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Important Disclaimer: This page is only included for interest and information, it does NOT constitute Medical Advice. I will not be responsible for any hormone treatment or surgery you may pursue. Such treatment should always be done under the supervision of a qualified medical professional.
Taking
Hormones
I started taking "the pill" in 1994 as I turned 32 - much older than is ideal, but probably only slightly older than is typical for a European transsexual woman. At first I did it all wrong. I would take hormones on rather irregular basis for a month or two before stopping just as they were beginning to have an effect, and then a few months later I would start again. I also varied the dose from to low to far to high, when I would experience severe nausea and a permanent metallic taste in the mouth.
There was then a long two year break before I went back on hormones in summer 1999, and I have remained on them ever since. While this long break was in retrospect very unfortunate, it did at least give me a chance to consider what I really wanted to do. I would certainly recommend to any transsexual woman who's not absolutely certain that gender and sex re-assignment is the right solution for her, come off female hormones after about six months and have a hard re-assessment of your choices. In my experience, after just a few weeks on hormones I would lose all sex drive and become incapable of an erection, which may disappoint some readers who've watched far too many she-male videos starring men with generous breast implants! Also, when I stopped taking hormones in 1997 after 7 months use, my sex drive and libido never completely recovered, even after a year off hormones. When I resumed hormones in 1999, I suspect that I was effectively chemically castrated and almost infertile long before my orchiectomy three years later, in 2002. The initial effects of female hormones on the transsexual woman has often, and perhaps with some accuracy, been described as a second puberty. While breast development is easily the most obvious result of taking hormones, there are also many other more subtle long-term physical and mental benefits. The changes are so very slow and imperceptible, even with the breasts it's impossible to observe that your bust is 1/100 of an inch larger than it was yesterday, although you may wonder if a bra is a little tighter than the last time you wore it. However cumulatively over months the effects become substantial and noticeable - whether or not you want them to be. For me nothing really seemed to happen other than to my boobs, but I knew from my measurements, old photo's, trying on old clothes, comments, etc. that my body had changed far more than I felt it had.
Progesterone: It is commonly recommended that transsexual women take Progesterone as well as Oestrogen to help promote breast development. In addition to my intake of progesterone via the Nordial:21 pill, I have since January 2001 have been taking supplemental progesterone. I have tried both Cyclogest from Cox Pharmaceuticals (one pessary daily containing 400mg Progesterone PhEur) and Duphaston tablets from Solvay Pharmaceuticals (two tablets daily, each containing 10mg Dydrogesterone).  After a few
months taking Cyclogest and/or Duphaston, I could
feel a greater fullness in my breasts which may well be thanks to
the additional Progesterone hormones. I currently take
Duphaston, preferring it over the somewhat awkward Cyclogest
pessary.
I keep getting asking about hormone regimens, so summarising the info above ... My daily regimen during 2001 was:
Notes:
Another regimen I considered, which doesn't require specific antiandrogen drugs:
And an easy to obtain and quite cheap hormone regimen that I actually used for a while:
(Note: On balance, one Nordiol and two Diane-35 may have been a much better combination because of its extra antiandrogen, but this combination would then be light on progesterone.) Please note that these hormone regimens may not suit other transsexual women. The optimal hormone regimen will vary from individual to individual and I would recommend experiment to find what works best with the minimum of contradictions (side effects) Also, many medical experts have their preferences and opinions. For example, below is a hormone regimen suggested by a Canadian clinic (I have no connection with them!):
For those that want to learn more about hormones, here's two important links:- FAQ: Hormone Therapy for M2F Transsexuals and Some Typical Hormone Regimens. 2. After
my Orchiectomy
Prevara is more commonly taken than Duphaston by transsexual women, but as I was already taking Duphaston he told me to continue with this. I eventually reduced the dose to one tablet per day. It was later suggested that I reduce the Premarin intake to just 0.625mg/day, but I instead began to take a 1.25mg pill with my Duphaston. Thus my daily regimen became:
Metformin:
In early January 2003 a visiting friend of mine (and a doctor) suggested
that I should take Metformin. Although
normally a drug associated with diabetes, it's also considered
useful for aiding and enhancing the body fat redistribution (including
limbs and face) of transsexual women taking oestrogen.
The doctors prescription was for Glucophage from Lipha Sante (initially 2 tablets daily, each containing 500mg Metformin - $7.50 per pack of 100, $4.50 per month). After a week, continuous nausea and occasional vomiting made me decide (without any professional medical advice) to reduce my dose to one tablet a day. This thankfully helped my nausea a lot, indeed the sickness had nearly gone completely after a month of use. In early February 2004 I optimistically anticipated being wined and dined by my boyfriend for Valentine's Day. I decided that after nearly four years continuously on hormones my body fat was probably as redistributed as it was ever going to be, and that enjoying a bottle of expensive wine was preferable to continuing to take my Glucophage pill!
3. After
my SRS
Please don't tell my doctor but I took the second injection a little early - 10 days after the first. This created an estrogen high followed by an estrogen low for several days before my next injection. The deliberate result was that I had a 28-day hormonal cycle roughly mimicking the period of a cis-woman. I'm not conscious of the resulting mood swings and changes in my behaviour, but my husband is! I also continued to take Duphaston. Despite the many medical reports claiming that taking progesterone has no benefits for transwomen, from experience I firmly believe that it helps to maintain my physical, mental and sexual health as a woman.
