Help with Dude stuff

whereismyOJ

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I need some advice for my husband, please. He is 40 years old, 6'1 and around 220lbs.

Earlier this year we noticed his erections were not as hard and then sometime around March or April, he stopped producing semen. Now he just has 'dry orgasms'. He had a full work up in February and here are some results.

Free Testosterone (Direct) – 10.4
Testosterone, Serum – 429
Potassium, Serum – 4.8
TSH – Reference range: 1.230
T4, Free (direct) – 1.61
T3, Triidothyronine, Free, Serum – 2.8
Thyroxine (T4) Total – 9.5

The doctor made mention of his low testosterone, and I think he is definitely seeing/feeling the effects of it.

He deals with depression and anxiety, but nothing as serious as it was when he was between the ages of 19-31.

We are currently both stressed, but hopefully things will start to get better this month since he just started a new job.

During his years of severe depression/anxiety he was Dx with type 2 diabetes and he has gone back and forth with controlling it to not controlling. He finally started insulin around the same time he began having dry orgasms. I don't know if this is related. I thought he would have better signs of a sex life with controlled blood sugars.

We want to have children within the next few years and this new problem will prevent that. He also says that orgasms and being aroused feel different because of the softer erection and lack of semen.

When we have money/insurance again I'll have him do another lab work up. He is not 100% Peaty, but he listens and trusts me and I do what I can with what we have to implement his ideas. We are very low PUFA and have been for about 3 years.

I was thinking of having him start Ideal Labs, StressNon for the pregnenolone and vitamin E as well as the EstroBan.

He takes aspirin, Nutrisorb Vit. A, coconut oil, B12 complex.

He'll be starting B3, B1, glycine, selenium, and folate within the next few weeks.

I have him eat seafood (which he LOVES), fruit, OJ, and milk, as well as a few veggies, but he also is a meat eater. Not a ton of meat, but he prefers meat at every dinner...even if it's seafood. I've finally convinced him to eat a carrot in the mornings. :holysheep

I can't think of anything else to add. How can we raise his testosterone and lower his estrogen? Which will hopefully get production of semen back. Is the StressNon a good idea?
 

haidut

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whereismyOJ said:
I need some advice for my husband, please. He is 40 years old, 6'1 and around 220lbs.

Earlier this year we noticed his erections were not as hard and then sometime around March or April, he stopped producing semen. Now he just has 'dry orgasms'. He had a full work up in February and here are some results.

Free Testosterone (Direct) – 10.4
Testosterone, Serum – 429
Potassium, Serum – 4.8
TSH – Reference range: 1.230
T4, Free (direct) – 1.61
T3, Triidothyronine, Free, Serum – 2.8
Thyroxine (T4) Total – 9.5

The doctor made mention of his low testosterone, and I think he is definitely seeing/feeling the effects of it.

He deals with depression and anxiety, but nothing as serious as it was when he was between the ages of 19-31.

We are currently both stressed, but hopefully things will start to get better this month since he just started a new job.

During his years of severe depression/anxiety he was Dx with type 2 diabetes and he has gone back and forth with controlling it to not controlling. He finally started insulin around the same time he began having dry orgasms. I don't know if this is related. I thought he would have better signs of a sex life with controlled blood sugars.

We want to have children within the next few years and this new problem will prevent that. He also says that orgasms and being aroused feel different because of the softer erection and lack of semen.

When we have money/insurance again I'll have him do another lab work up. He is not 100% Peaty, but he listens and trusts me and I do what I can with what we have to implement his ideas. We are very low PUFA and have been for about 3 years.

I was thinking of having him start Ideal Labs, StressNon for the pregnenolone and vitamin E as well as the EstroBan.

He takes aspirin, Nutrisorb Vit. A, coconut oil, B12 complex.

He'll be starting B3, B1, glycine, selenium, and folate within the next few weeks.

I have him eat seafood (which he LOVES), fruit, OJ, and milk, as well as a few veggies, but he also is a meat eater. Not a ton of meat, but he prefers meat at every dinner...even if it's seafood. I've finally convinced him to eat a carrot in the mornings. :holysheep

I can't think of anything else to add. How can we raise his testosterone and lower his estrogen? Which will hopefully get production of semen back. Is the StressNon a good idea?

