Re: New member - trying Endocrinologist

[Guest guest]

You said it:

" I realized I have to be more informed and will have to do most of the work to

get this

resolved. "

Symptoms that are due to low T will resolve with TRT, in most cases.

Full blood work is the key. Primary or Secondary..... Thyroid....MRI of the head

to rule out

Pititary tumors...

I started TRT Oct 27 2003 on Androgel, i had no clue about hormones.....

> Hi, new to the group. I am 47yrs and was diagnosed with low T about

> 5 years ago. My PC sent me to a urologist and he prescribed

> Androderm. I used that for a while then tried Androgel but never

> noticed much difference in the way I felt. Eventually I quit using

> it since my insurance won't cover. Never kept record of the blood

> work results, just relied on the Dr's to tell me what to do. March

> of this year I went back to my PC and decided I wanted to try TRT

> again. He prescribed Androderm (because it was cheaper) at 2.5mg per

> day. After about 1 month he ran blood work and my T level was at

> 121. He increased it to 5mg per day and then ran more blood work.

> I got a message on my phone one day from his office saying that the

> level was up and continue my current dosage. Really never noticed

> much difference in how I was feeling and decided to follow up with my

> PC so I scheduled another appointment and I asked him what the level

> from the last lab report was. Come to find out it was only at

> 174. He recommended I see an Endocrinologist and I am waiting for

> my referral to schedule an appointment. After checking this message

> board I realized I have to be more informed and will have to do most

> of the work to get this resolved. Sounds like some of the

> endocrinologist may not be the end all. Prior to this I was

> convinced that the solution was going to be in a patch or gel! Guess

> not.

>

> Sypmtoms: no energy, depression, anxiety, foggy head, insomnia.

>

> Have any of you had any success with getting rid of the " foggy

> head " ? My daughter was on Adderall for ADD but couldn't tolerate it

> so they changed her to Concerta. She had a few weeks of the

> Adderall left over so I tried them. Really perked me up for a few

> days but around day 5 all they did was make me nervous.

>

> Dave B

[Guest guest]

Hi Dave,

Endocrinology doesn't necessarily mean competence in male hormone

issues, even if they're great with thyroid or diabetes. Doesn't mean

incompetence either, although I've had unsatisfactory treatment from two. So,

it would be nice to know if the endo is good or not before you spend too much

time with him.

It would be nice to pre-screen him before the first appointment. I've done that

with other docs, but not on hormone issues. I'd try calling with a couple of

questions to him, which would probably have to be conveyed by his staff. Like:

Has he ever prescribed anything to handle estrogen in a man on TRT? What's

the average testosterone level for a 95 year old man? Answers (or lack of

response) will tell you a lot.

In a perfect world your endo will know more about male hormone issues and

treatment than the folks here. There are a few really good docs out there. You

want to have a good one sooner than later. You don't want another doc to tell

you your T is okay when it's not.

Some guys (like me) just don't absorb Androgel well.

Best,

Bruce

> Hi, new to the group. I am 47yrs and was diagnosed with low T about

> 5 years ago. My PC sent me to a urologist and he prescribed

> Androderm. I used that for a while then tried Androgel but never

> noticed much difference in the way I felt. Eventually I quit using

> it since my insurance won't cover. Never kept record of the blood

> work results, just relied on the Dr's to tell me what to do. March

> of this year I went back to my PC and decided I wanted to try TRT

> again. He prescribed Androderm (because it was cheaper) at 2.5mg per

> day. After about 1 month he ran blood work and my T level was at

> 121. He increased it to 5mg per day and then ran more blood work.

> I got a message on my phone one day from his office saying that the

> level was up and continue my current dosage. Really never noticed

> much difference in how I was feeling and decided to follow up with my

> PC so I scheduled another appointment and I asked him what the level

> from the last lab report was. Come to find out it was only at

> 174. He recommended I see an Endocrinologist and I am waiting for

> my referral to schedule an appointment. After checking this message

> board I realized I have to be more informed and will have to do most

> of the work to get this resolved. Sounds like some of the

> endocrinologist may not be the end all. Prior to this I was

> convinced that the solution was going to be in a patch or gel! Guess

> not.

>

> Sypmtoms: no energy, depression, anxiety, foggy head, insomnia.

>

> Have any of you had any success with getting rid of the " foggy

> head " ? My daughter was on Adderall for ADD but couldn't tolerate it

> so they changed her to Concerta. She had a few weeks of the

> Adderall left over so I tried them. Really perked me up for a few

> days but around day 5 all they did was make me nervous.

>

> Dave B

[Guest guest]

,

I know that fatigue feeling, and it needs to be handled as soon as " optimal " .

It could be that the best thing to do is see that endo. At least to get started

on

something. Get your energy levels up. Evaluate the ongoing effectiveness of

his treatment after that.

