THE TESTOSTERONE TEST – Erectile dysfunction: Let’s Get This Straight

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Erectile dysfunction

Here’s an easy exam:

  1. Erectile dysfunction stinks
  2. Erectile dysfunction is for old guys
  3. Erectile dysfunction can give any guy migraines
  4. Erectile dysfunction is well…a dysfunction to be avoided at all costs.

Let’s see if you got any right:

  1. To most men
  2. Not in the least
  3. Only if you drive yourself worrying about it
  4. Not if you want to do something about it (and you definitely can)

Erectile Dysfunction. There, we’ve said it.

Erectile dysfunction or ED, is when it is hard to get or keep an erection that’s firm enough for sex. ED affects as many as 30 million men. Most men have problems with erections from time to time. But when this happens more than half of the time, then ED is present. ED can happen when health problems limit blood flow or damage nerves in the penis. ED can also be caused by stress or emotional reasons. ED can be an early warning of a more serious illness. Heart disease, high blood pressure and high blood sugar can all cause ED.

What you really want to believe is that growing old is not the problem. But you can blame your body at any age:

  • Not enough blood flows into the penis
    Many health issues can reduce blood flow into the penis, such as heart disease, high blood sugar (diabetes), and smoking
  • The penis cannot store blood during an erection
    A man with this problem cannot keep an erection because blood does not stay trapped in the penis
  • Nerve signals from the brain or spinal cord do not reach the penis
    Certain diseases, injury or surgery in the pelvic area can harm nerves in the penis
  • Men who have diabetes are two to three times more likely to have erectile dysfunction than men who do not have diabetes
  • Other conditions that may cause ED include cardiovascular disease, atherosclerosis (hardening of the arteries), kidney disease, and multiple sclerosis. These illnesses can impair blood flow or nerve impulses throughout the body.
  • Research even suggests that avid cyclists suffer more ED than other athletes. Yep, blame the seats

While the problem could very well be in your body, it could also be in your head. Sex activity needs the mind and body to work together. Emotional or relationship problems can cause or worsen ED. Some emotional issues that can cause ED are:

  • Depression
  • Relationship conflicts
  • Stress at home or work
  • Worry about sexual performance

They can all short circuit the process that leads to an erection. Combine physical and psychological issues and you’re just not going to shake the sheets.

Get it Going Again

There are ways to counter the risks of ED. Start by discussing it with your partner. Try a Mediterranean Diet. Manage your blood pressure. Cut down high cholesterol. Get diabetes under control. If you smoke, quit. If you drink, drink less. Exercise. Don’t use anabolic steroids. Manage stress. Treat sleep apnea. Know your medication side effects. (You’d be surprised at these) And pay attention: at all costs, ignore claims like:

Breaking News: Doctor Reveals The #1 Top Erectile Product That Cures ED Permanently! Best $4.95 ED pill ever seen. #1 best ED natural remedy. #1 top erectile product-user proven to get hard. It would be just plain dysfunctional to buy into a word of it. You need to heal yourself from the inside instead of buying cases of Cialis or vats of Viagra.

Deal with ED ASAP

Erectile dysfunction affects men of all ages, and you can be sure it affects them all negatively. No one is more aware of the scope of the problem than Stephen A. Goldstein M.D., F.A.C.S. at Denver Hormone Health. Dr. Goldstein is at the top of his field in hormone replacement therapy. And erectile dysfunction can, in most cases, point to a hormone imbalance. You probably won’t recognize many of the symptoms of a testosterone imbalance, but you absolutely recognize an important sexual issue like erectile dysfunction. You might feel awkward discussing the issue at all, but Dr. Goldstein puts you immediately at ease. He knows the questions to ask and then with simple tests, knows the treatment plan that is right for you. Not just any plan, but an integrated plan of hormones, exercise and nutrition developed uniquely for you. Don’t let embarrassment keep you from getting back in the game.

Call for an appointment now.

Getting rid of ED can be easy. Without question.

THE TESTOSTERONE TEST – Low Libido: What Do You Really Know About it?

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Low Libido

Let’s take a quick little quiz:

  1. Does anyone really know what libido is?
  2. Do only men have libido?
  3. Are libido and ego related?
  4. Where did libido come from?
  5. Is your libido MIA?

Answers:

  1. Scientists and physicians and such know what “libido” really is
  2. Women, in fact, do have libidos and they don’t come from watching “The Real Housewives of New Jersey”. (see “lust” on Google”)
  3. According to Freud, yes, although when you put them together, narcissism figures in (go figure)
  4. Early 20th century: from Latin, literally ‘desire’, ‘lust
  5. If you’ve lost interest in sex, it’s definitely worth questioning

That said, let’s start this libido lesson with our old pal Freud. According to him and his other pals, “Libido is an expression taken from the theory of the emotions. We call by that name the energy, regarded as a quantitative magnitude (though not at present actually measurable), of those instincts which have to do with all that may be comprised under the word ‘love”‘.

