Questions about Hormone Blockers and Testosterone?

[Ronan]

-Hormone Blockers:
Is their an age where you are "too late" for hormone blockers? I've heard doctors won't prescribe you blockers if you already reached/finished puberty, not sure if that is correct, though.

If you are, or have been on hormone blockers, what side effects did you experience? It's different for everyone.

How often do you need to take the hormone blocker? I know for testosterone you take a shot every week.


-Testosterone:
How masculine would testosterone make me? I don't want to look MANLY, I want to look boyish.


Taking hormone blockers seems better since I don't want to become unrecognizable to relatives and still want to maintain my androgynous look.

And, also, do you need to have an examination of "certain organs" before prescribed any hormonal treatment? And if you were required to take an exam, you were with only your doctor and it was quick, right?


Sorry for the many questions, but help will be appreciated since I'm finally going to come out to my parents really soon and would like to let them know what can make me happier in my own skin. (Luckily they're not transphobic and I know would just want me to be happy...)

[kelly_aus]

I am not a doctor..

As far as I'm aware, puberty blockers are essentially useless after puberty has finished.. So, no, they won't prescribe them at that point. As for the effects of T, you get what you get, it's not something you have a huge amount of control over. Low doses may slow down changes, but in the end, you will end up with whatever changes you were going to get regardless of dose.

Estrogen blockers come with their own issues, like, you can't exist long term without some kind of sex hormone active in your system, it results in some serious issues.

Short version? You get what you get, you don't get to pick and choose.

[FTMax]

Not medical advice, but Kelly is right. After puberty is over, blockers aren't going to be of much help to you. What you may want to look into is low dose HRT. That is what I've heard of people doing who identify as more neutral or androgynous.

That said, HRT is not predictable on an individual scale. I was on a low dose of topical testosterone for my first month of HRT and got plenty of changes. It largely depends on your body and genetics and what they predispose you to. When my doctor and I first met, she told me I was an ideal blank canvas for testosterone - I was very masculine to start with. In a little over four months on HRT (one month at what is considered a half dose), I have experienced all of the expected body changes that come from testosterone use.

So it really is a mystery grab bag basically. There are some good blogs out there from individuals going the low dose route. You could also consider going on until you reach a desired level, and then stopping.