I won't comment on the StressNon and EstroBan since I sell them, so I will let other speak to that:):
However, I would recommend checking prolactin, cholesterol, and if possible, whole blood serotonin. Often, the lack of erection and dry orgasms are due to higher prolactin (which causes low dopamine). Poorly controlled diabetes type 2 is also well known to cause problems with erections. Niacinamide 500mg x 3 a day for a month should restore some insulin sensitivity, and adding 500mg taurine to each dose of niacnamide should potentiate the anti-diabetic effects. Taurine acts very much like insulin. I posted studies about both supplements for type 2 diabetes on the forum so if you search you'll probably find them easily.
Finally, both niacinamide and taurine should help with anxiety. People with anxiety are well known to have problems with erections and his problem could very well be getting exacerbated by the anxiety/depression.
Overall, I think stress is taking a toll so things might get better on their own once the initial job stress winds down.
 
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Perhaps some supplemental potassium, and megadosing E and K2?
 

tara

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Welcome whereismyOJ :welcome

I am not an expert on this, but here are some thoughts. Monitoring by a doctor is probably wise, even if the drs don't approve all the Peat-inspired changes you might want to make.

I think things get a bit more complicated once insulin is supplemented.
Some of the complications people get with diabetes may be contributed to by the insulin.
When you do anything that improves sugar burning, I think it becomes even more important to monitor blood glucose levels, because they can dip suddenly, and you may need to adjust sugar intake and/or supplemental insulin quite quickly. Be sure to have honey or similar on hand to handle any sudden bouts of hypoglycemia. Also, I've heard that sometimes excess supplemental insulin can get stored in the tissues, and be released unpredictably during recovery - this can get things out of kilter suddenly - another reason to be ready with emergency sugar, but there may be other complications. Probably easier to address sooner than after a longer period supplementing, but be aware that it probably requires close monitoring.

How high were the sugar readings when he was diagnosed? How long has he been supplementing insulin?

The TSH reading looks slightly high, but not bad - I can't remember what's optimal for the other numbers - others may be able to interpret.

You can plug a typical day's diet into cronometer to get an overview of nutrients.
Supplementing B vitamins and keeping fat low (PUFA as low as possible) seem like good measures. Maybe he's wanting the meat because he needs the protein - Peat recommends 80-100 g for hypothyroid people, but more like 130-150g for healthy adults. If you can keep it lean, and balance it with gelatine and calcium, that's probably OK. Peat recommends calcium:phosphorus ratio of 1:1 to 2:1 - ie more calcium than phosphorus. You might want to check the magnesium - if he's not getting plenty in diet, this might be worth supplementing too. There are threads about different forms - including epsom salt baths, mag. bicarbonate water, etc.

If you haven't read Peat's articles on sugar, I'd recommend them:
http://raypeat.com/articles/articles/gl ... etes.shtml
http://raypeat.com/articles/articles/sugar-issues.shtml
http://raypeat.com/articles/articles/glycemia.shtml
And all his other articles and interviews. The interviews are a little easier going, if you find the articles challenging at first.

Peat has recommended brewers' yeast for diabetes - you can steep it in hot water, drink the liquid and discard the solids that settle to the bottom - hopefully you get most of the B vitamins and minerals, and leave most of the estrogen in the sediment.
http://www.functionalps.com/blog/2013/0 ... ers-yeast/
Also on that site related to diabetes: http://www.functionalps.com/blog/2012/0 ... eta-cells/

Good luck.
 
OP
whereismyOJ

whereismyOJ

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Thank you everyone for the replies. Yes, even you pboy. I got a good giggle out of that answer.

@haidut His Feb. blood work has those, but I can't find the copy we have. I was going to get another copy from the Dr. When he gets new labs, I'll be sure to have them check those you mentioned. I just found it strange that after he started insulin that is when the problems started. I'm hoping it's just stress related and taking supplements and getting diet better will help.

@such_saturation On toxinless.com and this website there aren't any recommended potassium supplements. Do you have some ideas on good ones? I forgot to mention that he had been taking Vit. E, we just ran out recently and I was hoping to utilize StressNon and Estroban instead of buying the previous brand. Plus, the Estroban has K in it.

@tara He is monitored by an Endo. Well, I mean he sees an Endo every 3 to 4 months. We are also vigilant in checking his BG levels daily or sometimes more.

I don't know how high his sugars were when he was Dx. I'm not even sure what year he was Dx and honestly, he says he can't remember! I know it was before we were married and we've been married coming up on 9 years. He started insulin in March of this year.

I'm sure he doesn't eat enough on a regular basis. He'll sometimes skip breakfast, but I always try to pack him a good lunch a few snacks for work. I'll plug his food into Cronometer tomorrow and see what happens. I'm sure he'll be low in E and K because that is what shows up on mine and we eat very similarly. Another reason for the Estroban supplement. I am planning on making eggshell powder, but I want to get free range eggs. We tried the mag. bicarbonate for a month, but did not feel anything different. It tasted nasty to us, so I'm thinking of trying another form. I run mag. oil on him from time to time, but I could be more consistent.

