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My Story – #ChooseTRT

| By: Dr Robert Stevens

 

Dr Stevens – 45

 

Sarah (Partner on TRT)

I know I’m a woman but as the partner of a man with low testosterone and all its symptoms, I wanted to share my story on how much TRT has changed our lives for the better, and has began to help me combat my own depression and anxiety.

I have suffered with this for just over 20 years and in the last 7 years it has gotten worse due to suffering domestic abuse from a previous partner, both mental and physical and unfortunately.  It has left me with the most horrendous mental scars and really affected my confidence and self-esteem.  I had spent almost 11 years being told I was fat, ugly and worthless and that nobody would ever want me.

I went on and had another mentally abusive relationship which caused me further depression and anxiety, but I refused to ask for help for it, I thought that asking for help made me a weak person.

I then went on to meet David who was so very different, he was kind and gentle and made me feel like a princess. We had only been together for 1 month when he was diagnosed with anxiety and was given SSRIs.  Straight away these effected our sex life, it stopped stone dead. At first he wouldn’t talk about it and this caused my anxiety and all the old feelings of not being good enough to come straight back to the surface.  I didn’t tell him this at first just supported him the best that I could.

We went back and forth to the doctor’s and I eventually brought up the fact that he was suffering with erectile dysfunction and he gave him Viagra.  This caused him to have awful side effects and he said even if he had been able to become aroused, he had no desire to do anything.

I found out later that he was also watching porn and adult TV stations, and looking at escorts to try and see if he got any kind of sexual response, but would not try with me which knocked my confidence even more as I thought it was just me that he didn’t want. I started to become really ill with it and at one point considered suicide.  It was then that I finally realised that I needed help.

I finally went to my doctor’s and asked for help, admitting that was the hardest thing that I had ever done.  I felt so stupid and was ashamed to admit that I had got that low because I thought my boyfriend didn’t want me, and only wanted what he was looking at on a screen, younger women with perfect bodies that I could never compare to.

After going back to the doctor’s with David, he had his testosterone levels checked and we were surprised when they came back low, I then took it upon myself to do as much research into it as possible.  When his results first came back, the GP said that he was on the lower end of normal and that he wouldn’t recommend treatment, so we looked into self-medicating as we couldn’t see any other way at the time.

After months of discussion and research, and more blood tests, David finally agreed to an appointment with Dr Stevens.  We went to go and see him in October 2018 and he started him on a protocol straight away. Within just 4 weeks David started to notice a difference in his symptoms and said that he felt better than he had in over 20 years, although his libido always still very low. After more blood tests and a change in his protocol his libido and sexual function made an appearance and he finally felt as though he was ready to start coming off his anti-depressants. It’s been a long slow process that we know will probably change in the future, but the difference in both if us has been remarkable.  I finally know and understand that he does want me and although I have lost almost 3 stone in the 18 months we have been together, I know he loves me as I am and not how I think I should look.  He has changed his outlook on his own health and well-being, eating a great deal healthier and starting to feel better within himself.

TRT really can change your life for the better, for both the patient and their partner but it’s not an easy road and it takes hard work and dedication, but it’s worth it.

 

Alfred – 57

I am 57 years old, six foot tall, weighing in at 15 1/2 stone.  I have been very active all my life, from the age of 11 I did judo, always kept fit in the gym, and played good standard rugby.  Since I gave up rugby, I found it more important to find a sport I could do as I got older, so I started to run and swim, open water swimming, in lakes and in the sea.  I am lucky in that my wife swims and enjoys running.  It was on one of our runs when I started to realise that something was wrong.  As me and the wife were running one morning, I can remember saying “I’ll tell you something when we finish this run”. At the end of the run, being a women, the first thing she asked was “what were you going to tell me?”. I told her that I hated every step of that run!  I just felt exhausted from the start and as we got to the end, I felt even worse.

Within days I went to see the doctor.  One of the things the doctor said, was that these things happen as we get older! But, I was sent for blood test.  This is when my TRT journey started, it was about two and a half years ago, the symptoms were – feeling very low, just no energy, with me sleeping on and off throughout the day, but unable to sleep at night, brain fog.  My mind set was I just did not care about work and what I said to others and what I ate, basically f##k it!

