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GAD Problems or Low T?

I was fourteen when I had my first bout with what my doctor prescribed as Generalized Anxiety Disorder.  Complete loss of appetite, couldn't get out of bed for two months.  Lost a ton of weight and when I finally got back to feeling like normal, I almost had to train my legs to walk again as they became so weak.  I am now 27 and ever since then off and on every other year or so I would get hit again.  My symptoms would be the same every time, sudden hot flash on my head, neck, back and arms, suddenly feeling light headed and super weak but have never fainted (though I don't know how I didn't) I would become extremely dizzy and then nauseated.   I have been on Citalopram (30 mg) religiously for a little over two years now and up until recently have been symptom free.  I just left the doctors office where he ran a medley of drug tests, one of which included a check of my testosterone levels (I am male btw).  He has never checked testosterone before, but the more I read on it the more it sounds like what I am dealing with.  I hope he finds something, this is unbearable
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Avatar universal
Just to update.  Feeling better today than yesterday and better yesterday than the day before.  Still no appetite.  The only time I can eat anything seems to be of an evening when I am relaxing with my wife and daughter.  Very foggy in the mornings and tough to get out of bed.  No energy whatsoever.  Doctor is strongly wanting my to at least attempt the TRT and my wife is all for it.  
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480448 tn?1426948538
I would absolutely encourage you to make some changes in your life before considering hormone replacement therapy.  Our bodies act how we treat them basically.  I have been pretty sedentary, and have been overweight for a while.  Recently, I've made a commitment to healthier eating and I've started getting more active.  Even though I've only lost about 12 pounds thus far (have a good ways to go), I already FEEL a lot better, clothes don't feel tight, I have more energy, more stamina, am sleeping better, digestive system is working much better, you name it.

The saying "we are what we eat" is true on a lot of levels.  I would say it would be more accurate to say, "We are how we live".

Good luck to you!
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Avatar universal
Hey, listen to Birdie.  Exercise will energize you, not make you more tired, as long as you start out slowly and don't push yourself past your current endurance.  People gotta move so everything circulates and toxins don't build up but move through and out.  
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Avatar universal
Well I got my blood test back.  Everything looked good but for a slightly elevated bilirubin (1.7) and an extremely low testosterone (250).  Doc wants me back in a week to re check bilirubin and he said it is completely up to me on TRT.  After reading the potential side effects I'm not so sure I want to do that
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Avatar universal
You are typical of most people today in that you have poor physical health at such a young age due to a sedentary lifestyle because most choose it.
Do you believe you are physically too tired to move or just think you don't want to move? Here is an article about how one person fought anx although it won't work for everyone. http://www.medhelp.org/user_journals/show/1028854/CNN-article-about-someone-who-found-non-med-solution-to-anx-and-dep
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Avatar universal
I don't exercise.  I work a desk job then come home and am too tired to move.  I am very out of shape.  In fact, this recent spell came on this past weekend when I was moving my house
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Avatar universal
Do you do any exercise? That can have benefits to reduce anxiety and is often a good way to work up an appetite.
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Avatar universal
My family has a history of Depression, and this could very much b what it is.  I have a lot going on at home and at work.  Today, I called into work to just relax, though I am having a hard time just getting out of bed.  The only thing I ate yesterday was a few chips and drank a bottle of water.  I need to force myself to eat
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Avatar universal
The interesting thing here is you never said you felt anxious, just ill.  The symptoms, at least in the mental arena, sound a lot more like depression than GAD, but I'm not saying this is a mental thing.  Did they ever test you for the odd things, like Lyme disease and the like?  It kind of sounds like a recurrent hidden virus to me, but what do I know?  What I do know that if you have GAD you're terrified much of the time for no apparent reason, and again, you don't mention feeling scared, just ill.
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Avatar universal
Except for a couple CBC's through the years, this is the first time my GP has ordered a test for hormone levels.  I'm just wanting so bad for something tangible that can b fixed.  Anxiety Disorder is so vague and so hard to deal with
Helpful - 0
480448 tn?1426948538
Hello and welcome!

I have to say, I'm pretty skeptical any time I see this kind of question, mainly because in the last decade or so, there has been this big surge in marketing and media pushing of low testosterone ("Low T"), the need to be tested and treated.  For men who TRULY have low testosterone, treatment makes sense (in some cases), but this is another area in medicine where the almighty dollar is overruling necessity.

You'll have to wait and see what your levels are, but my gut would say that this isn't a problem with T, namely because you've been experiencing these symptoms on and off for a LONG time.  

If you had T levels low enough to cause (what you describe as) significant symptoms leading to you being almost bedridden, you would have experienced a lot of other things, like BIG abnormalities during puberty, lack of hair growth, delayed voice changing, little to no sex drive, etc.  What other medical work-ups have you had through the years?

Here's a few articles explaining the big marketing ploy for the "Low T" diagnosis and treatment.  I think it's important that you're informed:

http://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/809321

http://consumernewsweekly.com/a-supposed-disease-called-low-t-is-a-medical-marketing-scam/

http://www.foxnews.com/health/2012/09/10/testosterone-marketing-frenzy-draws-skepticism/

Now, MOST of the marketing targets older men, who are basically being treated for a nominal drop in T that most men would experience anyway, but it's blossomed from there to include younger men also.

Please just be cautious, and remain open minded.  I wish you the best, please update us, okay?
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Avatar universal
Sorry I'll update my profile, I'm male 27 years old
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Avatar universal
Your profile says female? What is your age?
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