After a few months on the new regimen I was increasingly suffering from headaches, fatigue, nausea, hot flushes, skin rashes ... I wasn't a happy bunny! The doctor diagnosed that my oestrogen levels were now too high, and halved the dosage by moving me from Evorel Conti to Evoral 25 patches. The problems soon disappeared and regular blood tests in the years since have shown that my estradiol blood levels are consistently between 60-100 pg/mL. That is a sweet spot - minimising medication risks whilst avoiding potential problems such as reducing bone density and even cancer. Note: An important point here is that every woman is different and it may need some trial and error to find the optimum hormone regime.
Weight Problems
I have never had excessive trunk and limb hair, and years on hormones have helped ensure that it has never become a problem. However, like the vast majority of transsexual women who start hormone treatment years after puberty, facial hair and beard growth has been an issue. When I was young (early 20's) and had only light and sparse facial hair growth, or when I was only occasionally passing as Annie for short periods, I found shaving to be an acceptable solution. Unfortunately, as I spent more time as Annie my facial hair became a serious problem. The constant need for close shaves was inconvenient and despite generous use of soaps and creams, it caused unsightly rashes and skin irritation, particularly on my neck area. Also, despite the greatest care, a shaving cut is an inevitable occasional nightmare! In mid-2000 I began taking the contraceptive pill Diane-35 which is commonly used by women who suffer from hirsutism (excess body and facial hair) as it helps stop scalp hair loss while decreasing body and facial hair. Before any benefits from Diane-35 were noticeable, undoubtedly in part because the dosage of Cyproterone Acetate was too low, I changed to taking the drug Eulexin which I believe is more powerful in it's anti-hirsutism effect. As usual with hormones, the results were imperceptible, but by December 2000 - when I transitioned full-time - there was definitely a slowing of the rate of growth of my beard, and my skin was in much better condition. I found that one early morning “double wet shave” plus plentiful and regularly revisited make-up was sufficient for the working day, although I would repeat the shave if I was going out in the evening. As the year 2001 progressed I noticed further slowing of my beard growth, the hairs also becoming somewhat finer, allowing me to use less make-up. However, by late 2001 it had become obvious that the hormones and anti-androgens wouldn't completely stop my facial hair growth, and it remained a problem to my passing as a woman - and a serious embarrassment when in close company 24 hours a day. I thus began in November 2001 a course of Alexandrite laser hair removal. By May 2002 I had had six laser treatments, done at 5-6 week intervals.
After my 2001/2 laser treatments I had very little hair re-growth for two months, indeed I did not have a further treatment until early September 2002. This wonderfully long period was probably due to a combination of the effects of the cumulative laser treatments, Vaniqa and my orchiectomy all kicking in simultaneously. As an economy measure I stopped applying Vaniqa in December 2002 when my supply was exhausted, but thankfully I didn't notice any immediate burst of hair re-growth. My next laser treatment was in late April 2003, a gap of nearly 8 months and actually a bit too long. Because of gradual re-growth I then had further laser treatments at roughly 6 month intervals. In 2006 my facial hair follicles seemed to give up the battle, and since then I've been faced with just the odd hair which can be plucked. The elimination of my beard has significantly helped my ability to pass as a woman, and thus my confidence. But I regret that I didn't seek more treatment before my transition, with hindsight relying on just shaving was crazy.
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I've never
tried "herbal" hormones as I've read that they have little
real physical effect and are probably a waste of money. Instead
I've always used high oestrogen contraceptive pills, and have been lucky
in that for many years I lived in a country where these were available
without prescription.
It was
not until November 1996 that I went continuously on hormones for
a significant period, which lasted seven months until the end of
June 1997. Within two months I could have shared a bed
with the Spice Girl's and just be worried whether I had brushed my
teeth! At the time I was desperate to pass physically
and probably overdosed dangerously, including taking 0.625mg Premarin pills at
least three times a day. 
My doctor
recommended that I change to Premarin from Wyeth-Ayerst, and stop
taking the Nordiol:21. The Androcur antiandrogen was
also now redundant. My daily regimen became:
However in
my experience it has at least two serious downsides, one is that no
alcohol should be consumed while taking Glucophage, the other is
very severe nausea.
From research I became worried about the
potential risk of taking oestrogen orally long term, for example
constant the stress on my liver. I
discussed this with my
doctor and in 2007 my prescription was changed from Premarin tablets to a
fortnightly 10 mg intravenous injection of Estradiol Valerate. A
major downside of this was the cost - my pharmacy
bill immediately increased to over $140 a month!
4. Long Term
In
addition to the laser treatments, in early 2002 I also began using Vaniqa
from the Bristol-Myers Squibb Company, a hair retardation cream
which contains eflornithine hydrochloride. Unfortunately it's
expensive, I paid an outrageous $119 per 30gm tube (about a 3 weeks
supply in my experience) for my first batch, but I think it was
worthwhile in delaying re-growth and lengthening the shave-less period
between laser treatments. I purchased subsequent batches of three
tubes for what worked out to be $75 a tube, but I have seen USA prices
of under $40 per tube on the Internet - if you have a prescription and
thus can avoid paying a so-called "consulting fee".
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