Raising testosterone?

[James93]

Good morning guys, happy Xmas!

I’m 29, 5ft11 and 78kg. I’ve been suffering with “Low T” symptoms for a while now, terrible anxiety (much worse in social situations) mid section weight gain, no morning wood at all, weaker erections (maybe 70/80%) muscle building progress is incredibly slow and almost non existent, mild depression, no enjoyment in my hobby’s anymore, motivation is at zero, the nads definitely looking a lot smaller etc etc. my biggest issue is the anxiety. That is really effecting me!

After doing some research I decided to improve my sleep habits, change up my diet and incorporate supplements (omega 3, vitamin d, ZMA) to try and improve my situation with zero success. I also train 3-5 days every week. Have done now for almost 2 years.

I decided to get my bloodwork ran to see where I was at and found the following

Total T - 475
Free T - 9.1
SHBG - 39
LH - 7.2iu/L (been told this is slightly high and with my T levels it could be a concern)
Oestradiol- 93pmol/L
Albumin - 48g/L
Prolactin - 189mIU/L
DHEA-S - 11.2umol/L

I know none of this is considered low as such but certainly not optimal for my age at all, I feel absolutely awful most days!

Any advice on something I can run Maybe Enclomiphene or something to try and raise my levels and improve my symptoms or am I looking at TRT? We are looking to have a baby next year so ideally I don’t want to shut the boys down.

 

[Deadp007]

The Dr who Rx's my TRT would definitely not put you on anything with your total T #, but you could run it by your Doc. I would be surprised if he would associate any of your mental/physical changes to a lack of testosterone, but I'm not a doctor... so there's that.

 

[Evom1]

You could definitely get trt if you went through an actual hrt clinic. Plenty of them online.

Id make sure sleep is optimized (7+ quality hours) and diet.


Here's a video where Joe is talking about a guy who did ice baths before a workout and saw something like a 500% increase in testosterone levels

View: https://youtu.be/p6GCI5JAzDI

 

[James93]

The Dr who Rx's my TRT would definitely not put you on anything with your total T #, but you could run it by your Doc. I would be surprised if he would associate any of your mental/physical changes to a lack of testosterone, but I'm not a doctor... so there's that.

Yes of course, that’s my findings too, my total T is within range, however my Free T is considered low, heck even my total T isn’t anywhere near optimal. That’s my issue and I feel that is what’s playing a role in my symptoms. Baring mind 3 years ago I didn’t have any of these issues, I was confident, happy, outgoing, extremely social, lean etc, now in the last year or two I’ve gone the complete opposite with no reason at all, I’ve also got a “beer belly” and heck I don’t even drink or eat bad food. I train hard and eat well, but I can’t seem to gain muscle or loose weight, despite being in a calorie surplus with 7+ hours sleep a night

You could definitely get trt if you went through an actual hrt clinic. Plenty of them online.

Id make sure sleep is optimized (7+ quality hours) and diet.


Here's a video where Joe is talking about a guy who did ice baths before a workout and saw something like a 500% increase in testosterone levels

View: https://youtu.be/p6GCI5JAzDI

Okay sir thankyou for your input. I will watch that video for sure. TRT isn’t necessarily the route I want to take right now, especially with the idea of having a baby next year on the horizon, however I haven’t ruled it out completely. I went to my GP and he wouldn’t even run my bloods, he just tried putting me on SSRIs which I really don’t want to be doing, so I looked into reasons what could cause the anxiety for no reason, the lack of motivation, the lack of morning wood etc and testosterone cropped up, so I got my bloodwork done privately.

I understand my TT isn’t low however I’ve been told the fact my LH is pretty high and my FT is low is a cause of concern and points towards hypogonadism

 

[shartking]

... I’ve also got a “beer belly” and heck I don’t even drink or eat bad food. I train hard and eat well, but I can’t seem to gain muscle or loose weight...

We all go through seasons where life is hard on us mentally and emotionally. That could be some of it. If you have a "beer belly", that will up your aromatase enzymes and throw things off. I know you said you eat well, but I would start there and really get that in check. Drop the gut and reevaluate in a few months. Once you're on T, there's no going back.

 

[James93]

We all go through seasons where life is hard on us mentally and emotionally. That could be some of it. If you have a "beer belly", that will up your aromatase enzymes and throw things off. I know you said you eat well, but I would start there and really get that in check. Drop the gut and reevaluate in a few months. Once you're on T, there's no going back.

I understand that buddy, the issue is this has been going on for a couple of years now, I have no reason for it either, I have no stresses in my life everything is good! Relationship/finances/work etc all good, no problems.

I understand that there’s no going back but my worry now is that I’m going to get worse, from my research ive noticed most people on these forums who are 50-60 years old have TT similar level to mine, heck Donald Trump has 475 TT and he’s 75! That’s what is getting me, my levels are within normal range but certainly not optimal for someone my age, especially my FT. I have a variocele on my left nut, have done since puberty but it’s never given me any discomfort or pain, so I’ve left it alone, I’m wondering if this is contributing to my lower than optimal levels

 

[LW64]

Any reason why you didn't go see a doctor?

I would do just that if I was 29 years old with those symptoms. There are some medical conditions that do explain your symptoms. Examples are Type 1 Diabetes, hyperthyroidism (which can explain the anxiety), and over-consumption of alcohol which can absolutely raise SHBG.

Skip the self-diagnosis and go see a doctor.

 

[TrenTrenTren]

How much alcohol do you drink?

And be completely honest with me.

 

[James93]

Today I’ve had my first beer since the summer, so that explains how much I drink! I’m really not a drinking person whatsoever, the first thing I did was went to see my GP and he didn’t give a shit about what I was saying and went “here! Take this sertraline your feel much better” and personally I really don’t want to go down the SSRI route what so ever, that’s the last thing I want to do! I agree they do have a place and certainly have their uses however it’s not something I want to turn to personally!

My thyroid came back all okay when I ran them before, however I’m getting my vitamin D levels and thyroid levels checked again just to rule things out

 

[James93]

How much alcohol do you drink?

And be completely honest with me.

No more than twice a year at an absolute push