Hormones

[Jeremy]

what should i expect from taking hormones? how quickly do they take effect. i know a change will not happen right away, but i was just wondering about others' experiences. i start hormone therapy next month. i'm a little nervous. i know this is right for me but there's a little voice in the back of my head,that's still trying to conform to society. that voice is pissing me off. i've been a FTM since i was 8 years old. i think i've got off subject, sorry. there are so many questions that i have.
jeremy

[Felix]

Congrats first of all on your up and coming hormones and your begining of transition

Yeah you are right hormones affect everyone differently and at different rates it depends on a lot of things. The younger you are the better really coz ya body will just go back through puberty again but a male one. As you get nearer to 40 things may go slower as I have found with many trans peeps I've talked to. As for the little voice in ya head we all have that you will continue to question if its the right thing through out. I have even questioned myself having under gone GRS but thats to do with the reality of the scaring left behind at the moment not whether I'm a man as I know unequivically that I am. So try not to stress too much about that aspect its all about becopming totally self aware of who you are on this journey and believe you me you will discover many things about yourself that you never knew or that you've chose to ignore for what ever reason that you may have to confront.

xx Felix

[AnonyMouse]

Certain effects take longer than others. For instance, increased sex drive and clitoral growth usually show up first (within a couple of months, I think) whereas voice changing and hair and that sort of thing can take upward of a year to really get going. I'm not sure about fat/muscle redistribution and the like, but I do know it's something you'll notice more in the way that your clothes fit than in your reflection at first, and that it does take a few months to get noticeable. Same goes for face shape except you're not putting clothes on it so you should probably take pictures to compare.

[Felix]

Thanx AnonyMouse I usually say exactly what I mean about hormonal changes lol so thanx for being specific in yours. When I think back over the 22 months I've been on 'T' I guess the changes did come just about as you've said above. My sex drive went through the roof and I've always had a strong one lol. It's stayed pretty strong too. I think it's an individual thing though although initially most of us experience the increase in drive. My Clitoris was another thing that increased in size pretty quickly looking more like a small penis as time went on. Body hair took off pretty quickly for me too and now I have full pattern male hair all over my stomach and chest also my lower back is very hairy. Facial hair hasn't been too bad but has taken on far more male pattern since my gender reassignment as there is much less oestrogen in my system, it will take about three months to get to a base line although I don't feel like there is much left now as I can go nearly 4 weeks between my shots. As for my voice first real significant change was at about six months up till then it was up and down and scratchy and like a soar throat a lot. I noticed that the changes seemed to happen every 6 months too
Psychologically I've changed a lot in the way I think and feel and how I react to things, my thinking is more lateral and certainly more black and white although I can still step outside the box which is good. Hope this has helped a bit xx Felix