Hormones ?

[Laurie A]

The other day I noticed a billboard advertisement for a business called "The Happy Hormone Cottage" They advertise themselves as "Empowering women to take charge of their quest for hormone balance on their journey to healthy living."

It caught my attention because my SO had recently had a conversation with her primary care doctor about hormone therapy, but she has decided to not participate.

The name of the business: "Happy Hormone Cottage" raised some suspicions on my part as to what this company was all about. I asked a friend who is an Ob/Gyn about it and she said that it was a business established to take advantage of less sophisticated women who may be considering hormone therapy for post menopause reasons. She also said that more often then not they are known for mis-prescribing or over prescribing medications.

It seems that there has been a lot of bad press over the years in regards to hormone use and the side effects. From my layperson's perspective, I would be very concerned about the exposure to those risks. I know it depends on which hormone we are talking about and also the particular medical history of the patient, but when I hear of higher risks of cancer, bone density loss, etc etc I am glad that my SO decided not to take them.

Knowing that there are many members of this board actively taking hormones, my question is how did you weigh the risks versus the benefits in making your decision to proceed with hormone therapy?

[Laura912]

The moderators would cut this post off if I tried to give you all the issues with hormones. I have prescribed them and my wife takes an estrogen replacement. The issues with estrogen as the only one in the female is the possibility of urine cancer from constant estrogen stimulation which only happens in a small percentage of those taking it. That is why the progesterone is given with the estrogen or in cycles. So no uterus, no need for the progesterone. BTW progesterone is the one responsible for the PMS symptoms. One of the issues in females with the estrogen replacement is the increased risk of breast cancer but there were only eight more cases the the estrogen group compared to the placebo. The overall incidence of breast cancer was still small. This is from the WHOI study. There is no real good data in men taking estrogen so no way to really answer your question. It takes thousands to get a good study for that . Regarding the Happy Hormone Cottage...bogus. Stay away. They may be either using real or synthetic hormones under the license of a less that scrupulous MD or using primarily herbal stuff. Just because it comes from a plant it must be good for you, right? Male bovine excrement. Send your wife to a good OB/GYN and let her/him discuss the risks. As to the risks for the male taking estrogen, that is why it needs to be done under the guidance of an endocrinologist tha is use to this particular usage. And that is the short answer.....:)
Laura

[Aprilrain]

it seemed less dangerous than a gun in my mouth.

[Julia_in_Pa]

Hi Dela,

There wasn't any weighing of risks when I started. I knew I had to be on them so my doctor prescribed them.
Now after eleven years of hormone use I have suffered no ill effects and have gained my life because of them.
It was a matter of life or death.


@ April Yes for me as well.


Julia

[JessHaust]

it seemed less dangerous than a gun in my mouth.
Wow, sweety, no reason to there. There's lots of ways to enjoy the femminine lifestyle without either drugs or guns.

[sandra-leigh]

Knowing that there are many members of this board actively taking hormones, my question is how did you weigh the risks versus the benefits in making your decision to proceed with hormone therapy?

I read a bunch, and I had my blood-work done, and then with results in hand, I talked to a trans-health doctor, discussing the weighting of the risks that would apply in my biomedical case.

So-far, the only risk that I feel was under-represented to me was the shortness of breath I experienced with Spiro; it turns out that is a common effect.

The major side-effect in my case that was indeed presented to me as a distinct possibility, but which I would emphasize to people anyhow, was increased cholesterol, leading to my being ranked "high risk" of stroke.

There are other life-threatening medical risks involved. I have been fortunate to not to be encountering them. Some of the members have nasty side effects. The problems are real. It is almost a matter not of "Will I get a side effect?" but rather "Which side effect will I get?"

Jess: Aprilrain is TS. She is not kidding about the gun in her mouth.

[Aprilrain]

Wow, sweety, no reason to there. There's lots of ways to enjoy the femminine lifestyle without either drugs or guns.

Hi Jess, Transsexualism is NOT about enjoying a "feminine lifestyle". Transition was the other option suicide being the first.

If whatever it is you do is a lifestyle choice for you than thank your lucky stars.

