Next steps to take, low-T, 30 y.o., no medical issues, no drug/steroid use ever

[radiationkillsbirds]

Hey guys, 30 yo male, 25%body fat, no history of steroids or drugs. I've been having issues with very low T. In Nov 2012 my T was at 350, I had it checked again a month ago and it's at 98. I'm extremely stressed and concerned about this. Out of curiosity I also had Estrogen checked and it was around 220 (over the normal). ..

The only reason I even have my T checked is because I feel like I can't lose weight, I'm irritable, over-sensitive and complaining/nagging and I get over emotional as I have anxiety and panic attacks.

No other major medical issues. The Dr I'm with now I haven't been seeing for too long and she's mainly a family doctor, and she suggests changing my diet and trying to lose some weight and having the number re-tested. Between me and you guys, I know this will do very little as my 350 number was around when I was at about 14% body fat and very active (kickboxing and taekwondo). Not to mention losing weight has become almost completely impossible.

I am married now and less active naturally but still don't think this should be happening to me at this rate and this age.

Where do I go from here? Should I wait it out and re-test? Should I be asking her for TRT? HCG? I'm so fracking confused. Wifey and I will be trying to have kids in the next 2 years also. -__-

Any advice will help. I need some kind of direction on this or maybe someone stating the obvious except myself. Do I have hypogonadism? Is there something else I should have checked? As mentioned, no diabetes, no medical issues. I have been taking some ibuprofen for a bad lower back but nothing else.

 

[radiationkillsbirds]

Some more info:
5'8", 195lbs, 25% bf (using standard caliper), low-moderate activity, I.T. office job seated 8-10 hours a day sometimes but I get up and go for walks every two hours.
My sex-drive has been in the gutter and the quality of erection as well.
No matter what I seem to do I can't find the motivation/drive/ambition I had a few years ago.
Losing weight is getting more and more difficult. I used to have no problem dropping 20lbs before but now I drop 3-5lbs and hit a platea for weeks on end.

Questions:
1. Should I be dealing with this immediately or waiting for a few weeks and re-testing?
2. Should I continue talking to primary Dr/ Will she give me what I need? If not, where to next?
3. Could any of this be related to ibuprofen? I know it's a wild shot but worth asking as I have seen a few articles online that do mention pain killers having a small affect. But even then I have only been taking ibuprofen sporadically for a few months for my back pain.
4. What is the best route to go? Estrogen blocker first? HCG first? T injections? A combination?

I just want to guide myself through this and get back to feeling better. I'm sick of Dr's pointing me in 10 million directions. Being a little over weight should not drop my T below 100 should it??

 

[Megatron28]

First thing you need to do is get more blood work to figure out what is going on. In the Basic TRT Overview sticky thread, a lot of this is covered. Please read it.

You first want to try and figure out what type of hypogonadism you have and then see if you can figure out what the cause is. Blood work will point you in the right direction. LH and FSH will tell us if you are primary or secondary hypogonadal. TSH will tell us if you have a thyroid problem. Prolactin will tell us if you have a pituitary problem. And so on. Again, the blood work you need is covered in the sticky. And by the way, you need to check estradiol, not total estrogen. Estradiol is a type of estrogen and the one you should be concerned with.

If you don't want to go through your doc again for blood work, you can see my signature below. Use the Private MD - Buy Lab Tests Online one I list. The Hormone Panel for Females will not be enough for you. It would be better to spend a little more and get the Hormone Panel for Males and also add in Prolactin. Vitamin D would be nice too. Make sure you have your blood drawn first thing in the morning.

as for your questions:

1) Yes, deal with this now.

2) You will have yo make that decision. But depending on your blood work results, you may need to see an endocrinologist or urologist.

3) Highly unlikely that it is caused by ibuprofen.

4) Can't answer that until we have more info about what is causing your hypogonadism. Again, read the sticky and it will cover some of your options.

http://www.steroidology.com/forum/testosterone-replacement-therapy/662394-basic-trt-overview.html

 

[Alpin]

Get a sleep study done and order complete labs for hormones. Go early in the a.m. after a good nights sleep.
low T and high Estradiol will cause those symptoms.
I know cause I had it too but not estradiol as high as yours.
must be a nightmare. I hope your doc treats that elevated estradiol its not healthy.

 

[radiationkillsbirds]

Thanks guys, will be having new blood work done this Friday and will keep you posted.

I just want to feel like myself again.

 

[Tornadoalley]

Thanks guys, will be having new blood work done this Friday and will keep you posted.

I just want to feel like myself again.

I just started TRT this week. I had two test at the LowT center and got my first shot. It was super simple, but I am looking for a hormone Dr in my area so that I can avoid weekly fees.

 

[rhettjwilson]

OP, you sound so much like myself when I was 30, I'm 32 now, no drugs, no steroids, but a few years of heavy drinking in college. I recommend asking your primary care doc for a referral to an Endocrinologist because I'm not sure she understands your low T very well. Your testosterone is way too low too low to lose weight easily. I voluntarily tried that when I was first diagnosed with low T. Two months of going to the gym 3 times a week and eating right made me lose about 5 lbs and increased my testosterone by 20. That doctor put me on TRT injections after that. TRT was a life changer. I had to have been suffering from low T for over 5 years because as soon as I got on TRT, I was a completely different person. My relationships with my wife, family, friends, and co-workers was better. I actually wanted to have sex more than about once a month. I was 2 pump chump for the first time in my life. I was a bit embarrassed by that but I previously couldn't even finish over half the time. I am lasting longer than that normally though.

There was a couple of problems with that doctor though. He never found out why I had low T. My existing primary care still doesn't know what's causing it but he said he would have to refer me to Endo to find out. He said he would continue TRT since it's working though. TRT was great and I was scared to lose it so I didn't do anything. I also told the first doc I wanted to have children but he still put me on TRT without warning me it will make me infertile. One reason is because I had bilateral varicocele but only found that out recently. I also had it removed though.

Fixing my testosterone through TRT was a life changer. It may not be the safest way for me though so I should find out why it's low and you should do the same before starting TRT. Good luck!