For me, worst of all, I started to cry for no reason.  I was never depressed but I was definitely fed up with feeling ill.  (You could call this depression but I only ever thought about getting better).

My eldest son would say “don’t lift that dad, I’ll move it for you”.  I was so weak, as for morning glory and libido, I can only honestly say – looking back I never noticed that it had gone. The thing with low T is it slowly gets a grip on you, with regards morning glory, you only realise you don’t have it, until it comes back.  I just didn’t notice my love life was non-existent.  For me, low T has never about libido, I just wanted to be able to think, read a book, just to feel better again!

One day I was sat there when my son said “what’s up with you?”  I can remember shouting at him “I’m not well!”  After he left, I sat there with my head in my hands and tears in my eyes, thinking this just is not right, this had nothing to do with getting old!

At around this time my brother in law was unwell.  Part of his treatment was for low T, I was talking to him about how I felt, he said “your symptoms are similar to mine, you should get your self checked for low T”.

I have always told my two sons to keep away from juicing up with T, I’ve seen what can happen when it goes wrong, man boobs etc, another thing no bloke wants to admit you have a problem in that department, low testosterone!

By now I had seen a doctor on four occasions, a number of blood tests.  My only feedback was my blood pressure was up slightly, my blood sugar was also up a little, I’m pre-diabetic, cholesterol was up, but no one had mentioned my T levels!

Funny thing happened at this point, my son in law is a decorator and was working at my doctor’s surgery  He happened to have the chance to speak to my doctor, he asked her to have a look at my notes, in his words “we can’t get my father-in-law off the sofa”.  With in a few days I received a call from my doctor, she wanted to see me, we had a chat about how I was feeling etc.  I mentioned what my brother-in-law had said.  She sent me for yet another blood test, this time to check my T levels.  I had to go back to see her a week later for my results, my serum Testosterone was 4.9 with free T at 0.09!

I also had an MRI scan.  Although my pituitary gland seemed ‘ok’, this was to be checked again in six months  What it did show on the scan was that I had signs of trauma that ran across from between my eyes, down across my nose and along under my left eye! I don’t remember the accident or the cause of this, but I have broken my nose on at least three occasions doing judo and playing rugby.

I had private medical, so got referred to an Endo doc within days, she put me on Testosterone gel  One of the reasons for starting on the gel was that if I had a reaction I could stop using the gel, I was to use one gel per day  After a few weeks I had to increase to one and a half sachets of gel  This gel did work, but my wife did not like the smell and i did not fancy having a wife with a beard and having young grandchildren was also a factor, as with gel there is always the fear of transfer  We decided to try Nebido injections, these were every twelve weeks, this did not work out well as there were more downs then ups, so the injection intervals were moved to ten weeks  The problem with Nebido is you have the jab, it takes up two to three weeks to get you up to a level that works, then for a few weeks you’re ok, but then it’s all down hill, feeling low and crap again.  So six weeks out of the ten I was either feeling like crap coming down, or on my way up, just feeling low.  I now think the Nebido may of made me feel worse at times!

Browsing the internet i found TMHC, I made an appointment.  I was shocked on how much better Doc Stevens understood how I was feeling, I came out of his surgery with a new protocol and another med called HCG. This was when my life started again.

In the meantime, I had been referred by my NHS Doctor to a male Professor of Endocrinology.  I thought this would be a good opportunity to see what his thoughts were about my new protocol, he took a look at this new protocol, blood test etc, he did not say a thing that was negative and seemed genuinely interested in the work Doc Stevens was doing with me, I found this very reassuring.

I would say within a week I was feeling happier and stronger with a can do attitude.  Work improved, my libido was strong, but most of all I felt better!

I have been back to the TMHC a few times and the protocol has been improved to suite me better.  I have lost weight, down from a 38” waist to a 34” waist.  I am still around 15 stone, but my shape/physique is much improved, I am now running again swimming and lift weights twice a week, my grown up kids can’t believe the difference.  Not only am I feeling better, I’m happier in myself.  Bless my dear wife, I don’t know how she has put up with me, it must have been like having a teenage child again.

I still have the odd bad day, but this is normally my fault, either – over-doing training or eating unhealthily/.  You have to remind yourself that having TRT is just part of getting better. It’s about lifestyle now, eat well, doing exercise and sleep, and not getting stressed, all the things we know we should do anyway!

