low libido

[buckeye11]

I started hrt 2 months ago with 200 mg test cyp.injections /week and all was fine.About 2 weeks ago I started to notice my libido was low and it`s still low.Mytotal test on 3 different bw were 57,63 and 118 before hrt.The last 2 have been 901 and 913 but I don`t feel any different,except at first my libido was really high(sex 8-12x/week).I also take 200mg preg,25 mg dhea and have arimidex on hand but have only taken .25 mg a couple times.I`m 45yo,190,13/14%bf and workout 3/4x week and cardio 2/3x week and eat pretty clean.I am at a loss as to what to do.I had mild ed before but its worse now. Thanks in advance for any suggestions.I`m really frustrsted.

[ZenFitness]

Hi buckeye, I'm new here too so the more experienced on the board may be more helpful, but I one of the first things to consider are your E2 levels. Can you post blood work results?

[steroid.com 1]

200mg of Test Cyp weekly and only taken arimidex "a few times"...points to elevated E2.

Get an E2 "sensitive" panel done as a stand alone and see where you stand before you start taking the AI.

General rule of thumb has been 1mg of AI per 100mg of Test...but seems many of us have been reducing that to half the dosage lately.

[kelkel]

Concur with above guys. Post up BW with ranges as your not showing us enough. If your not sure about proper BW it's in the stickies. And welcome to the site. While your in the stickies read them all. Tons of great knowledge there and it will give you a good head start.

[buckeye11]

Thanks for the quick replies. My E2 levels were normal with my initial bw and haven't been tested for that since. I started out on troches, then 6% test cream and my test levels never came up at all, so they put me on 200 mg test inj. So I should get a new E2 level drawn? So raising my test will raise my E2 level? At the begining my Dr. said my test was so low that I didn`t need to worry about it at that time. The only thing my Dr. tests me for now is my test and preg.

[steroid.com 1]

Daily TD's rarely raise E2 by the very nature that it's a very low dose regime taking daily with little to no spikes in serum levels...one of the big benefits.

Injections of 200mg a week is entirely a different animal and if your protocol is once a week the possibilities of elevated E2 are good.

Initial BW doesn't mean anything at this point.

Learn the symptoms of elevated E2 like water retention, feel cold, sore joints, muscle ache, nipple sensitivity and puffiness...there are a lot more.

See the list of necessary blood panels in kel's sticky and get them...the results won't lie.

[startingnew]

My regular Dr started me at 100mg a week but when my estrogen tripled,he would not give me anything and reduced my test to 50mg per wk.New Dr started me out on 200mg test/wk and 3mg arimidex/wk.At the 100mg/wk,my total test was above 1500(that's as high as LC could measure).I have no idea where it went with 200mg/wk but free test was 55+ and estrogen was like 12.I lost all libido and felt like crap.It took some time but I now go with 70mg test 2/wk and quarter my arimidex so only take 1/4 3/wk.HCG is 250IU 2/wk.Feel great now so you'll have to experiment to get to that ideal point.Also need to keep up with blood work until you know where you're at.It's taken me about seven months to get to my ideal area.It's frustrating but you'll get there.A lot of Drs will give test injections but not check for estrogen.My general Dr was like that until I demanded he check it and then wouldn't give me anything to bring it down but I fixed that,I found another Dr.

[buckeye11]

Thanks for all the responses.I`m calling the dr. monday and getting bw for everything kel has posted in his sticky.This site is amazing and thanks again.One more ?,would 1mg of arimidex eod help in the meantime or screw things up? My Dr. is cool but is kinda new to the hrt thing.

[steroid.com 1]

^^^^ Don't do anything till you get your blood work.

1mg of an AI is way too much; AI's are very powerful antagonists and you could do more harm.

Get an E2 Sensitive panel ... make sure it's a Sensitive panel ... then dose accordingly.

[kelkel]

If you happen to use labcorp let me know. I'll give you the right codes so they don't screw it up.

[buckeye11]

I`ve been going to a hospital for bw but i can use labcorp as my insurance pays for either.I thought i was somewhat knowledgable but it turns out i didn`t know much.This site is a godsend.I got most of my info from a book "your blood don`t lie".Now for the bad news,i was so impatient that i took 1mg of arimidex last night before bed.Should i still get bw immediately or wait.I woke up with morning wood for the first time in a couple weeks and had sex with no problems this a.m.

[buckeye11]

I get my injections on saturdays.My Dr. said i didn`t need anti-estrogen because my test was so low but i told him i`d like to have it in case so he agreed.I guess thats why i wasn`t taking it plus i had no signs.He told me i didn`t need to be tested for 6 months now becuse that`s where my test will stay but he didn`t retest anything else but preg.

[kelkel]

Adex has about a 46 hr half life so it will be out of your system. But, will the impact it will obviously have on your E allow it to rise to its norm by Friday after the med runs its course, I doubt it IMO, but it depends on how your body processes things. I'd probably wait one more week.

[buckeye11]

Thanks kel.Just so i understand i don`t take any a-dex for two weeks so i can get a true indication of what my E2 levels are? I guess from what I read i would have thought i should take a 1/4 a pill every 3/4 days.I guess i don`t understand why my Dr. is so concerned with my pregnenolone.

[steroid.com 1]

^^^^Don't take the AI for two weeks and then get BW.

Pregnenolone is important (see the sticky at the top of the forum) but not that important...you have other more important things to sort out first like getting your E2 under control.

BTW, the book you referenced is a good one for the common guy wanting to learn. Dr. DZugan is one of the top guys for TRT in both men and women.

[buckeye11]

Thank you guys so much for all the advice, I really appreciate it.