Several years ago I was hooked on pain medication after some surgery that was performed. I was taking large amounts of pain killers daily for about 3-4 years and have been clean for the past 5 years (A couple of short relapses but n othing over 1 month of usage)
I relapsed recently though had it back under control under two weeks but I always noticed a strange effect from pain medication (opiates) in that they provided me with fantastic energy, boosted my libido, and just increased my overall sense of well-being. When I have not been on opiates, even after being clean for a couple of years I always felt fatigued, moody, depressed, constant brain fog, and had some low libido and ED problems. I tried weightlifting and healthy diet, healthy supplements hoping to improve my overall quality of life but all it ended up doing was resulting in increased fatigue.
I finally went to the doctor and had some bloodwork done and my total test came back at 180 and my doctor wants me to come back in to talk with her. After some reading I discovered that opiates can not only lead to shutdown in males but also mimics testosterone in the brain which explains the increased energy levels and sense of well being. I am worried that I may have done some permamnet damage to myself and have been dealing with the after effects for all of these years.
My question is, is this type of thing reversible or am I looking at having to be on HRT for the rest of my life. I am very concerned and any help is greatly appreicated.
My stats are
35 years old
6'3"
210 pounds
15% bodyfat.