Quote from: femfem on May 01, 2017, 11:41:22 AMYou mentioned that your waist has stayed roughly the same, which to me suggests that the estrogen overall isn't having much of an effect on you. So, I think what you should do is make sure that your testosterone levels aren't too high (>50 is too much, according to my doctor), and then assess whether or not your body is fit/young enough to see optimal results in coming months.
Testosterone actually keeps the weight off the waist and if men develop fat in the waist area, it's because they consume too many carbs, especially refined and/or because their testosterone levels are diminishing. Young males usually have a slim waist and body and have very high levels of T. Sometimes, adding T/DHEA post-op in some transwomen, despite the fact they have plenty of E, helps reduce their waistline.
QuoteSee, a lot of it is contingent on your human growth hormone production---so that's why young people see great results from HRT.
Not always. I can't tell you how many times I've seen older women have better results on HRT (i.e. breast growth) than very young girls. There is much more than just HGH (human growth hormone).
Quote from: Tori on May 01, 2017, 05:20:13 PMHRT gives you a second puberty. A female puberty. Say you had a female puberty as a child like most women. 1.5 years in, you would be around 11.5 years old. How many 11-12 year olds do you find yourself mistaking for grown women? Puberty will take 7-10 years.
Breast growth usually takes 4-5 yrs though in most ciswomen with final stage usually occurring during pregnancy, probably due to much higher progesterone levels and perhaps other hormones as well (i.e. prolactin).
QuoteHRT isn't magic. Most transitional magic occurs between the ears and with hard, diligent work. HRT will not overcome or reverse much of your first, male puberty on its own. So, YMMV. A second puberty can tip the scales to passing for some, but it won't for many if not most. Not on its own. Not in 1.5 years.
I've seen more than my share of women passing after being on HRT for awhile. You'd be surprised. Within months of starting HRT, I passed and realized I was already living full time as a woman. What tipped the scale for me was facial hair removal + HRT. I already had long hair, no hair recession to speak of, was somewhat petite, 5'6 and my face was androgynous to begin with so that helped a lot. Still, I see many passing quite soon after facial hair removal and HRT, regardless of their height.
QuoteThis is not a website for talking about HRT in depth, like dosage and whatnot. But that information is readily available elsewhere. It is worth learning all you can about HRT so you don't have to be solely at the mercy of the (potentially limited) knowledge of your doctor. Instead you can collaborate with them about your transition. Many doctors give ridiculously low dosages of HRT which can be unhealthy. Especially when combined with an anti androgen. Know your country/state and what kind of transition you can legally obtain with doctor supervision. This varies greatly depending on where you live, but the more informed you are, the more options become available to you.
+1
QuoteBelly fat may be a side effect of your anti androgen. It is a common side effect amongst trans women, and anti androgens like Spiro were never really intended or tested for long term use. If you can get a doctor to prescribe you enough E, it should suppress your T on its own and help move that belly fat where you want it over the course of many, many years. Look at the list of side effects for your anti androgen. Then look at the list of side effects for your estrogen. Then realize estrogen alone at the right dosage can do the work of an anti androgen in like 99.9% of us. Then remember we HAVE to take estrogen already for HRT. Why add the superfluous anti androgen with all its extra side effects, when you can do the same work with estrogen alone? If your doctor thinks you need an anti androgen and menopausal levels of E to transition, then they really don't understand the physical requirements of second puberty.
I agree with you. I think E alone can effectively suppress T but better to take it non-orally, in my non-professional opinion as it has shown to be safer. The bad press about E is due to older forms of estrogens, not bio-identical and having adverse effects at high doses. A doctor treating transwomen needs to understand the differences. If they don't, find another doctor.
Sometimes though, E alone doesn't help keep you slim, in my experience. Even with high enough levels. Sometimes, it's the lack of T and that's where anti-androgens can do more harm than good, in suppressing T too much.
