Jump to content
  • Welcome to the TransPulse Forums!

    We offer a safe, inclusive community for transgender and gender non-conforming folks, as well as their loved ones, to find support and information.  Join today!

Information Please


Guest Joanna Phipps

Recommended Posts

Guest Joanna Phipps

Currently (and for the last 26 months/24 on hormones) I have gone through life as an MTF Transsexual; this has included a monthly emotional cycle that has been fairly regular. Recently the mood swings have got much worse and over the last 6 months i have been starting to cramp. This time through it has been hell, the pain localizes about halfway between the belly button and the top of the pubic hair and originates in an area that is bout the size of my fist.

Come Monday I will be contacting my Dr. for an appointment, but he knows so little about what is going on with me that I am nearly scared to bring this to him. My concern is that, never having been checked for intersex conditions, the introduction of estrogen in to my system has caused the growth of what might have been simply a vestigial set of female organs.

The timing would be nearly right were I a natal girl just entering puberty. I don't have any idea and am on a fishing expedition for information, links and resources that might help me figure things out. I know that I am likely to have to undergo a whole battery of tests and things but such is the way of the world

Link to comment
Guest EvenClose

Welcome to the "this ain't so fun train". I made a topic about this very subject a while back. Happens to me too. I seen my doctor and she thought it could be spriro. just like you I explained to her what exactly what was going on, then she didn't think it was the spiro anymore.

She is having me keep track of the times when it happens and the duration and all that jazz.(symptoms) She told me we could do a lot of expensive tests if I wanted. I think this is kind of a rare thing that happens. Not necessarily never unheard of just kinda rare.

Good luck with your quest here. On the other hand, welcome to having Pms. :) Fun ain't it?

Keep me posted on what they find out, I'll do the same. Once I get insurance back though I think they are gonna do an ultrasound on me to check for the very thing you are talking about. Its kinda scary, I know! I don't know of anything to say thats comforting cause, well, Im in this exact boat.

Miranda

Link to comment
Guest Joanna Phipps

First off my hormone regimen seems to be fairly standard (Estrace BID, Progesterone BID, Spiro BID). I am curious about possible intersex conditions simply because of the timings. The onset of the pain is about right for a natal girl entering puberty (definitely not the case) the pain occurs regularly beginning on the 15th or 16th of the month and then continues for a couple of days and has started doubling me over.. The location of the pain is also correct for a natal woman and dang is it tender during that time. The rest of the symptoms I have had for two years and know them well so they don't worry me. Only my Dr. can confirm or deny it but i am curious.

Link to comment
Guest Joanna Phipps

Wrote this for my Doc

History Of My Cycle And The Onset Of Pain

Joanna Marie Phipps

Aug 14, 2011

July of 2009.

Begin transition; I was forced by my team to live full-time as a woman for two months before they would allow me to begin Hormone Therapy. This was a bit unusual but I got down to business and did what I had to do.

Aug 12, 2009|

I had my Dr.'s appointment and was presented with the release that I needed to sign in order get the hormones. This was done and the hormones were prescribed, initially Estrace BID, and Spironolactone BID, this was left as it was for about 6 months. I noticed that starting around November 2009 or December 2009 I got extremely irritable from about the 21st of the month to the 28th of the month. I asked about this on a transsexual support board that I am a member and moderator on and found that many of the trans-women had the same thing.

February 2009

I went for my regular monitoring appointment and blood work, it was at this time that my Dr. decided to double my Estrace, add progesterone and maintain the spironolactone . This did nothing to ease or exacerbate the cycle which stayed somewhat stable. I did notice, working with mainly women on my job, that it was starting to shift to match the ones I worked most closely with. There was no need to tinker with the dosages since things seemed to be going along well. I had settled into my medication routine and was finally becoming comfortable in my own skin.

June 2010

Preparing to leave New Mexico to return home to Canada. My ex-partner had some medical issues that prevented her form assisting with the loading of the Uhaul truck, I noticed that my stamina was severely lacking once we got up here (I had no Dr. at the time) I unilaterally decided to cut my evening dose of spironolactone in half. This helped and leaves me on the regimen I am on now (Estrace Medroxy , spironolactone ). My cycle is extremely susceptible to the women I happen to be around, I have been knocked off mine simply by hanging out with women who happen to be on their own period.