I've read most of the articles you posted, but I'll read them again, it's been awhile. Plus, I'm sure I don't understand everything the first time I read his articles. I've had the brewer's yeast on my amazon 'save for later' cart, so I'll go ahead and get that and try it out. I'll also check out the Functional Performance links you posted.

Thank you again.
 

toddy

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Sorry to hear about your husband. Testosterone is all he needs. Did he drink an energy drink daily
 

Zachs

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Are you two sure he actually needs insulin? Sounds like hes borderline diabetic and could maybe control it with a smarter diet. Has he or does he eat a high fat diet?
 
OP
whereismyOJ

whereismyOJ

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He might need testosterone, toddy, but I know there are other things we can do before going there. He does not drink energy drinks.

Yes, Zachs. He needs insulin at this time. His pancreas is barely producing insulin. He has not done a specific high fat diet.
 

natedawggh

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Progesterone! I am a 34 male, 6'6" and 280 lbs and I had, among other things, severe erectile dysfunction. Progesterone not only completely cured it, it made them better and more satisfying than when I was younger. I didn't stop producing ejaculate, but I'm sure that it will also improve that.

Progesterone does this in part by suppressing estrogen (and you can take Pregnenolone along with it to ensure a supply of testosterone), improving cellular health, but also by increasing the volume of blood and containing the blood plasma water within the veins. This increase of blood makes it easier on the heart to do its work, causes more blood, CO2, oxygen, and nutrients to reach the smaller vesicles around the body, including the reproductive organs. The increase of blood volume also makes it easy to get a full erection that has staying power.

hope this helps!
 

natedawggh

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Also... I'd stay away from taking testosterone... some organs have a higher affinity for testosterone and it can actually damage them. Instead, take an estrogen blocker along with progesterone.
 

lexis

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natedawggh said:
Progesterone! I am a 34 male, 6'6" and 280 lbs and I had, among other things, severe erectile dysfunction. Progesterone not only completely cured it, it made them better and more satisfying than when I was younger. I didn't stop producing ejaculate, but I'm sure that it will also improve that.

Progesterone does this in part by suppressing estrogen (and you can take Pregnenolone along with it to ensure a supply of testosterone), improving cellular health, but also by increasing the volume of blood and containing the blood plasma water within the veins. This increase of blood makes it easier on the heart to do its work, causes more blood, CO2, oxygen, and nutrients to reach the smaller vesicles around the body, including the reproductive organs. The increase of blood volume also makes it easy to get a full erection that has staying power.

hope this helps!

How much progesterone were you using?
 

Spondive

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It is interesting about progesterone for men..I was experimenting with 100 mg of progesterone cream on scrotum and it helped with libido and erectile strength even though I have low testosterone. I am postulating that estrogen is being antagonized or balanced by progesterone at the cellular level. I read that somewhere from Peat. I don't think blood levels are that important if a measure of estrogen.

For me I have tried testosterone and aromatase inhibitors that completely destroyed my libido and erectile strength. Any thoughts?
 

Spondive

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One other point for me with low T supplementing with testosterone and added progesterone I had a great increase in libido and Erectile strength
 

burtlancast

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Pregnenolone, with doses up to 1 gr, will obviously improve things, as will high doses Vit E and a good B complex.

Regarding insulin and diabetes, i should mention Ray's adamant hyperglycemia is just a defense mechanism by the organism to overcome the high concentration of free fatty acids in the blood preventing sugar oxidation ( it's called the Randlle cycle or competition: see http://www.functionalps.com/blog/2011/0 ... dle-cycle/).
He gives examples of doctors treating diabetes with sugar.

Insulin stimulates cortisol.
There are recent official studies showing Type 2 diabetics treated with insulin have twice/thrice the incidence of heart attacks, strokes, and other diabetes complications (compared to treatment with sulfamides, metformin, but no comparaison was made with non chemical treatments)

Fruits are the best sugar for diabetics. Read Ray's articles on sugar and diabetes, and listen to his interviews on diabetes.
He mentionned diabetics are, theorically, all hypothyroid, thus could benefit from thyroid.Glycin is another good supplement.

