Supposed to have started hrt last Friday... (vent/rant)

[Ryan B.]

I had a doctors appointment last Wednesday. Thought I was going to get my T script then (I had my results from my blood work). I wanted to just go with the injectable T, since it's the most affordable... but no, my nurse practitioner wouldn't back down about trying "pellets" first. She barely listened when I told her I was paying out of pocket and that I knew my insurance wouldn't cover it. So I said fine... she said I would get a call Friday and would be able to come in that day to either get the pellets (if I could afford them...) or get my T script...

Well I heard nothing Friday. Emailed her and she said it must have got delayed because of the labor day weekend and to expect a call Tuesday... today. Nothing. I've emailed her again, no response as of yet.

Let me just say, I am absolutely livid, frustrated and just all around upset right now. I don't understand... did she literally forget about me? I know it wasn't this difficult for my ex to start hrt. Why the hell am I running into so many problems?

I've been waiting so long to begin hrt... and it just keeps getting pushed back. Every time I'm told to expect a call and then hear nothing, I get so damn upset. I feel like I'm just being jerked around.

[CursedFireDean]

I am in the exact same boat. I got my bloodwork done two and a half weeks before I had to leave the country, and my doctor didn't call me about the results until I was out. She didn't want to make an appointment over the phone internationally so she told me the results then said to call back when I got home and she implied I'd get an appointment very close to then. I got home 20 minutes after they closed on Saturday which meant I had to wait until this morning to call. I kept getting their voicemail for half an hour, and finally, when I got an answer, there was a whole lot of confusion. Now basically the earliest appointment is next Monday midday, and they're not even 100% sure they'll teach me to inject then or if I have to schedule another appointment. Through all this ->-bleeped-<- I will be starting T a month later than I was supposed to. I'm having a really hard time with it right now, because we are cutting it awfully close to college and if it gets delayed again I have to start without T. I just want to f-ing start it already, I've waited long enough.

[Nygeel]

Wouldn't it be a better idea to get a prescription for the pellets and fill it yourself at a pharmacy? That way you can ask them how much it costs and all. Usually takes a day or two if it's not in stock.

[Ryan B.]

Wouldn't it be a better idea to get a prescription for the pellets and fill it yourself at a pharmacy? That way you can ask them how much it costs and all. Usually takes a day or two if it's not in stock.

I don't know. I think I have to have them inserted at the clinic. They numb the area and do it; so maybe that's why she wanted to do things this way.

I just want to f-ing start it already, I've waited long enough.

I'm with you there. =(

[Nygeel]

I don't know. I think I have to have them inserted at the clinic. They numb the area and do it; so maybe that's why she wanted to do things this way.

Do you know the name of the pellets?

[aross1015]

Do you know the name of the pellets?

Don't know about the OP, but Testopel is one that I know of. 

[Nygeel]

Don't know about the OP, but Testopel is one that I know of.

Testopel (according to my basic searching) costs roughly $100 per pellet.

[Ryan B.]

Testopel (according to my basic searching) costs roughly $100 per pellet.

If that's the one she wants me to be on, I really can't afford that. u_u;

[Nygeel]

If that's the one she wants me to be on, I really can't afford that. u_u;

Dosage ranges from 1-6 pellets every 3-6 months (bazillions of variables thar).

[aross1015]

If that's the one she wants me to be on, I really can't afford that. u_u;

Even if you can afford it, shouldn't you have some say in your own treatment?  If you ever do get a call from her, don't back down that you want injections and not the pellets.  In the meantime be on the look for a new doctor. 

[invisiblemonsters]

i was in the same boat as you. i hated the waiting so much and it would be the LITTLEST things that made me not be able to get my shot fast enough. things like not the right needles, etc. it was so brutal so i understand 100%, i'm sure a lot of us do. as for the pills, i find it very weird she would even recommend those instead of the shots. first, they are expensive and second, they have a higher chance of causing liver problems? she should know this tbh. people go for shots because yes, it is cheaper, easier and you get your results faster. the pills are the least effective way of stopping your periods, too. when i went on t, my endo asked me what ways i wanted to do it and most recommend the shots anyway.

