Mental Changes

[Paula ult]

I’m hoping to get some feedback from those that have been on hormones awhile, as most know I’m 57 and started hormones just about a year ago.

Thinking back from before I started hormones, mentally I don’t feel any different now than I did before starting them other than being 1,000 % happier, calmer, friendlier, more talkative, outgoing and emotional, I still feel like the same old me. I guess I expected something dramatic like bells, whistles or fireworks going off.

Talking with some others in IM they are the same way, so I guess because we have always had a female brain and after being on hormones not much changes except the physical aspects.

Is it just me or does everyone feel this way?

BTW the physical changes are awesome so far.

Paula

[Guest Donna Jean]

I’m hoping to get some feedback from those that have been on hormones awhile, as most know I’m 57 and started hormones just about a year ago.

Thinking back from before I started hormones, mentally I don’t feel any different now than I did before starting them other than being 1,000 % happier, calmer, friendlier, more talkative, outgoing and emotional, I still feel like the same old me. I guess I expected something dramatic like bells, whistles or fireworks going off.

Talking with some others in IM they are the same way, so I guess because we have always had a female brain and after being on hormones not much changes except the physical aspects.

Is it just me or does everyone feel this way?

BTW the physical changes are awesome so far.

Paula

Well, Paula, Honey...I'm not sure what you mean by "A while" I've been on 3 months now so that's a while, just not a LONG while!...lol

But, you ARE correct...100% happier, calmer , friendlier, talkative, emotional, but, you know...that all started after I accepted myself and came out, but, BEFORE hormones, so, I'm not sure I can attribute any of that to hormones. But, the hormones have made those things stronger and more intense!

I'm not really having the mood swings that I was warned about (mainly because my wife told me if I started that she'd hit me with a frying pan!) So, I maintain my cool....But, OMG, I CRY A LOT! Not really about anything in particular.....just a release, I guess..

And, yes, like you I'm just "Me"....not someone different....

The girl things have come out ...the shopping, clothes, chats with other women, etc...but, that's just because that is me now...I can finally match my outside to my inside..

But! The physical changes taking place? WOO HOO! Now THAT'S the ticket!

Just me...

Donna Jean

[Guest ashley4623]

Well I'm not on hormones unfortunately so I can't really answer your question.

But I do notice you're in Cleveland, Ohio.... that's where I was born

[Guest katiewana]

The mood swings are much more prevalent on Premarin than on Estradiol which seems to be the preferred option recently. Happier, calmer, friendlier, more talkative, outgoing and emotional sounds like a pretty big change to me! Hormones don't rewire your brain so you shouldn't feel like a different person, the effects are mostly physical. For me the personality changes are mostly coming from me feeling more comfortable with myself and my situation and from what I've heard that's pretty common.

Kate

[Guest julia_d]

8 years hormones.. I'm a different person entirely. I have different interests, different tastes in food, and I'm just.. well.. different. People who have known me a long time but haven't seen me for years are shocked XD

[Sally]

Well,

I'm not on hormones yet - not much longer, got my letter, got my blood work waiting for the doctor's appointment.

All of the mental changes that you have mentioned have already taken place, but it is just because I accepted my true self and allowed it.

Love ya,

Sally

[Guest angie]

As your whole system is flooded with estrogens continuosly the changes are profound.

You think,act,feel like a woman,always.That is what non trans don't understand.When

asked why I am so dang girly,I tell them I have no choice.The hormones make female

emotions and mannerism's a part of who I am.And all my likes,habits and hobbies have

taken a 180.I no longer have Any desire to watch sports of any kind.And I was a sports

fanatic.I was asked about this(by ex).I told her I guess(he)was expected to like auto racing,

baseball,football,basketball ect...While the real me can't stand them.I know many women

do like sports,just not this lady,not any longer.And thank you.

Angie

[Guest Leah1026]

As your whole system is flooded with estrogens continuosly the changes are profound.

You think,act,feel like a woman,always.That is what non trans don't understand.When

asked why I am so dang girly,I tell them I have no choice.The hormones make female

emotions and mannerism's a part of who I am.And all my likes,habits and hobbies have

taken a 180.I no longer have Any desire to watch sports of any kind.And I was a sports

fanatic.I was asked about this(by ex).I told her I guess(he)was expected to like auto racing,

baseball,football,basketball ect...While the real me can't stand them.I know many women

do like sports,just not this lady,not any longer.And thank you.

Angie,

I don't think that's the estrogen talking, I think it's more a result of the T being blocked and/or levels lowered. The day I started estrogen is the day the noise in my head finally stopped.

A female brain doesn't work well running on T period!

Estrogen is the correct operating system for a female brain.

[Sally]

My personal theory about why so many of us finally have to transition in our 50s is because we have fema;e minds being bombarded with T for a lifetime and it is finally just too much.

Like men on steroids finally going into 'roid rage' - we reach our limits and have to reverse it.

Love ya,

Sally

[Guest Emily_MI]

Some of the changes I keep hearing about(Physical, Mental and Emotional) are really everything that I am hoping for when I get on HRT(which hopefully will be in the next few weeks), I want to be entirely a *new* person when this is all done and said with, I hate everything about my current self and want to leave that behind. When I am fully in my transition I don't want to see anything reflecting of my old self.

