Death came calling
Death came calling when I suffered a minor arrhythmia. My damaged youth started when my close friends pushed me aside and sometimes retorted with irritating comments. I hadn’t realized how negative I had become and its unwelcome effects upon my friends. My neurosurgeon colleague diagnosed me with Asperger’s syndrome (a form of autism), but he had only partial remedies to offer. He suggested that I talk less and try to better read people’s facial expressions. These methods did work somewhat, but I was still depressed about having lost my connection with close friends.
I had become a grumpy man who grumbled about the most mundane of matters. In addition, I lost a good deal of sex drive between age 40 and 50, much to the chagrin of my ex-wife and girlfriends. “What was happening to me?” I mused many times. After an ultrasound exam detected plaque on my femoral artery, I soon began hormone and peptide corrective therapy.
Rebalance Needed
When I was in my early 50s, I had a strange experience: I accidentally overdosed on hormones and peptides. I was unbalanced to say the least. I was shocked how my mindset changed dramatically. Suddenly, my grumpy self became very articulate and wanted everyone to be my friend. I felt a strong urge to share my feelings with anyone who would listen. My mind seemed to gain greater connectivity; the spherical halves of my brain communicated with each other better regarding imagination and logical thinking. Mentally, I felt as youthful as many of the younger people I met, and I was amazed and fascinated by the power of hormones and peptides.
Later, I learned that hormones and peptides are at least 5 to 10 times more powerful than any patented drug! Also, hormones and peptides solve a wide variety of medical problems and not just one as in the case of patented drugs. In other words, hormone and peptide remedies are not one-trick-ponies.
I felt it essential to rebalance myself. I didn’t want to feel ‘strange’ and overly chummy with people. In some respects, I wanted my old self back. First, because I had overdosed on the bonding hormone oxytocin, I quickly reduced my dose to only 10 units daily. Second, I stopped my daily dose of estradiol, for it really is mostly a woman’s hormone. Unfortunately, its long-term effects in men are enlarged breasts (gyno) and prostate gland (BPH, or benign prostate hyperplasia); although men do require tiny amounts of it for optimal brain function (1).
Even Doctors Suffer from Aging
Then, I met senior medical doctors who had been suffering from similar problems—they, too, wanted to improve their spirits and return to younger years. They offered to help me regain my health, manliness, and youth and avoid the grim reaper. These senior physicians diagnosed me with age-related severe loss of multiple hormones. In other words, testosterone correction alone was not the only answer to my problems.
I discovered that after most people reach age 40 or 50, their hormone production slows considerably; consequently, their moods, personalities, and lives may change greatly. I also noticed that 20- and 30-somethings seemed to be much more positive and dynamic in their relationships than what my fellow 50-something cohorts and I were experiencing.
The worst of many hormone deficiencies are caused by dysfunctional adrenal glands that produce vital hormones such as cortisol and DHEA. Interestingly, in 1957, Senator John F. Kennedy was finally diagnosed with Addison’s disease, and he began treatment. Before that critical diagnosis, a Catholic priest was twice called to administer last rites to a very sick Kennedy (2). Eventually, daily hydrocortisone treatment allowed him to gain weight, vigor, and health. Subsequently, in 1960, he became physically able to run for the presidency.
My second deficiency was a lack of thyroid hormones, which caused me to become lethargic, especially in the early mornings. Furthermore, this resulted in my development of hanging jowls, severe weight gain, and hair loss from my eyebrows. This is a common problem especially in women who arrive at middle age, and their weight increases and their energy decreases. Still another problem was a declining sex drive, with symptoms such as decreased libido and flaccid erections. And those three black rock stars, Levitra®, Viagra® and Cialis® helped only temporarily.
In summary, as postulated by many doctors knowledgeable in anti-aging medicine, I was gradually falling apart due to hormone, peptide and nutrient imbalances. I had lost my meaningful life as a vital human being. At first, I thought my problems were due to shrinking gray matter in my brain; however, later my experiences forced me to look differently at how people think. With the help of knowledgeable doctors, I reshaped my personality by consuming micro-dose amounts of hormones and peptides.