I stopped TRT after 1.5 years and recovered!

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05-12-2014, 07:46 PM
Jredwine

I stopped TRT after 1.5 years and recovered!

I just got my bw back today, checking my TEST levels after being off everything for 6 months.

Little history...I tested at around 433 - 450 on a scale of 250-1100 for total test per TRT. My DHT was 23-24 which was right at the cutoff for low. I had all the symptoms, low libido, tired, etc..

I decided to try TRT, and it was definitely wonderful...but...back acne was out of control (I still have scars). I would have stayed on for life, but no matter what dose I took, acne was an issue. I tried everything from changing dose, to getting all my levels checked multiple times to make sure I wasn't too high or too low.

Ultimately as you can guess, I stopped. My doc gave me Clomid 50mg 2 x per week for 1 month and then I was completely off of any hormone related meds.

Today I got my results back and my levels were 485 on a scale of 250-1100. Free Test was 92 on a scale of 35-155.

So a little better than I was before.

Not stellar numbers, but at least I am back to where I was, if not a little better.

Just wanted to post this in case anyone else is faced with quitting TRT for any reason. You can, it appears, at least get back to where you were before. (Or at least you have my anecdotal evidence) While my numbers aren't great, I can still get by with them. But, boy, I'd be lying if I said I didn't like the way I felt when I was on.

Oh well..I guess I just have to be ok being me!
05-12-2014, 07:54 PM
bass

sorry to hear you were having acne problems. how long after clomid therapy you did BW?
05-12-2014, 08:23 PM
qscgugcsq

If you did BW too soon you are just testing the clomid efficiency and not your real test level, + 50mg 2x a week seems worthless to me...

But hey, if it worked..., good for you
05-12-2014, 08:33 PM
bass

Quote:

Originally Posted by qscgugcsq

If you did BW too soon you are just testing the clomid efficiency and not your real test level, + 50mg 2x a week seems worthless to me...

But hey, if it worked..., good for you

exactly what I was thinking, it seems too good to be true to recover with a simple "therapy", if want to call it that! I think he need to do BW at least 6 month after therapy to see if he is producing naturally. I bet he'll be under 300 on total and probably below normal on free T.
05-12-2014, 10:48 PM
Black

In addition to the above concerns, did you ever have your estrogen checked while on TRT? Were you using an AI?
05-12-2014, 10:59 PM
AnabolicBoy1981

Quote:

Originally Posted by bass

exactly what I was thinking, it seems too good to be true to recover with a simple "therapy", if want to call it that! I think he need to do BW at least 6 month after therapy to see if he is producing naturally. I bet he'll be under 300 on total and probably below normal on free T.

can you read? the guy said hes been off for 6 months.

Thats very interesting Jredwine, im very curious about recovery after long term exogenous hormone usage. Not everyone would have been able to come back like that. Tho, i do know some others that have, but in the minority i think.
That really blows about the acne, i guess your skin can just not handle lots of test.
05-12-2014, 11:39 PM
Chicagotarsier

You most likely did not need injections. Your test was "ok" and a simple oral like Androil twice a day would have put you at 600s with little risk of acne because it is absorbed via lymph system.

but

My questions would be how much BF% did you lose over the trt time? What is your diet like now vs then? You can naturally raise your test 100-300 by your life style and your fitness level impacts metabolism which in turn impacts your hormones. My gut feeling is many people that are borderline like you on labs could stay off trt with a lifestyle change but sometimes that takes a period of diet + test for lean muscle to achieve.

Hope the results stick and congrats!

Quote:

Originally Posted by AnabolicBoy1981

can you read? the guy said hes been off for 6 months.

Thats very interesting Jredwine, im very curious about recovery after long term exogenous hormone usage. Not everyone would have been able to come back like that. Tho, i do know some others that have, but in the minority i think.
That really blows about the acne, i guess your skin can just not handle lots of test.
05-13-2014, 11:42 AM
Times Roman

and not to beat a dead horse over the head with a limp dick, but....

....you already know by now with a 450 test level, there really was no need to go on trt in the first place.

Glad to see you made it back from the dark side!

---Roman
05-13-2014, 12:59 PM
Beethoven

Quote:

Originally Posted by Times Roman

and not to beat a dead horse over the head with a limp dick, but....

....you already know by now with a 450 test level, there really was no need to go on trt in the first place.

Glad to see you made it back from the dark side!

---Roman

Thump thump. Lol

If I could have 450 without trt I'd jump all over that.
05-13-2014, 01:16 PM
bass

Quote:

Originally Posted by AnabolicBoy1981

can you read? the guy said hes been off for 6 months.

Thats very interesting Jredwine, im very curious about recovery after long term exogenous hormone usage. Not everyone would have been able to come back like that. Tho, i do know some others that have, but in the minority i think.
That really blows about the acne, i guess your skin can just not handle lots of test.

LOL, that was the first line too! simply skipped it!
05-13-2014, 01:18 PM
kelkel

Quote:

Originally Posted by Beethoven

Thump thump. Lol

If I could have 450 without trt I'd jump all over that.

Depending on Free T that is.....
05-13-2014, 03:43 PM
dreadnok89

ok thanks, go back to where i was for the reason i went on hrt? no thanks
05-13-2014, 03:52 PM
Brett N

Congrats Jredwine, ultimately it is about how you feel and if you are good that is really what counts. Acne sucks, I have been dealing with it my entire adult (and pre adult) life. If I didn't have it before TRT I think I would be bothered more by it. Being 42, I have gotten tolerant of it. I continue to work on it but I am less bothered than I would have been when Iwas younger.

Again, glad things are ok with you. Now that you know the signs, you will know if you ever start feeling like LowT again. Good luck.
05-14-2014, 11:39 AM
Jredwine

Yeah it was questionable if trt was necessary. I was curious to see what the results would be. I stay in the 10-15% bf range anyway, but when I was on, I didn't have to watch my diet as close and stayed near 10% most of the time. Strength increases were very slight. Still it was enough of a boost that I liked it and would have stayed on if it weren't for the acne. And yes I had my e2, free and total t tested religiously. I tried with and without dex, hcg, and a host of other possible remedies. Nothing cured the acne.

I've been training for 13 years and did so before off and on since 8th grade. Never really been out of shape in my life.

Hopefully that answers all questions above. Just wanted to give my story in case someone else ends up in a similar boat can see it can be done.

One thing I did do was run hcg the entire time I was on trt.
05-14-2014, 11:46 AM
Metalject

Quote:

Originally Posted by kelkel

Depending on Free T that is.....

Yep, I would like to see the term "Total Testosterone" banned from all data, practices, literature and message boards because it does little more than mess with people's heads. ^Above replies are a perfect example.
05-14-2014, 11:51 AM
Metalject

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jredwine

Yeah it was questionable if trt was necessary. I was curious to see what the results would be. I stay in the 10-15% bf range anyway, but when I was on, I didn't have to watch my diet as close and stayed near 10% most of the time. Strength increases were very slight. Still it was enough of a boost that I liked it and would have stayed on if it weren't for the acne. And yes I had my e2, free and total t tested religiously. I tried with and without dex, hcg, and a host of other possible remedies. Nothing cured the acne.

I've been training for 13 years and did so before off and on since 8th grade. Never really been out of shape in my life.

Hopefully that answers all questions above. Just wanted to give my story in case someone else ends up in a similar boat can see it can be done.

One thing I did do was run hcg the entire time I was on trt.

Although an imbalance between testosterone and estradiol can cause acne problems, any hormone fluctuation can cause things to occur, acne is primarily DHT related. All the anastrozole or combination of anastrozole, testosterone and HCG will not fix that.