TRT Process
The TRT Consultation: What Actually Happens, Step by Step
Written by Dr. Slava Fuzayloff, DO — Board-Certified Internal Medicine · Last updated July 2026
TRT Process
Written by Dr. Slava Fuzayloff, DO — Board-Certified Internal Medicine · Last updated July 2026
A TRT consultation — TRT is testosterone replacement therapy, prescription treatment that restores low testosterone — is a medical evaluation that decides whether low testosterone is causing your symptoms and whether treatment will actually help you. It includes a conversation about your symptoms and history, a physical exam, and a blood draw — not a prescription on the spot. Here is exactly what happens, in order.
The TRT consultation process has five steps: you book a visit, the doctor reviews your symptoms and medical history, you get a physical exam, blood is drawn in the office, and once your lab results come back a few business days later, your treatment plan is finished the same day.
Step 1 — Book the visit.
Call or book online. Same-day appointments are available. If you're wondering how to start TRT, this is where the process begins.
Step 2 — Symptoms and history.
You talk through what you've been feeling and when it started — energy, sex drive, mood, sleep — plus your medical history and any medications. Be honest here; half the job of this visit is ruling out other causes that look like low testosterone.
Step 3 — Physical exam.
A focused exam to check for signs of low testosterone and for anything else that could explain your symptoms.
Step 4 — Blood draw, in the office.
No separate lab trip. Your blood is drawn on the spot and sent to a major lab such as Quest or Northwell. Results come back in a few business days.
Step 5 — Your plan, finished the day results arrive.
The doctor reviews your numbers against your symptoms. If low testosterone is confirmed, you get a treatment plan. If it isn't, you'll be told that honestly — and pointed toward what's actually causing your symptoms. A normal result is not a wasted visit; it's an answer.
Yes. A blood draw is part of every first TRT consultation, because low testosterone can only be confirmed by a lab test — not by symptoms alone. The draw happens in the office during your visit, and the sample goes to a national lab. Results return in a few business days.
There is no way around this step, and you should be suspicious of any clinic that offers one. Symptoms like fatigue and low sex drive have many causes; the blood test is what separates low testosterone from the rest. For what's actually measured and how to read the results, see our guide to the testosterone blood test.
No — and no legitimate clinic should start you the same day. Both the American Urological Association and the Endocrine Society require at least two separate morning blood tests showing low testosterone, plus symptoms, before diagnosing low T. One draw cannot confirm the diagnosis.
Some clinics advertise 15-minute lab results and a treatment protocol before you leave the building. That's fast — but it's built on a single blood test, and the medical guidelines are clear that a single test isn't a diagnosis. One number can look low today and normal on Thursday.
That's why the process takes a few days, not a few minutes: draw, confirm, then treat. Testosterone is also a controlled medication under federal law — a doctor must establish a real diagnosis before prescribing it, not just collect a fee. A clinic that hands everyone who pays a prescription isn't cutting red tape. It's cutting the part that protects you.
Not the first one. A real evaluation requires a physical exam and an in-office blood draw, and neither can happen over video. New patients are seen in person. Once you're an established patient, follow-up visits can be done by telehealth (a video visit) on request.
If you've had an online consultation elsewhere and are wondering how long until treatment actually starts, the honest answer is: an online-only visit skipped steps that still have to happen. The exam and confirmed labs come first, wherever you go.
Yes. Dr. Slava Fuzayloff, DO (Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine — a fully licensed physician), board-certified in Internal Medicine with 25+ years in practice, personally evaluates every new patient, in person. Not a nurse practitioner, not a physician assistant, not a "patient coordinator," and not a video call with whoever is on shift.
Ask this question anywhere you're considering. Many clinics answer with "a licensed provider" or "a hormone specialist" — job titles that can mean almost anything. Who examines you, reads your labs, and sets your dose matters more than how fast the visit goes — it's how more than 3,000 patients have been treated here.
Have your levels checked by the doctor who'll actually treat you. Same-day appointments, no referral needed.
Book online or call (212) 696-5900.
Bring three things: a list of your current medications and supplements, any recent blood work you already have, and a timeline of your symptoms. One more thing: come fasting — nothing to eat for 8 hours before the visit (water is fine). That lets us draw your blood at the same appointment.
Prior labs are worth digging up even if they're a year old — they give the doctor a baseline to compare against. And writing down your symptom timeline beforehand beats trying to reconstruct it in the chair.
Book an evaluation if you've had weeks or months of low energy, low sex drive, trouble with erections, or a mood that isn't what it used to be — especially if rest and exercise haven't helped. These symptoms don't prove low testosterone — the consultation is how you find out, or rule it out and stop wondering.
For the full picture of what low T feels like, see low testosterone signs and symptoms.
If you start treatment, you'll have follow-up visits every 8–12 weeks to check your levels, adjust your dose, and manage your prescriptions. Ongoing care runs through a monthly membership. The first visit is the deep one; after that, it's monitoring and fine-tuning.
Details on what's tracked and why are in our TRT side effects and monitoring guide.
The evaluation — the consultation visit itself — is a flat $175 that you pay directly (self-pay). It covers the doctor's evaluation: the visit that decides whether you're a candidate and whether TRT will help. It does not include lab fees or medication. Certain PPO plans can cover this first visit; labs are covered by any insurance.
PPO plans are the kind that let you see doctors outside your network. And there are no prior authorizations — the insurance pre-approval paperwork that delays treatment — ever. Full pricing, including memberships, medication, and labs with or without insurance, is on the TRT cost page.
Have your levels checked by the doctor who'll actually treat you. Same-day appointments, no referral needed.
Book online or call (212) 696-5900 · 35 W 36th St, Suite 7E, Midtown.
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