[sometimes_miss]

Wow, sweety, no reason to there. There's lots of ways to enjoy the femminine lifestyle without either drugs or guns.

This, unfortunately, is a common belief. Unless you are TS, you will usually have difficulty understanding it. It's not about the clothes. It's not about the 'lifestyle'. It's about who you feel you are. I'm one of those who are 'on the fence'. There are times when the feeling of being female is incredibly strong. There are others, when it's not quite right. I consider myself lucky that I've never felt so uncomfortable in my male body that death was an appealing option.

[candice44]

I am very tempted to buy female hormones on my own off the net but I know must wait until my doctor prescribes them to me.

[Melissa Rose]

The 11th commandment is "Thy shall never self medicate." 'Nuff said.

[Miranda-E]

The 11th commandment is "Thy shall never self medicate." 'Nuff said.

except when there is no other financial option.

[Bree-asaurus]

Wow, sweety, no reason to there. There's lots of ways to enjoy the femminine lifestyle without either drugs or guns.

Not everyone who posts here is a crossdresser. It's not a lifestyle for us, it IS our life. For me it wasn't a gun, it was gonna be 130mph into a cement barrier.

[candice44]

Not everyone who posts here is a crossdresser. It's not a lifestyle for us, it IS our life. For me it wasn't a gun, it was gonna be 130mph into a cement barrier.

I couldn't agree more. I MUST complete my transition to the full

[Danni Bear]

hormones are a very real danger to anyone who takes them. it doesn't matter whether you are a man taking estrogen or testosterone or a woman on hrt therapy. the potential problems are very real and potentially life-threatening. even dr's make mistakes in prescribing the correct dosages, self-medicating is foolish in the extreme. any time you change the makeup of your endoctrine balance is chancy at best, arwork and tests to determine the proper balance for you is pure guesswork on the part of your endo and primary physician. It is all trial and error for a long period of time to achieve the proper balance for your needs and desires. Believe it or not HORMONES are not a magic pill and will not turn a man into a woman. The difference between a man and woman lies not as much in physical differences although there are many of those as it does in mental and emotional responses to the outside enviromental stimulus. women and men look at the world through different lenses. some men (the lucky ones) are born ts or is and have the female view. some women are born with the male view. some (the very lucky few) are born with both.

yet, with all the trials and turmoil that everyone faces daily, the thoughts of many here turn often to self-denial and suicide. this depression inducing affliction is prominent in the tg/ts/is individual. many here have considered this or have attempted it on many occassions, some sucessfully, others thankfully not. suicide is not now nor should it ever be a joking matter here or elsewhere. a gun in the mouth, driving into a wall, hanging, or any of the myriad other ways to self-destruct are no laughing matter.

yes, I know that feeling well, so also do many many others here. hormones have helped me be more calm and ordered in my life. they have helped my emotions and my outlook on life in general. they have stabilized my journey, my relationships with others, and brought joy back into my life. they were never meant to change me physically,although that has occured. that was a benefit that was secondary to the main one, being who I was supposed to be all along.

twelve long years after transition and still on hormones(lifetime to go), no quitting,no turning the clock back, no other choice that I could make and live.

THAT IS AND SHOULD BE THE ONLY REASON TO BEGIN A HORMONE THERAPY for anyone male or female

Danni

[Bree-asaurus]

suicide is not now nor should it ever be a joking matter here or elsewhere. a gun in the mouth, driving into a wall, hanging, or any of the myriad other ways to self-destruct are no laughing matter.

EDIT: I wasn't sure, at first, if Danni was saying April and I were being lighthearted... but she indeed was not saying this. My post is just an extension of what she said:

I don't think anyone here is laughing.

April and I shared this information to show the seriousness of our situation and what decisions led us to HRT. I've been down that road a number of times and it has hurt more than just me. There is nothing light hearted or funny about it.

I wouldn't wish what we have to go through on anyone, and the fact that we were so close to ending it shows that. It also shows that it isn't about enjoying a feminine lifestyle or being girly for a night. It's life or death for many of us and we're just educating those that aren't aware.