Finally got IM injections

[buckeyes#1]

A friend of mine is also on TRT and he gave me his doctor's name (family doctor). Well he ended up being covered by insurance, so I figured I give him a shot.

So I got there this morning and the nurse was takeing my temp, bp, etc. I asked her what they usually do for test. and she begins to tell me that they give one shot a month and then sometimes go to once every two weeks depending on the patient. I about walked out right then, but figured I could at least talk to the doc.

Well he came in and actually listened to me about my sypmtoms and why I did not think the gel was working. He begins to write me a script and I have to stop him to tell him I need enanthate instead of cypionate (b/c of insurance). He has never heard of it, and asks me if that is more for "bodybuilding purposes." I laughed it off and just told him it is just virtually the same thing with a different esther and a slightly different half-life. So he writes monthly on the rX pad and I just straight out told him I would not feel comfortable with only doing a monthly shot and that I understand what type of rollercoaster that will cause. He agreed.

So, now I get 200mg of testosterone enanthate every 2 weeks. I will go back for bloodwork after the 3rd shot.

[subnet]

buckeyes, for one, I am dumbfounded that you had to describe to him what Test E was... Yeah, I know that Test C is more common but that's crazy. At least he agreed to it I guess.

As far as the monthly or bi-weekly shots, I'm sure you've read here that everyone says that it really needs to be weekly. I am FAR from an expert here just starting TRT myself, but I just had my bloodwork come back after 13 days after my 200mg Test E injection, and I went down to 183 from 225. Of course, every person will metabolize things differently but I know the last 4 or 5 days, I felt like crap.

Really though, is there anyone else you can go to that might have a better idea as to TRT?

Does this mean that you will self-inject if he's giving you a prescription, or will you have to come into the office?

[zaggahamma]

funny how he's gonna write 1 shot a month and then you say no it doesnt work like that then he just says ok you're right....lmao...
should of asked him to pay you while youre at it...too funny...
good stuff..glad u spoke up...super glad he listened..very unusual..docs dont usually like being taught by the patient...maybe he had an idea of how the test worked in the body but was used to writing the 1 a month shot...who knows...u gave him an epiphany....so, like subnet asked do you have to go in to get the shot? hell no!!!!!! tell that biach again...i wont be comfortable havin to see your ugly mug twice a month...i'm keeping the vial at home

[Spyke]

Well if you take the bi weekly shots you get to go from bad to worse...... He is giving you enought test to shut down your natural production but not enough to get you to the upper half of normal....Plus due to the half life of test in the body your levels will be like a rollercoster.

Whats he gonna do as far as your nuts shrinking? How does he monitor your estrogen? See where I am going with all this???

[buckeyes#1]

Okay, I will try to answer all of your questions.

This is the 3rd doctor I have seen about my low testosterone . Every other doc only wanted to do the androgel that was not working. The second one wanted to implant Testopel, but not do shots.

I understand that weekly shots are the way to go and I want that too. I am going to tough this out for six weeks and when the bloodwork comes out low right before my 4th shot I will demand the weekly shots.

As fornow I do have to go in to get the shots, but I keep the vial with me. I do not need an appointment, just have to call beforehand to make sure they are not swamped. I stop in and the nurse gives me the shot, did I mention she is smoking hot?

I am not concerned with testicular shrinkage. I have had a vasectomy and at this point, it would only be for cosmetic reasons to keep them plumped up.

Another thing, I had to educate the doc about was estradiol monitoring. I asked him to add that to the follow up bloodwork. He said deciphering that may go beyond his normal duties. I explained to him how a hi or lo E3 may lead to other symptoms and that if I get the number that I will understand it.

He may not be the most knowledgeable doc, but he is working with me and listening to my concerns and wants. Hopefully I can get him a little more edcuated and pointed to some good information in my journey to a better life.

[zaggahamma]

Well if you take the bi weekly shots you get to go from bad to worse...... He is giving you enought test to shut down your natural production but not enough to get you to the upper half of normal....Plus due to the half life of test in the body your levels will be like a rollercoster.

Whats he gonna do as far as your nuts shrinking? How does he monitor your estrogen? See where I am going with all this???

spyke...i've never heard any negative comments on bi weekly...have you heard something else?

[zaggahamma]

Okay, I will try to answer all of your questions.

This is the 3rd doctor I have seen about my low testosterone . Every other doc only wanted to do the androgel that was not working. The second one wanted to implant Testopel, but not do shots.

I understand that weekly shots are the way to go and I want that too. I am going to tough this out for six weeks and when the bloodwork comes out low right before my 4th shot I will demand the weekly shots.

As fornow I do have to go in to get the shots, but I keep the vial with me. I do not need an appointment, just have to call beforehand to make sure they are not swamped. I stop in and the nurse gives me the shot, did I mention she is smoking hot?

I am not concerned with testicular shrinkage. I have had a vasectomy and at this point, it would only be for cosmetic reasons to keep them plumped up.

