For you guys on T... I'm about to ask for it to my doctor. He knows I'm trans : He outed me himself during our first interview, even if I don't think I pass 100%... I've done a bit of research during the last 3 years, but there is nothing like real life experiences. 1- I'm about to have blood work done, which is a good chance to ask for hormones and etc. I'll give them a call the day before, so they can check values as needed. Question is what kind of values should I ask about, what substances on my blood stream are of interest when starting T? 2- What is to expect for the first month or so? Or do you start to notice something at all after at least 3 months? I know facial hair takes a while, and things like muscles take at least a year, but what about the voice? 3- Again about the first three months... When does the monthly torture stop on average, how was it for you? And as T is kicking in, does it at least soften the hormonal kick? 4- Besides bloodwork, were any other test needed from any other doctor (psych. or women's)? Any advice or comment would be most appreciated.
Note: I've been on T for nearly four months now. 1 - I honestly don't know which data is the most important, when they checked my blood I got like five pages full of results, so I can't really help you with that one. What they must check though is whether you're intersex or prone to thrombosis. 2 - You've probably heard this before, but everyone is different when it comes to this. Some guys have a lower voice after like three weeks, some after five months. For me personally, the first thing I started noticing was the smell of my pee and bottom growth. Yup. :lol: After that I noticed how I was able to get angry a lot more easily. (This stopped after about two months and now my mood is a lot more stable. )My throat constantly felt like I was getting a cold, but my voice actually only started dropping after 8 weeks or so. Hair growth everywhere (and I mean everywhere), I started to smell differently, my libido increased, the muscles in my arms got bigger without me doing any workout... Honestly it's little things that add up and become more noticeable over time. So after three months you'll (most likely) not experience anything new, the changes will have just become more prominent. 3 - Don't really know about the average, but I had one final period a few days after starting T and never again. (Though I have heard about guys who still got theirs one year after starting.) I don't really know what you mean by hormonal kick, but I can definitely feel my T level dropping after a certain amount of time. As in, I'll wonder why I'm feeling all emotional and will realize that it's time for my next shot in a few days. 4 - I just realized you're from Germany as well. Ha, well if you wanna start T here you most likely need a letter from a therapist, stating that you're allowed to start T. Without that, most doctors will not prescribe you T. (Just send me a message if you have any other questions because it's currently 3am and my brain is not functioning properly. ^^ )
1: Not sure about everything, but I know red blood cell count and cholesteral are very important 2: Different for everyone, but the first changes are usually increased libido, oilier skin, enlargement of clitoris, and voice dropping. Those happen in the first month, or second month for a lot of people 3: Normally it takes a few months 4: That's highly variable about psych tests. What I had to do physically was a physical exam of my breasts, a blood test, and normal doctor stuff (mouth, ears, eyes, stomach, height/weight, etc).
I'm not an expert on the intersex subject, but I have (as far as I know) nothing unusual, morphologically speaking. I also went through a gyn examination (quite a painful experience, never again, unless I must) and doctors didn't mentioned anything being uncommon, all seemed fine. No thrombosis on the family or me. Some doctors even congratulated me for having a very clean, average blood work. Got it already, same as having been diagnosed, which is the reason I can go through it now. I don't know if it makes any difference, but I'm a decade older than you. I guess they realize it's not that easy to change your mind, once it's clear you've been struggling for quite a long time, and tried many things already. They must sense whatever they would try, would do more damage than good.
Well I mean if you got the results from those tests I guess they don't need to check again. Those were just the first things stated in why I can start T (from the medical side) so I figured it must have been important. Ah, alright. I didn't really get that from your first post so thanks for clearing that up. To be honest, I don't think age plays a role in it, as long as the diagnosis is safe.
Others have covered what to look for in bloodwork really. There were a few changes that I first noticed. I first noticed that my throat was always scrathy. This was because my voice was dropping. I also noticed that I had a lot more energy, and I was more hungry. I started taking my shots in the morning because the energy and the hunger were keeping me up at night. I didn't experience too many mood swings, but when I had them they were not fun. I had some hot flashes as well, and those were not fun. Those stopped after the first couple of months though. I had my period for 3 months after starting on T. The last month I had it, it was super light. After about 3 months, I noticed small changes to my body shape. T does different things at different times for people though, so there is not a set in stone timeline of when things happen. It also depends on if they start you on a lower dose and ramp it up over time as well.
1) For me, my thyroid levels were a priority for my endo to keep an eye on, since I have a preexisting condition. Your red blood cell count and cholesterol are something they'll check out too, among other things. I also got a few pages of results from my endo. 2) Everyone is different. Some things I remember from the first three months were increases energy, increased hunger, more body hair, my legs getting for toned, my taste pallette changing a bit (ex: craving meaty, pepper, and spicy foods more) and a few others I can't think right off the top of my head at thee moment. 3) As above, everyone handles things differently. For some it stops right away, others it can take weeks or months. For me, I started T (oddly enough) the very day shark week stopped and I never saw it again--and that was a year ago. 4) The clinic I went to, no. Before I got there, I had a psych evaluation to make sure I was stable (along with side therapy to help me with the mental health issues I was dealing with).