I am not running down the NHS here, they did what they were allowed to do for me under their guide lines and their understanding of TRT.  Looking back, I now realise that my low T started at least six years ago and may have been as long ago as 8 years.

I was told “You have to accept you are getting older”. Not True!

 

David – 53

I am a fifty three year old company director and have always considered myself to be the archetypal “alpha male”. You know, into my sports very competitive, found it very easy to attract and talk to women, take control of business meetings and confront any issues straight on.

That was until about 18 months ago when I noticed a very slow change in my ability to deal with everyday issues and routines that ordinarily I would not have given a second thought to.

My running times in the gym were below par and I struggled to lift anywhere near the weight that I was used to when weight training. I felt fatigued and lacked motivation.  I lost my ability to function effectively at work and suffered from memory fog, I struggled to make important decisions. To make things worst my libido was non-existent and my ability to have and maintain an erection declined.  I was struggling to understand what was happening to me and the person that I had always known and to be frank, enjoyed being.

I did the usual thing and went to my doctor who sent me for blood tests and recommended me to a consultant Urologist.  My blood tests came back as “within the normal range” for someone my age, although some aspects were border line normal.  I was then informed that it was an age thing and that I would have to get used to the fact that I was getting older. I was offered pills to remedy my libido and erectile dysfunction and anti-depressants for my mood.

Understandably I was quite distraught by this encounter with the Urologist and decided to take things into my own hands.  After months of research I found lots of information on the internet (mainly on American websites) regarding something called TRT (Testosterone Replacement Therapy). I was amazed! Everything that I was experiencing, all my symptoms were there in front of me written in blogs and testimonials all advocating the effects of TRT.

After continued research I found that The Men’s Health Clinic specialised in this type of treatment and was located not only in England but in Poole, I live in Poole, surly this was fate! I thought.  With great trepidation and excitement, I called and made an appointment.

Dr Robert Stevens met with me and we talked openly and frankly about how I was feeling and the symptoms that I was experiencing.  I was extremely impressed by the subject knowledge and empathy that Dr Stevens showed towards me and my situation and I did not have any second thoughts about embarking on a trial of TRT for a short period. Surly I could not feel any worse than I did already! I was interested to see if it would have any positive impact on my symptoms and mood.

Well I have been on TRT now for 3 months and I can honestly say that my world has completely turned around and I am pretty much back to the old me. My fitness has improved dramatically and my out look on life is very positive, my libido is slowly coming back to were it was and my erections have improved thanks to Dr Stevens and his team at The Men’s Health Clinic.

If anyone out there in “Google Land” has any doubts about the effects of TRT I would urge them to go and talk to someone that specialises in this field of treatment, do your research! there are lots of alternative treatments out there but not all of them will be tailor made to suit your profile or protocol.

 

John – 29

It’s hard to believe the difference that occurs when you have balanced optimal levels of testosterone.  Here are just a couple of the benefits that I have had:

My anxiety is almost non-existent now.  I am a teacher and when low testosterone reared its ugly head, I found I was unable to do my job without anxiety medication. I have now been off my medication for 6 months and haven’t felt the need to take it once. I didn’t even realise that my sudden onset of anxiety was related to testosterone and this has had a profound effect on my life.

My brain fog has disappeared too and my libido is back with bang.

I was hesitant to go on TRT because I was due to start trying for a child.  However, I felt so bad that I thought I’d take this risk, and it payed off.  Not only do I feel great but my wife is now pregnant.

My top tip for TRT is to be patient and trust Dr Rob.  The first 6 weeks I felt amazing and then slowly things got worse, my libido dropped, I had less energy and just felt rubbish.  I asked Dr Rob to increase my dose, but we did a blood test first.  As it turned out, my testosterone was really high – too high!  We lowered the dose, and the difference is night and day. I feel fantastic!

It’s not a cure-all, I still get tired and experience highs and lows – like a normal person, but that’s all I wanted to be.

 

Nick – 36

Roughly 2 years ago when I was at work (driving my cab at night), I suddenly felt an overwhelming stress and had to go home where I had a massive panic attack.  What followed was a year of anxiety/panic attacks/depersonlisation and depression brought on by this, and a feeling of not wanting to live.

