I have a very severe needle phobia (as such please do not go into detail about injections, the self-injection process, or blood tests in this thread, thank you) so I really do not want to get more jabs than I need. The idea of having to have an injection every two-four weeks for the rest of my life - and having to do them myself - is terrifying to say the least and is the main reason I haven't sought any sort of gender therapy yet. I'm concerned that they'll use my phobia and reluctance for shots as a way of saying I'm not male, since I "clearly don't want HRT" or something. I know that's a ridiculous fear since not all trans guys medically transition, but it still plays in the back of my mind. BUT, a while ago I heard about T patches/gels, didn't think too much about it, and now I'm slapping myself for not thinking about it earlier. I'd only have to get the blood tests done if I used patches, and a blood test three times a year sounds a lot more manageable for me. Unfortunately no matter how hard I look around I can't seem to find much of anything on transitioning with patches or gels - nearly everyone uses shots due to being cheaper, faster-acting, and I guess more convenient. From the little research I've done, I know I'd prefer patches over gel since I wouldn't want my partners to accidentally get excess testosterone in their system (apparently it can cause minor but negative effects to others that have prolonged and frequent contact with the application areas?) and it just seems neater overall. Slap on a patch, bam, you're ready for the day. I'm all about that no-hassle life. :lol: (I should also mention, an implant is a huge no. The concept makes me feel sick. Both of my sisters have implants for birth control and I can't look at them or talk about them, let alone touch them, let alone have it in my body.) Does anyone here have any knowledge or experience with using testosterone patches or gels? If you use them yourself, how did the changes come in and were there any difficulties or unexpected things that aren't normally seen when using T shots? Did you have any difficulties with asking your healthcare provider for patches/gel instead of shots? Thanks for any help you can offer, I really appreciate it.
Seeing that you're from the UK you could probably also start with Nebido, which is a shot you only get every three months and would probably be done by a nurse. (Not sure about the nurse part, but shots are always done by a nurse here in Germany, I've only ever heard of North American transguys doing their own shots.) If you really do not want to do injections, I would probably recommend the gel. It's a pretty common way to take T in Germany and I've seen many guys who get awesome results with them and so far there's no precise answer whether injections work faster/better. So far I've heard that patches contain a dose that is too little, but I'm not an expert. I think once you're able to start T, you should discuss all this with the doctor who will prescribe you hormones, an endocrinologist for example. I knew many people who were able to chose between gel and injection or who switched from one to the other.
Patches (prescribed by a doctor) do contain less T per use, but they're usually used more frequently than T is injected, so the timeline's more or less the same. Most people who have used testosterone patches say they work, but the adhesive on them can cause skin irritation. Some people also have problems with them falling off.
I plan to move to America pretty soon to be with my boyfriend, so if I went down a shot-related route I'd probably end up having to do my own. :dry: Unless they also have something like Nebido in the US? I don't know any trans guys who have transitioned in the UK, so I'm not sure if they do their own shots here or not. My mom had to self-inject her stomach every morning while she was going through chemotherapy because of the inconvenience of travelling to a hospital every day for a 2 second thing... not sure whether it'd be the same for T shots or not since they're on a biweekly/monthly basis normally. It sounds like gel might be a decent option then if it does pretty much the same thing and in the same timeframe. Do you know if what I heard about others getting affected by the gel if they are exposed to the areas you've applied it is true or not? I might start off with patches, then if they cause irritation switch to gel. I'm kind of experienced with applying and remembering to change patches because my mom uses morphine patches for pain control. She's had trouble with them falling off in the past, but it's not too common so I don't think it's a huge issue. Then again, guys tend to have oilier skin, so it's possible that once my skin started to change they'd stick a lot less reliably... Ah well, they never said being trans was simple, huh? :lol: At this point I'm just rambling my thoughts. I'm so desperate to get the ball rolling on this shit, but my local GP is lame and I don't trust them and the nearest gender clinic is about a three hour bus ride away. I'm in university with no reliable cheap method of transport and my schedule is too full to spend 6 hours travelling to-and-from a gender clinic every couple of weeks... This is so frustrating. I keep wanting to buy over-the-counter shit, then remembering that's the stupidest idea in the world because I know that they don't contain actual testosterone and won't do anything for me, then considering it again. I'm not actually going to do it, but man, the temptation is real. I just want to be an "acceptable" man instead of... whatever I currently am.
I don't know if you can get Winstrol where you live. Its Testosterone in pill format. Like you I have issues with needles. I have been known to pass out at the site of one. But anyways whenever I start T I'm going to ask my doctor if it's possible to get the pills.
I'm really not keen on the idea of testosterone pills. From what I know it's a last resort because it can really destroy your liver. Thanks for the suggestion though!