February 2011

I began noticing some discomfort in the lower abdomen. This would start a couple of days prior to my cycle beginning and would last until I was a couple of days into it. Initially I thought nothing of this and neglected to mention it at a Dr.'s appointment I had after this.

August 2011

By now I cannot ignore the pain, its timing or location. Yesterday (8/13/11) I was cramping hard and doubling over to the point that I did not wish to do anything. The pain localizes in fist sized area that begins about halfway between the belly button and the top of the pubic hair. I have also noticed that I am starting to bloat during my cycle and that there is a level of ankle swelling that will not go away. When I am cramping I have also noticed an increase in the frequency of bathroom use and the passing of both stool and urine. The urine is normal in color and the stool, though soft, is not loose. There is also a massive increase in my appetite around this time. One other thing I noticed this time is that my body temperature seems to be shifting slightly, I seem to swing from cool to warm never really getting cold nor do I ever get hot.

Concerns:

The timing of the onset of the initial pain is interesting considering it began 18 months after the time I began hormones, for a young natal girl this would be nearly right for menarche but I am neither young or a natal female. The timing of the cramping, around my cycle is also interesting since it goes for only a couple days before my cycle and maybe a couple days into it. For a natal woman this would be right for menstrual cramps but I am Male to Female Transsexual NOT a natal woman. These timings may be coincidental or they mean might be indicators of something.

I have never been checked for any form of intersex condition because there was no need, I seemed to function quite well as a male (having sired 6 kids, three each with two previous partners). With the pain and other things I get at the time of my cycle I am wondering if the estrogen might not have kick started the maturation of, what had been and might have remained, a vestigial set of female organs. Not only that but my estrogen and progesterone levels have NEVER been checked.

Requests

  1. Testing of the levels of Estrogen and Progesterone
  2. examination and diagnosis of the reasons for the location and localization of the pain
  3. Possible karotype testing to rule out any form of genetic involvement(only if any testing for 2 comes back negative.)

Edited by Joanna Phipps
Dosages removed
Link to comment
Guest Donna Jean

the pain occurs regularly beginning on the 15th or 16th of the month and then continues for a couple of days

Honey......all that I can add is that a natal woman's cycle is not on the same day every month...it's only 28 days...so in 30 and 31 day months there are days left over....

I'm glad that you are going to see the doctor about all of this, though...

Good luck & Huggs

Dee Jay

Link to comment
Guest Joanna Phipps

Honey, just as long as you are seeing a doctor it will work itself out, I think? Please update us.

Julie

Hopefully it will Julie, right now it has me concerned and puzzled, and on an information hunt, but that is bout it. I will post updates as i have them.

Link to comment
Guest EvenClose

Yeah I couldn't find much information about something like this either. If anyone comes up with anything please post us a link or something cause it would be nice to be able to see something about things like this if there is any. Its nice to know Im not the only one though. I was getting seriously worried it was only me.

Miranda

Link to comment
Guest Joanna Phipps

Miranda, I suspected I wasnt the only one but it is good to know that I'm not. I sure will keep the group informed, if anyone can think of anything else that needs to be in that documentation that is going to my Dr please let me know.

oh and by the way this is driving my arthritis crazy it has been 3 days of constant pain

Link to comment
Guest EvenClose

Well actually since you posted this I kinda went on a tangent and thought maybe I was looking at it a little wrong. So I came across these couple of things. Might be worth checking out. It doesn't seem to be as exact as what you are I experience but I kinda suspect something along this line may be the problem.

http://www.ingentaconnect.com/content/oup/humupd/2005/00000011/00000004/art00351

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Persistent_Mullerian_duct_syndrome

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anti-M%C3%BCllerian_hormone

Might have something to do with it. Hope maybe im on to something. Nothing else seems to fit very well.

Miranda

Link to comment
Guest Joanna Phipps

Some interesting reading and a possibility for the culprit. IFit is AMH deficiency and the rudimentary organs did exist, I wonder what impact the estrogen and progesterone in my HRT might have had on them. I wonder if it might have been enough to cause development and maturation of the organ system. The symptoms sound quite similar to what I have been experiencing, only time and many tests will tell.