I went to my regular doc who prescribed me Pregabalin, an anti epilepsy drug also used to treat anxiety.  I took it for about two weeks and thought to myself, this isn’t for me.

On further reflection I decided to explore my whole life style leading up to this point.  I had run a steroid cycle previously, I did not know what I was doing and didn’t do a PCT.  Couple this with years of recreational drug and alcohol abuse, under eating and a high stress job, and I had a recipe for disaster.

Somewhere along the line something clicked and I decided to get my testosterone levels checked and sure enough they were in the gutter.  I tried eating better and excercising but I just could not recover.  Further research led me to The Men’s Health Clinic. The moment I met doctor Rob and explained all of this to him, I knew we could work together as he fully understood everything I was saying.

Fast forward to the present and I’ve been on TRT for nearly a year now.  I’m living a normal-ish life, eating as good as possible and excercising every day.  TRT has literally brought me back from the brink of despair and for that I am eternally grateful to doctor Rob and Lydia.  I would urge any male to get your levels checked and often advise them to.

 

Anon – 48

Since commencing TRT treatment I have seen a positive increase in my energy levels and zest for life, but the biggest factor for me is my moods.  I have suffered with low self-esteem,  generalised anxiety disorder and depression since my mid-twenties.  I worked extremely hard to battle and beat it.  I had three years of cognitive behavioural therapy as well as two years of hypnotherapy, I also studied and educated myself on the condition.  All of these things have helped massively,  I no longer fear being afraid.

TRT has also been an integral part of my continued progress.  At the age of 48, I not only feel more comfortable in my own skin, I feel more controlled and powerful than I have ever done in my life.  One thing I noticed almost straight away after starting TRT was an increased level of self-esteem.  I noticed my body language change, my chin would be up and my shoulders were back , I am walking with confidence.

For me, my TRT protocol combined with my own healthy habits of being active, being mindful and looking after myself, enables me to live my life to the fullest and helps me to put my anxiety into the right place.

 

Ollie – 31

I’ve been sitting here for a long time trying to figure out the best way to write this. I don’t want this to be another clichéd “X changed / saved my life!” (though we’ll get to that). So let me simply give you my perspective and experience as honestly and forthrightly as possible.

Before going down the TRT route I consumed as much literature on the subject I could find. It’s now crystal clear to me from what I’ve read, heard and experienced first hand that testosterone is the very essence of the masculine spirit, physical and mental. When it’s there you feel strong, sharp, robust, vibrant, sexual, confident and calm. You have a deep sense that no challenge is insurmountable. You can’t wait to get out into the world to compete and achieve.

Unfortunately, this spirit doesn’t remain faithfully ours forever, and for so many men right now, it’s an early divorce as it was for me. You don’t realise that when things are going well your health, motivation and very sense of well being rely on the presence of certain hormones. You simply chalk everything going well up to you.

The other side of that coin is to blame ourselves for our lack of motivation and failures. But what if the platform upon which we build and support our very being is broken, how can one even begin to build a life or support those closest to us? Make no mistake – any healthy man out there who is embodying all of the positive virtues I listed above does so upon a solid foundation of correctly balanced hormones, of which testosterone is well and truly king.

I remember one of the pre-consultation questions was, “Do you feel your best years are behind you?”. I answered emphatically “Yes”. By this point I’d spent a year grieving over the loss of my best years, I was hopeful that the TRT might help get a little bit of that back, but I could have never imagined in my wildest dreams the extent to which TRT could and would touch every aspect of my life.

Prior to the TRT I’d become withdrawn, horribly anxious and depressed, and was just about ready to give up on everything. For a person like me – a person who had always been insatiably motivated to push myself forwards – this way of being devastated me each and every day, and quite frankly life was beginning to wear thin, bordering on unbearable at times.

I was in my own personal hell. I couldn’t get out of bed in the morning, complete my workouts, focus at work or in the studio, or even answer phone calls – I was no longer motivated to play my instruments and make music, and worst of all I couldn’t give my partner whom I loved so deeply the emotional or physical attention she needed and deserved. Some mornings I’d stare at myself in the mirror, unable to recognise the sad and lifeless face staring back at me.

