Keeping abreast of my transition (YMMV)

[Saoirse 2]

I thought that, with this post, I might share my experience with breast development during my first 5 months of estrogen hormone therapy. This is a personal account that I thought might be helpful to others for perspective, especially since I began HRT at age 58, and there seem to be far fewer accounts from my age group than from younger transgender women transitioning Also, while the hormones are not the specific focus of this account, I will say that I have been only on weekly injections of Estradiol Valerate with no other treatments such as blockers. I do plan to start, on my endocrinologist's advice, progesterone in the near future. I also have responded well to this treatment with testosterone very well suppressed.

The first few months are terribly exciting, but the changes that seemed so huge to me, were hardly noticeable by others. Whether that was because they were so insignificant, or that most people are really unobservant, I can’t say. I did begin to bud during my first week on E, which was thrilling but also a little surprising based on what I had read. I had anticipated little to no change for the first few month. 

 

After three weeks, I had protruding, sensitive, and growing nipples and areolas. I started to panic at this point, since, while I want breasts, I had hoped for a little more time before I went fully public. I had a master plan (silly me) that combined hair removal, vocal training, and a slow measured coming out to family, then friends, and ultimately work. But due to the speed of my development, I accelerated my plans and came out to family and key friends almost immediately. I also reached out to HR at work much earlier than I had originally planned.

 

I am really grateful that I did speed up that part of my transition. Slow coming out versus rapid to me was a lot like the difference between getting into a swimming pool 1 inch at a time versus one big plunge. The plunge is a shock, but then the water is lovely! While not everyone was sincerely supportive, I found that my fears of dire consequences were largely unfounded. Life went on and the relief of not having to pretend with more and more people was profound.

 

As far as breast development was concerned, I began at 5'10", 198-lbs wearing a 42A bra which gapped pretty badly but was very affirming. With the nipple growth, I soon changed to sports bras, which felt more comfortable and gave me the sensation of my chest being held in a way that a gapping bra did not. In the meantime, I was consistently losing weight and becoming more fit through a consistent and focused training program consisting of road bike work on a trainer, regular core and stretching work, and free weights for toning up. This combined with dieting kept me on track even though I was going through some pretty significant metabolism changes on estradiol.

 

So I was now prepared for anticipated rapid breast growth, would I have a B or C cup, or even bigger? I was committed to loving my female self whatever size and proportions resulted. But, my breasts had other ideas and did not develop in a linear fashion. They have feminine wiles, and they definitely seemed to have lessons to impart to me.

 

So while my breasts continued to itch, be tender, and grow, the growth actually began to look like less after 3 months. My breast buds waxed and waned, and the only noticeable change were larger diameter nipples and areolas. Still not large, but now definitely in the female range. Nipples with a diameter of a AAA battery and 1.5-inch areolas. While this also was very satisfying and affirming, my bra size was still essentially unchanged.

 

This period lasted through the 2nd and 3rd month, during which time I also discovered that I no longer needed or wanted to wear a bra at night. Originally, a bra helped me feel closer to my future female body. But my breasts, as small as they were and are even today, are more than enough to reassure me without a bra (and they do enjoy being fee to relax at night)!

 

Then in month 4, I experienced period of the buds flattening and growing more disk like. My breasts became fuller and started to fill some of my bras better. I think they might have increased in size, except my weight and body toning had been so successful that I think it countered the net growth. I was approaching the 180-lbs mark that I am today, and my band size dropped to 40. At the end of the fourth month, I was more of a 40A bra size, but still had no significant projection.

 

Now in month 5, my buds have started to disappear. Breasts seem fuller and my profile appears to be more feminine (when wearing clothing that fits well). I don't fill every 40A bra, lack of projection is a thing when your fame is wide. But I am optimistic and I know changes are still underway. I still I have 1-3 years more development based on reports by others.

 

Bottom line, it is hard to put this timeline into perspective until you live it. Your mileage may vary is a truth we each need to experience for ourselves. Enjoy every change and go ahead and celebrate them! It’s a wonderful time and you have time to savor each moment.

 

What have your experiences been like? Did things start early or late? Was change rapid and constant? Or are you still thinking about beginning your journey? I think more accounts like this will help our future sisters be comfortable with their journey when it doesn't follow the textbook descriptions exactly. Or when they feel and experience a development that doesn't match their understanding of how breast develop.

 

Thank you and hugs to all!

[Carolyn Marie]

Thank you for this detailed and thorough post, Nimue.  I'm sure it will be instructive and beneficial to others, young or mature.  I wish you continued success and happiness with your new body.

 

HUGS

 

Carolyn Marie

[Katie M]

Thank you for sharing this with us, @Nimue! I've just scheduled my annual physical with my primary care physician, at which time, I'll share my future plans with him and begin moving toward HRT. We're very near the same age, so it was great to gain your perspective on this exciting part of transitioning. Hugs!

[Nicole M]

Yes, thank you, Nimue, for sharing your experience. I'm in a similar situation, as I'm 57, and have just started (today will be day five) estradiol and dutasteride. Funny thing is, and whether this is common or not, I don't know, but my baseline estradiol blood level came back high (high according to the Quest Diagnostics report), at 51 pg/mL. This is from a blood draw the day before I started the E and T-blocker. With my somewhat high E level and somewhat low (but in-range) total T, I have to wonder if I was predisposed to being transgender. I'll have to talk with my NP about that and hear what she has to say about that.