And, does your husband have amalgam fillings in his mouth ?
 

tara

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burtlancast said:
Regarding insulin and diabetes, i should mention Ray's adamant hyperglycemia is just a defense mechanism by the organism to overcome the high concentration of free fatty acids in the blood preventing sugar oxidation ( it's called the Randlle cycle or competition: see http://www.functionalps.com/blog/2011/0 ... dle-cycle/).
I think this might be over-stating the case. I agree that he has said PUFA can be a major contributor to diabetes. But also other factors impeding sugar burning, eg nutritional deficiencies (eg B vits, as mentioned) or other toxins. I don't see Peat denying that there can be damage to the insulin secreting pancreatic beta cells - not just a defensive action, but actual damage. He does point out that the pancreas needs glucose to regenerate beta cells.

Glycine (or gelatine) seems like a good addition.
 

burtlancast

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Peat made sure to distinguish between type 1 diabetes ( damaged B cells) and type 2 diabetes ( which should never have been called diabetes, as it's caused by free (unsaturated) fatty acids shutting down glucose oxidation) afflicting whereismyOJ' husband.

These are 2 completely different diseases.
 

lindsay

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I would echo NateDawggh on this (even though I'm female). Progesterone has allowed me to be human again - especially where anxiety/depression is concerned. I would wager that if your hubby has low testosterone, his estrogen levels are also higher > progesterone should definitely help with this, I would just ask NateDawggh about his dosing. I also recall RP mention progesterone in his most recent interview where he talks about the dangers of Viagra. Also, having his thyroid levels checked might be helpful to see where he is at.

How much SFA does he eat daily?? I think somefat intake is important for proper sex hormone synthesis.
 

tara

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burtlancast said:
Peat made sure to distinguish between type 1 diabetes ( damaged B cells) and type 2 diabetes ( which should never have been called diabetes, as it's caused by free (unsaturated) fatty acids shutting down glucose oxidation) afflicting whereismyOJ' husband.

These are 2 completely different diseases.

whereismyOJ said:
Yes, Zachs. He needs insulin at this time. His pancreas is barely producing insulin.

I agree that Peat considered it important to distinguish damaged beta cells/reduced insulin production capacity from other cases of hyperglycemia. Adult onset diabetes seems to usually be described as type two, but seems to sometimes involve damaged beta cells. OP says he is producing very little insulin, so if this is on the basis of measuring insulin, rather than presumptions based on measuring blood glucose, then the there may be more at play by now than the Randle competition, and it may be 'real' diabetes. PUFAs may well be part of damaging beta cells, and there may be other factors too. I get the impression that mainstream medicine tends to assume damaged beta cells can not be recovered; this may not be true - there may be ways to encourage recovery of beta cells.

whereismyOJ said:
@tara He is monitored by an Endo. Well, I mean he sees an Endo every 3 to 4 months. We are also vigilant in checking his BG levels daily or sometimes more.
It is probably good that he is being monitored by endo. I think the process of really recovering from insulin-dependent diabetes can sometimes throw some major and sudden wobbles resulting in extremely (dangerously) low blood sugars in a matter of hours or less, not just on a span of months. That's why having sugar/honey on hand may be important. Have you learned to recognise symptoms of acute hypoglycemia?

Have you seen recent posts with quotes from Peat recommending the water from cooked beets/chard/kale as food-based magnesium, when extra is needed beyond OJ and coffee etc?
 
OP
whereismyOJ

whereismyOJ

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Thank you everyone for your responses! Would RP's Progest-E work for him? I've been taking it, so I'll always have plenty on hand. If so, what should be his dose? Also, I keep reading conflicting side effects of when a man takes either progesterone or pregnenolone. Any thoughts on that?

With regards to his T2. He was Dx in his early 20's. When he first saw his endo, which was about a year ago, they did blood work. I don't know what test is performed to see how much the pancreas is producing, but they almost Dx him as T1, but I suppose that test proved otherwise and they kept him as a T2.

I've only read the symptoms of acute hypoglycemia, we've never experienced them.

This is all so very confusing for me...the whole T2D. I've read RP's articles on sugar and diabetes. We are implementing supplements and eating more fruit. We don't drink coffee for religious reasons, so I've always felt stumped when it comes to that aspect of following RP's advice.

We started on IdeaLabs Estroban, (vits. K,A,D, & E), glycine, mag. glyciate, B1, B3, taurine and I just got in the mail today, Life Extension Vit. E. I read another post from haidut about high doses of Vit. E helping with testosterone and lowering PUFA's, etc.

I don't know exactly how much SFA he eats. We only use butter and coconut oil and occasionally olive oil for cooking. I will make some mineral broth to boost mag.
 

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