HRT changes

[Heather Shay]

Keeping fingers crossed my HRT NP sent me email indicating my doctor said it takes 2 weeks to transfer records and it's been a week - but they were trying to fast track it - so maybe this week.

 

Could you share the changes you've seen and felt over the time you've been lucky enough to be on HRT? Good and bad.

 

Thanks,

 

Heather Shay

[KathyLauren]

I noticed a big change in my dysphoria right away, just from the fact that I was taking steps to make progress.  That started even before I picked up my first prescription.

 

I didn't feel anything earth-shattering right away.  Some people do, but not me.  On the other hand, by two weeks in, there was noticeable tingling in my nipples.  At about six weeks, I had enough breast growth that I was wearing an unpadded sports bra to minimize the girls, since I was still in male mode most of the time.  Not that they were big or anything (they still aren't), but they did not look plausibly male.  I found that I couldn't trot down stairs the way I used to, because my breasts would jiggle uncomfortably.

 

I came out publicly and went full time about three months after starting HRT.

 

I could notice that my skin was softer and drier.  By about a year, my body hair, which had never been abundant, was gone, totally.  The hair on my legs, the hairiest part of my body, had thinned to normal female abundance.  It is thin enough and light enough that I don't have to shave my legs.

 

I also noticed changes in my face.  The first change was my lips.  I was putting on lipstick one day and realized that they were someone else's lips!  That change was quite sudden.  I became aware of other changes in my face, and now, three-plus years in, the person in the mirror looks female.  Not saying I'm pretty - that would be too much to ask - but I don't look very male any more.

 

Mentally, the changes were subtle, but real.  As a male, I had noticed what some people call "mental static": racing thought fragments, none of which related to anything in particular, but which, together, made enough mental racket to keep me from falling asleep.  I would get violent images that I won't describe here, that I found quite disturbing, as I have always been a non-violent person.  There was no light-bulb moment for me, but I did notice that the mental static and the violent images have gone away.  I am much calmer, and I can feel a full range of emotions.  I will cry with intense emotions, even happy stuff.

 

Good luck with your HRT!  I am sure you will like it.

[Heather Shay]

i can relate to the reduction of disphoria the moment i told my doctor i wanted to go on hrt. it was an immediate easing like nothing i have ever felt, telling me it was definitely the right decision  almost made me cry and i wasnt even on hrt yet. 

[Rorelai]

Make sure you stay hydrated when you start taking hormones, especially if spironolactone is going to be part of your HRT regiment. I remember when I first started I got light headed every time I stood up because I wasn't drinking enough to keep up with how much I had to pee when I first started. 

 

After that, I guess the other changes kind of creeped up on me. I found myself becoming more emotional, or at least in touch with my emotions. I slowly started seeing my face soften and my body hair is starting to slow down now. My boobs started hurting pretty early, although I really only started noticing more significant development there in the last couple months. And most recently I've discovered that even though I still weigh roughly the same as I did at the start of HRT, now I seem to have gone up a size in pants because my thighs and butt have gotten bigger. I've only been on hormones for about nine months, so I'm excited to see what the future still holds for me and my second puberty!

[Carolyn Marie]

First of all, congratulations, Heather.  Getting to this point on the journey is a real accomplishment, and is the beginning of the rest of your life.  So take a moment to savor that.

 

The main piece of advice (b/c the technical, medical stuff will be much the same for everyone) I will give you is to have patience.  It will take 3-4 months before you notice much of any physical changes, but the psychological changes do come much faster and are just as nice and welcome.  Body hair, breast development, fat redistribution and the rest do take time, but once the ball starts rolling, it picks up steam pretty fast.

 

So look forward to it and ask questions.  I'm sure more of us will come by to give you more specifics.

 

HUGS

 

Carolyn Marie

[Lexi C]

Yeah Heather what everyone above said.

It's will be a emotional roller-coaster at first, but after a while you notice some changes. Good luck

[Heather Shay]

i appreciate all your wonderful comments especially the hydration mention because i got light headed on the first evening at bsnd practice and couldn't figure out why.

 

on top of this i started CPAP last week and am more refreshed in the morning and ready to meet the world.