[Guest Elizabeth K]

Directed at MTF here:

Six months on HRT

It's not just the estrogen (estridoil) its the entire package. Most of us experience psychological changes 30 seconds after the first pill... We realize we have stared a journey of rebirth.. The physical changes are ---- oh SO GOOD ---- and that's what we want. BUT the mood and attitude changes kicked in with me about the second month, and in full force by the fifth month - well maybe it will get more noticable as I go, donno.

Like everyone says there is suddenly a sense of interconnectness with everything. Part of this is the loss of the male suit of armor as the skin thins, the fat underneath changes and every part of your body becomes so sensitive to touch. Brushing my hair for an example is a beautiful sensation... ahhhhh....

And I am cooler now in the winter and cooler in the summer, but perhaps that is the weight loss. And I have had my sense of smell increase and my taste change. I eat asperagus now and love it. Before, I hated it. Alcoholic drinks are really strong tasting. I don't use salt as food tastes better.

And aromas? delightul! perfumes and skin conditoners, and lotions and potions, oh my...

And my health? My blood pressure was always high 140/90 average NEVER below 138/88 in my life, and on BP meds for a while. My last BP test? 120/68. And its been that way - it was not my weight loss. So now I think clearer and the blood rush noise in my head had decreased...

Moody? OMG - I was crying for hours. I couldn't watch a movie! That's calmed down, but I find myself at the edge of tears all the time. And sadness - but that is the progesterone - not all HRT has that.

I think it is the loss of testosterone that is the key. My aggression level cut in half - then cut in half again. If I just let things go I do really better, rather than getting angry. And I just get my feelings hurt, not angry, when someone doesn't do me right... and startingly - although natal women can curse - I have lost that.

And we are hardwired as female already. Removing the T poisoning? Maybe that's a major part of it.

So yes - I vote - MAJOR changes. Those who have been on HRT a longer time have just forgotten.

Lizzy

[Guest Emily_MI]

Directed at MTF here:

Six months on HRT

It's not just the estrogen (estridoil) its the entire package. Most of us experience psychological changes 30 seconds after the first pill... We realize we have stared a journey of rebirth.. The physical changes are ---- oh SO GOOD ---- and that's what we want. BUT the mood and attitude changes kicked in with me about the second month, and in full force by the fifth month - well maybe it will get more noticable as I go, donno.

Like everyone says there is suddenly a sense of interconnectness with everything. Part of this is the loss of the male suit of armor as the skin thins, the fat underneath changes and every part of your body becomes so sensitive to touch. Brushing my hair for an example is a beautiful sensation... ahhhhh....

And I am cooler now in the winter and cooler in the summer, but perhaps that is the weight loss. And I have had my sense of smell increase and my taste change. I eat asperagus now and love it. Before, I hated it. Alcoholic drinks are really strong tasting. I don't use salt as food tastes better.

And aromas? delightul! perfumes and skin conditoners, and lotions and potions, oh my...

And my health? My blood pressure was always high 140/90 average NEVER below 138/88 in my life, and on BP meds for a while. My last BP test? 120/68. And its been that way - it was not my weight loss. So now I think clearer and the blood rush noise in my head had decreased...

Moody? OMG - I was crying for hours. I couldn't watch a movie! That's calmed down, but I find myself at the edge of tears all the time. And sadness - but that is the progesterone - not all HRT has that.

I think it is the loss of testosterone that is the key. My aggression level cut in half - then cut in half again. If I just let things go I do really better, rather than getting angry. And I just get my feelings hurt, not angry, when someone doesn't do me right... and startingly - although natal women can curse - I have lost that.

And we are hardwired as female already. Removing the T poisoning? Maybe that's a major part of it.

So yes - I vote - MAJOR changes. Those who have been on HRT a longer time have just forgotten.

Lizzy

Those are the exact changes I am hoping for once I get onto HRT. I know this other girl around my area that has also just begun her transition and started on HRT just recently, and right away she noticed changes to her attitude, her way of thinking and noticed subtle softer skin, and also she said that for the first time she felt *TRULY Feminine* and not here typical sub-fem self. So now even more so I am hoping for those changes and so much more.

-Emily

[Guest doodle]

I've been on spiro and estrodiol for a little over a year. I was so depressed before I started because I did not want to start transitioning again. but within a week I felt great, happier than I could ever remember. I almost never drink and before I was drinking all the time. maybe it just a combo the Hrt and that I cracked and gave in I don't know gook luck

doodle

[Guest angie]

I am on injectable estradiol,one weekly injection for the last 16months.

The day of my shot,I get very calm,nothing and no one can upset me.

By the third day,I am feeling super femmme.The girly girl,just comes naturally.

My T was at 17nl//ml at last check.That is less than a GG's standing levels.

So yes your T do levels have something to do with it,but it is the estrogens that

set her free.

Angie

[Guest brenda lee]

I’m hoping to get some feedback from those that have been on hormones awhile, as most know I’m 57 and started hormones just about a year ago.

