Herbal Hormones
Real Hormones
Your Health
Starting Hormones
Breast Development
Fat Distribution
Reproduction
Prostate
My Experiences
Other Benefits
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I took herbal "menopause" formulas for about a year. It isn't really cheap, and there is no way to know how much you should be taking or what effect it is really having on the systems in your body. I felt, at first, that there was some breast sensitivity and growth, but the sensitivity went away and the growth was never substantial. Like many people with little or no options, I felt I had to do something, and I was pretty committed to taking these pills two or three times a day (I tapered off near the end).
I've read a number of other people's experience with products called Evanesce and Feminol in Melanie's forum and quite a few people swear that they went up two cup sizes in nine months, and report the same effects that TS women on hormones report. Breast development, weight redistribution, the whole nine yards. Some of these women were medically supervised and have not reported any ill effects, only expected effects. I believe that not all people are being honest with these reports. These kinds of results never happen in natal females, so why would they happen to a pre-op natal male?
The problem, I feel, with males as opposed to natal women taking these supplements is that males have to overcome a significant amount of testosterone for something to be effective. To add to that, the estrogen receptors in the cells of the body just aren't as sensitive, so to speak. So an "estrogen-precursor" that can help a genetic woman ease menopausal symptoms won't have a lot of effect on someone that is male. I felt better doing it just because I was doing something, anything, but in reality I just spent a lot of money.
As an alternative to herbals try talking to your therapist and doctor about low dosage hormone treatment. Low-dose treatment is very common, and supposedly gives great relief for many people. Some never go any further than this, actually, and find that it gives them the balance they need in their life. The low-dose option shouldn't be too scary for them to prescribe, I would hope.
The people with experience in the Crone e-mail list will all tell you, in no uncertain terms, that the herbals are clearly quackery. They do nothing more than ease post-menopausal symptoms for natal women, and will not have anywhere near the effect of even low dose hormones. I would take their word on it. Herbals will cost you much more, too, and with negligible effect.
Remember that taking herbals is self-medicating yourself, and there is increasing cause for concern that too much of certain herbals can be toxic or harmful in some way. It can be stressful on your liver, but in a different way than real hormones.
If you are interested in "doing it yourself", then check out the e-mail list http://groups.yahoo.com/group/TSDoItYourselfers, and the Crone list.
Aaah. The elixir of life. There is no comparison.
Hormones have been touted as an excellent diagnostic tool for therapists. If you are not transsexual, then you won't get a huge emotional benefit from female hormones. Your brain needs to be wired for them, basically, for them to have the very positive effect transsexuals report. If you are TS, then you will get a feeling of well being that you may have never experienced in your life.
Remember that the physical changes that will come from hormones take natal females many years to complete. It takes a lot of time, and it absolutely won't happen quicker by taking large doses of hormones. It just doesn't happen that way, sorry. Want big boobs fast? Get implants. Myself, I find wild claims of near instant bust development by transsexuals (or natal females) questionable, whether it's an herbal supplement or real hormones. Too many hormones will stress your liver, and can lead to blood clotting problems that a natal female is naturlly protected from.
The older you are, too, the less physical changes you can expect. As a general rule, between 18 and 35 the overall effect tapers, and over the age of 35 the effect is about the same across the remaining years. Expect less if you are older.
Everyone's body reacts to hormones differently, and the amount of receptor sites, and their sensitivity, all vary greatly. What is aggressive for one person is not necessarily aggressive for another another, based on your body type. My doctor tends to go the conservative route, but he's also never had anyone with any medical problems because of his program.
To protect your health you should be medically supervised and have blood work done to check liver function and blood clotting. You could die. You could die. Did I mention that already? I have an abstract for a Dutch 1997 study on the Morality and Morbidity of cross-hormone therapy that will give you a little glimpse into things, and perhaps relive some stress over the probelms involved. It shows that the major concern is blood clotting (thrombosis) in the MTF taking oral estrogen, but beyond that things are okay.
Your goal should be to improve your life and not destroy it, or your ability to take hormones in the future. If you do self-medicate, do it sensibly. Get information on typical doses and don't exceed them. Remember, it takes time and don't rush it.
Not everyone can take hormones due to health problems. If you have liver problems, then you certainly can't take oral hormones, but there are transdermal, sublingual and injectable hormones that do the trick. Talk to your doctor.
The best place to start looking for hormone information is the Frequently Asked Questions on Hormone Therapy for Transsexuals. There is info for FTM and MTF transsexuals there. The M2F document contains a list of frequently asked questions and their answers regarding hormone therapy (secondary sexual reassignment) for male-to-female transsexuals. More generally, this document contains information about gonadal hormones and anti-hormones, so it can be a helpful reference for the treatment of androgen and estrogen-sensitive conditions--for example, certain cancers of the reproductive organs and breasts.
