2) Libido. HRT is simply king at increasing libido and passion for life in general. None of the other testosterone-raising strategies such as Clomid or HCG Monotherapy has the consistency and dose dependence in increasing sexual desire. Most men, from what I have seen, get some kind of libido boost. And many men will go from “I don’t even care about sex” to “I am chasing my wife/girlfriend around the bedroom”. (There are no guarantees however.)
4) Caring. It is very common for low T men to say that they feel like a “zombie” and care about nothing in life. Testosterone very often changes all that. Suddenly, a man will say that he actually cares about life and career again. Women pick up on this as you suddenly care about her and all aspects of daily life once again..
CAUTION: Some men write in after a few months of testosterone therapy and ask, “When will I feel anything?” Not everyone has a dramatic experience with HRT.
6) Improved Physique. Testosterone will usuall improve your body composition in many ways: a variety of studies have shown that it builds muscle, lowers fat and can even fight deadly visceral fat. The most common comment I get from men on the Peak Testosterone Forum about HRT and the body, though, is that it helps their recovery time at the gym. Basically, the perception is that they are able to lift more and lift harder. I have heard that it is very common for men on HRT to have a variety of aches and pains. Why? Because they now have increased energy, passion and alertness for exercising at the gym and sometimes they overdo it!
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1) Testicular Volume. If you go high enough with HRT, you may lose a little weight in your testes as production is shut down. This is usually minimal, but some men notice it and feel very insecure about it. I seriously doubt that the great majority of women out there would notice even if this does occur, but the important thing is that if you lose confidence, it may affect your life in the bedroom. So you have to weigh your options:
a) Go lower with your testosterone dosage. Anything less than 600 is unlikely to change your testes appreciably. (Talk to your doctor though.)
b) Ignore the issue.
c) Take HCG. (This can boost mood and libido for some men besides preserve testicular volume.) See my link on Testosterone and HCG for more information.
2) Acne. Occasionally a man will develop acne. For example, one man wrote into the Forum and said, “Just got back from seeing a dermatologist. He tells me “my acne is caused by testosterone, and there is nothing that Can be done to get rid of it. Every guy on T has the same problem” I need some help on how to get rid of this! If there is a way I’m certain someone here has the answer! It mainly located on my chest stomach and back.” [1] Of course, I completely disagree with the doctor’s assertion that every guy on HRT has acne. In fact, it is more the exception from what I have seen. However, it can occur and then must be treated just like your teenagers might get treated.
3) Fertility. Many young men never think about the fact that if they go on HRT, their fertility will likely be strongly impaired. There are options around this such as adding HCG into your regimen. But that can more time and money and, from what I understand, does not always work. So talk to a fertility specialist if this might be an issue for your situation.
4) High Converter to DHT (Enlarged Prostate and/or Hair Loss). Some men seem to convert more of their testosterone to DHT (dihydrotestosterone) and this can lead to enlarged prostate and/or accelerated hair loss. Now I have never had anyone on the Forum complain of this that I remember, but it certainly is reported. And the medicaitons to treat hair loss can anhilate permanently your testosterone. (See my link on Properica Risks for more information.) And finding that you have an enlarged prostate could be problematic, because urologists will usually employ alpha blockers or daily Cialis to battle BPH and, of course, both are pharmaceuticals. So you basically will probably have to either go off testosterone or take a pharmaceutical in order to deal with this.
5) Elevated Estradiol. If you are overweight or a high converter of testosterone to estradiol via aromatase, you can easily get classic high estradiol symptoms: loss of libido, erecitle dysfunction, gynocomastia, mood swings and prostate issues. This isn’t the end of the world as an AI (aromatase inhibitor) will usually take care of the problem. (Generally, Arimidex is employed for this purpose.) However, then you are on a pharmaceutical, which many would consider to be unnatural and risky to their long term health.
6) High Iron. Good physicians will monitor some combination of your hemoatocrit, hemoglobin and red blood cell counts. This will allow them to tell if you have too much iron, which in the long term can negatively impact your cardiovascular system and brain. So, if you come out higher than the range, then you really only have two choices: 1) donate blood regularly or 2) lower your testosterone dosage. Neither of those may sound fun to you.
7) Cardiovascular Risks. There is some evidence that the topicals may actually cause cardiovascular issues in some men. I discuss this in detail in my link on Testosterone Risks. Increasing heart disease is simply NOT something testosterone therapy should do, because low testosterone is a risk factor for hardening of the arteries, metabolic syndrome, diabetes, insulin resistance and a number of other known cardiovascular risk factors. However, it turns out that the topicals actually increase peripheral estradiol levels and this may be causing issues.
NOTE: Again, I’ve had a great overall experience with my HRT program, but I still recommend that you also read my link on Testosterone Risks, because it provides some other unusual or controversial aspects of HRT. Again, well-run HRT clinics are growing and thriving for a reason. But that does not mean that the ride will always be smooth for all patients. It is also very important that your doctor know how to screen you before going into testosterone therapy: men with a past history or existing prostate cancer, kidney issues or hypertension should get expert medical advice before adding testosterone to their regimen.
1) https://peaktestosterone.com/forum/index.php?topic=1060.0