TRT and erections

[E5Charlie]

I have been on TRT for almost 2 years. Lately I haven't had the hardest erections. I had an appointment with my doctor 2 weeks ago and I brought this to his attention. He prescribed me Viagra, which works wonders. However, I was under the impression that having normal testosterone levels would give me better erections, but he said erections have nothing to do with testosterone levels. That's the opposite of what I read on these forums. Anyone have experience with this?

[bigdil511]

While it's true testosterone will help your libido, I don't believe it does anything for hardness or length of erection. Just your wanting to have sex or masturbate would increase. I know a lot of trt guys use low dose liquid cialis daily for erections and it has other health benefits.

Edit: length meaning how long not how big you are .

[bobtail]

In my experience, it hasn't made that much difference. Maybe more morning wood but not always.
My last total was 1350 and I don't remember the free but it was plenty high. Estrogen level was fine, too.
Just as an FYI, DHT blockers (Finasteride?) can cause ED and I did notice once when my estrogen level crashed, no boner.
How long you been married to the same woman? LOL

[Beethoven]

A lot of things go into having good erections. I've been on try for almost two years now and I also take Viagra. Not every day but sometimes. My morning wood is good now but it took some time to get there. Many guys use 10 mg daily cialis which will help.

[2Sox]

I'm one of the seniors on this forum and I can attest to the fact that testosterone definitely DOES have an effect on erections. At least that has been my experience and at my age, it's great. As soon as I began TRT, I began to have night and morning erections again after many years without them. I take Cialis at 10mg/night and I'm intimate with my wife more often now that I had been when I was in my thirties. (She's on HRT also and ten years younger than I).

If I was sitting across the desk from your doctor I'd tell him he doesn't know what he's talking about.

Another thing: It's easy to blame our partner for our lack of desire. I thought this way before TRT. When we both began HRT, we saw how wrong we were.

Watch those E2 levels. They can creep up and wreak hell on your libido and your equipment.

[Baldur2630]

I'm one of the seniors on this forum and I can attest to the fact that testosterone definitely DOES have an effect on erections. At least that has been my experience and at my age, it's great. As soon as I began TRT, I began to have night and morning erections again after many years without them. I take Cialis at 10mg/night and I'm intimate with my wife more often now that I had been when I was in my thirties. (She's on HRT also and ten years younger than I).

If I was sitting across the desk from your doctor I'd tell him he doesn't know what he's talking about.

Another thing: It's easy to blame our partner for our lack of desire. I thought this way before TRT. When we both began HRT, we saw how wrong we were.

Watch those E2 levels. They can creep up and wreak hell on your libido and your equipment.

I'm another senior on the Forum (74 years old). I lost all interest in sex for over 6 years and doc did NOTHING! Eventually I got blood done found my Free T was almost zero and started self treatingi found that the T gave me a bit of interest in sex again, but it was only when I started taking HGH that it shot up like a rocket!

[jwh7699]

I would get your E2 level checked, Estradiol Sensitive Essay Test.

Also you may want to consider adding HCG to your protocol. It can help. I personally inject 250iu's of HCG 2 x a week. I do it on the same day I inject my T shot, just makes is easier.

[E5Charlie]

I would get your E2 level checked, Estradiol Sensitive Essay Test.

Also you may want to consider adding HCG to your protocol. It can help. I personally inject 250iu's of HCG 2 x a week. I do it on the same day I inject my T shot, just makes is easier.

I brought up HCG to my endo and he said it was only needed if I was trying to have kids. Also, just this past week I got another blood test done, testosterone and estradiol. I'll wait a few more days for the results.

[jwh7699]

HCG can also help increase Free T which helps with libido. Also some people, who aren't on HCG, have a problem with Testicular Shrinkage to the point it can be physically painful.

[wicked442]

What is your sbgh level? I had a similar issue and my sbgh was low. Just a thot.

[Baldur2630]

What is your sbgh level? I had a similar issue and my sbgh was low. Just a thot.

Its on the upper limit - 76.9 so not low.

[jwh7699]

Having High SBGH is not so good either, because the SHBG likes to bind to Testosterone this bound up testosterone is unavailable to be used by our androgen receptors. Only Free Testosterone, unbound by sex-hormone–binding globulin (SHBG), can enter and activate androgen receptors in cells. The higher the SHBG the lower the Free Testosterone.