Sex. It’s Starting to Get Good Here

In real life, “libido” comes down to 2 little words: SEX DRIVE. Virility plays a big role in our concept of manhood. There’s the sex appeal of everything from Victoria’s Secret Models to women wrestlers. Conquests are bandied about, well, just about everywhere. Instagram images? Instant varoomm.. You can be hypersexual and tear down your desire track, desperately seeking opportunity, driven to act on the urge, not taking a minute to stop at your neighborhood sex toy shop.

Just How Low Can Your Libido Go?

On the opposite side, you could be grounded by hyposexuality, a low libido putting your “gotta get it” in stall. You feel like you’re in a permanent no-nooky slump regardless of the allure of barely-there lingerie.  A lot of factors can cause a low libido. It could be something as simple as moral or religious reasons. Psychologically, a person’s urge can be repressed or sublimated. On the other hand, a person can engage in sexual activity without an actual desire for it. Multiple factors affect human sex drive, including stress, illness and others. Problems can arise from disparity of sexual desires between partners, or poor communication between partners of sexual needs and preferences.

Caution: Porn Warning

Porn’s allure and ever-present existence isn’t exactly titillating new news. The question that still remains, however, is how this tsunami of porn is affecting the libido of the American male. Most men you ask who are married or in relationships will claim they are still attracted to their partners sexually. But the reality (or rather non-reality) of easy-access porn gives men access to younger, hotter, and more sexually adventurous women. Researcher believe that porn causes the male brain to release a dopamine-oxytocin combo—sort of like a “biochemical love potion” that fires up your neurotransmitters that not only get you off on porn, but potentially develop a biological attachment to it. Even those with hyposexuality can get off on it.

Put it to the Real Test

You might not call sexual problems as having a problem with your libido. You do know that the problems are real, and a real concern to you. They’re a real concern for men everywhere. You feel like your masculinity is in question. You feel like a sexual failure. You feel like you can’t talk to anyone about it, including your spouse. If it’s a matter of “take it or leave it” and you keep coming up with “leave it”, it’s a good chance the only thing wrong, is a hormone imbalance. And no one in the area has more experience and success in treating hormone imbalances than Stephen A. Goldstein M.D., F.A.C.S. at Denver Hormone Health. He treats the issue of sexuality seriously. Before anything, he’ll have a lot of questions to ask you. And you’ll feel like you could tell him anything. Then, with simple tests, he can target what the trouble really is, and treat it with a program exclusively for you. That simple.

So call for an appointment now.

And put your sex life in drive again.

THE TESTOSTERONE TEST – The Lowdown on Low T

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Low T

Get your tablets out: True or False:

  1. Men stay virile forever
  2. Men get male menopause
  3. Low T stands for low opportunity to get the hot partner they long for
  4. Oysters make you horny

Answers: False. True. False. False. (but go ahead and think it if you love oysters)

After the age of 20, it’s thought that growth hormone levels in men drop around 14% every 10 years. That means by the time a man is 40 years old he’s lost about half of his 20-year-old growth hormones, and at 80 only 5% of the growth hormones remain. Unlike Peter Pan, you will grow up and with it, down go the hormones. Which is where the new guy on the hormone block comes in. This decrease in testosterone is often referred to as andropause, or male menopause. In the U.S. alone, andropause is thought to affect about 10 million men. “Andropause”? Who thought that one up? Is it the same as low T? Nope. They are not synonymous. Andropause is the gradual (note “gradual”, and stop sweating for a minute) decline of natural testosterone production and levels over time, something that does not occur in all men, and when it does, happens at different stages in their lives in different levels.  Andropause (which a lot of medical people question existing at all), is something that is (generally) independent of your starting testosterone level. Low testosterone (or low T) is a condition that must be clinically diagnosed, and this can happen at any age and be caused by a variety of different diseases or disorders. Andropause is not necessarily caused by low T, but people can get confused when it comes to some of the overlapping symptoms:

  • Fatigue
  • Sexual dysfunction
  • Infertility
  • Weight problems
  • Trouble concentrating
  • Insomnia
  • Loss of bone mass
  • Loss of endurance
  • Hair loss
  • Depressed mood
  • Anxiety
  • Muscle weakness or loss
  • Loss of height
  • Change in ratio of fat to muscle
  • And here’s the killer to guys—man breasts (NO, the dreaded man boobs) as they’re colloquially known.

Pause to Find the Real Answers

Low t can be troubling to any man. And just the thought of male menopause and what you consider to be the embarrassment of it can make you want to keep the problem to yourself. It’s not easy to talk about. But without question, the symptoms are not easy to live with. But there is an answer that is easy to live with, and his name is Stephen A. Goldstein M.D., F.A.C.S. at Denver Hormone Health. With years of experience and expertise in the area of testosterone and the issues surrounding it, he knows how to diagnose and treat any problems you might have with care and integrity. You might not even realize what’s really going on, but with simple tests, Dr. Goldstein can. And from there, he creates a treatment plan that’s tailored to you to make you feel your best.

Don’t avoid the issue.

Call for an appointment now.

In all ways, it’s the answer you’re looking for.