Those w/ Secondary Hypogonadism: Ever found the basis of your diagnosis?

[JOWS6]

It seems as if primary hypogonadism is a bit easier to find a culprit since there is a problem with the testicles. It could stem from the fact that you had mumps, a high fever, damage or trauma to the area, a vasectomy and so on. But how about secondary hypogonadism?

I've read a couple books regarding hypogonadism and some of the reasons would be sleep apnea, and pituitary abnormalities to name a few. I had an MRI performed and they found nothing abnormal. It seems somewhat unlikely since it is actually estimated that 10-25% of the population at any given time have pituitary tumors unbeknownst to them. (Didn't believe it at first either but it is true and even my endocrinologist acknowledged this surprising fact.) Surely when stacked up among the population and given that I have hypogonadism, it seems very likely that I would have a pituitary abnormality.

Some of the other causes of secondary hypogonadism are: obesity, HIV/AIDS, aging (obvious), inflammatory dieseases, Kallmann syndrome, pituitary disorders, trauma to the head, congenital adrenal hyperplasia, alcoholism, use of barbiturates or anticonvulsant drugs. Then there is the other cause of secondary hypogonadism called idiopathic which means for some "unknown reason." Which I think I may fall under.

Reading stories of people benefiting from testosterone replacement therapy (TRT) therapy is great but how many of you guys knew what the reason was? I have yet to see someone say they had low T from a pituitary tumor, sleep apnea or following a serious blow to the head. I am not saying that these are fictitious causes but wouldn't every boxer, football player or other athletes eventually become climacteric from low testosterone? I see a correlation between boxers and early-onset dementia and depression but I don't see that correlation with hypogonadism. If there is, it is being suppressed.

Jus' a mini-rant. I've waiting for awhile finding out the root of my problem since my diagnosis of secondary hypogonadism last summer. As I am knocking out test after test of negative results, it actually frustrates me. I mean, I was relieved to find out that I don't have a pituitary tumor but at the same time, I was angry in a way. Next up is a sleep apnea study, and it's a battle of "should I wait longer or jump the gun already."

I know what you will say Chip and we've discussed how I wanted to root out all possible causes before going on TRT.

 

[JOWS6]

Oh, I forgot to point out that I am 25 and maybe had this condition for a few years. Some of you guys are a little bit older which is the primary reason for your condition. The above post was aimed more at younger guys fallen victim to Hypogonadism.

 

[lowtguy]

seen this?
YouTube - JAMES TONEY SPEAKS ON LOW TESTOSTERONE LEVELS, HEAD TRAUMA

 

[cashout]

I can't give a specific reason behind my gradual decline in the Big T. At 40 years old, I do know that it started about 4 years ago and coincided with an illness - a horrible stomach virus known as rotavirus - I lost 12 pounds in 5 days! I now know how folks in 3rd world countries die from Dysentery!

Anyhow, from that point, I watch my test drop from low 900s to 650s to 579. That is when I acted and began HRT.

My levels have always been around 900-1000 naturally. So, at 579, I was approaching a midpoint.

I could tell the difference especially in my physical performance in the gym. It was darn near impossible for me to hold any weight and over the few years, regardless how hard I trained or how much I bumped up my calories, I just kept losing muscle.

My goal was not to gain new muscle but to maintain an equilibrium where I was when I was 36 years old.

My hypothesis with this whole Hormone Replacement Therapy (HRT) stuff is pretty simple.

I believe it is easier and more beneficial to keep the body from entering into "old age" than try to pull it out of "old age" later in life.

To me, this is like a well schedule maintenance program for the longevity of the machine.

So, I started last year on the Hormone Replacement Therapy (HRT) program and so far I have experienced some marked improvements. I've gained a few pounds of muscle back. My body fat is back down in the 7%-8% range and I am back to training 5 days a week without feeling like I've been hit by a truck at week's end.

One more thing, for me, I've notice a marked ability to maintain mental focus. I did not expect that but it is a welcome side effect. I've done some research and there are a number of studies that report the same findings in older men administered testosterone replacement therapy (TRT) as well.

Regards.