 

mental hugs,

 

heather shay

[Charlize]

I think the biggest change that has taken place after some years now, is a feeling of peace.  There is less hair growth virtually everywhere on my body.  I'm a bit softer and maybe weaker.  Age may cause that weakness as well.  I am not hugely developed but i have lovely breasts. At least i think so.

 I can cry at silly things sometimes.  Overall i'm finally content in my gender most of the time.

 

Hugs,

 

Charlize

[Heather Shay]

The most important thing I am looking forward to and I hope it comes is the feeling of peace and a calming of my mind and to let you ladies know, as soon as I joined this incredible forum I met the ladies who have taken me in, served as mentors and mothers, and I felt the weight of the world removed from my shoulder and if that's all I get - that is enough....although all those others things will be gladly accepted. 

 

Heather Shay

[Cyndee]

Hi Heather Shay, one of my first changes noticed when I started E, was in about 3 weeks in, I noticed my sense of smell became enhanced, it's like all the flowers and trees smelled so wonderful one day as I was out for a walk, it was quite noticeable, and I keep the memory of the experience because it was a profound change. It was this time of year when I started, in fact today is my 9th anniversary of HRT

 

Good luck to you and look forward to your reports going forward....

 

C

[DragonflyGirl]

Mentally, I felt better immediately. That could have beeen a sort of placebo effect, just from knowing I was on the right road.

 

The first physical changes I noticed were about two and a half months in. My skin and my face changed, seemingly overnight. I just looked in the mirror one morning and almost fell backwards! I've gone on to change a fair bit more since then, but that was the first time I'd noticed something happening, and the sequence of photos I've taken are quite amazing. I literally age backwards, losing a decade in 7 months! No joke!

 

My boobs aren't doing much so far, and possibly I'm destined to be a smaller breasted woman, but my hips have just recently grown suddenly, and my body has a much less top-heavy, much more recognisable female outline, which has really taken me by surprise at this, still fairly early stage.

 

Hopefully there's a lot more changing to come, but I'll happily take whatever I'm given. I feel I can live in this body the way it is now. It's MY body again, which it hasn't felt like for the previous thirty years.

 

[Heather Shay]

i was already mentally feeling better just making the decision. thank you for sharing. they say you can expect one less cup size from what your mother has. my mom was a small A so i will probably be a minus ?

[KathyLauren]

54 minutes ago, Shay said:

i was already mentally feeling better just making the decision. thank you for sharing. they say you can expect one less cup size from what your mother has. my mom was a small A so i will probably be a minus ?

 

I hear you!  My mother was pretty small, too.  And I saw a photo of my grandmother on my father's side: she was pretty small, too.

 

When I went to the lingerie store to get measured, the only reason they told me I was an A cup was because their chart doesn't have 38AA. ?  I couldn't fill any of the 38As they had in the store, so I ended up with a 36B and an extender.  Argh!  Still, they are cute as the dickens, though.

[Ellora]

My dysphoria started to ease the moment I began talking to my primary in person. I had another appointment with another place, and kept it, so I would see who said yes first , lol. As soon as I told my Primary, her smile began to grow,  she was soooo happy for me, my dysphoria began to ease. Each moment after that was golden. I had to take a blood test for a baseline, and to make sure my body was ready (safe) to take the Lady meds, and at that time I had to take spiro, so she wanted to make sure my liver was ok with it all. My dysphoria made a huge drop the moment she approved my HRT regimen, especially after I got home after I picked up the Lady meds that day.  Another huge drop in my dysphoria came after I had my Orchie. After correcting the two "birth defects," I felt and continue to feel wonderful. Everyday I take my Lady meds, I get a huge smile. My body had been going through changes, some not as fast as the others, lol, but I am happy(er) each day, cause I have been continuing my Lady meds.

Enjoy every moment. Try not to be disappointed if you body does not respond the way you want. You can always speak to your Doctor, and remember, everyone is different, bodies respond differently. Be happy you are "doing something." Best of luck with your Journey!

