My apologize if this topic should go in the HRT section, but since I'm post op I thought this was the
proper place...
Since my SRS in 2002 I've been followed for about 10 years by what I ended up with deeming a very bad
medical equipe. After some initial unsuccesfull attempts, they put me on Yasmin regularly, and I
have been taking it for about 8 years. Please note that Yasmin, being drospirenone + ethynilestradiol,
is a pretty lethal combination of synthetic progrestins and estrogens, usually prescribed for contracception,
and which should NEVER be used for replacement therapy (I simply heard of that recently).
I seriously ran into the risk of dieing for blood clotting, but that is another matter and I'm not to talk of that
now. They were just that, a bad equipe, also they almost never examined me, just blood checks.
But that is not the point now.
With said therapy I felt, well, normally, I mean neither too bad nor too good.
That was until I finally decided to change my endo, about one year ago, when I found another specialist,
now privately, who is more skilled with HRT for TG.
She listened to my story, examined me and checked my blood tests, and told me to stop Yasmin
immediately and to start taking bio-identical estradiol only, in form of transdermal gel (I can't perhaps tell
the dosages here).
Well after just 1 or 2 weeks I started feeling strange, then quite bad. I started progressively to notice
all the following symptoms: increased stress and irritability, demotivation, strange sensations inside my
head and nose resembling sinusistis (but I checked that with a specialist and I haven't) and a very
acute ringing in my ears (or in my head, as it more resembles to me) almost 24/7, increased sweating and
cold in the fingers, and even some focusing issues, as if my eye lenses had lost elasticity. Also a strange
skin eruption between my breasts and my navel appeared, which is not itching though.
And not just that, unfortunately I also started to experience unexplainable nasty androgenic effects:
increased facial skin fat, increased scalp fat (I need now to shampoo every other day!), abundant
scalp hair loss, white dots of fat on my face and my shoulders. And now, on a longer timelapse, I can
even confirm: decreased breast (almost 40% gone, mine was mine, no silicon) and increased hair growth
in the groin (bikini) and thighs (notice that I never epilated my thighs but hairs are now becoming
visible!). Not all: even unexplainable increase in libido (which somebody may think it's fine but for me is
not) along with reoccurrence of uretral secretions, and even a strong increase in my congenital dysphoria
(i.e increased refusal of every male remains in my body and my aspect, discomfort and concerns about me
being ugly and not female enough, about my surgery which went not so fine and about revisions, etc).
Pretty all nasty things I had almost forgotten of since I started HRT years before I had SRS !!! How is all
that possible ? I feel REALLY REALLY BAD.
Please note that I talked suddently with my new endo of all these bad effects at my next date, but she almost denied the new therapy can be the cause of them !!! She just suggested me to add Avodart in
attempt to fix the androgenic effects, but it's now since 8-9 months that I've been taking it too but without
any improvements, it's like drinking sugared water, always losing hairs and shampoing ! I will see her next
week for my third checkup, but I really fear she will negate all the above again !
Here's my current hormone levels FYI (I hope I'm allowed to...)
LH 8.02 mlU/mL
ESTRADIOL 426.3 pg/mL (isn't a bit too high ??)
TESTOSTERONE 0.14 ng/mL
DHEAS 109.4 mcg/dL
Beside the perhaps too high extradiol levels, what may be the cause of my androgenic problems ??
So I made a guess - but I'm not a doctor: is it perhaps the lack of progesterone causing me
all those troubles ? Since as I told I have been taking a progestin (even if harmful as drospirenone) for
many years, now my body is perhaps experiencing such an abrupt withdrawal...? Perhaps I should ask
or suggest her to add some progesterone to my therapy ?? I hope she will understand how bad I feel
now, I will have to find still another endocrinologist otherwise
Thanks for any suggestion !!
