Testosterone Supplement

[gojo357]

I have read the FAQ's on testosterone gel and I found it very educational. However, I have a few questions beyond those that I want to ask.

First of all I want to state that I have been using the Androgel for about 4 months now. I'm a 40 year old male that was struck with reflex sympathetic dystrophy (RSD) years ago and the only treatment that would work for me was a morphine pain pump implant. Little did the doctors,know back then that the narcotic would eventually keep my body from producing testosterone. In fact here it is almost 7 years after I had the pain pump implanted and I just learned this last April.

My pain doctor tested my testosterone level and my level was 35 ng. He then put me on 10 grams per day (the maximum dose) of the Androgel in the middle of last April (about 4 months ago) and 3 weeks ago I was tested again and now my level is 236 ng (still far lower than what it should be).
The main problem that I have with the gel is that it keeps me restless and up all night. I have spoken with 2 other people that have the same side effect. It is like insomnia. We have tried walks before bed, reading, cool showers, hot cocoa, warm milk etc. and nothing seems to work. I have read that sleeplessness and irritability are both listed as side effects for Androgel.
At this point I have several questions.

1) Do the shots or the pellets have these type of side effects. I'm having difficulty finding very much information about either therapy.

2) Can a person take the testosterone shot to get their level of testosterone up to where it should be and then have the pellets implanted in order to maintain a proper level?

3) What is the testosterone level of a 40 year old man supposed to be? I have heard that 300 is that of a 70 year old man but I can't find a chart on it for other age groups.

Any help would be appreciated. Thank you.

[SeekWellness Editor]

Welcome to the forum.

1. Here are some URLs for you:

testosterone injections

testosterone pellets

2. The problem with both pellets and shots is that your testosterone level goes right up but then slowly declines so you may end up with a very high to very low pattern with accompanying symptoms.

3. The normal range for total testosterone is 300 - 1000 ng/dl. It fluctuates quite a lot, however, and is usually highest first thing in the morning. I have never seen a chart for "normal" levels based on age group because I doubt they have ever been firmly established. It's much more helpful to track your own testosterone level over time. Normal for you might be quite different than for someone else your age.

We have a lot of information about testosterone in our Andropause Center. You might want to spend some time there....

Hope this helps.