 

[JOWS6]

Thanks Cashout for your story and experience. Again, my purpose was to aim at causes of secondary hypogonadism in younger males. In your situation, it's hard to prove that your illness lead to your declining testosterone levels as opposed to the effect of the aging process on T levels.

 

[cashout]

Thanks Cashout for your story and experience. Again, my purpose was to aim at causes of secondary hypogonadism in younger males. In your situation, it's hard to prove that your illness lead to your declining testosterone levels as opposed to the effect of the aging process on T levels.

I think you are quite right in your assessment of my situation.

One question I would ask of you is how is your general level of fitness right now?

Do you train regularly? How is the diet?

You said you've had this condition a couple of years now. Do you have any pre-conditions estimates of your fitness level?

Are there any points in time where you felt fit and had more physical capacity or have you always felt this way?

Is there some point in time when you said to yourself, "Man, I just don't have it anymore."

I ask, because I felt like that as I wrestled with my own decline for several years.

I just kept trying to do more of what was not working to no avail.

Regards.

 

[MoparMuscle]

Mine was probably brought about by "legal" oral staroid abuse when I was still developing (21-22 yrs old). I've had levels under 400 since I was 25 and they have gradually declined to under 200 (last total test lab was 172), I've been putting off Hormone Replacement Therapy (HRT) but now that I'm 30 and with ever lower levels I felt it was time to start.

 

[JOWS6]

I think you are quite right in your assessment of my situation.

One question I would ask of you is how is your general level of fitness right now?

Do you train regularly? How is the diet?

You said you've had this condition a couple of years now. Do you have any pre-conditions estimates of your fitness level?

Are there any points in time where you felt fit and had more physical capacity or have you always felt this way?

Is there some point in time when you said to yourself, "Man, I just don't have it anymore."

I ask, because I felt like that as I wrestled with my own decline for several years.

I just kept trying to do more of what was not working to no avail.

Regards.

One question I would ask of you is how is your general level of fitness right now?
- Poor. Overweight, no exercise and "okay" diet.

Do you train regularly? How is the diet?
- Diet is "okay". When I say okay, it is not in comparison with most you guys who eat healthy but in comparison with the average diet. I don't eat a lot of junk, (candy, chocolates or anything like that). I eat what my girlfriend cooks or when I am visiting my mother. I am a mexican so I eat lots of meat, rice, beans, tortillas and my girlfriend is half black/german and her cooking is more "americanized".

You said you've had this condition a couple of years now. Do you have any pre-conditions estimates of your fitness level?

No not really, I remember when I was 18-19 being the peak of my fitness. I had lots of energy to play baseball and was pretty good. I had a enough energy to hit a homer in the local park! (although it wasn't the size of an MLB park). I jus' felt more powerful, stronger and athletic. After that, it began to taper off VERY VERY VERY slowly. I never noticed any drastic changes along the years. I attributed that slow steady decline to my poor diet, lack of exercise etc. I am not sure if I can pinpoint an exact time I noticed something was wrong. The only reason why I suspected low testosterone is because in February 2010, I noticed a decrease in libido. During that time, there was no change in well-being, physical fitness, athleticism or anything of the like. Again, the slow steady decline might have been low testosterone, I don't know.

Are there any points in time where you felt fit and had more physical capacity or have you always felt this way?

- When I was 18 - 20.

Is there some point in time when you said to yourself, "Man, I just don't have it anymore."
- I would say I started thinking this roughly 3 years ago.

Jus for reference. My Testosterone level came in at 170 (Reference Range: 250-1100) but it was taken around 10:30. My free testosterone came in at 50.4 (Ref: 110 - 575).

 

[Dreaded Pirate Roberts]

Don't wait it will totally change your life

 

[JOWS6]

seen this?
YouTube - JAMES TONEY SPEAKS ON LOW TESTOSTERONE LEVELS, HEAD TRAUMA

Jus' checked it out right now. I can't view videos at the school's library because I don't have headphones but that was really interesting. Like I said, if there are a lot of boxers and football players having low testosterone, it sure ain't being talked about.

Don't wait it will totally change your life

Chip's giving me a call tomorrow. He would've talked with me today but he said he was on a hot date with someone named Dan.

