Received my hormones... and I can't take them.

[Guest Jaded1]

Well this is a conundrum I think somewhat rarely heard of.

I went in to see my endo yesterday morning for the second time and to my surprise after having a short talk about HRT she gave me my scripts for Spiro and Premarin. She was going to prescribe something else for E but they were out of stock so I got the name brand Premarin for the covered price. YAY. So now I have 3 months worth of pills sitting on my nightstand.... and I can not take them yet.

Basically what it boils down to is, as some here know, I have a girlfriend whom I have been with for the last 10 years and she is amazing and supportive and is totally cool with me going through the transition. The one thing that she asked as a condition was that we get some of the boys frozen so that in the future, if we want kids, that option is still on the table of having genetically matching kids (hers and mine).

Well I already started the process for that, but I didn't count on getting the pills for HRT so soon.

It is KILLING me that they are just sitting there egging me on and me not being able to take them.

Oh well. I have waited 31 years, I guess another 2-3 weeks won't kill me.

On a side note, my endo is AMAZING!!!!

When I went in to see her, her first question was: "So by what name do you want to be addressed?"

I looked at her sheepishly and told her "Well I guess you can call me (my male name) as I am still presenting as male."

She said "Well I know why you have to present as male but this is my office, so in here I make the rules and as such, you are female so you can go by any name you wish."

I just thought that was pretty cool of her.

If any of you are in the Los Angeles area and are with Kaiser, let me know and I will give you her name to ask for when seeking an endo.

Xoxo

Cade.

[Guest Donna Jean]

.

Conundrum!

But....the HRT won't work on you THAT quickly!

Most of us don't report inability to function for some months and sperm can be collected without an erection....

As to how long before they're not viable anymore?..that's a crap shoot...

I guess that you shouldn't take a chance if you're going to need viable sperm....wait on the HRT....

Good luck, Hon!

Huggs

Dee Jay

[Guest Jaded1]

.

Conundrum!

But....the HRT won't work on you THAT quickly!

Most of us don't report inability to function for some months and sperm can be collected without an erection....

As to how long before they're not viable anymore?..that's a crap shoot...

I guess that you shouldn't take a chance if you're going to sperm....wait on the HRT....

Good luck, Hon!

Huggs

Dee Jay

Well seeing as how I already have a father that had a VERY low sperm count and was told he could never have children (yes, I am a miracle. LOL) I don't really want to risk it. My s/o has been amazing about everything so far and I want to honor her one request without jeopordy.

Off topic and M for Mature below.

Now as far as the "inability to function", that one has still been a question mark for me. I understand the loose rule of YMMV, but as far as ability to achieve erection, is that something that I will not be able to do at all? I know such things as morning erections and such are pretty much gone, but will I lose that ability entirely?

[Guest Elena]

Ohh Goddess honey, that's gotta be frustrating as all get out! Hope you get everything taken care of super fast, that would be pure torture for me.

Good luck hon!

<3

Elena

[Guest Donna Jean]

Off topic and M for Mature below.

Now as far as the "inability to function", that one has still been a question mark for me. I understand the loose rule of YMMV, but as far as ability to achieve erection, is that something that I will not be able to do at all? I know such things as morning erections and such are pretty much gone, but will I lose that ability entirely?

GAHHHHHH!

How to answer a question like that?

Ok........

True, many of us cannot have an erection at all...Nada....zip....zilch....

And I LOVE that part (for me!)..

Some can have a loose or weak one...after considerable effort ....

And some have no problem doing it at all after years on HRT.......

The way to know which will happen to you.......?

*shakes magic 8 ball...*

Dee Jay

[Guest LottieZero]

.

Conundrum!

But....the HRT won't work on you THAT quickly!

Most of us don't report inability to function for some months and sperm can be collected without an erection....

As to how long before they're not viable anymore?..that's a crap shoot...

I guess that you shouldn't take a chance if you're going to sperm....wait on the HRT....