Thinking back from before I started hormones, mentally I don’t feel any different now than I did before starting them other than being 1,000 % happier, calmer, friendlier, more talkative, outgoing and emotional, I still feel like the same old me. I guess I expected something dramatic like bells, whistles or fireworks going off.

Talking with some others in IM they are the same way, so I guess because we have always had a female brain and after being on hormones not much changes except the physical aspects.

Is it just me or does everyone feel this way?

BTW the physical changes are awesome so far.

Paula

Paula , Sweetie I am so glad that all is going well for you on HRT .I hope to have a lot of sucess myself when I can start HRT.Your post has also given me alot of answers to my questions .LOL Brenda Lee

[Guest Joanna Phipps]

I see my Doc next week, the blood work has all been done so hopefully I will have my ticket to my new life. Spiro and estradiol here i come, cant wait for the changes to start

[Guest Dutchie]

Thinking back from before I started hormones, mentally I don’t feel any different now than I did before starting them other than being 1,000 % happier, calmer, friendlier, more talkative, outgoing and emotional, I still feel like the same old me. I guess I expected something dramatic like bells, whistles or fireworks going off.

In a way I completely agree, as well with all what Lizz said.

However, and I must say that Angie is right in a way. There is something shifting in interests, likes and such.

I used to love working on my old VW Beetle, although I did hate getting my nails dirty. That was about 5 years ago.

Now, I have no passion at all for old cars (if they run, great, no need to spend time under the bonnet), my taste in music is gradually shifting too. Whilst I'm in the middle of it, it's kind of hard to see, but every now and then I do notice something has changed. I seem to have developed a taste for less spicy foods, much to the children's happiness.

But in all, dropping the T and getting high on E, it's like moving from a cold and damp cellar to a penthouse...

Estrogen is the correct operating system for a female brain.

I'd say fuel, since it did run on testosterone too, albeit flaky.

[Guest Zabrak]

I don't see any guys posting in here? Guess I'll be the first here. I'm on my 7th month of T.

Mental changes yes, maybe, perhaps it is just that T 'allows' us to be who we are. Meaning its like giving us our ticket to freedom and saying do whatever makes you happy now.

Although, I do notice I get more aggressive and a lot less passive aggressive when it comes to subjects. In fact i don't remember the last time I did something passive aggressive. Not wanting to always beat someone up, but I'm more vocal when I'm not happy with things. In school I've been getting my way often because I don't stay quiet about things anymore. I'm not in class to hate it, nor am I paying a great amount of money to be pushed around.

Oh and Uuuhhh...I fancy the Internet for more then just the forum. I don't think that counts as mental does it? Its a MUST HAVE.

I have a shorter attention span but I still have my same hobbies. Taking apart and putting together things, like computers, is fun. Programming..Star Wars.

[Guest Elizabeth K]

Errrrr....

what about sexual interest ...

ummmm...

shifting a bit? Anyone have that?

Lizzy

[Guest Joanna Phipps]

Errrrr....

what about sexual interest ...

ummmm...

shifting a bit? Anyone have that?

Lizzy

As ive said in this and other threads im not on HRT yet but it seems the more I rip down my old persona and allow my self to explore possiblilities one of the first things that started to shift was my sexuality, I am definately leaning towards a lesbian lifestyle, im puzzled as to why that would be one of the first things to shift. However i wont fight the idea, im just going to let the changes happen.

[Guest Dutchie]

what about sexual interest ...

What is that again? Please remind me, it's been a while since I felt that...

Cuddling? Yay!

Seriously though, the AA (anti-androgens) are doing a really good job, as low as the T gets so does the sexual interest... (Which is mentioned in the leaflet in the box as one of the effects...)

It doesn't mean I don't like it, it's just way down on the list of interesting things...

[Guest angie]

Errrrr....

what about sexual interest ...

ummmm...

shifting a bit? Anyone have that?

Lizzy

Lizzy,

I was totally straight as my old self.

I had always had dreams of being with a man as a woman since I was fourteen.

As I progessed further and further in my new role,I found my taste in partners shifting.

I like women,find them attractive,But I like men now.Without a doubt in my mind I Like Men.

It is common for trans to shift in their sexual taste.Yeppa it are.(grin)

Angie

[Guest Emily_MI]

Lizzy,

I was totally straight as my old self.

I had always had dreams of being with a man as a woman since I was fourteen.

As I progessed further and further in my new role,I found my taste in partners shifting.

I like women,find them attractive,But I like men now.Without a doubt in my mind I Like Men.

It is common for trans to shift in their sexual taste.Yeppa it are.(grin)

Angie

My Therapist told me that it is common to shift your sexual attraction once you start to get on HRT, myself I am not attracted to Men right now but when I am on HRT it can change down the road according to what my Therapist said and also from what I have heard from other girls as well.

-Emily

[Guest Dutchie]

I think I misunderstood...

Interest = orientation??

My orientation is shifted to bi...

[Paula ult]

Oh my, sexual interest has not changed for me, I'm still asexual although i wouldn't mind cuddling, no preference as to which sex.

Call the mod police my topic has been hijacked... oh wait the mod police hijacked it

Paula