 

As far as breast development goes, I'm glad you have had a good experience so far, even though your growth hasn't been too dramatic. Remember that you're still in the early days of hormone therapy (I have to remember that too). Try to enjoy the process as you go along, and remember that you are not alone.

 

Hugs to you and all, as well!

Sandy

[Kelly2509]

whew!  detailed!  Here's mine:

 

I didn't get much of anything until month 3ish and things developed until about the 6 month mark where it leveled off and stayed there.  I've been in the 230lb range the entire time so a bit overweight and I've been in a 40B since then.  last month, which would be month 13, I saw an increase of a half inch bust size (despite a little bit of weight loss, so there's that!) for the first time since last June so I'm hoping things are firing back up a bit.  While I filled out my bra reasonably well the entire time it does feel like it fits slightly better lately.

[Sorourke]

Hi I’m on hrt now about 5 weeks and not much changes just a lot calmer, hoping there will be as little breast development soon 😀 hugs Stephie breasts not sensitive but a little more puffy

[dianeT68]

Wow, so happy for you you, your experiencing the joy of your feminine development....and so you should.

 

ive been extremely lucky with my breast growth, my mum and sister were are G and H cups.....thank god my girls aren’t that big. I’m an E Cup, and very happy with my assets. The biggest change for me was my nipples and areoles,  they are huge and my nipples protrude ridiculously. That said I’m so so happy and my life as a female is wonderful.

I wish you all the luck in the world on your journey x 

 

Di x 

[Kelly2509]

8 hours ago, dianeT68 said:

I’m an E Cup, and very happy with my assets. The biggest change for me was my nipples and areoles,  they are huge and my nipples protrude ridiculously.

 

Di x 

well Di, you just read my wish list   It's still a bit early for me though so I'll keep my fingers crossed

[dianeT68]

On 3/12/2022 at 6:28 PM, Kelly2509 said:

well Di, you just read my wish list   It's still a bit early for me though so I'll keep my fingers crossed

I hope you get what you wish for Kelly x 

bear in mind, along with big boobs comes severe back ache.....well for me anyway! Learning to cope with it now, and much better since I got measured and purchased proper fitting bras. 

[Bri2020]

Your path is similar to what mine was. I'm at 18 months or so of HRT. I too lost a bunch of weight and I joked at 3 months that I had better Man-boobs at 215lbs than I did after 3 months of hrt and 170lbs.  Mine slowly grew, i was on blockers and oral E. after 9 months I asked for P and got it.  I felt better on it but it didn't really do anything by 1 year. I had to switch endos and the new one refused to prescribe P for fears of cancer risks. I had pretty much stopped noticing any changes at that point and decided to get implants.  I was still working hard to fill a 38A cup.  I went for 465cc high profile silicone under the muscle.  I'm now a 38C.  That was 6 months ago and I've continued to be on HRT and haven't noticed any size changes post operatively.  I chose that size implant because I knew there was the possibility of more growth and I wasn't looking to exceed a D size but would be happy with a C.  I'm 90% happy with the results (what woman is 100% happy with her body right?)

Data suggests that by 6-9 months, you will have achieved 50% or more of your full growth. There isn't a huge amount of research and some will say that the older you are, the slower it takes. I don't think there are any studies on that fact though.  The data also says the most people will only obtain a B-cup at best if they started after puberty was finished. Bigger than that is VERY rare.

 

There are a LOT of women who never get bigger than an A or B so there's that.  I wanted a C or better because I have wide shoulders (like most trans women) and I wanted to have boobs big enough that my figure could be discerned when I layer up a bit for cooler weather.  Also since I travel alot to areas that may not be as trans friendly, I wanted to make sure that at least my boobs helped with not being clocked. Safety is also why I didn't want too big. I wasn't interested in drawing too much attention.

 

In retrospect, I think we all can't wait to "grow boobs" and we focus a lot of energy and worry about it.  It's very exciting to "feel" those changes happening in the first few months and we get so excited about how much they are "changing" but then the inevitable plateau happens and we get discourage or worse.  I'm not sure these words will change anyone's perspective but my biggest advice early on in your HRT is to just revel in the feelings in the moment and not worry about the outcome. That "2nd puberty" comes on rapidly and ends quickly and as you adjust to your new normal you will lose that "excitement".  Be in the moment, explore your feelings and experience and maybe journal about it so you can go back and reflect and relive this wonderfully exciting time.  

[Katie M]

34 minutes ago, Bri2020 said:

I'm not sure these words will change anyone's perspective but my biggest advice early on in your HRT is to just revel in the feelings in the moment and not worry about the outcome. That "2nd puberty" comes on rapidly and ends quickly and as you adjust to your new normal you will lose that "excitement".  Be in the moment, explore your feelings and experience and maybe journal about it so you can go back and reflect and relive this wonderfully exciting time.

Wonderful advice, @Bri2020...thank you for sharing your experiences with us!💜