I will keep the list updated.

Link to comment
Guest Joanna Phipps

I know i need to get this testing happening, but I'm scared. Scared of what they might find, then what if they find nothing... Wanting answers but not sure of what questions to ask or if my Dr has the knowledge to handle something like this. Even though he never knew me as male, I think he looks at my lower anatomy and still sees a man in a dress.

HELP

Link to comment
Guest Donna Jean

I know i need to get this testing happening, but I'm scared.

Try not to be scared, Jo.....

Scared of what they might find, then what if they find nothing...

Well, one way or another they will find something.....

Wanting answers but not sure of what questions to ask or if my Dr has the knowledge to handle something like this.

What kind of a doctor to you have? Endo? Internist? Specialist?

Even though he never knew me as male, I think he looks at my lower anatomy and still sees a man in a dress.

Why would you think that? Has he said or done something to make you feel that way? I'm curious why you would think that..

You're looking for answers.....

First off...cancer or something like that would not be cyclical....like your pains...

If you intersexed, that would be a plus because you're ahead of the curve.....

If not, maybe they can adjust your HRT to keep the pain from happening....

You have nothing to lose by seeing the doctor....

HELP

I'm sure that it's all going to work out fine, Hon....

Hang in there!

Huggs

Dee Jay

Link to comment
Guest Joanna Phipps

My Dr. is a GP

I'm not worried bout cancer, and everything else is extremely cyclical

How does intersex put me ahead of the curve?

Just a feeling i get and the fact that my last physical he never checked my breasts or anything.

Considering I have been on the same estrogen dose for 18+ months with no swelling; why over the last nearly 6 months do my ankles swell on my cycle and never fully un-swell? it is like I'm getting extra estrogen from somewhere.

There are too many timings for them all to be coincidental. All in the last 6 months after 18 months of HRT.....

I think the fear is normal looking at a radical change like this

Link to comment
Guest Donna Jean

How does intersex put me ahead of the curve?

Sorry if I upset you.....

All I meant was that if you're intersexed, you'd be further toward the female side...

Dee Jay

Link to comment
Guest EvenClose

The whole thing is scary that is for sure. Once I get insurance back Ill be doing all the testing too. Like you Im scared of what may or may not come. Its too different not to be anything though. There has to be something. I have only seen 1 other thread online about something this close to what we experience. So that tells me its not as common as far as trans goes. Its gotta be something unlooked at. I just hope they can figure it out.

MIranda

Link to comment
Guest EvenClose

Exactly. Its the one thing noone ever said would happen. Then when it does it kinda causes panic. Even if it turns out to be that there is other organs or an intersex condition, it still don't change much. I just don't want it to cause some kind of problem down the road and not to have known about it. Then Ide feel like an idiot for not pursuing it. Would be nice if the suggested treatment was GCS though. lol Just sayin.

Miranda

Link to comment
Guest Joanna Phipps

It is scary but better to know an know how to deal with it than suffer and not know what is wrong. Im with you on wishing it would make GRS easier

Link to comment
Guest Joanna Phipps

OK, the story thus far; we still have no clue what it is but a lot of stuff was ruled out today. For instance its not a hernia, nor is it my appendix (that departed in the 70s). its not prostate related (in the words of my Dr mine has atrophied to nearly nothing). As he put it we are running out of easy stuff, and once the urine culture, and hormone levels come back we will start looking deeper. He thanked me for the document and said that it did a wonderful job of giving my history and stating the time lines. He wants to wait on diagnosing intersex until we have run out of everything else (by the sound of it that wont be long). So aside from knowing what it isn't we don't have a clue what it is.

He asked many questions about the nature of the pain, its localization and where it radiates; I think to see if my story changed (it didn't).

