Very itchy nipples...

[HelloKitty]

For the last week or so my nipples have been very itchy. Recently began a new HRT regimine that includes Prometrium and Suprefact (Estrace for E).

Well before this there was no aching, sinsitivity or itching. They are more itchy than achy but periodically they do ache a lil.

Am wondering id this is an early sign of growth or maybe my skin is just too dry or something?

[V M]

Very typical sign of growth that will repeat it'self during growth spurts over time    It takes awhile for some to get going but first mine were very itchy and then began to ache some, then the aching became rather intense for a few months then subsided for awhile before going through another cycle

[Beth Andrea]

I usually experience growth after an itchy spell...early on I could feel the specific area that was about to...bloom...(directly behind the nip, around to the side, 1/2"-3/4" below the nip, etc) but now it's a generalized volume increase (and the itchiness is no longer isolated to the nipple area, it's more like from there to almost the chest)

"nip" = areola, btw

Itchy is a good thing!

[noleen111]

itchy means.. breast growth

[HelloKitty]

Yay, this sooo exciting!! . Hopefully I won't have to keep stuffing for too much longer   

Okies ladies, TY

[spx_1112]

Great news. Hugs Shannon

[Ms Grace]

Yep, definitely good news. I was recommended to use extra moisturiser... worked a treat.

[Jill F]

Sometimes massaging them helps on achy days.

I love my sore little boobies. 

[Ashey]

I wish I was getting the itchiness or soreness so I'd know. xD I already started with mild gynecomastia so I can't be too sure about growth under the layer of fat. I think I feel something, and my endo said he felt actual breast tissue, but there hasn't been much soreness and no itchies. :\ I guess they feel a bit firmer though... *shrugs and waits*

[Beth Andrea]

I wish I was getting the itchiness or soreness so I'd know. xD I already started with mild gynecomastia so I can't be too sure about growth under the layer of fat. I think I feel something, and my endo said he felt actual breast tissue, but there hasn't been much soreness and no itchies. :\ I guess they feel a bit firmer though... *shrugs and waits*

Breast growth is a process...my first itchiness happened some weeks after HRT, and has continued off and on since then (about 20 months).

If you're getting breasts...you'll itch even under a layer of fat. And I would think the ducts would be displacing the fat, as well. But I'm not a doctor, I'm not even a mechanic! He's dead, Jim...

oh wait, flashbacks to ST TOS....Beam me up, Scotty!

[Paulagirl]

Mine itch, ache, or are sore, alternately, but in no particular order. I consider it a right of passage, and I'm proud the girls are starting to do something useful!

[Sammy]

I was reading on this subject recently and... it was written somewhere that it is very advisable to increase Your iodine intake during the period of breast growth (this article was about growth stages in cis-girls). It turns out, iodine is quite essential, yet it is never explicitly mentioned in any of wiki articles about TS HRT regimens.

[Ms Grace]

Thanks, that was extremely interesting, Emily. I was possibly iodine deficient during my first transition attempt which may have (at least in part) accounted for my very meagre breast growth at the time. This time, no problem on either count.

After doing some more digging, the issue seems tied to the thyroid gland (obviously, makes sense) and cis women with thyroid problems can experience breast size changes. One has to be extremely careful with iodine though - too little creates deficiency and that is a common Western malaise but it's easy to have too much and that will cause hyperthyroidism which is worse and dangerous.

So yes, iodine, like many dietary nutrients, is important for health and breast growth... but for anyone who is might now be contemplating ODing on iodine supplements in the hope of bigger boobs be advised it is a very, very, very bad idea.

[Beth Andrea]

My regular bloodwork checkups show thyroid being A-Okie-Dokie!

Another reason for doing HRT under medical supervision!

[FrancisAnn]

Great for you! It is such a nice feeling.

I'm on the patch & spiro for 3 months & mine also itch some days & kind of burn on some days, not every day just some days. However they are always sensitive. Breasts seem to be adding some fat.

Good luck GF.

[Violet Bloom]

  I just saw my doctor yesterday at the eight-week mark on Spiro.  She asked me if I had felt anything in my chest/breasts suggesting there was a good chance I should have but there's been nothing.  I've now been started on the entry-level of Estrace before they make the move to max-out the Spiro dose.  Perhaps this will bring some action on the boob front.

[Beth Andrea]

  I just saw my doctor yesterday at the eight-week mark on Spiro.  She asked me if I had felt anything in my chest/breasts suggesting there was a good chance I should have but there's been nothing.  I've now been started on the entry-level of Estrace before they make the move to max-out the Spiro dose.  Perhaps this will bring some action on the boob front.

Some do start growing with just AA, but I'm not sure that most do. Most of my growth was a few months after maxing out the E...

btw, the dosage level isn't about any given "max" amount, they should try to give you the dose that will result in appropriate hormone levels (E and T) In my case, I'm at about half the "typical" dose for Spiro, because that's enough to get my T down to a negligible level.

[Sammy]

I had absolutely no growth with Spiro (I was on Spiro only for 1 month). Then, after two weeks with added E, things started to go upwards... no frontwards..., upfront, lol, quite rapidly

[Ms Grace]

Yes, I can't imagine AAs having any mammary growth potential unless maybe they were blocking low levels of natural or dietary E in your system...??

[Violet Bloom]

  Not that I was expecting growth or even just itching/pain from AAs alone, but at least minor breast development is officially listed as a possible side effect from Spiro.  As to "maximum" dosage, my clinic's standard practice usually involves ramping up to what is considered the common practical maximum (in any application) for Spiro, a value which I obviously can't quote here.  My doctor seems intent on getting there eventually and I am trusting them given the clinic's dedicated and experienced LGBT health program.  (A number of the staff are HRT patients themselves.)  So far everything is going incredibly smoothly for me and multiple blood tests and blood pressure readings along the way have all been "perfect" (that was a direct quote from them).  That said they may taper off the Spiro a little later on once the E is as high as needed.  They are going to great lengths to ensure any side effects that may arise can easily be isolated to one medication or the other.