Another thing, I had to educate the doc about was estradiol monitoring. I asked him to add that to the follow up bloodwork. He said deciphering that may go beyond his normal duties. I explained to him how a hi or lo E3 may lead to other symptoms and that if I get the number that I will understand it.

He may not be the most knowledgeable doc, but he is working with me and listening to my concerns and wants. Hopefully I can get him a little more edcuated and pointed to some good information in my journey to a better life.

funny thing about having the vial with you..i too was supposed to pick the vial up and lmao come in or skedule the shot lol NOPE...they never saw my ass again til i needed more....and there was no problem with that...not to say all docs would be fine....some of the nurses that do shots dont even know wtf aspirating is...fvck that shiat
but youre gonna be fine...you got a lot of help here

[buckeyes#1]

I may talk to the nurse and see if she will give me a .5ml when I come in and I will give myself the other .5ml. That way it keeps the doctor happy and I am getting weekly shots.

[Spyke]

If i remember correctly, the half life of test (cyp and enth) is something like 10 days in the body.... so a shot every 14 days would put you on a rollercoster.

[ZonaDave]

If i remember correctly, the half life of test (cyp and enth) is something like 10 days in the body.... so a shot every 14 days would put you on a rollercoster.

the half-life is closer to 5-8 days for most people which makes the rollercoaster affect even worse on a bi-weekly shot schedule.

[zaggahamma]

lets clear something up fellas....isnt bi weekly twice a week?? and are we saying that this isnt recommended or a possible beneficial injection frequency or are you saying one shot every 2 weeks is not beneficial?

[subnet]

jpk - here ya go! (from wikipedia)

Biweekly has two conflicting meanings. It refers to either an event that occurs twice in a given week or an event that occurs every two weeks. Semi-weekly means every half week or twice a week. The term fortnightly can be used less ambiguously, with a two week interval equivalent to one fortnight.

There are fifty-two weeks in a year of twelve months, making for a possible 26 (or 104) biweekly events in a year. (This is a greater number than if such events were held twice a month, due to the fact that most months have more than four weeks (28 days). However, biweekly is often thought of incorrectly as twice a month. Twice a month is called "semimonthly" or "bimonthly", not biweekly.)


so it can go both ways apparently!

that being said, I think most of use refer to ever two weeks when we say bi-weekly (at least that's what I do).

[zaggahamma]

jpk - here ya go! (from wikipedia)

Biweekly has two conflicting meanings. It refers to either an event that occurs twice in a given week or an event that occurs every two weeks. Semi-weekly means every half week or twice a week. The term fortnightly can be used less ambiguously, with a two week interval equivalent to one fortnight.

There are fifty-two weeks in a year of twelve months, making for a possible 26 (or 104) biweekly events in a year. (This is a greater number than if such events were held twice a month, due to the fact that most months have more than four weeks (28 days). However, biweekly is often thought of incorrectly as twice a month. Twice a month is called "semimonthly" or "bimonthly", not biweekly.)


so it can go both ways apparently!

that being said, I think most of use refer to ever two weeks when we say bi-weekly (at least that's what I do).

interesting and awesome ....i believe zona and spyke are referring to doing a shot every other week and i thought bi weekly only meant twice a week...thanks

[buckeyes#1]

Just to clear things up. I am getting one shot every two weeks of 200mg/ml test. enanthate . I am stuck with enanthate because that is the only esther my insurance covers. Am I correct in the understanding that it's half-life is slightly shorter than cypionate ?

Since my levels will not come up for some time, should I be going through a crash right now if I stopped taking androgel last wednesday (stopped before the appointment in case he blood tested me) or will the shot on Friday bring my levels to an acceptable level.

I was tired, unmotivated and somewhat moody all weekend.

[ZonaDave]

Just to clear things up. I am getting one shot every two weeks of 200mg/ml test. enanthate . I am stuck with enanthate because that is the only esther my insurance covers. Am I correct in the understanding that it's half-life is slightly shorter than cypionate ?

Since my levels will not come up for some time, should I be going through a crash right now if I stopped taking androgel last wednesday (stopped before the appointment in case he blood tested me) or will the shot on Friday bring my levels to an acceptable level.

I was tired, unmotivated and somewhat moody all weekend.

Test E and C are so close it doesn't really matter. are you self injecting? if so, split the 200mg up into 100mg shots weekly. every two weeks is too infrequent.

you should use your androgel up until the day of your shot and then discontinue. your T levels will come up nicely in the first week on shots. most docs front load the first shot with 200mg, then start patients off on 100mg/week after that. blood testing is done 4-6 weeks later to see if adjustments have to be made.

[buckeyes#1]

I'm not self injecting. I just had my first appointment last Friday and they gave me a shot of 200mg. I have to go back every two weeks for a shot. I will continue this for three shots and get my blood drawn the day before my forth shot. My plan is to ask to self inject at that point and have information to back me up. If that will not fly, I will have two options; find a new doctor or ask to do .5ml on my off week and they can do my .5ml during my visit.

[ZonaDave]

how much dose your bi-weekly shot visit cost? you might want to approach it from a cost point of view. i'm sure your doc will understand that.