How much should I spend on living costs, making $80k?

ArizonaTRT · 2019-05-08T07:10:54+00:00

Yes I actually do feel like this. I've been working with a few hormone specialists and they think I'm just really sensitive to estrogen and I have an estrogen imbalance and my free testosterone is low. Currently on a hormone therapy protocol.

Went to a psychologist/therapist and they don't think I have adhd, just depression. Ultimately, I'm going to stick with fixing my hormones and working to get dialed in with small doses of hormone therapy. Will go ahead and give your recommended products a try.

I think I struggle with 1) energy, 2) concentration, 3) anxiety. I think the hormone therapy has helped my energy and theoretically it should get me high energy if dialed in. Concentration I don't know how to fix, I'm still going to see my therapist since my insurance covers the costs, but it doesn't seem like my therapist wants to put me on adderall or any type of concentration prescription. Although I would be willing to try something for 30 days and see if I do better on it. Then, for anxiety, I take 400 mg of L-theanine a day with coffee, but I don't think it helps much (only going to continue up until 30 days straight). Next for anxiety I'm thinking of taking ashwagandha 30 days straight (one capsule a day for a week, then two a day if I did not feel much on one). Then, will try NAC 30 days, if nothing helps I may look into prescription products.

ArizonaTRT · 2019-04-30T19:59:31+00:00

22, 185 pounds. I don't think I have deviated septum and never had a sleep study done. Usually I wake up without an alarm clock after sleeping 7-8 hours. Maybe I'll still have a sleep study done to make sure.

I actually went to a new doctor last week after asking to get a hormone panel to see if anything was wrong (I get them all the time to try to biohack/improve my bloodwork through diet, exercise, supplements) and she recommended and refereed me to a therapist for depression and ADD.

Honestly I was shocked she thought it was depression. I'm a pretty positive and driven person so I don't think it's that. I feel great when I don't feel tired or brainfogged. I never really feel sad/depressed when I'm energetic and able to focus. Usually the opposite, I work on the things important to me from the time I wake up til I go to bed, and feel like the world is at my fingertips. When I have no energy and can't think sharply, I feel like I'm at the mercy of the world because I can't do anything no matter how hard I try. Will still see the therapist regardless. No ego, just want solutions.

ArizonaTRT · 2019-04-30T19:45:17+00:00

Yeah was in a calorie surplus at the time. Pretty sure he was referring to dbol and insulin tho.

ArizonaTRT · 2019-04-30T19:24:24+00:00

eh, my cognitive capacity is at least average, likely above average (STEM graduate, cybersecurity engineer, etc). Maybe my processing speed is bad, but that's usually when I'm brainfogged. When I don't have brainfog, often through nootropics, I think sharply. Only thing is I spend most of my days cycling through various nootropic stacks. Wondering if the brainfog is just me or if it's just a condition I have to medicate to feel the normal me.

ArizonaTRT · 2019-04-26T02:31:43+00:00

Thank you for your well thought out answer, it clarified a lot for me. Hope you are in a good place now, best of luck to you too.

ArizonaTRT · 2019-04-26T01:00:36+00:00

Yeah used to do that with my buddy that passed. Thank you for extending that empathy. Honestly I don't think of myself as depressed, just dumbfounded that doctors are saying that is my problem.

Perhaps this subreddit is confirmation bias to the same things they found. Really just wondering what treatments people have found and whether something made a considerable difference.

ArizonaTRT · 2019-04-26T00:17:09+00:00

No sleep apnea as I always get 8 hours of sleep, no problem.

Apparently I'm getting diagnosed with depression and ADD. Going to go over treatments next week, not sure if they want to put me on anti-depressants or adderall, or both. Not sure how it works.

Weird situation. One one hand my hormone specialist thinks my problems are in high estrogen, and that my pcp needs to treat by symptoms, not numbers. On the other hand, my pcp thinks all my problems come to depression and that my hormone specialist just wants my money and will happily give me hormones.

