Over 30, training without results? Get T checked at next annual physical.
Ed Stevens didn't take the symptoms of low testosterone sitting down — far from it. When he began noticing changes, he talked to his doctor about low testosterone, got tested and treated.
By Marie Suszynski
Medically reviewed by Lindsey Marcellin, MD, MPH
low t patient story
About getting older, Ed Stevens likes to quote the poet Dylan Thomas: “Do not go gentle into that good night.”
That might help explain why Stevens, a medical communications consultant from Ft. Lauderdale, Fla., didn’t just go gentle when he started having symptoms of low testosterone in his mid-fifties. He did something about it.
Stevens started feeling tired and noticed a drop in his mood and libido. He says he knew something was definitely wrong when he began losing ground at the gym. He had been doing roughly the same weight-lifting routine for 20 years, but suddenly he found himself struggling to lift free weights that normally didn’t give him any problems.
At his annual physical, Stevens asked his doctor for a thorough evaluation, which included testing his testosterone level. Because he had his testosterone checked a decade earlier, he had a baseline results for comparison. The results showed that his testosterone level had dropped by more than half in 10 years. He was diagnosed with low testosterone, and his doctor prescribed a testosterone replacement treatment.
Making Diet and Lifestyle Changes
At about the same time as his low testosterone diagnosis, Stevens discovered that his blood sugar was creeping up. According to the American Diabetes Association, men with type 2 diabetes are twice as likely to have low testosterone as men who don’t have diabetes.
Although Stevens had been eating a healthy diet, he went to a dietitian and learned about some changes that could help him better control his blood sugar.
He also revved up his cardiovascular exercise. He had previously been taking fast, one-hour walks twice a week, but he now added Latin-beat dance classes, such as Zumba, to his routine, too.
The combination of lifestyle changes and testosterone treatment seemed to help him fight the fatigue and low-grade depression he had been feeling. However, his strength and libido were still suffering. “I got to a plateau with my initial therapy,” Stevens says.
Dialing In Treatment for Low Testosterone
At the time he was diagnosed and began treatment, Stevens was living in St. Petersburg, Fla. When he moved to Ft. Lauderdale in the spring of 2013, he began seeing a new doctor about his low testosterone, and that’s when he started seeing real improvements.
His new doctor changed his medication. He also monitors his blood levels regularly and changes the dosage when necessary. Stevens's blood sugar is back down to a healthy level, and he's regained his strength and libido.
Now 60, he's more active than ever. In addition to aerobics classes, Stevens volunteers to walk dogs at a no-kill animal shelter twice a week for up to two hours. When his testosterone levels were low, he didn’t think much about sex, but with his low testosterone treatment plan, his sexual desire has come back, too.
Learning Lessons About Low Testosterone
It’s common for men with low testosterone to notice loss of muscle strength, decreased libido, chronic fatigue, and depression, says Aaron Lentz, MD, an assistant professor of surgery in division of urologic surgery at Duke University in Durham, N.C. Any man in his forties or fifties with these symptoms should be checked for low testosterone, according to Dr. Lentz.
Treatment for low testosterone isn’t for everyone, but if you get tested, your doctor can help you weigh the risks and the benefits.
Getting tested involves a blood test. And if you find yourself, like Stevens, reaching a plateau with one treatment, there are others to try, Lentz says.
Stevens says he has friends who seem to have thrown in the towel and let their bodies decline without fighting it, but that’s not for him. “You can make a choice when you’re aging,” he says. “Unless you’re sick, there’s no reason to lose function as you get into your fifties and sixties."
Last Updated: 01/16/2014
This section created and produced exclusively by the editorial staff of EverydayHealth.com. © 2014 EverydayHealth.com; all rights reserved.
Ed Stevens didn't take the symptoms of low testosterone sitting down — far from it. When he began noticing changes, he talked to his doctor about low testosterone, got tested and treated.
By Marie Suszynski
Medically reviewed by Lindsey Marcellin, MD, MPH
low t patient story
About getting older, Ed Stevens likes to quote the poet Dylan Thomas: “Do not go gentle into that good night.”
That might help explain why Stevens, a medical communications consultant from Ft. Lauderdale, Fla., didn’t just go gentle when he started having symptoms of low testosterone in his mid-fifties. He did something about it.
Stevens started feeling tired and noticed a drop in his mood and libido. He says he knew something was definitely wrong when he began losing ground at the gym. He had been doing roughly the same weight-lifting routine for 20 years, but suddenly he found himself struggling to lift free weights that normally didn’t give him any problems.
At his annual physical, Stevens asked his doctor for a thorough evaluation, which included testing his testosterone level. Because he had his testosterone checked a decade earlier, he had a baseline results for comparison. The results showed that his testosterone level had dropped by more than half in 10 years. He was diagnosed with low testosterone, and his doctor prescribed a testosterone replacement treatment.
Making Diet and Lifestyle Changes
At about the same time as his low testosterone diagnosis, Stevens discovered that his blood sugar was creeping up. According to the American Diabetes Association, men with type 2 diabetes are twice as likely to have low testosterone as men who don’t have diabetes.
Although Stevens had been eating a healthy diet, he went to a dietitian and learned about some changes that could help him better control his blood sugar.
He also revved up his cardiovascular exercise. He had previously been taking fast, one-hour walks twice a week, but he now added Latin-beat dance classes, such as Zumba, to his routine, too.
The combination of lifestyle changes and testosterone treatment seemed to help him fight the fatigue and low-grade depression he had been feeling. However, his strength and libido were still suffering. “I got to a plateau with my initial therapy,” Stevens says.
Dialing In Treatment for Low Testosterone
At the time he was diagnosed and began treatment, Stevens was living in St. Petersburg, Fla. When he moved to Ft. Lauderdale in the spring of 2013, he began seeing a new doctor about his low testosterone, and that’s when he started seeing real improvements.
His new doctor changed his medication. He also monitors his blood levels regularly and changes the dosage when necessary. Stevens's blood sugar is back down to a healthy level, and he's regained his strength and libido.
Now 60, he's more active than ever. In addition to aerobics classes, Stevens volunteers to walk dogs at a no-kill animal shelter twice a week for up to two hours. When his testosterone levels were low, he didn’t think much about sex, but with his low testosterone treatment plan, his sexual desire has come back, too.
Learning Lessons About Low Testosterone
It’s common for men with low testosterone to notice loss of muscle strength, decreased libido, chronic fatigue, and depression, says Aaron Lentz, MD, an assistant professor of surgery in division of urologic surgery at Duke University in Durham, N.C. Any man in his forties or fifties with these symptoms should be checked for low testosterone, according to Dr. Lentz.
Treatment for low testosterone isn’t for everyone, but if you get tested, your doctor can help you weigh the risks and the benefits.
Getting tested involves a blood test. And if you find yourself, like Stevens, reaching a plateau with one treatment, there are others to try, Lentz says.
Stevens says he has friends who seem to have thrown in the towel and let their bodies decline without fighting it, but that’s not for him. “You can make a choice when you’re aging,” he says. “Unless you’re sick, there’s no reason to lose function as you get into your fifties and sixties."
Last Updated: 01/16/2014
This section created and produced exclusively by the editorial staff of EverydayHealth.com. © 2014 EverydayHealth.com; all rights reserved.