I’d exhausted all possible treatment options by this point, or so I thought. Therapy, anti-depressants, exercise (if I could manage it), talking to friends and family. None of these had helped, so I often resorted to self medicating, mainly with alcohol. If I had to score from 1 – 10 how I was feeling each day, most days were a 2/10, and with the self medicating, in the evenings I’d be lucky to get myself up to a 4/10, the cost of which being a length hangover that would send me spiralling further downwards.

This clearly couldn’t go on, nor did I want it to. I felt like my horizon of possibilities, previously infinite, had shrunken to claustrophobic proportions. Right in front of me was TRT, and looming directly behind it was darkness and death. If the TRT had failed, it’s likely I would have taken my life at some point. It sounds dramatic, but it’s true.

So what happened when I started the treatment? I’m going to keep this as simple as possible and say that after the first 2 weeks all of my previous symptoms just … evaporated. I went from feeling 2/10 to 7 … 8 … 9 … 10 / 10. My mind felt clear and sharp again, my energy was back full force, no more anxiety, no more depression. Just. Like. That. I couldn’t wait to get out of bed in the morning and live my life again! Not only could I now finish my workouts in the gym, but I couldn’t wait to get back down there as often as my schedule would allow for it.

A real moment of clarity that sticks in my mind was the evening my partner said to me, “something is different today, do you know what it is?” I answered, “no, what is that?” to which she replied, “you don’t’ have a drink in your hand”.

It dawned on me that I hadn’t felt the need to self medicate, at all. Why was this? Now that my emotional pain and anxiety was gone, the need to self medicate was also gone.

Only a month in and feeling better each day. I’m still trying to process this. It’s hard for me to accept that I had to find out about this treatment route for myself, and I’m deeply disappointed that none of the healthcare professionals I saw within the NHS knew about this. It’s also scary to see just how close I came to the precipice, and it’s sad to think that there are no doubt thousands of men out there either looking over the edge, or already at the bottom.

I want to finish by saying for the first time in years I am truly happy to be alive again and that everything is moving onwards and upwards for me. I have my life back. This treatment brought me back from the brink and has reunited me with my masculine spirit.

A massive thank you from me, my girlfriend, my family and my friends to Dr Robert Stevens and the team, the work you’re doing to raise awareness and to make this truly remarkable treatment available is changing and saving lives.

Thank you.

 

Gareth – 42

Before I started TRT I went to a doctor and explained that there was something not quite right with how I felt (mentally and physically). I explained that I had always felt like this to a certain extent, but recently it had gotten worse. I mentioned the lack of energy, the feeling low – a general lack of interest in life. He tested my thyroid but when it came back normal, he just said “like cars, some people just aren’t tuned right”. That was it.

I then tried counselling, which I paid for privately. It was a great process that I really enjoyed and whilst I learned a lot more about myself it didn’t make me feel. I just felt numb. A term I found online called “depersonalisation” fitted how I felt, not connected to anyone or myself. Like everything was at a distance. Brain fog is another term commonly used in TRT, like a fog has descended and you can’t function like you did.

When I found out about TRT and it was a light bulb moment. I had never been fit, or able to exercise, but it was the mental health benefits that really got me interested in TRT – I didn’t want to carry on feeling numb forever. Since starting TRT it’s been real transformation. It’s not overnight, and I think other people notice the changes in you first as the process can be gradual. Has it made me happier? I am not sure. I think happy is a difficult benchmark as it always goes up and down and TRT doesn’t stop you having tough times, but it has made me feel more like myself and more connected to the people around me. No more fog.

 

Peter – 46

Since I can remember, I’ve been a thinker.  Always analysing. I’ve been very lucky to have found a career in a subject where my thinking has made me better at it. I’m grateful for this.  But for so long i neglected (didn’t know better) my health. This new topic of health has given me a new subject to focus my attention on.

I’ve learned through study and practise that my health revolves around certain paradigms. They are:-

  • Exercise and movement
  • Stress management
  • Diet
  • Rest and relaxation
  • Hormone health

Each of these practises affect one another and as a man in his 40s, their effect on one another can be profound.  Its a balancing act where the chief outcome is to feel well. There is nothing more important.