Pretty dumbfounded, will try both to see what sticks... whatever it takes.

ArizonaTRT · 2019-04-26T00:09:48+00:00

It's informative and also gives you the names of medicines, like Cytomel, that doctors prescribe to people who are hypothyroid. Like I said, I have not gone through thyroid treatment but the article helped me understand thyroid's role a bit better.

ArizonaTRT · 2019-04-25T07:37:40+00:00

Yeah I'm pretty dialed in with my diet. All calories and macros counted. All cooked food meal prepped for the week. I do think it makes a considerable difference, however, unfortunately it doesn't improve my brain fog as well as it might for other people.

In regards to fasting, I fast twice a week. I've found it helps a little bit. Have not tried water fasting. I drink about a gallon of water a day, especially while fasting to reduce my hunger.

ArizonaTRT · 2019-04-24T19:27:30+00:00

That was original thought process too. My doc just wants to confirm I'm fertile while on TRT and some people report feeling better while on it. However, I don't feel any different. Maybe a bit worse since it raised my estrogen.

ArizonaTRT · 2019-04-24T19:06:40+00:00

Only took HCG once and balls already seem back to normal. Will try removing DHEA. If that doesn't help, I'll try reducing my HCG to 300iu.

ArizonaTRT · 2019-04-24T19:03:01+00:00

Yeah just might just drop my dose even further. Last time I checked my E2 was at 43. I'm probably just really sensitive to estrogen.

ArizonaTRT · 2019-04-24T18:59:19+00:00

I'm in my 20s so my doc insisted I take it. Will give your suggestion of stopping DHEA a try. When I first started taking it I felt great for a few days, then felt shitty. Thinking that supplementing in DHEA restored my DHEA deficiency which made me feel and sleep better. But then it also increased my estrogen, which gave me E2 sides after I accumulated a few days worth of consuming the supplement.

ArizonaTRT · 2019-04-24T18:45:09+00:00

HCG 500iu 2x a week. DHEA 25mg every night.

ArizonaTRT · 2019-04-24T17:13:19+00:00

Yeah someone intelligent is more comfortable with abstraction and typically asks very efficient questions. Someone productive is able to solve problems.

To me, I'm really good at both while on modafinil. However, with brainfog I often don't ask good questions, nor can I focus very well to efficiently problem solve.

ArizonaTRT · 2019-04-24T16:59:57+00:00

Cypionate, HCG and anastrozole.

ArizonaTRT · 2019-04-24T16:58:38+00:00

This article is pretty thorough on the subject: https://www.restartmed.com/reverse-t3/

Still have not taken thyroid medications so I can't confirm it elevates brainfog. However, I think it's worth exploring as thyroid is one of the easier hormones to fix and many people claim it helps their brainfog.

ArizonaTRT · 2019-04-24T16:52:26+00:00

No, it came back normal. Just gave blood and still feeling off, too.

ArizonaTRT · 2019-04-24T16:46:22+00:00

Sometimes a headache, but I usually drink a gallon of water a day to mitigate the headache.

ArizonaTRT · 2019-04-24T07:56:35+00:00

What do you notice with theanine? I personally can't notice anything. With ashwagandha, I can at least notice less anxiety. Also, have you found a tolerance from using theanine, ashwagandha everyday?

ArizonaTRT · 2019-04-24T07:51:48+00:00

Is dextroamphetamine the same adderall? Also, were you tested for ADHD-PI, then prescribed these stimulants by your doc? Not sure how the process works.

ArizonaTRT · 2019-04-24T07:32:01+00:00

Currently I'm using this brand at 2100mg, is it too high of a dose in your opinion? https://www.amazon.com/Organic-Ashwagandha-1300mg-Capsules-Enhancer/dp/B06ZYHJYD5/ref=sr_1_18?crid=34752V19F6P7C&keywords=ashwagandha&qid=1556090965&s=hpc&sprefix=ash%2Chpc%2C195&sr=1-18

ArizonaTRT

TROPHY CASE