Good luck, Hon!

Huggs

Dee Jay

Well seeing as how I already have a father that had a VERY low sperm count and was told he could never have children (yes, I am a miracle. LOL) I don't really want to risk it. My s/o has been amazing about everything so far and I want to honor her one request without jeopordy.

Off topic and M for Mature below.

Now as far as the "inability to function", that one has still been a question mark for me. I understand the loose rule of YMMV, but as far as ability to achieve erection, is that something that I will not be able to do at all? I know such things as morning erections and such are pretty much gone, but will I lose that ability entirely?

It's a strange one. Most trans women seem to report not being able to get an erection after a certain length of time, but I've been on HRT (estradiol and cyproterone; I can't list the dosages but they're quite high) for 7 months now and I certainly can (much to my chagrin!) But I think the thing is that you can't guarantee whether you will or not. If it's important to you, it might be worth putting off HRT for a bit... though it's totally up to you, of course.

Charlotte

[Guest Emily Ray]

When I am on premarin things work to well in that department. On estradiol I have mor control.

Huggs and congratulations

Emily

[Guest Jaded1]

Fair enough.

Putting off HRT is definately not even in the cards. As soon as the swimmin lads go subzero, HRT will begin.

I hope I can still will it alive when needed, but if not, oh well. I guess it is a step in the direction of losing that part anyways.

On a side note, the doc showed me her screen with the oodles and oodles of different ways to get estrogen. I am curious who here is or has been on permarin and what have you noticed on that as opposed to other E pills?

[Guest Mia J]

First of all congratulations on getting the scripts. I would probably hold off on using them until some swimmers were safely in the freezer.

If any of you are in the Los Angeles area and are with Kaiser, let me know and I will give you her name to ask for when seeking an endo.

Xoxo

Cade.

That is amazing. When I first tried to transition in the 90s I had Kaiser. After I got my then two required letters for HRT, it took me several months to get one of the Kaiser doctors to refer me to the Endo. When I did go in I told him why I was there and showed him the letters. He looked at them for a minute sort of shook his head and told me they treated people for real diseases and not mental issues. He then recommended I seek out decent psychiatric help, said he was finished and got up and left.

It was the most humiliating experiences I have had in a doctor's office. I am glad things have changed.

As far as getting the soldier to stand at attention. With me it just does not happen. It may get somewhat there in times of passion but for the last few months it just goes into retreat at the time it needs to attack.

Mia

[Guest Jaded1]

First of all congratulations on getting the scripts. I would probably hold off on using them until some swimmers were safely in the freezer.

If any of you are in the Los Angeles area and are with Kaiser, let me know and I will give you her name to ask for when seeking an endo.

Xoxo

Cade.

That is amazing. When I first tried to transition in the 90s I had Kaiser. After I got my then two required letters for HRT, it took me several months to get one of the Kaiser doctors to refer me to the Endo. When I did go in I told him why I was there and showed him the letters. He looked at them for a minute sort of shook his head and told me they treated people for real diseases and not mental issues. He then recommended I seek out decent psychiatric help, said he was finished and got up and left.

It was the most humiliating experiences I have had in a doctor's office. I am glad things have changed.

As far as getting the soldier to stand at attention. With me it just does not happen. It may get somewhat there in times of passion but for the last few months it just goes into retreat at the time it needs to attack.

Mia

Yes things at Kaiser definately have changed. I was noting in another thread that if you are on a group plan that they provide to San Diego City employees or an employee of the Cal State University they will even cover SRS.

In my case therapy and HRT is covered. Oh well. I am happy at least I only have to pay my copay for those. FFS and SRS are gonna be enough a drain on my bank account.