[Heather Shay]

ellora when i talked to my peimary it was instant disphoria relieve and my pressure eased. went up as i waited to have rexords shared between primary and my hrt team and smiles galore since. only change has been mentally and attitude and actually depression eased up but it is early. i am doing it right this time and this is the right time for me 

By the way you are a very pretty young woman.

[Ellora]

On 7/19/2020 at 5:09 AM, Shay said:

i am doing it right this time and this is the right time for me 

Yay! Each victory, small and big, are HUGE. Im happy that you are getting relief! The more that time goes by, the better it will get. In the beginning, I was  micro-managing everything, but I learned that patience helps me much more, and I am pacing myself much better. 

 

On 7/19/2020 at 5:09 AM, Shay said:

By the way you are a very pretty young woman.

Thank you, I used the snapchat app to help me look this way. I was going to do a "beauty makeover" with Sephora, but Covid upended that idea, for now. I might have to go on youtube and work on that myself lol

 

 

[Elizabeth Star]

I started to find peace as soon as I accepted myself. But the changes on HRT have been amazing. I was on it for about 5 weeks before I really noticed anything. It was almost surreal when my boobs started to hurt. I was finally becoming myself. I tried to hide it from the world for a couple of months but quickly gave up. Although I feel my butt is still small, I can't seem to get my thighs into any of my old jeans anymore. I've actually  been done with the itchy guy clothes for months. My emotions are a lot more stable but I do cry more. Then again, maybe I always wanted to cry but the boy wouldn't let me. In many ways my journey has been extremely liberating.

[SaraAW]

On 7/21/2020 at 6:39 AM, ElizabethStar said:

actually  been done with the itchy guy clothes for months

My wife is struggling with me wanting to replace my wardrobe and why I have to wear women’s clothing as much as I do. Some of my old male clothes are pretty androgynous.  She clearly hasn’t worn any men’s clothes. So uncomfortable, especially as my skin has really started to change. 

[Heather Shay]

i am dressing more abdrogenous on my outer wear am clean shaven and wear proper panties and sports bra but i live in very conservative area and hrt hasnt made enough changes to trust women outer wear

[SaraAW]

I’m only dressing at home and that is even rare at the moment. Not a lot of outfits yet. 

[Heather Shay]

I have gotten rid of the ultra feminine clothes I had and building more clothes the fit my idea of myself (I loved the girls in my teens and twenties and was soooooooo envious). I love the sort of hippie styles with boho, gypsy and peasant dresses and tops. I'm also getting "sensible" shoes and plain colors and bought my first ladies pants and shorts.....it is really fun trying to find one's personal style. 

 

I hadn't thought of it before but everyone naturally develops their owns clothes preferences - as a man I had mine and they were pretty generic but in the '70s and '80's being in a band I got to wear some fun women tops because that was in style for guys in bands... now I can use some of those old clothes I kept all these years and use them again - as long as they fit...LOL

[Ellora]

I have slowly replaced "guy clothes" with womens clothes. Of course I have drawers full of skirts, dresses, cami's, bras, thongs...But I do not wear them out in public, yet. In public, I wear womens shorts, shirts, tank tops, and still wear thongs, I just bought some pants too. Womens shirts and shorts are very close, so I am happy for now. Ive worn cami's and bras under a womans jacket before, at times. 

I wish Pride wasnt cancelled, I probably would have worn a favorite skirt Ive been wanting to wear out n about.

[DragonflyGirl]

I wore a pair of my old man jeans yesterday. The belt now has to go above my hips and the price to pay for wearing them was a day long wedgie!

 

At least the pockets were big enough to put stuff in.

[Heather Shay]

how cool is that.....

[Rorelai]

I got rid of most of my"guy" clothes a while ago, except for some jeans and a few t-shirts I wear when I'm painting or doing something messy. My go-to grubby jeans are a pair of straight-legged jeans that always used to fit pretty loosely pre-hrt. Now though, between fat redistribution and maybe gaining a little weight during quarantine, my thighs and my butt are a lot bigger and those same jeans are really snug on me. I guess I'm glad hrt is giving me some curves, but it was quite surprising one day getting ready to go to a painting party and having to squeeze into pants that I had to wear a belt with the last time I wore them.