T Level 164 at age 33 while on testosterone

I started testosterone last September. I was 33 and had been constantly fatigued, depressed, and suffering from ED for over 10 years before I finally discovered that my testosterone levels were low. I think they were around 260 or so...not technically low by the lab's range, but still very low for my age. Insurance wouldn't cover Androgel b/c I was 10 points above what the lab considered "low". I wound up getting a compounded sublingual type of testosterone that I've taken religiously since. I've probably missed 2-3 days out of 7-8 months.

At first, it seemed to be helping a little. Still constantly tired and depressed and couldn't have sex w/out Cialis, but at least the Cialis finally started working once I was on testosterone. Before it, 20mg of Cialis wasn't even enough. After a few months, my levels had found their way into the 600's. I still felt bad in general, but I was happy that I could at least have sex now with the help of testosterone and daily Cialis.

The last couple months, my ED had been getting worse again to the point where I was avoiding seeing my gf out of fear that I wouldn't be able to function. So, I asked my dr to check my T levels again. Sure enough, my levels *while on testosterone daily* were 164 tested in the morning. Even lower than before, and extremely low for a 33 year old. Also, I'm a healthy weight, don't smoke, don't abuse alcohol, don't have diabetes. My doctor said I had the levels of a 70 year old obese diabetic. He suggested switching to pellets.

I asked to be referred to an endocrinologist just b/c I wanted to see a specialist who could at least help me understand why my 33 year old body thinks it's an 85 year old man and see if there were any natural treatments or ways to restore my T levels. But, they are all booked up three months out and I need to get back my ability to please my girlfriend sooner than that. She's been nice and supportive, but I know it's frustrating to her (and yes...I take care of her in other ways, but sometimes she just wants to feel like she's with a man instead of a lesbian).

So, I guess I'm ready to try pellets. I'm sick of taking the compounded stuff every day and it's not working anyway. The gel sounds like a pain to deal with every single day. Can't say I like the idea of having a pellet injected into my butt every 3 months, but I guess it's my best option for now. I'm going to try to get insurance to cover it, but my dr. already said not to bother b/c none of them ever do.

So, I guess I'm primarily just writing this to vent, but I'm also curious what experiences others have had with the pellets. Do they hurt? Do you forget it's there, or can you always feel a weird little bump?

Thanks for reading.