Link to comment

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
  • Who's Online   6 Members, 0 Anonymous, 103 Guests (See full list)

    • Heather Shay
    • April Marie
    • Betty K
    • Karen Carey
    • LucyF
    • Petra Jane
  • Recently Browsing   0 members

    • No registered users viewing this page.
  • Forum Statistics

    • Total Topics
      80.6k
    • Total Posts
      767.9k
  • Member Statistics

    • Total Members
      12,014
    • Most Online
      8,356

    Quillian
    Newest Member
    Quillian
    Joined
  • Today's Birthdays

    1. l.demiurge
      l.demiurge
  • Posts

    • Heather Shay
      CAT FACTS A cat's jaw cannot move sideways. The only domestic animal not mentioned in the Bible is the cat   A house cat’s genome is 95.6 percent tiger, and they share many behaviors with their jungle ancestors, says Layla Morgan Wilde, a cat behavior expert and the founder of Cat Wisdom 101. These behaviors include scent marking by scratching, prey play, prey stalking, pouncing, chinning, and urine marking. Cats are believed to be the only mammals who don’t taste sweetness. Cats are nearsighted, but their peripheral vision and night vision are much better than that of humans. Cats are supposed to have 18 toes (five toes on each front paw; four toes on each back paw). Cats can jump up to six times their length. Cats’ claws all curve downward, which means that they can’t climb down trees head-first. Instead, they have to back down the trunk. Cats’ collarbones don’t connect to their other bones, as these bones are buried in their shoulder muscles. Cats have 230 bones, while humans only have 206. Cats have an extra organ that allows them to taste scents on the air, which is why your cat stares at you with her mouth open from time to time. Cats have whiskers on the backs of their front legs, as well. Cats have nearly twice the amount of neurons in their cerebral cortex as dogs. Cats have the largest eyes relative to their head size of any mammal. Cats make very little noise when they walk around. The thick, soft pads on their paws allow them to sneak up on their prey — or you! Cats’ rough tongues can lick a bone clean of any shred of meat. Cats use their long tails to balance themselves when they’re jumping or walking along narrow ledges. Cats use their whiskers to “feel” the world around them in an effort to determine which small spaces they can fit into. A cat’s whiskers are generally about the same width as its body. (This is why you should never, EVER cut their whiskers.) Cats walk like camels and giraffes: They move both of their right feet first, then move both of their left feet. No other animals walk this way. Male cats are more likely to be left-pawed, while female cats are more likely to be right-pawed. Though cats can notice the fast movements of their prey, it often seems to them that slow-moving objects are actually stagnant. Some cats are ambidextrous, but 40 percent are either left- or right-pawed. Some cats can swim. There are cats who have more than 18 toes. These extra-digit felines are referred to as being “polydactyl.”
    • Willow
      Good morning,   I over slept yesterday was a couple minutes late clocking in.  But no breakfast or coffee.  Got caught up but it was go go go all morning.  I had to ask for a refresher on how I was to enter something but once I got a quick answer it came back to me.    @KymmieL sorry Ford didn’t work out.  We are always looking for good reliable people, I could get you a job here but the commute would be rough.  Today I have three audits to get done, plus other things during my shift on top of the regular things.  Since I am opening that puts me in the drivers seat.  The Asst Mgr comes in part way throuh my shift but she will have to handle customers while I do the work she would be doing if she opened. Tail wagging the dog.  Guess she’s getting punished for not following the Mgr’s requests.  They do tend to butt heads a lot.     Butting heads with people is a thing the Asst is known for.   @awkward-yet-sweet do you think just maybe this new graphics request was in the offing?  And why you were asked to go to work with your husband?  Obviously, he cares about you a lot and is trying to do things to help you.   speaking of meeting people @Adrianna Danielle we have a youngish customer who comes in frequently, I’d like to approach her but I’m just not certain yet.  She still dresses male but has long hair and early chest development.  My approach, if I ever decided I should would just be supportive but I really can’t be sure that is what is going on here or what and I would not want to make a big blunder if that’s not what he is doing.  A male with early teen boobs doesn’t want to be noticed.   well, I can’t be late again, I’ve got to leave now.  See you again later for afternoon tea and crumpets or scones. Mmm scones!   lol   Willow
    • Carolyn Marie
      https://www.nbcnews.com/nbc-out/out-health-and-wellness/scotland-pauses-prescriptions-puberty-blockers-transgender-minors-rcna148366     Carolyn Marie
    • Carolyn Marie
