CHECKEMLADS, and then some!
Life after testicular cancer!. Where do i start?.
I had known for a while before Testicular cancer something was not right. For a good 2 years I had lost a lot of drive. I was a keen boxer in the british army as well as representing the army as a downhill skier. My nickname was “Zeba-dee”, I had that much bounce, but it was fading fast. I could blame age yes, but not a decline of this stature in such a short amount of time. After all, I was only 30 and supposedly in the prime of my life.
I was told i had Testicular cancer in April 2003, lucky for me it was only stage 1 but on the verge of stage 2 needing 6 weeks of BEP chemo. It all came and went so fast my head was spinning but I got there with only a heart scare as a reaction to the chemo and was pretty ok with it all.
As most men who have had TC or chemo know, it takes a while to get back to feeling well again. It was a good five months before I could work again 9 to 5, but I still had a feeling that something else was not right.I was very tired most days. I had confused, fuzzy thinking and would have hot flushes and fast heart beats. Of course i thought it was maybe a mix of stress and after effects of chemo so I gave it time. The Doctors threw me on antidepressants with which I agreed (with a feeling of dread). They helped a little in relaxing me, but the other symptoms were still in force. My weight started to rise and fall in days. But the worst of all my symptoms was the fuzzy head, near enough no concentration at all.
I decided to have alook about for lads who have had TC online when I found a small link on TC forum to Nick’s website. As soon as saw the symptoms I jumped to my feet and shouted, “That’s me!… that really is me!!” . I was overjoyed to see that it wasn’t all in my mind, but in fact medical, or a good chance of it being what Nick had published.
The very next day I went to see my doctor. Nick had warned me he might blame depression and stress, to explain how I felt and that its a hard job to get any doctor to agree to beginning Testosterone therapy.
I had the test and the results came back at 9 (low). I was happy that finally we were getting somewhere. But my GP said he would not treat me and would book me in to see a specialist in my local hospital. Nick was not happy, but I think he knew it would not be easy to get GP’s to agree to treat, even in clear cut cases.
My appointment came through and I had to wait 7 months. I hit an all time low . My well being and mind had hit rock bottom. I lost my house, my job, my marriage and my son. To be honest felt like doing my self in a few times. How close i did get to it will remain with me for ever but it was close.
Nick kept my spirits up by not giving me any sort of sympathy, but actually pushing me to make a fuss.I had another two blood tests which all came back around ten/eleven (normal/low), but still no one wanted to take it on board and kept filling me with tablets and showing me the door. It had been 24 months since my TC and i should have been feeling better surely?
Dr Richard Stephenson from Arrow park hospital who had removed my testicle and a few kidney stones over 6 years, finally came to my aid again! I am sure he could see in my eyes that I was not bullshitting and had looked into Testosterone. He looked at my last few hormone results and said, “Ok phil lets give it a try”. He is a strong believer in Testosterone checks after TC and was more on the side of new research and how the guy feels, rather than black and white rules.
So finally we had good news. I rang Nick as soon as I had left the room and he, as ever, was cool, but I could hear a bit of relief in his tone. After a good few months of trail and error with Testogel I got it right.. 3/4 of a pack every day without fail, gave me my body. mind and bounce back. Other things helped too, like maybe a bit of mind over matter, but the gel was working. My mind was clear and my weight finally came down to normal.
This will sound a bit dramatic but if it wasn’t for Nick and this site, I really do think I would have been dead by now and I thank Nick for it.
Phil
www.checkemlads.com
Editor’s Note
Phil’s story is all too familiar and examples the destructive nature of low Testosterone. Phil is an important member of the Testicular Cancer public awareness campaign, with his Checkemlads site. I am glad this site has helped him to move on with his life and regain his health.
Nick