Now, i only realised that hormone health played a key part about 2 years ago when, after focussing on exercise and diet, i was not feeling great. I felt just OK but my thoughts were not mine at times and i was constantly sore. Sleep was the first affected and the knock-on effect was horrendous. I started doubting my own self and my abilities. It is hard to go to bed at night with worrisome thoughts knowing they might be there in the morning.  My work was not on point and my life became a drag. I didnt look forward to doing tasks at work or at home. I didnt think well of myself.

I knew about hormone therapy but didnt think it was for me.  Things dragged on. Not getting any worse but not improving.  I existed. I looked forward to nothing but persevered as a man should, i felt.

After a period of time whilst still researching about health in general, hormone health kept popping up. To be honest, my first proper engagement on the matter was a leap of faith like so many decisions i make. It was not a sudden realisation. More like the light bulb glowing dimly but increasing slowly in brightness. That’s fear of the unknown for you. I finally engaged my GP who thankfully was not completely dismissive of the idea but wanted me to consider SSRIs first. I refused as i knew I was not depressed. I suggested we try TRT. He agreed to blood tests. I was surprised to learn that my hormones were not optimal but pretty low. This was progress. I started on testosterone gel and almost overnight i felt different. My thoughts were vivid and i slowly stopped doubting myself. I had an enthusiastic energy like when i was a 20 something. I felt like me and i liked myself and had more positive thoughts. I found a group of people on facebook that discussed the topic and i asked questions, comparing and learning. My GP asked me to stop testosterone when my levels were measured better values. This i knew was a  bad judgement on his behalf. I was scared to be honest. I asked my friends in the group what they thought and they suggested i make an appointment to see this one doctor. I saved money for a few months and made an appointment to a satellite clinic and started with him as my advisor. He is great.  My hormone health is in his hands and it feels assuring to know i have a trusted guide. Its a work in progress.

So I have decided/feel that this treatment is important. It doesn’t take away all the things outside my life that aren’t mine to control but it helps me in the following ways:-

  • I sleep better (so important)
  • I see every person as my equal again
  • I like my imperfect self
  • I’m not afraid to deal with things.
  • I recover from training more swiftly
  • My body is more resilient against things
  • My mind is clear
  • I am energetic
  • I have that excited child mind again
  • I am positive without trying to be
  • I am a better person, father and husband.
  • I accept things as they are.

I love my life again.  I’ve learned a lot about myself and even with the downs, i can be assured of the ups to come.  I’m me again and it’s good. Not perfect. But good. And that is good enough for me.

 

Brian – 35

“When I look back on my life I believe I have actually suffered mild depression from my mid 20’s.  I wasn’t particularly sad however I didn’t really feel anything.  I was in a constant state of grey, interspersed with periods of anxiety.  On top of this I ruminated over everything (social exchanges, my work performance, personal relationships) andhad a persistent negative internal dialogue.

Since being on TRT these issues have improved immensely.  I have a sense of contentment and calm that I don’t think I have ever experienced before.  My negative internal ‘voice’ has all but disappeared and I don’t sweat about minor issues that would have consumed my thoughts for days.  As a result my self esteem has improved greatly.  I also believe the general increase in energy and vitality I have now has helped with my mental/emotional state.”

 

Anonymous – 23

“By the time I turned 19, there were few antidepressants that weren’t thrown my way. I had cycled through every benzodiazapine in the NHS arsenal, and a few antipsychotics too. There wasn’t much that I hadn’t tried in my efforts to conquer the “black dog”, and none of them worked for me.

I had abused drugs, alcohol and indulged in whatever self-destructive behaviour I could find to help me escape my reality; a truly dark time in my life.

At 22, I had spent several years clean of SSRI’s et al, and resigned myself to living a grey life; devoid of the “spark” I remembered having before the dark clouds came. I had forgotten what motivation felt like; life felt like a monotonous waddle to the finish line. Anxiety ruled most of my life and I was confined to the dark corners in my mind, living in my head. Concerns about my hormones were shrugged off by NHS doctors, much to my ire and frustration. I was told that I looked “athletic enough”, and so it was probably nothing to be worried about. I was told that my abnormal hormone results were “acceptable”. However, I was not ready to waive my right to the chance to have normal hormone levels. How unfair it seemed that I was expected to battle life with one hand tied behind my back. Needless to say, I was proven right, and TRT has changed my life. It was not a miracle cure by any means, but at least now, my battle with my demons would be a fair fight. I am more driven and determined than I’ve been in years. I sleep better. I have a libido again. I am more confident. And frankly, the list goes on and on. I know that my circumstances are not unique, and thus I would urge anyone resonating with my story to get tested for low testosterone. You are not alone, #ChooseTRT.”