[Guest PhoebeJoan]

I was in a similar situation a couple months ago, and yes, that day of finally getting the HRT pill prescriptions but still waiting on a cryo-preservation appointment is very emotionally distressing, especially on the day. You get the emotional high and relief of having the pills at your grasp, but the devastating low of knowing what needs to be done first, and forcing yourself to wait that little bit longer. A cruel conflict. The day you've been dreaming about easily can become a nightmare. It would be like a recovering addict being locked in a room for weeks with their poison. Infact, just to make sure I wouldnt be tempted, I didnt even step into the pharmacy until straight after the deed was done.

But very quickly you pull yourself together and remember that after so so many years of waiting, a week or even a month can be managed. Even though a few weeks of HRT may not do a great deal of damage, you shouldnt risk it, just to be safe. You dont want to look back in 10-20 years and regret the timing of a life-changing decision.

Hope all goes well, and I can relate to the temporary torture. Also, have a look around all local IVF clinics, as there may be some trustworthy clinics that can actually book you in very quickly.

Congratulations on getting the prescriptions!

Phoebe

[Carolyn Marie]

Jaded, I really like your quick wit and good attitude. It will make the journey that much more pleasant.

A couple of weeks is nothing compared to how long its taken you to get to this part of your journey. Please come back and tell us when you've done the deed, because we'll be ready to celebrate along with you. You have a great endo, and a wonderful S/O, and I'm very glad of that.

HUGS

Carolyn Marie

[MackenzieB]

You're not alone. Got mine and can"t take them yet either but for a different reason. Hopefully it'll go quickly for you.

[Guest Sarahwr]

Hi.

Sorry to hear that you are having to bide your time before starting on your medication. I am sure it will be worth the wait and I hope you do have your children.

By the way, what did your Endo end up calling you? I hope it was by your female name:-)

Good luck and best wishes,

Sarah

[Guest Jaded1]

Sorry I have not responded but last week was a blur of events.

First off I shut my business down finally and moving out was fun (NOT).

The week began with me finding out that the clinic that would be doing the freezing wanted 250.00 bucks to do an STD panel. I told them I can just get that done through my insurance for 10 bucks.

So I went in to Kaiser to get labwork done and a little Philipino lady took no less than 11 vials of blood. I thought it odd at the time but shrugged and went about my business.

Well the next day I start getting updates from Kaiser that via email that I have new lab results. I got all excited and logged in only to find out that the results are things like Testosterone levels and cholesterol, lipids, etc and not the STD panel that I needed...

Oh boy...

Come to find out that the little Philipino lady printed the labels for the panels that my endo wanted to see before my next visit in 2 months to see what my hormone levels were looking like after starting HRT and not the ones I needed for the cryo clinic......

Back to square one we go...

Can someone please give me the number to Doc Brown, I need to rent the Delorean for a couple hours.....

[Guest Sascha]

She was going to prescribe something else for E but they were out of stock so I got the name brand Premarin for the covered price.

Xoxo

Cade.

Honesty, I think that was an irresponsible act. Premarin and 17b Estradiol are like an apple and a potato on a molecular level. Equilin sulfates contained in Premarin have been linked to carcinogenic metabolites in various studies. It is not bio-identical, it's made somewhat identical in the liver, but mostly from estrone sulfates who acts as a reservoir. Estradiol valerate/hemihydrate, on the other hand is 100% bio-identical. Sure, it works when the liver has done it's processing but I would never mix and mash two different types of hormones just because of an empty stock. I don't want to sounds like a smarty pants, but just because an endo says it should be fine doesn't mean that you should not question if that was a good thing to prescribe. An endo is someone who observes and keeps track of the endocrine system, s(h)e doesn't develop nor has a great understanding about the drugs in question, s(h)e merely reports the drugs side-effects based upon testing on humans. Sounds scarier than it is, but it's true.

[Guest Saguusa]

This is definitely not a g rated thread lol. Still congrats and awe. It would be so hard for me. I would be like a kid at Christmas wanting to play with a new toy before it's completely unwrapped yet. You should hold off though. I'm thinking of doing the same thing, but I'm not sure. I want genetic children one day, but the whole thing seems scary. Especially if your a virgin like me!