      https://www.huffpost.com/entry/a-second-trump-presidency-would-be-a-nightmare-scenario-for-transgender-people_n_661ff9a9e4b07db21fd5d59b     Carolyn Marie
    • awkward-yet-sweet
      Well, HIPAA is basically useless for keeping government out of your medical stuff.  It doesn't seem to prevent employers from making workplace medical demands either.  About the only thing it seems to do is keep somebody's sister or spouse from having the tools necessary to help you when you're in trouble.  As usual, government made things worse and added unhelpful red tape.  I really doubt HIPAA will be any use in the area of trans rights either.    Honestly, I don't see anything good will come of this no matter how it goes.  If some state AG's win on this, it will cause issues for trans folks.  If the Feds win on this, it'll be a precedent to stomp on states' rights even more than has already been done.  And I'm not sure which way things go will make a difference when it comes to officials from one state trying to do nasty things to people who have left that state and gone elsewhere.    What a crap sandwich... and no matter which plate it gets served on, "We The People" get to eat it. 
    • awkward-yet-sweet
      At least you tried!  Something equivalent or better may come up, and the waiting could be worth it.  Just keep trying and you'll eventually get what you need and want.      For me, having somebody to love was the most important.  Everything else follows after that.  I waited a long time to find somebody...and she ended up leading me to more than I ever thought possible.    Actually, I'm feeling pretty good right now.  I have something work-like outside of my home responsibilities to do for the first time in about 18 months.  Nobody seems to mind the real me.  And this evening, my husband said something that just really made me feel special.  He was rubbing my back, shoulders, and chest while we talked, helping me relax.  He told me that he thought I was really cute in my girl form, but that he thinks my boy form might even be cuter.  And that he's proud of his "smart little Pocket Fox."    For me, the combination of those sweet words and the physical affection was exactly what I needed. 
    • Abigail Genevieve
      Hi!   That was probably hard to write and then read and say, did I really write that?  Been there.   I'm glad you call it a journey.  It is.  One step at a time, and sometimes two steps forward, one back.    Abby
    • April Marie
      Welcome to the forums, Violet! We glad you found us! No one here will judge you. Each of us is unique yet we all share some similarities. And many of us are in the relative early stages of self-discovery.   Take time to wander the sections of the forums. You’ll find lots of information and ideas.   Ask questions if you feel comfortable. You will find lots of people willing to share their experiences.   Is it possible for you to possibly work with a gender therapist? Many of us have found that to be extremely helpful in finding our identity and out true selves.   Just jump in. We don’t bite! We’ve all been in some version of where you are.
    • April Marie
      Literally. 
    • Abigail Genevieve
      Shameless plug for my "Taylor" story down in Stories You Write.  I am not Taylor and the experiences she goes through are not what has happened to me, but there is an emotional expression that I think is the best way to say some things that I don't know how to say otherwise.  I am not Bob, either.  But you might find out some things about me by reading it.  And I hope it is a good read and you enjoy it.  I am not done with it.  If you would like to comment on it, I would appreciate it.
    • Abigail Genevieve
      Tuesday night.  They had a quick supper together at a fast food place.  Bob went off to teach karate and Taylor locked herself inside her apartment and worked on her hiring plan.   First the web site problem.  The two guys who ran it were self-taught and knew little.  It currently had three pages, the Home page, the About page and the Contact page,  She asked them to work with Karen in terms of redesigning it and she needed three designs to show Gibbs tomorrow.  The problem was three fold: the two guys and Karen.  Millville was a small town and all three were relatives of members of the Board.  Millville, Millvale. She was doing it.  People here called it either way, sometimes in the space of a few seconds.  She thought it was Millville.  All three had complained about the work, because the two boys regarded it as done and untouchable, even though they actually had not worked on it at all for months.  Like a number of people, they showed up and collected generous pay checks and did nothing.  She had looked at a number of websites and she had been told the company wanted one both internal and external customers could log into.  Her chief difficulty at the moment there was that there was very little content.  She decided to send the three complainers out tomorrow to take numerous pictures of the thirty acres  Or was it forty?  No one seemed to care. She cared, because she needed to get it right.  