Also, the Crone Hormone List: (crone-subscribe@yahoogroups.com) is the best place to post questions and get good, prompt responses on hormones and their use. This site is strictly hormone related, so keep it on-subject. :-)
The Benjamin Standards require a minimum of three months on therapy before you can begin hormones. Whether you do or not depends greatly on you and your situation. If you have mental or emotional problems, then you will need to work through those first, typically. You don't need to be More emotional, I'm sure, if you are dealing with issues like divorce and custody. Don't compound problems; work through them.
For the FTM, starting hormones is a more significant event as far as physical changes that will be very noticeable, and difficult to overcome if you change your mind. Facial hair is not pleasant to remove, and a deep voice is the bane of the M2F and you would be in the same boat after a period of time. Consider it carefully.
Starting hormones for the M2F is a significant event, too, but one that you can turn back from, as long as significant breast development doesn't occur. Sterility is a concern, and being on hormones for longer than six months can greatly reduce your fertility.
As I've mentioned, breast development takes years in a natal female, and you can expect that in you, too. You can not speed development by taking more hormones. You will, instead, waste a lot of money, over-tax your liver, and possibly damage your health in a number of ways, possibly through a stroke or heart attack. It's serious stuff. You could die. Want large breasts fast? Get implants.
If you are young, before age 35, then you can expect development near your closest female relatives, with the effect tapering down the closer you are to 35. After 35 the development isn't any worse at age 50 than it is at 35.
The breasts in a natal female and a TS go through what is called the "Tanner
Stages". Tanner 5, for instance, is the mature stage of breast development
according to the scale. These stages roughly track normal breast development
(not size) in genetic females.
Here are some links with information and pictures on the stages of development:
The Birth of Venus web site, by Annie Richards, has an excellent article on breast development, along with pictures of various transsexuals and the development they experienced. The age they started hormones is also listed when possible.
Text & Drawings:
http://web.wwa.com/~docmarla/ht070796.html
http://www2.kumc.edu/instruction/nursing/nrsg350/genitalia/female/femtanner/tannerbr.htm
http://www.merck.com/pubs/mmanual/figures/235fig1.htmText:
http://www2.onnet.co.kr/~smcobgy/book/23nov.html
http://www.uams.edu/department_of_psychiatry/syllabus/child_development/childev.htm
http://lib-sh.lsumc.edu/fammed/intern/tanner.html
http://www.nursingworld.org/mods/mod4/ceahtbl1.htm
http://www.ohsu.edu/cliniweb/infobase1/mksap10/acp.mksap10.1995.table9sexualmaturityratings.544.htmlNatural Breast Growth Alternatives
Breast Augmentation and Breast Implants Information WebInvisible Breast Enhancers at Curves.com. These products have been featured on numerous TV programs including Oprah, Sally Jesse Raphael, Melrose Place and Bay Watch.
Unfortunately, you cannot expect a tremendous amount of fat redistribution if you start HTR later in life. As with everything physical, the further away you are from 18 years old, the less you can expect, with things leveling off after 35. In other words, it is rare to see a MTF with wide hips and a shapely rear end. The good news is that not all women have that, either, and many women will be envious of your lack of a wide bottom.
My experience is that it does effect where fat gets deposited, specifically, below the belly button instead of above it. If you have fat in your upper region, then going on HRT won't get rid of it; you must diet and exercise for that. New fat will tend to gravitate to female areas rather than male. I noticed a big difference in my rib area, as all the fat seemed to leave there.
As with all women, good or bad, the body stores fat in your breasts, too, and dieting always seems to take away from there first. For the TS, that is bad, but just the way it is. Losing a lot of weight can also take some of the roundness out of your face, and make it look more angular, and thus more masculine. If you are having trouble being read, then adding a little weight can help to round-out your features. The ultra-slim figure might be the desireable one for you, but it may not be a good look for you.
On the other hand, you can expect the same difficulties that any post-menopausal woman on HRT would have with staying active and keeping excess weight off. Diet and exercise are a lifetime commitment for everyone. You may very well find that if you fit "Junior" sizes before HRT, that you will have to switch to "Misses" sizes after a year or two of HRT. This will be due to additional fat in your tummy and thigh areas. Welcome to the real world.
Here is an interesting article on the Endicrinology and Metabolism site: Effects
of sex steroid hormones on regional fat depots as assessed by magnetic resonance
imaging in transsexuals. It only covers 12 month HRT effects, but it does
show that the change can be significant.
