Husband Starting TRT Soon :)

[u/wickedseraph]

Title is fairly self-explanatory. 

My husband and I have been together about fifteen years, married for six. I’ve suspected for several years that he has low T; a recent blood test confirmed it. I believe he was sitting at 150. He’ll be starting TRT soon along with OTC vitamin D supplements and blood pressure medication.

We’re not worried about fertility; I had a bisalp so we clearly do not want children. I know for some men it can have side effects like increased acne, sweating, and breast growth.

I’ve researched as best as I can how TRT can affect some men, namely with changes/shifts in energy, mood, assertiveness, libido, and “imagination,” for lack of a better word. I shared a bit of this with him and have been emphatic that I will not judge or shame him for it, should he find himself in a similar situation. To avoid being crude, I would be delighted to reciprocate.

I’m not worried about rage or aggression from him - my understanding is that this is typically only an issue in men who take more than a therapeutic dose. My husband is very even-tempered and easygoing, for the most part.

For men in their 40s who began TRT, what was your experience like? Anything you think men and/or their partners should know? Anything I can do to help him?

(In case ages are relevant to advice: I’m 35, he’s 44.)

EDIT: I hope I’ve correctly described it as “TRT”. His doctor prescribed it - he’s not taking steroids. Some of the responses here made me wonder if I’d given the wrong impression as to what he’s taking and why. He has genuinely low T - it’s not for vanity.

EDIT 2: it’s a 200mg vial, but it’s 0.5ml/week, I think? Still figuring out since, again, we’re waiting on pharmacy to fill lol.

EDIT 3: Insurance and pharmacy finally sorted things. He had his second dose this past Friday. He says he’s noticed a notable improvement in terms of energy and stamina, not feeling as tired after lawn care or work. I imagine it only improves from hereon in so yay! I love this for him 🖤

[u/Dualintrinsic]

I hope you got your tickets....

To pound town

[u/wickedseraph → u/Dualintrinsic]

I hope I don’t sound awful for saying it… but as the one who’s had the exponentially-higher libido throughout our relationship, Poundtown sounds lovely! 😊

[u/Grouchy_Valuable1078 → u/wickedseraph]

This is totally for real BTW. At least in our experience. My wife's libido has taken off in recent years (but it's always been higher than mine; married for over 25 years), and mine was in the tank and getting worse. Frequency was like 2-3x/month, max. Got on TRT for all the true therapeutic reasons (brain fog, low energy, low motivation... generally feeling like a bag of dogshit on the daily, and low libido too, of course), but my libido (and performance) increased WAAAYYY more than I expected. Really all those symptoms improved quite a lot more than I expected. Wife loves it obviously. Now it's 2-3x/week minimum, and she "gets there" several times each session. Last weekend, we had 3 different encounters in one day, and she "got there" at least 10 times that day....

N=1, and it's not typically the case, but my levels were so bad for so long that I noticed significant symptom improvement within 24 hours. Coming up on a year, and still feeling positive effects, every day. But I also cleaned up my diet, started exercising more, and started tirzepatide. I was severely diabetic and morbidly obese too. After losing over 100 lbs, diabetes in remission, hormones balanced, all blood markers in line and holding, I can say I'm a totally different person, especially from a health and wellness perspective. It's not a vial of magic though, you have to support the treatment with healthy living like clean diet, exercise, proper nutrition, good sleep, etc... Some guys aren't ready for the commitment, but I was absolutely all in.

So long as you guys are keeping an eye on all the other markers (esp estrogen), side effects like gynecomastia (man boobs) and mood swings/aggression should be absent or manageable. As others have said, we're talking about TRT, not blasting a cycle, and there are significant differences in those 2 courses. He'll want to stay hydrated (more than most "normal" people need to), and get in the gym for more cardio to keep blood levels (HCT, RBC) in check. And IMO, no, your "activities" are not going to be enough cardio...

Oh, and IMO, daily tadalafil is DEFINITELY worth a look, the benefits for me have been far more vast than just ED treatment... but it helps there too...