and so do most of the men I have told this to. I keep a log on how much I am taking and how I feel. Doing this and reading back in my log I was able to tell when I was going to high or to low my Dr. lets me dose my arimidex by how I feel.

Over the yrs. I have posted this story until I am blue in the face.
 
I have zero faith in GP doctors.....these guys are trying to make a living.....like most people they are uninformed...you should not give them power by following their advice.....there has been very little research done .....its all controlled by companies ....gather your own info.... read..read..read.......
 
True but after 23 yrs of seeing every dam kind of Dr. I found that Endo's and Uro's are the worst Dr.'s. My new Dr. is a GP and treats a lot of men for low T and is dam good at it. I feel it's not what kind of Dr. your seeing it's about how many men he treats. And if he looks deeper into seeing why one if low before putting them on TRT.

There are all kinds of Dr. treating men for low T that never checked to see why they were low and just put them on TRT. Most don't feel good on TRT because of this. If the guy is Secondary meaning his Pituitary is not telling his body to make Hormones. He can have more then one low Hormone like Cortisol, Growth Hormone, Thyroid and so on.

The best thing anyone can do is learn about this read books like the new one out "Testosterone: A Man's Guide" by Nelson Vergel or "Testosterone Syndrome by Dr. Shippen it's a dated book but still good. I can't give out links to Pub. here but if you come to my forum at Yahoo hypogonadism2.com we have a links section full of Pub. about low T and high E2 levels.

If one leans about this then calls the new Dr. that want to see and ask questions your saving your self a lot of suffering and money.
charley said:
I have zero faith in GP doctors.....these guys are trying to make a living.....like most people they are uninformed...you should not give them power by following their advice.....there has been very little research done .....its all controlled by companies ....gather your own info.... read..read..read.......
Click to expand...
 
charley said:
I have zero faith in GP doctors.....these guys are trying to make a living.....like most people they are uninformed...you should not give them power by following their advice.....there has been very little research done .....its all controlled by companies ....gather your own info.... read..read..read.......
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Obvioiuly you have not been to a real good dr who looks at the whole scenerio, we get referrals from people all the time who have gone to U of penn, jefferson, and other big medical centers where they only look at symptoms not causes. We are in process of being an extension of one of the longest running wellness centers in the United States. We are starting to get a lot of their patients via word of month already. Before puttng a broad statement like that out there, you need to do your research. Touching lives each day is what I do and why I am in this field..
 
pmgamer18 & matrix.......I'm sure you guys are right.....but most GP's...don't know squat.......one of my friends [64yrs] has a female GP..she told him not to worry about his lack of 'sex drive'.....that he is 'getting old'...its 'normal'.....we all 'slow down'...........

Question.......Why don't more of you guys give your age????? I like to talk to guys old enough to understand what aging is about......
 
Charley,

All you need to do is ask I am 67 yrs. old I get Rem Sleep Wood every night and I can have sex 3 x's / weeks if my wife was willing. I have been on TRT over 30 yrs and working as a mod on some forums for over 9 yrs helping men and women with low Testosterone, low Cortisol and Thyroid problems. I am not a Dr. and don't act like one.
The forum I am a co mod at is at Yahoo called hypogonadism2.com.
charley said:
pmgamer18 & matrix.......I'm sure you guys are right.....but most GP's...don't know squat.......one of my friends [64yrs] has a female GP..she told him not to worry about his lack of 'sex drive'.....that he is 'getting old'...its 'normal'.....we all 'slow down'...........

Question.......Why don't more of you guys give your age????? I like to talk to guys old enough to understand what aging is about......
Click to expand...
 
pmgamer18...............thanks bro.......I am checking out hypogonadism2.com ........I do need to learn more as I treat my low t levels without a doctor.....I know everybody will say to have my blood work done......I know that when I do my 250 mg's a week my life is so much better.....

.............again ..thanks
 
charley said:
pmgamer18...............thanks bro.......I am checking out hypogonadism2.com ........I do need to learn more as I treat my low t levels without a doctor.....I know everybody will say to have my blood work done......I know that when I do my 250 mg's a week my life is so much better.....

.............again ..thanks
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250.mgs a week is a lot and may cause other things issues. Not.checking.your blood at our age is asking for potential.issues. Needs to.be under Dr supervision.
 
I go see the doctor today about my Low T. I have been reading a lot lately on the treatments, benefits, side effects, the body, and so on. I know my GP sent over my last 2 lab results. I will be asking this Dr to look into everything. Not just my over all Test count. But I was wondering if you guys could give me some questions to ask the Dr. So, I make sure I'm covering everything and don't leave out anything. I know as bad as I want to be able to walk in today and he give me a shot and it all workout. I know this is a process and I need to be patient. The last 6 months have been HELL! But what could a little more time hurt to get it right. Thanks in advance.
 
Best thing you can do is your own shots get your Dr. to show you how to do them and do them every week of if your shot size if over 125 mgs do the shot half of it 2x's / week doing this helps to keep your body more leveled and helps to hold down your Estradiol levels and this is the bad go when on TRT very high Estradiol levels.

Go to Amazon.com and buy the book "Testosterone: A Man's Guide" by Nelson Vergel it has every thing in it that took me being on TRT over 30 yrs. to learn and some.

Also read the sticky LifeExtension: Male Hormone Modulation Therapy
 
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