[CursedFireDean]

as for the pills, i find it very weird she would even recommend those instead of the shots. first, they are expensive and second, they have a higher chance of causing liver problems?

The pills do cause liver problems, but OP is talking about pellets that are injected. I don't know exactly how they work but I guess they slowly release the T into the body. No liver digesting with pellets. If I had to guess id say the doc probably likes this because it's fewer injections.

[Ryan B.]

So, I finally got a call from my clinic. They told me I should get a call in 10-15 mins from the company that fills the scripts for the pellets (I guess?). When I finally got in touch with them they said that without the help of insurance it would probably cost $120... money I just don't have. u_u;  So, I told them to go ahead and try to run it by my insurance, but I really doubt they will cover any of it. I'm not really sure where to proceed from here.. feel like this was a bunch of unnecessary wasted time tbh.

[CursedFireDean]

So, I finally got a call from my clinic. They told me I should get a call in 10-15 mins from the company that fills the scripts for the pellets (I guess?). When I finally got in touch with them they said that without the help of insurance it would probably cost $120... money I just don't have. u_u;  So, I told them to go ahead and try to run it by my insurance, but I really doubt they will cover any of it. I'm not really sure where to proceed from here.. feel like this was a bunch of unnecessary wasted time tbh.

I feel you. I feel like so much of my time has been wasted too, at the expense of having an even later appointment too.

[Dee Marshall]

...When I finally got in touch with them they said that without the help of insurance it would probably cost $120... money I just don't have. u_u;  So, I told them to go ahead and try to run it by my insurance, but I really doubt they will cover any of it....

I hope that you'll be pleasantly surprised. I got my first estradiol last night and it was covered which I hadn't expected.

[aross1015]

Advocate for your care.  Tell the NP you want injections and will only accept injections.  In the meantime, just in case she is unwilling to budge (which I feel she might be unwilling to seeing as she seems to see you as a science experiment) call doctors and ask if they work with trans men, ask if they prescribe them hormones, ask what is needed to get prescribed hormones. 

[Ryan B.]

Advocate for your care.  Tell the NP you want injections and will only accept injections.  In the meantime, just in case she is unwilling to budge (which I feel she might be unwilling to seeing as she seems to see you as a science experiment) call doctors and ask if they work with trans men, ask if they prescribe them hormones, ask what is needed to get prescribed hormones.

She won't budge. There's someone else at the practice who has successfully treated trans people with the pellets... so she refuses to go with the injections... she also says the pellets will make transitioning smoother... so far they've only made my life a living hell.

I've already had friends suggest other places... but they all require a therapist's letter and I'm actually trying to go through informed consent.

[Ryan B.]

So, can anyone tell me; if I've started HRT through informed consent, can I then switch to a different clinic that requires a therapist letter? Or would I need the letter first? Or is it basically a case by case thing?

I'm thinking right now, I don't really have many choices without prolonging things even more... So maybe I could accept her terms this time, and then switch over to a different clinic? If I will still need a letter, my friend recommended to me a therapist that works on a sliding scale...

[Nygeel]

So, can anyone tell me; if I've started HRT through informed consent, can I then switch to a different clinic that requires a therapist letter? Or would I need the letter first? Or is it basically a case by case thing?

I'm thinking right now, I don't really have many choices without prolonging things even more... So maybe I could accept her terms this time, and then switch over to a different clinic? If I will still need a letter, my friend recommended to me a therapist that works on a sliding scale...

Depends...if you have noticeable changes and have done some of the legal stuff you shouldn't have a problem.

[aross1015]

Seems like it'd be easier and cheaper just to go to the sliding scale therapist.  Do you know about how long it takes for them to issue you a letter?