Anyone Have Experience with Low Testosterone (Male)? Did You Treat It?

Updated on August 18, 2012
J.B. asks from Boston, MA
4 answers

My husband recently had his testosterone tested and it came back at under 200, which I understand is considered very low. At his appointment he had asked his primary care physician about testosterone replacement and human growth hormone. These requests were prompted by my husband talking to some guys he plays hockey with about how gassed he is when playing and how long a muscle injury from last year (a torn bicep) was taking to really heal. Several of them talked about how they take testosterone and HGH and it has changed their lives, they bounce back from injury etc. His doc was surprised at how low his testosterone level was and referred him to an endocrinologist to talk about further options.

Anyway...my husband is 43, very overweight (I think his BMI would put him at obese) and has been treated over the years for ADHD, depression and, more recently, cyclothymia (a form of bi-polar II with long cycles of normal in between the highs and lows). He actually has a lot of muscle mass beneath all of the fat but hasn't worked out consistently in a long time due to one injury after another. He also has high cholesterol, high blood pressure and fatty liver, none of which are being treated.

I'm hoping that if hormone therapy is the right course of action, that it will help him have the energy to exercise and lose weight and that the weight loss will help with the other health issues. But I'm worried about side effects - if you or your husband had been on TRT therapy, were there any negative side effects? Were there other courses of action to try first? Was the TRT coupled with anything else like DHEA or HGH? While I hope this would improve his mood, I don't want him to be on anything that will trigger manic episodes or rage. I know that we'll get some answers when he talks to the next doctor, but the insight of people who have dealt with this can be so helpful...so what has your experience been?

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More Answers

A.G.

answers from Dallas on

My husband (49 years old) has extremely low testosterone. I don't remember the latest number, but he gets tested every 3 months. He was treated by a general practitioner first, and tried weekly injections, but his numbers didn't improve. Now he is seeing an endocrinologist who did tons of tests to rule out all sorts of possible causes, and determined that my husband is in perfect health aside from low testosterone (he's always been a good weight, good cholesterol/blood pressure, doesn't have any mood/depression issues, etc.).

Now his endocrinologist is having him give himself weekly injections, but at a different dose than he was getting before. We'll see how it goes.

He hasn't had any side effects from the testosterone shots at all. On the first day, he says he feels a little more energetic, but doesn't feel any different after that. He's always had a lot of energy anyway, though, so I don't know if he would really notice it if it did give him energy. He hasn't been hurt in a long, long time (knock on wood), so I don't know about the healing time. Also, he's a very easy-going, happy guy, so I don't know about it improving mood. It certainly hasn't hurt his mood, and he hasn't had any issues with rage or anything.

I'm glad your husband is seeing a doctor, and hope he gets the help he needs.

1 mom found this helpful

B.C.

answers from Norfolk on

An endocrinologist will be able to tell him more.
Slow to heal can be diabetes and/or thyroid issues.
Testosterone and HGH are not cure-alls and there are a whole lot of other hormones that need to be in balance.
Testosterone is only part of the picture.
It would be interesting to find the reason for the low levels and address that first, rather than rush to replace.

1 mom found this helpful

M.B.

answers from Tampa on

My husband uses something called Axiron, is an under the arm thing. For him it doesn't really work but since we have small children he was advised not to use the gels that you have to use your hands to apply. He's trying to get his dr to give him injections of it.'
Added: my husband gets his from his urologist. And yes they tested for other issues.

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C.P.

answers from Provo on

I have heard that many people (male and female) have great results with bio-identical hormones. I was on them for a while before my insurance ran out and I had lots of energy and my mood was fantastic. I got a complete work up of my blood and found out that there are other vitamins that I need as well.

1 mom found this helpful
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