6 Signs You May Be Suffering From Low Testosterone

When you were a boy, your testosterone (T) levels surged. The increased levels of T transformed you from that boy to a man. Your T was responsible for many of the attributes you associated with your manhood, including:

• Deep voice
• Facial hair
• Strong muscles
• Strong bones
• Energy
• High sex drive

That’s why, when your T levels fall, you don’t feel much like yourself anymore. You may lose interest in sex and become flabby around the middle.

At Gorman Medical, PC — with locations in Colorado Springs and Cripple Creek, Colorado — Charles Ripp, MD, Fran Gorman, DNP, and our expert team specialize in men’s health. 

Sometimes, that may include hormone therapy — including testosterone replacement therapy (TRT) — to get you back on track.

You may have consulted doctors before only to be told that your T levels are “normal.” However, if you don’t feel normal, your T levels might not be high enough for your own needs and goals.

Are you suffering from low T? Here are six signs that you may be, no matter what the numbers say.

1. You’re losing your — other — hair

Male-pattern baldness on your scalp is usually caused by inherited genes that affect the health and sensitivity of your hair follicles.

However, if you’re losing hair on other parts of your body, that could be due to low T. Remember, that surge of adolescent T wasn’t what gave you a full head of hair: You already had that. Your T gave you hair on your:

• Arms
• Chest
• Legs
• Pubic area
• Under arms

If those areas are shedding, low T may be the culprit. Boosting your T can stimulate hair growth (but not on your scalp!).

2. Your muscles have dwindled

If you’ve turned back into that dreaded 99-pound weakling of comic-book ad fame — or fear you will — low T may be the reason. When your T levels are high, your body produces more muscle tissue. That’s why men are able to pack on muscle mass more easily than most women can.

Conversely, if you feel like you don’t have the strength you used to have, or if your muscles actually look smaller or flabbier, you may need more T. An advantage of higher T and more muscle mass is that it turns up your metabolism so you have more energy and can burn more fat.

3. Your waist has expanded

Flabbiness and fatness — particularly around the middle — are common to men with low T. Muscle mass that comes from high T revs up your metabolism so you burn more of your food for energy and keep your physique trim and ripped.

Low T slows it all down. First, you don’t put on new muscle and can’t maintain the muscle that you do have. Instead of burning fat, you store it around your middle and other places on your body. That fat creates further havoc because it produces an excess amount of estrogens.

High estrogen makes it harder to put on muscle. And much easier to put on more fat. Counter the estrogen with more T.

4. You’re awfully irritated

Yeah, the world is in a state right now … but has it ever really been another way? But these days, it’s really getting under your skin. You can’t hold your temper anymore.

You go around feeling irritable and snappy. While that anger may actually make you feel more powerful (for a moment), it’s a sign that you’re losing power. When you don’t have enough T, you don’t have the resilience you need to deal with life’s ups and downs.

You may also find that it’s hard to focus, remember, or even think straight. Your hormones affect every part of your body, including your brain. If your mood and focus is off, it could be your low T.

5. Sex has lost its appeal

While you might not think kissing is as “icky” as you did before adolescence, you can’t seem to muster your enthusiasm anymore. If your libido is low, that could be due to many factors, including repressed trauma and relationship problems.

But it could also be due to low T. Testosterone drives your sex drive. When it’s too low, your libido flags.

6. And you can’t really perform, anyway

Another sign that your T is low is that you’re having trouble achieving or maintaining an erection. When you suffer from erectile dysfunction (ED), that frustration can also add to your low libido and grumpiness.

If low T is the problem, help is on the way. By restoring testosterone, your ED should resolve, too. 

You can feel like yourself again, through hormone testing and balancing. Whether you need TRT or other hormonal support, we help you get your life back on track.

To find out if you have low T, contact our team about testosterone testing and TRT by phone or convenient online form today.