The easiest, least mind-boggling way to go about this is simple. Find a

trustworthy doctor who knows all about this stuff. This endo might be good. (I

don't know him. My experience with a couple of mediocre ones does not

mean he's bad too.)

Has an appointment date been set up yet? A lot of endos take a long time to

see. If that's the case and it's too far into the future, let us know. We might

be

able to help you find a faster doc.

Dang. This is the first posting I've done here without arcane terms or

mysterious abbeviations. Where's the fun in that?

Bruce

> Bruce,

>

> Thanks for the input. This has been a great board but I will admit that with

people talking about Clomid, HCG, Prolactin, Estradiol, DHEA, etc,etc, my

head is spinning. Guess it will take time to put all the pieces together but

will

be worth it in the end. Today I am taking 1/2 day off from work just because I

can't wake up and no amount of coffee seems to help.

>

> Dave

[Guest guest]

Yup, the fatigue is killing me. Got the referral in the mail

yesterday and immediately call the doctors office to schedule an

appointment. Her name is Dr. Sumesh Chandra and I have an

appointment for Sept 30. Hmmm, I wonder how much poking and probing

she will do? If this doesn't work does anyone know someone in the

Tampa, FL area they can recommend?

> > Bruce,

> >

> > Thanks for the input. This has been a great board but I will

admit that with

> people talking about Clomid, HCG, Prolactin, Estradiol, DHEA,

etc,etc, my

> head is spinning. Guess it will take time to put all the pieces

together but will

> be worth it in the end. Today I am taking 1/2 day off from work

just because I

> can't wake up and no amount of coffee seems to help.

> >

> > Dave

[Guest guest]

Hi Dave,

Sounds good. Only 9 days away. Rumor has it that female endos tend to know

more about male hormone issues than male endos.

Possible issue: You want relief from fatigue pretty darn quickly? She could

either (1) put you on TRT right then, or (2) might want to do some tests or an

HCG trial that could take more time. You can discuss that with her. Knowing

what I do now, I'd rather take some extra time being fatigued at first than to

still

be fatigued months from now, due to insufficient information. If she thinks it

will

take a while for energy to kick back in, ask about a stimulant or Provigil.

I think it's premature to be looking for another doc. It won't be long until

your

appointment, and you can tell us about it. With full details of every poke and

probe... You'll know if she's a keeper soon.

Best,

Bruce

> Yup, the fatigue is killing me. Got the referral in the mail

> yesterday and immediately call the doctors office to schedule an

> appointment. Her name is Dr. Sumesh Chandra and I have an

> appointment for Sept 30. Hmmm, I wonder how much poking and probing

> she will do? If this doesn't work does anyone know someone in the

> Tampa, FL area they can recommend?

[Guest guest]

Bruce,

I appreciate your support and check this board several times a day

just to keep me going. Curently on 5mg androderm (from my PC) but

have no idea where my T level is at. Was wondering if I should stop

so when they do blood work next week the results will reflect " as

is " ? I have been on androgel/androderm off and on for the past 5

years but was never monitored very close to see how everything was

doing. Part of that was my fault, I should have been more vigilant

about following up. From my experience Androgel seems to be more

potent, even at the same mg's. Neither one of these seem to help with

the " brain fog " . Hopefully they will run a lot more test than just

the T level.

One thing I did notice on both that after awhile my testicles will

shrink. I understand from some of the post's here that HCG can

counter act that problem.

> > Yup, the fatigue is killing me. Got the referral in the mail

> > yesterday and immediately call the doctors office to schedule an

> > appointment. Her name is Dr. Sumesh Chandra and I have an

> > appointment for Sept 30. Hmmm, I wonder how much poking and

probing

> > she will do? If this doesn't work does anyone know someone in

the

> > Tampa, FL area they can recommend?

[Guest guest]

Dave,

You're fatigued. Discontinuing the AndroGel can be expected to make things

worse.Just tell the endo you're on it. If she wants you to discontinue for a

while, say you'll need an anti-narcoleptic med.

Symptoms are enough to suggest you're on low T now. From your past

experience with AndroGel, you're probably still absorbing poorly. You were

below range on AG before, and could be now. It may be that E2 is a problem.

But that's just a guess.

Try to take copies of the two past tests with you, if you can.

Hang in there. You're going to feel better.

Bruce

> Bruce,

>

> I appreciate your support and check this board several times a day

> just to keep me going. Curently on 5mg androderm (from my PC) but

> have no idea where my T level is at. Was wondering if I should stop

> so when they do blood work next week the results will reflect " as

> is " ? I have been on androgel/androderm off and on for the past 5

> years but was never monitored very close to see how everything was

> doing. Part of that was my fault, I should have been more vigilant

> about following up. From my experience Androgel seems to be more

> potent, even at the same mg's. Neither one of these seem to help with

> the " brain fog " . Hopefully they will run a lot more test than just

> the T level.

>

> One thing I did notice on both that after awhile my testicles will

> shrink. I understand from some of the post's here that HCG can

> counter act that problem.

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