 

Brian – 33

“I started Testosterone Replacement Therapy two weeks ago.  In the first couple of days, every time I took the treatment, I would get a rush. It’s difficult to explain, other than that the brain fog I was feeling seemed to lift & everything became sharper, clearer and more focused, but it was almost too much at first, information over load, rapid thinking. It was like switching my eyes/mind back on after a sluggish 6 months prior. I haven’t had an issues injecting, pretty much easy and pain free, no lumps or rashes or anything. The following few days there weren’t any marked signs that anything was happening, other than feeling like I had more energy. I then in the next few days seemed to slump again, but then gradually over the last week or so since I have been pretty much level.  When I say level, I mean I feel ‘normal’ again.  Normal as in I feel like a functioning human. I would actually go as far to say I feel like I’m 20 again, I’m 33. Here are the improvements:

  • Fatigue Gone – Strange after being so tired for the last 10 years. I’m now only getting tired at 10pm, i.e. a normal time to be tired after a long day. Due to this I’m more productive at work. I wallpapered a whole room the other night, usually it would have taken me a loooong time to do. But I had the energy and focus to just get it done. I used to fall asleep or be really tired after every meal. That’s starting to not be so much of an issue.
  • Stress Free – I feel like I can tackle anything (bit of a superman complex there).  Things that would have stressed me before and put me in a rage or a rant are now easy to deal with. I feel a sense of calm. The problems and stressors are still there of course but now I just deal with them better. The calmness is nice, I’m relaxed in the mind and energetic in body. To me that is a wonderful sensation.
    I’m a nice person again, I’m having happy thoughts. Like the negativity in my head, the over analysing everything has been switched off. Making room for happy thoughts. I have to stop and laugh at myself when I think of something in my head like… ‘Oh I’m so happy today I think I’ll go for a walk’, I’m seriously like wtf, who just said that. It’s me of course, the happier more content me. Just not heard him for a long while.
  • Weight Loss / Water Weight / Bloating Reduced – I weighed myself immediately before my appointment. I was 16st 7lbs. This morning I’m 15st 11lbs. My ‘pregnant belly’ as I used to call it getting smaller everyday. That is definitely strange sensation, must be how woman feel after giving birth!  When you get used to carrying that around for so long, it’s bizarre that it’s not there. It’s like something is missing. I feel like I’m so happy it’s reducing and going. But I I also feel a bit weird like something is missing.  I’m sure I’m not going to complain when it’s gone completely.
  • Strength – Muscles seem to be a bit firmer and I’m able to hold myself better. I’m walking tall, sitting straight. Which is weird cause I’m a sloucher, didn’t have the energy to hold my own body weight before.
  • Erections / Libido – Sexually things downstairs are working again. Albeit at random times and not with any consistency.
    I’ve not been able to get or keep an erection for about 8 months prior, I can’t recall the last time I had a morning erection 8 yrs+. I had pain in my testicles also.
    Since treatment the pain has gone. The erections are back, 4am every morning is a bit annoying as they are harder than ever and wake me up. At which point I’m then wide awake and can’t get back to sleep. Sexual stuff feels a million times better as it’s harder and more sensitive.

I’m very angry at the NHS I don’t think even this protocol will make that anger go away. Next time I see my doctor I’m gonna tell him to stick the antidepressants he offered up his behind! If this has truly been the issue all these years then their ignorance is disgusting and has severely effected my quality of life over the last decade. I’ve always rejected antidepressants, I have always pushed them to look further but have always been told everything is within range.”

 

Ross – 54

“I  had depression all my life and I am age 54 now. I can categorically say with total confidence it all went when I stopped being in conflict with myself.

I changed just two core aspects and I was cured almost instantly, but yours might well be totally different, so you must be heroically and brutally honest with yourself and the answers will be revealed.  However, some of it was also helped by watching a great film called  “The Secret”,  it was made around the foundations of a book by Wallace D wattles 120 years ago.