She debated outsourcing the website to a company, but first she needed something to outsource, and before then she needed to decide whether to keep these people.  She didn't need to mess with them.  So she decided to recommend they hire an experienced website developer with management skills. Would such a person come to Millville?  The schools were good, because the company had poured money into them, and the streets were well paved.  The company had bought all the abandoned houses and maintained them, hoping someday they would be filled again. Millville was crime-free.  People did not lock their doors. Neighborly. Very conservative, but in a good way.  Hard working, ethical, honest. Maybe the Chinese money was corrupting the town?  Not sure.  So she thought they would hire someone, even if it were a remote position.  She would rather have them here, but she would take what she would get.  That would move the website out of her hair. Secondly, she needed an effective presenter.  She could not do all these presentations herself.  She had natural talent but a lot could be passed on. She needed another Mary and another Brenda, or their understudies, effective hardworking people.   Bob. Was he okay with this?  He said she was Management.  Was that a problem?  And she was now earning a ridiculous salary, which she put down to company dysfunction more than anything she had done.  Was that a problem? She was not sure.  He was highly competitive and he had that male ego.  She did not.  A feeling of guilt rose.   Her therapist had brought up her feelings of guilt about not making Dad's expectations, never being the man Dad wanted her to be.  She never could, and this physical evidence backed that up.  What would the doctor say?  She thought about it, and that her therapist said she needed to find a sexual assault survivor's group more than a transgender group right now. Was there one here?  She thought about serving in a women's shelter.  There was one here, oddly enough connected to the church they had visited.  That F on her drivers' license would help.  She was waiting until after she talked to the doctor again to move on that stuff.   Was Bob really buying 160 acres near the old air strip on speculation?  Much of the land around Millville had been for sale for a long time.  That land was being offered at a dollar an acre, the owners having inherited it and now living out of state. Common knowledge.  They would take the first offer, and it had been for sale since the airstrip closed twenty years ago. Airstrip.  That would help.  Not tonight. Focus, girl, she told herself, and read over her notes to do so, which were making less sense the further down she went. It was eleven, and she gave up and went to bed.
    • violet r
      .my name is violet. I'm new here and thus is my first try at forums. I'm 45 and just recently having came to terms of who I really am. Thought a lot of self discovery since I stopped drinking. Drinking was my coping mechanism to hide a lot of thing. There were plenty of signs though the years. As I look back. That i hid inside. Now really sure what made all of this bubble to the surface at this time in my life.  Mabye it was waiting for me to be open minded and ready to accept that I am trans. I have a very unhealthy environment at home that is anti trans. I really don't know what else to say but hi. I hope everyone here will be accepting of me and me work through my journey of finding the real me. I know that since I accepted it I have been much happier than I can remember. Being to real me makes me happy. I hate having to hide this all the the time at home. I work retail management and have no idea if I could even stay in this business if I am to fully come out. Wow that was scary saying all that. It's a first for me
    • Ivy
      It is a lifesaver for a lot of us.
    • Abigail Genevieve
      Thanks.  What I do as a man is what a woman would do if she were a man.  There is just something feminine about the way I act as a man.  It's not that being a woman is actually better, or something to aspire to, but it is just that I am one, while not being one.   If beating my head bloody to get rid off this stupid dysphoria would fix it I would find the nearest wall, but I know that if I did that, when I woke up, it would still be there.   If I did not have this struggle I would be someone else and I would be less of a person than I am.  They say an oak tree growing in an open field is far stronger than one in a forest.  The storms come and go and I stand.   This forum is the first time I have interacted with other people struggling with the same struggle and parallel struggles. It helps.
    • Ashley0616
      I'm sorry! :( Hopefully something better will come up

Contact TransPulse

TransPulse can be contacted in the following ways:

Email: Click Here.

To report an error on this page.

Legal

Your use of this site is subject to the following rules and policies, whether you have read them or not.

Terms of Use
Privacy Policy
DMCA Policy
Community Rules

Hosting

Upstream hosting for TransPulse provided by QnEZ.

Sponsorship

Special consideration for TransPulse is kindly provided by The Breast Form Store.
×
×
  • Create New...