HRT Satisfaction

[Anonymous]

I want more, and I want it faster…. like right now, if not sooner. The reality is I am developing almost exactly as I thought I would. I’ve been on HRT for 8 months now. Initially a low dose but over time it has been stepped up to a dosage that I think is about right now. I feel great. There are lots of subtle changes with my body with the most noticeable being my breast development. The girls are still smaller than an A cup but I’m at a point where the majority of the time I am wearing a sports bra for modesty. I am quite happy to wait 2 years and see how much breast growth I have before considering implants. I’ll be very happy if I can get to a B cup naturally but I’m not holding my breath.
The areas where I am a little frustrated are hair growth, or more correctly suppression of hair growth on my body. After each lase treatments I am surprised by how many dark dormant hairs or others appear to return at about the 6 week mark. Despite this frustration it appears that I will have some level of hair regrowth on my head which is a pleasant surprise. It will be interesting to see how much regrowth there is in the long term. The other frustrating issue is fat distribution. I hoped that I would see a loss of my waist and the fat start to deposit on my hips but so far there is little sign of that.
The key at the moment is continued patience. At the end of May I’m having ffs so that will be an enormous change for me. After that its full time and no looking back.

[Adrian]

Liz,
Satisfaction is closely linked to the expectations you have for HRT. If you have unreasonable expectations then you are pretty certain to be disappointed. HRT is not a universal panacea for every challenge you encounter being transgender in contemporary society – there are lots of things you may have to work on yourself without the aid of miracle medicine or surgery. But HRT does have some pretty profound effects.

Over the years I’ve heard a wide range of expectations for what HRT is to achieve, and I’ve seen some people pretty dissatisfied about the failure to achieve those goals.

The most common expectation I hear is wanting breasts. Although HRT will give most people breast growth, the size and shape is not as predictable as buying a set of breast forms, and you may be disappointed – particularly if your expectation is for a Dolly Parton set. Natural breasts of any size do make you feel more feminine than silicon additions but they take time. Give yourself 18 to 24 months or you will be disappointed – and forget taking high doses to speed things along – there is no evidence that the level of estrogen in your blood affects the rate of development. I observe that patience (measured in years) is something that is rare in our “I want it, and I want it now” society.

There are other physical changes that people hope that the wonder drugs in HRT may achieve. Yes it will soften your skin, change to some degree body hair growth, give you a bigger butt. But all these things are side effects and you have to have low expectations to be satisfied. Sadly many people have such high expectations they set themselves up to be disappointed.

HRT does have profound effects on your brain that are manifested in your thoughts, emotions, and social behaviours. These changes happen on low doses of HRT and start to be visible (often to others) within months of taking medication. If your reason for taking HRT is to reduce the dissonance that affects your life, the distress caused by maleness fighting against an inner femininity, then HRT will probably bring previously unimagined improvements to your quality of life.

I have been on HRT now for 9 years (yes that is years not months!). I certainly didn’t want to grow breasts (thanks to all that rubbish people post about them being too hard to hide) so I started on low doses – but the breasts grew anyway.
I did want to try anything to make me less angry and stressed inside – I saw HRT as a way to make me a nicer, happier person. And judging by the contentment I feel, and the feedback from others, it achieved that – the stress of mental dissonance evaporated – I’m a happy satisfied customer.

[Elizabeth]

Hi Adrian,
You’re absolutely right. I’m satisfied on a low dosage and will happily stick there. There have been changes, small, yes, but noticeable even to me. Not too sure of the inner self, time will tell; meanwhile I shall just keep sailing along on the mainsail!

[Catherine]

Just following on from the interesting points Adrian raised in this topic, we must remember we are all unique to ourselves. In as much to some, an Aspro may relieve a headache, it may be Panadol to others while simply adjusting your hydration through drinking water may do the job for others. HRT has the same effect. The multiplicity of formats, compounds and dosages can produce a wide variety of results across the spectrum of uses. As we know from all forms of medication, any substances taken orally may be partially filtered out of the system by the liver. The half life of all medications has to be taken into consideration when prescribed as well, best results from anything are achieved through a consistent, sustainable supply.
It also goes without saying, any medication should always be under the appropriate medical supervision.

Happy holiday season
Catherine

[Anonymous]

Hi All, I have been on HRT for two years. Yes the breasts have grown a bit but that’s not what whole reason for being on HRT. I feel a lot better with life. Not as cranky. Not as impatient with others and life. I at long last fell as I am going some where. Where I should have always been. Roberta

[Elizabeth]

I just had a distinct thought, after taking all those pills and potions, no more of a personal observation.

I’ve turned into the manifestation of the ultimate female, an absolute bitch.