Here my two fixes but my grandfather once told me these wise words “always be true to YOURSELF”, it took me 35 years to work out what he meant.  He meant to be authentic to what you are and to hell with the world.

  1. I was in conflict about my sexuality so I fixed that and embraced that I am bisexual. That made a massive improvement by at least 50% . my inner conflict melted. it was very tangible and others noticed my improvement. over time.
  2. I was in conflict with the job/ career I hated over the last 30 odd years. I hated it to the point I wanted to die I felt so trapped. So I changed my job to something I love, it paid less but I was happy to do it free it was so rewarding, and that fixed the rest of it. I lost marriage but it was crappy anyway so it was all good.

Simples!  As the saying goes, I love simple fixes as I am an engineer.

So from my personal life experience, I have discovered that inner conflict is the root of my depression and my life’s mistake was to go along with my perceived peer group pressure and foolishly go along with what I thought society thought I should do and be like. This is well known in psychology that inner conflict is massive.  However few people are brave enough to metaphorically rip the plaster off and start again late in life.  I found that when you hit rock bottom in life ( excuse the pun ) you can only go up or exit badly. So since exit badly was a waste and darn tricky to kill myself I  opted to radically change my life. Hey I thought, what have I got to lose,and it worked a treat. Would not change it for the world.

I won’t mention what job I do now or my personal life but I can assure you it is totally fixed. My job is a little more dangerous but I would rather live life to my fullest and take the bull by its horns and  Choose MY  Life., Its On My terms now. Depression can be caused by chemical issues but it is also caused by inner conflict and your  OWN inner worry of outside peer pressure. The worry of how you should think or behave. blocks you from  being your  authentic self  and to hell with what others think

Funny thing is, In the end, nobody cares one hoot what you do. Fear blocks your mind and what others in your family might think or you might even lose family. Well, I would have lost all family if I ended it so when I took the positive leap everyone supported me eventually since it was up to me to carve out MY life and then others saw my commitment and tenacity and success and blatant happiness. I think my tenacity was driven by my opposing desire to not kill my self just yet, and change my life..

I would suggest regardless of what your earning to seriously look and ensure that whatever job you do, that it’s one you  LOVE. The long term aims for a career or self-employment as I did is to find one you love it so much you would probably do it free if bills were not an issue.

Consider downgrade of your lifestyle /bills if it pays less, it’s well worth it since when your happy you think better and you earn more eventually. If you’re not ready yet then work out a long term exit strategy out of your job or career or even lifestyle friends or family if they are not constructive. Fortunately, my family were ok, It was me who was in conflict and not them.

That was what I did. Find your passion and live life fully !.  Not for others not for parents, not for friends but choose YOUR LIFE. Remember you can only help others when you’re helped and afloat and strong. Avoid supporting others if your crashing and be kind to your inner voice that is probably telling you what you should do.

When your inner self is no longer deeply unhappy, then you naturally gravitate to the natural state you were as a child without a care in the world. .You  become happy joyous an free and others see it in you..Others then  gravitate towards you because they see you are happy and no longer in conflict. You then  become the go-to person for help ironically without even trying.

It takes heroic strength but less strength than ending it .So try this 1st before taking the other route and you will be wondering why you had not done it years ago.

One other thing to make a quick fix and long term fix is this fantastic thing I learnt from ” The secret”

saturate you mind with gratitude every moment of your life, Consciously look for all the things you are grateful for , supersaturate you mind with the small things 1st.  then eventually group 10 of these gratitude things in to  BIG single emotional FEELING of gratitude. You see feelings are what the brain runs off outside of unnatural languages of words both negative and positive. They are giant chunks of stuff and can be good and bad .but humans have a habit of looking at the BROWN in life, the crap so to speak. TV newspapers make good use of this negativity sadly,  so stop watching negative stuff there is a tsunami of it and you can drown in it. .

 So now you  have created your chunks of gratitude as  emotions , when you need to feel good you  can just feel gratitude emotions  and that e-motion  ( energy -In motion) in you comes out as an inner feeling.. You will notice in  a few days and months you feel a distinct dissolving of “captain negative” as I call it . It gradually shrivels up like a prune in you . But you must  keep at it like you would keep training a dog and use that time and respite  to change your life

Good luck and check out ‘The secret'”.

 

Andy – 46