 

[RJ]

Mine was a direct result of 4 years of heavy AAS use with minimal time off. My goals were to get big as fuck and one day compete. Did both IMO very well and came off in hopes of having a child.

Spent 6 months at around 195 levels (up from 135 post cycle). Doc put me on test 100mg.w. Got my wife pregnant a year later.

Met Chip last year and decided it was time to step up the protocol (after studying more about HRT) and add Human Chorionic Gonadotropin (HCG) and an Aromatase inhibitor (AI). Feeling even better now.

 

[cashout]

From what you've told us, there doesn't seem to be any of the typical factors involved in your lifestyle (i.e. previous AAS use/abuse, heavy alcohol/rec drugs use/abuse, injuries/physical trauma)

Obviously, one could assert that engaging in some physical exercise could help but I understand that that is really a catch-22 in that you probably would do so if you felt better.

You gave us some total and free test numbers. Did you have any other endocrine markers drawn when you tested?

Specifically, how about...

FSH, LH, T4, T3, or IGF?

I would think that it might be worth a look to see if there may be a systemic endocrine issue or perhaps the issue might just be isolated to a specific part of the system.

Regards.

 

[RJ]

And since you're overweight, I'd like to see E2 and Prolactin as well.

 

[riprockwell]

Me personally, I ran some cycles at a young age. Not too crazy I guess, but who knows. But I do notice that once I had my motorcycle crash in Jan 06, that is when shit started going downhill. I experienced a head trauma. Since then, Hypogonadism and Hypothyroidism have taken over along with some adrenal insufficiencies. I have always wondered what truly caused it. I am in a process of running a few current tests at the moment so who knows. Maybe I should have wore a motorcycle helmet.

 

[cjw2021]

Show us SHBG. I never used any kind of steroids and my levels were ~300, sometimes less the 4 years I had them tested. Dude I tried everything to try and get my T levels cranking and nothing worked. My balls were normal sized too, and my morning erections just stopped and fatigue set in and it was all downhill from there. Now I feel a hell of a lot better than ever, almost invincible.

 

[Soochers88]

Hey guys, I'm going to kind of piggy back off this thread. I am a 23 yr. old male with pretty much all of the symptoms of low testosterone. I am beginning to wonder if I have hypogonadism. I recently had my testosterone checked, my free testosterone was 13 ng/dl (range is 9-26) and my total testosterone was 400, (range is 300-1100). Estradiol was low. Now I realize that these numbers are in the normal range but they are relatively low for someone my age, and on top of that I have the following symptoms: difficulty maintaining erections, sensitivity to cold, hard time putting on muscle no matter how much I work out, brain fog, depression, low confidence, low sex drive, fatigue/feeling and looking tired, apathy, premature ejaculation, little facial and body hair...just to name a few. I have had this problem since puberty and it's really messed me up...haha

Now I have been to see several endocrinologists and urologists about my issues and they believe that everything is normal. I really want to try out HCG and hormone replacement just to see if it makes a difference. What do you guys think? Could I possibly have hypogonadism?

 

[jerhendr2203]

My doc related it to earlier concussions from high school, had my pituitary scanned, had at home sleep test, no abnormalities. My concussions were the only thing he could relate it to but still not really factual

 

[Soochers88]

I have had several concussions too...maybe this is the cause. I have noticed that my symptoms get worse when I increase my sexual activity...any of you noticed this?

 

[TR2838]

I chalk mine up to head trauma.. I've had so many blows to my head in my life that I can't say which one did it, or if any of them did it? I don't want to find out if my brain is whacked to be honest.. I fiqured that if I have a testosterone level of 200, then I might as well just treat my low T with 'T'.. I don't regret it.. I feel great.. I'm 33 years old and I feel better than I did at 23..
My wife is an xray tech and MRIs are not proven to be safe.. They are just not yet proven hazardous.. Also 1 cat scan is roughly the eqiuvalent of 1,000 regular xrays, as far as radiation goes..

 

[TR2838]

I have had several concussions too...maybe this is the cause. I have noticed that my symptoms get worse when I increase my sexual activity...any of you noticed this?

Yep.. If I have sex more than twice in a day, I feel strung out.. I hear that is fairly common though.