Hormone therapy is not a quick fix. You have to keep taking the pills or injections for you to feel the effect of testosterone in your body. Testosterone replacement therapy is like a shot of vitamins or supplements, it takes time to see the results.
Testosterone, responsible for male characteristics such as muscle mass, facial and body hair and deep voice, is the main hormone produced by the testicles. It is responsible for the development of the penis and is important for the sperm production. Testosterone also helps build muscle mass, which increases the strength and endurance of the body. Testosterone level also helps regulate sex drive.
Testosterone level can decrease because of the aging process and can result in numerous physical and emotional effects. Many men choose to try testosterone replacement therapy to treat the condition when the levels of the hormone decrease.
What are Testosterone Injections?
Testosterone is the primary sex hormone in men and plays a crucial role in several bodily functions, from the growth and maintenance of various sorts of tissues to both cognitive and sexual function. Men generally produce testosterone in the testes, while women produce it in their ovaries.
Testosterone injections, in turn, are a type of hormone therapy that seeks to remedy deficiencies in the substance in bodies. Patients suffering from hypogonadism, patients seeking gender confirmation treatments, as well as patients with otherwise abnormally low testosterone levels, take testosterone injections.
What Are the Symptoms of Testosterone Deficiency?
Like most hormonal disorders, low testosterone levels can lead to a number of health complications – erectile dysfunction, loss of muscular strength, weaker bones, a lowered libido, concentration and memory issues, and depression are all possible symptoms, and if left untreated, infertility and fatigue may set in.
Low testosterone can be the result of traumatic injuries causing decreased blood flow to the testes, metabolic issues, radiation exposure, alcohol abuse, obesity, diabetes, medications, and several health disorders, such as HIV, diabetes, and hypothyroidism. It is also a common result of aging in men, with studies finding that nearly 40% of men aged 45 and older present with low testosterone. As a general rule, testosterone begins to slowly decrease at a rate of approximately 1% per year after age 30, though this can differ from person to person.
What Are the Effects of Testosterone Injections?
As testosterone injections are generally a remedial treatment prescribed by doctors to alleviate specific symptoms that have been found to result from hormonal deficiencies, the main effects to be observed are improvements in the aforementioned symptoms. Thus, an increased libido, a less depressive mood, improved sexual fitness, muscular function, and memory are all potential effects of testosterone injections.
Additionally, since testosterone is a sex hormone, injections of the substance will likely result in changes in patients’ appearances – a lower body fat percentage can be expected as the body begins to build more muscle and denser bones.
Patients with various ailments should be mindful of the many changes testosterone injections can bring about in several bodily systems. Doctors generally have access to patients' medical history and are therefore likely to consider these possibilities and may advise patients as to what they ought to expect on that front.
How Long Does It Take To Feel the Effects of Testosterone Injections?
The time it takes for the effects of testosterone injections to be felt varies depending on the symptom in question. While some symptoms, such as a low sex drive, may be remedied as early as three weeks into treatment, others, such as depressive moods, may take two months to improve. The effect will also improve as therapy continues – for example, while patients may experience a rise in their libido within three weeks of treatment, erectile function may take as long as half a year to fully resolve.
It may take several months of testosterone injections before patients notice a difference in their appearance, and this time frame may also differ depending on lifestyle – patients that regularly exercise and undergo weight training may notice muscular growth sooner than patients that don’t, for example, and these are also likely to notice a difference in their athletic performances during exercises.
The testosterone deficiency symptom that may take the longest to fully resolve is bone strength and density. Though initial improvements may be seen half a year into treatment, some cases do require years of continuous treatment before bone strength has recovered completely.
What To Do if You Don’t See Results From Testosterone Injections?
Patients that receive testosterone injections should generally be checking in with their primary healthcare providers as treatment proceeds, and it is important that any observed effects or a lack thereof be communicated at every appointment. If no effects are observed and no symptoms appear to have improved after two months, patients ought to consult with their doctor to review their dosage and treatment methodology. It is also absolutely crucial that patients do not self-medicate by adjusting their own dosage, treatment schedule, or stopping treatment altogether.
This blog post is for educational purposes only and does not constitute medical or other professional advice. Your specific circumstances should be discussed with a healthcare provider. All statements of opinion represent the writers' judgement at the time of publication and are subject to change. Phoenix and its affiliates provide no express or implied endorsements of third parties or their advice, opinions, information, products, or services.