HRT effectiveness ?

[Eryn]

It takes 2-3 years for all the physical changes to end so I would avoid any kind of FFS for that reason. aside from fixing up my brows, my face should translate quite well.

Disclaimer: This is BS.

I realize that it's quite common around here, but making up your own facts is definitely not a cute look. You of course are welcome to avoid FFS for whatever reason and for as long as you like, but nonsense like this doesn't help people who don't know any better.

Exactly what part of her statement is "BS"? It seems pretty accurate to me, mirroring advice I've received from medical professionals and my own experience. I've kept detailed measurements ever since starting HRT and the curves are reaching an inflection point about 15 months in. That indicates about 2-3 years to see full effects.

[Donnagirl]

Can I answer this way...

No HRT and after about one year HRT

[Suzanne F]

I decided not to wait. I had Breast Augmentation and SRS 13 months after beginning HRT. I am 51 and I didn't want to wait. My surgeon did not think further breast growth would be an issue. I also adamantly did not want to have to recuperate from 2 surgeries when I could just face them at one time. So yes there are different approaches based on doctors advice and our personal preferences. HRT was the best decision I ever made!

[Barbara Dugan]

I have just close to 7 months and the changes have been subtle but so far I am very pleased with the results so far,HRT has level my physical and emotional needs, I feel very balanced .
I did asked my doctor about timelines and he recomend to wait on breast augmentation, FFS he said it can be done earlier.

[MissDanielle]

Disclaimer: This is BS.

I realize that it's quite common around here, but making up your own facts is definitely not a cute look. You of course are welcome to avoid FFS for whatever reason and for as long as you like, but nonsense like this doesn't help people who don't know any better.

Maybe it was breast growth that I was thinking of. But things like cheek implants might not even be necessary depending on how the fat moves around on HRT.

That said, some of us have faces that translate better going into HRT than others do and won't really need FFS. I know that I'll either have to wear a wig or pray for some sort of miracle for hair regrowth.

[LeaP]

It's a truism that mileage varies with HRT. Too, all of us have some degree of trouble evaluating our own looks realistically. Still, in my case, given sufficient family resemblance and family history knowledge, plus some education on sexually dimorphic facial structure and differences (hard and soft tissue), I arrived at a pretty fair assessment of my limits after about a year on HRT. Skin softening and some rounding over of my features made me look younger and brought my looks closer to those of my sister. I'm fortunate in not having a strong jaw line or prominent chin. But my brow, forehead, and temples, even though none are exaggerated, are clearly male. I could probably get by without rhinoplasty or a lip lift, but would be better for them. Anything more would be cosmetic gravy. It didn't take years to arrive at the conclusion, either. I have had one consult with an FFS surgeon. He came up with the same list, unsolicited, although he also suggested a lower lift.

All in all, I don't know if the suggestion to wait for several years is BS so much as it is a matter of rapidly diminishing returns in terms of information informing your surgery choices … at least if you spend some time studying the topic (and your face).

[Badtranny]

Exactly what part of her statement is "BS"? It seems pretty accurate to me, mirroring advice I've received from medical professionals and my own experience. I've kept detailed measurements ever since starting HRT and the curves are reaching an inflection point about 15 months in. That indicates about 2-3 years to see full effects.

"It takes 2-3 years for all physical changes to end" is patently BS.

How somebody could come into a forum like this and flatly make a statement like that is beyond me. My old Doctor, (Dr Charles Moser) told me changes stop after 18 months. He would know, but my experience is that changes haven't stopped yet after over 6 years. So which is it? 18 months or 6 years?

My changes slowed down considerably before I got the Orchi, then they ramped back up again. So should her advice be amended to include that?

A closeted person who just recently started HRT should maybe, just maybe refrain from advising other people on when they should be getting FFS.

It would appear that many people don't seem to care, about where their advice comes from, but I prefer mine to be from those who walk it rather than talk it.

[MissDanielle]

I just re-looked at the informational packet I got when I went to the endo--the 2-3 years was for breast growth.

[PaulaQ]

The effectiveness of HRT for facial and other physical changes depends on a bunch of factors. Your body's estrogen receptors, the bone structure of your face, the form of estradiol used (different forms work better for different people), your dosage, all sorts of things. I would guess that an FFS surgeon probably doesn't see many who got awesome results from HRT, so that might affect their perception of it.

Here's two old photos of me, 21 months apart. The left, pre everything. The right, 17 months in on HRT. As for effectiveness of HRT, you be the judge. (I need to update this - I'm almost at 3 years.) Even at 3 years, I still see changes, but they've slowed.

image.jpg

[Eryn]

The speed of results vary widely, but I think that most of us who are on HRT can agree that it does affect how our faces look, and this certainly should be a consideration when timing FFS. The original poster stated that her FFS surgeon suggested that she might skip hormones altogether. One probably doesn't want to wait 5-6 years, but a couple of years might be considered prudent. It's even possible that an individual might hit the HRT jackpot and decide that FFS isn't needed at all.

KymberlyOct, take what you've learned here and make an informed decision. One opinion from someone who has a vested interest in getting you onto his table should be balanced against the opinions expressed here that HRT has a valuable function and that it is prudent to wait a while to see what it can do for you. The only disagreement is about the timeframe and that is something that has to be determined individually.

[LeaP]

"It takes 2-3 years for all physical changes to end" is patently BS.

It would appear that many people don't seem to care, about where their advice comes from, but I prefer mine to be from those who walk it rather than talk it.

I understand you now. I took your comment in a FFS readiness context only.

I'll be on HRT 4 years on August 2. I can't speak to the effects of an orchie, but agree that changes over time continue nonethless. In my case, physical development has either stopped or slowed to imperceptible. But some not so nice changes have kicked in. I've finally reached the point, for example, where weight loss is excruciatingly difficult ... something that was still a non-problem 2-3 years in. Along with my siblings (male and female alike), I already had a tendency to put fat onto my thighs and hips - disproportionately so. But the curse that was briefly a blessing is turning into the family curse again.

But I stand by my comments on assessing facial change. My wife says my face has filled in - but I've gained back some of the weight I lost, you know? I don't see any substantive change that matters.

[tgirlamc]

Hey All...

I think our minds can have interesting ways of perceiving change...I noticed an interesting effect with all the changes my face has gone through during the past 2.5 years, from both HT and two different 11.5 hour surgeries... For me, my mind seems to accept the changes as the norm....to the point where my mind is telling me that I have always looked like this and the surgery did very little. Only when I look at pictures of how I looked along the way do I fully realize how big a change has been made and my old face looks foreign to me...If others minds adapt like that as well, then the more subtle changes of HT might sometimes be hard to gauge!

Take Care,
Ashley :-D

[PretzelGirl]

I find it curious that those of us with 2 years or less of HRT are saying you get full effects at 2-3 years. In order to say that, you would need 4 years of HRT to speak from experience. Otherwise, we get into the "My doctor said" which always is a lot of differing opinions.