SHBG is made in the liver in response to levels of many hormones:
1. Increasing Testosterone reduces SHBG
2. Increasing DHT lowers SHBG
3. Increasing DHEA lowers SHBG
4. Increasing Growth Hormone lowers SHBG
5. Increasing Insulin lowers SHBG
6. Increasing Estrogen increases SHBG
7. Increasing Thyroid Hormone increases SHBG

Making adjustments should be based on how you feel. If something is off get Blood Work done and make adjustments accordingly. Give things time to take effect. Making too many changes all at once usually causes more problems. In my experience it is best to only adjust one thing at a time and give it time to see how you feel. And follow it up with blood work in 4 to 6 weeks.

[2Sox]

Having High SBGH is not so good either, because the SHBG likes to bind to Testosterone this bound up testosterone is unavailable to be used by our androgen receptors. Only Free Testosterone, unbound by sex-hormone–binding globulin (SHBG), can enter and activate androgen receptors in cells. The higher the SHBG the lower the Free Testosterone.

SHBG is made in the liver in response to levels of many hormones:
1. Increasing Testosterone reduces SHBG
2. Increasing DHT lowers SHBG
3. Increasing DHEA lowers SHBG
4. Increasing Growth Hormone lowers SHBG
5. Increasing Insulin lowers SHBG
6. Increasing Estrogen increases SHBG
7. Increasing Thyroid Hormone increases SHBG

Making adjustments should be based on how you feel. If something is off get Blood Work done and make adjustments accordingly. Give things time to take effect. Making too many changes all at once usually causes more problems. In my experience it is best to only adjust one thing at a time and give it time to see how you feel. And follow it up with blood work in 4 to 6 weeks.

Nice post.

[Simon1972]

get your E in check- you may have high test but if E is too high and out of ratio then you will be flacid.

thats the reason most women struggle with their erections...

[Fetch]

I've been on TRT for a very long time. Even with normal bloodwork, I began having poor erections. I was given Viagra and Cialis which worked wonders for awhile, but eventually they stopped working for me (common sentiment on the board is that you don't get used to them, but my own experience differs, and if you check ED specific forums you'll find the same.) Now I use Trimix, which is an injection into the penis with an insulin pin to achieve erections.

[Low Testosterone]

It's important to keep in mind that ED issues aren't always testosterone related. You could be experiencing and ED issue that would have happened even if you had never started TRT.

And what was mentioned in another post, the estradiol/testosterone balance is very important, but when using exogenous hormones it's not always easy to keep it exactly what you'd like it to be. Things change over time, and for this reason many men on TRT require low doses of daily Cialis.

[kelkel]

Having High SBGH is not so good either, because the SHBG likes to bind to Testosterone this bound up testosterone is unavailable to be used by our androgen receptors. Only Free Testosterone, unbound by sex-hormone–binding globulin (SHBG), can enter and activate androgen receptors in cells. The higher the SHBG the lower the Free Testosterone.

SHBG is made in the liver in response to levels of many hormones:
1. Increasing Testosterone reduces SHBG
2. Increasing DHT lowers SHBG
3. Increasing DHEA lowers SHBG
4. Increasing Growth Hormone lowers SHBG
5. Increasing Insulin lowers SHBG
6. Increasing Estrogen increases SHBG
7. Increasing Thyroid Hormone increases SHBG

Making adjustments should be based on how you feel. If something is off get Blood Work done and make adjustments accordingly. Give things time to take effect. Making too many changes all at once usually causes more problems. In my experience it is best to only adjust one thing at a time and give it time to see how you feel. And follow it up with blood work in 4 to 6 weeks.

SHBG simply rises with age as well.

[APIs]

Good thread, but no one's mentioned blood pressure. Unchecked high blood pressure is a major contributor to ED. Just something to keep in mind...

[Fetch]

My current Urologist actually made an interesting observation about erections. He pointed out that even pre-pubescent boys achieve strong erections with very little testosterone. There is no magic number that works for everyone. I spent years thinking my erections were effed up due to some mystery hormone imbalance, but I'm starting to consider other options. I'll be going in soon for a battery (heh) of tests on the actual penile tissue. Physical problems are typically either vascular or veinous in nature (rarely nerve damage as well,) it's possible to have damage to the actual tissue develop for a variety of reasons.

[xcraider37]

Good thread, but no one's mentioned blood pressure. Unchecked high blood pressure is a major contributor to ED. Just something to keep in mind...

And the drugs used to treat high blood pressure are a bigger cause of ED.

[APIs]

And the drugs used to treat high blood pressure are a bigger cause of ED.

No, that's not entirely accurate. Only certain ones like beta-blockers contribute to ED. Do some research...

[xcraider37]

no, that's not entirely accurate. Only certain ones like beta-blockers contribute to ed. Do some research...

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