For the MTF, before starting on hormones you need to think about the fact that you most likely will be sterile if you continue for any length of time. Low-dose and use for less than 6 months may not affect sperm production, at least not permanently.
Transsexual people should be offered the same options as any person that risks losing their germ cells because of treatment for a malignant disease. Indeed, transsexual women (male-to-female transsexual patients) may be given the option to store spermatozoa before they start hormonal therapy, so that their gametes may be used in future relationships. This may be especially important for the many transsexual women who identify as lesbians after their transition.
Conversely, transsexual men (female-to-male transsexual patients) may be offered storage of oocytes or ovarian tissue, possibly obtained at the time of their oophorectomy. Current technology offers transsexual people the possibility to obtain children who are genetically their own in their future relationships and the option of gamete banking should therefore be discussed before starting hormonal and surgical reassignment treatment. This is particularly important for transsexual people who are diagnosed and treated at a young age. You never know where life will lead you.
The prostate shrinks considerably when testosterone is removed and estrogens take it's place. The occurrence of prostate cancer is very rare in transsexuals, but it CAN occur. This may be due to problems that exist before significant HRT has begun. It is important that transsexuals get their prostate checked, particularly if they start HRT later in life and regardless if they are pre or post op. Having the testicals removed earlier in life can help a lot, but in middle-age MTFs the protection may not be there. The prostate is not removed in the SRS procedure, as it can add to the natural lubrication of the vaginal area, and is also a source of stimulation.
Oral
Transdermal
Estraderm brand patches were giving me troubles, but that was mostly at first. They have a firm plastic cover, and a gentle adhesive. I used to put the patches on my hips, and Estraderm can't be used that way. They must be placed on the upper part of the buttocks, below the line of your panties. You don't want your pants/skirt to rub on the patch (any kind). Putting it on my hip caused too much flexing, causing problems with adhesion.
I was using Vivelle before Estraderm, which has a soft silicone feel and a stronger adhesive. The Estraderm patch does not leave any residue on you, whereas the other patches will invariably leave a ring where lint from your clothes will collect on the adhesive along the edge. The ring may take a week to go away by itself, or require scrubbing or adhesive remover to get rid of faster. Hand lotion helps, too, and may dissolve the residue. The residue actually helped when placing the patch, as I could easily be certain that I wasn't applying a patch where another one was just the week before. You need to give the skin a rest of at least a week.
Estraderm doesn't allow the skin to breathe, leaving the skin wet below. This may be required to transfer the estrodiol, as the surface of the patch is "wrinkly" rather than smooth.
Generally, I alternate sides with the patches. The left side is my "Monday morning" side, and the right side is my "Thursday evening" side. Patches are changed every 3 1/2 days. I use the 0.1mg/day estrodiol patch.
Estrogen may very well improve your memory! Here is some information from an abstract on Medline.com:
"Estrogen and memory in a transsexual population.
Horm Behav 1998 Oct;34(2):199-208; 0018-506X; Miles C; Green R; Sanders G; Hines M; City University, London, United Kingdom. C.L.Miles@city.ac.uk.
The association between administered estrogen and performance on verbal memory and other cognitive tasks was examined. Male-to-female transsexuals undergoing estrogen treatment for sex reassignment (n = 29) scored higher on Paired Associate Learning (PAL) compared to a similar transsexual control group, awaiting estrogen treatment (n = 30) (P < 0.05). No differences between groups receiving and not receiving estrogen were detected on a control memory task (Digit Span) or on other cognitive tasks including Mental Rotations and Controlled Associations. There were no group differences in age. Group differences in mood or in general intellectual ability also did not explain the findings. Results suggest a specific influence of estrogen in men on verbal memory tasks, similar to that seen in prior studies of women. They are discussed in terms of differential processing demands of the two memory tasks and possible differences between estrogenic influences on Mental Rotations and Controlled Associations in men versus women. [Copyright 1998 Academic Press.]."
Interesting stuff.
Here are a few links of interest:
- The Crone E-Mail List.
- TS Do-It-Your-Selfers E-Mail List.
- A list of research abstracts from the Endocrine Society. Updated 4/01.
- Melanie Phillips' Hormone Page. Includes "When reality takes a break".
- Dr. Anne Lawrence's Hormone Page. A huge amount of information is here, including information on mail-ordering hormones from Europe (without a prescription), making border-runs to Mexican pharmacies, and typical dosages. She has an interesting outlook on self medicating that I can certainly relate to.
- Effects of Estrogen Treatment on Sexual Behavior in M-F TS
- Physical and Hormonal Evaluation of Transsexual Patients During Hormonal Therapy
- Estimating the effectiveness of cross-gender hormone substitution A medical paper.
This page was updated October 20, 2007
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