Faith's Progress

[KathyLauren]

  Yes my Dear. Do as Kathy says "Take it with a smile"  errrr Kathy are you sure that's how you wanted to phrase that?  I guess it is okay coming from you Kathy.
  But you be careful, Faith, if someone named Bubba says it to you.

Hugs,
   Laurie

* Shakes head. *  Laurie, Laurie, get your mind out of the gutter.  Tsk, what are we going to do with you?  Maybe put you up on a fridge or something.

Around here, calling people "dear" is a local custom.  Tourists think it's quaint.  There are rules, though.  Only a woman can use it, but it can be used when speaking to either a man or a woman.  It is most common woman-to-woman.  If a man used it to a woman, it would be creepy.  And if a man said it to a man, there'd by fisticuffs.  It is considered an acceptable way for a woman to address a stranger.

[Faith]

NO GUTTERS!  No one wants to talk about plumbing or any associated cracks thereof

"My Dear" I did like being called that, too bad she says it to everyone.

Another good start. Mood still up. Sitting here at work (not working) in my red flannel blouse that my wife fitted for me. Much better then the tent shape that it had. I don't have much waist, anything that accents it is good.

[Faith]

Time to add to my journal, progress, diary, verbal vomit, call it what you will.

First, Still feeling good. I've found a mental balance for now, I'll ride it for however long it lasts. I still avoid mirrors for overall views. When I look, it has to be for a specific point .. just hair, just shaving, etc. No full body mirrors, nope.

I sent a private message to Steph and Jayne for some feedback. I really appreciate the time they took to go through a photo session that my Wife insisted that I take, she really got into it. The goal was to narrow down to a photo or two to share. I can't do it. Sorry, I just can't post something that looks like an ugly old dude in a dress .. and legs, yuch, cover those things up. The photos will serve for a future comparison assuming I ever get on HRT.

I will show off my bedtime braid. My wife does it when my hair is still wet before bed.


It's a bit grainy. An old phone in dim light doesn't mix well.

[Faith]

Well, I see that most of my labs results are back. I looked at them, I'm clueless as to what it all means. Summation is, everything is in the green ranges, some teetering on the edge. What that means overall?  No Idea.

10 more days to the next Dr visit ..... *drumming fingers on desk* ......

[Laurie]

My Dear Faith,

  Those lab results are for your doctor to interpret y'know? But if you were to post them you might get some feedback about them that you can understand. Though when it comes down to it "everything is in the green ranges" is really all you need to know and that is provided the ranges are for females.

Your braid makes me jealous. hell having someone to braid it for you makes me jealous.

Hugs,
  Laurie

[Faith]

No HRT for me, these are baselines .. so it's all green ranges for males. But, that's what I meant about 10 days to wait ..... Drs should be on my schedule, not theirs 

No braid credit on my part I just have the hair, she does all the work. I can barely do a simple braid on someone else. She can braid her own hair that way. How the heck can someone do that without being able to see it?

She did say it's getting easier now that it's growing out a bit more.

[Laurie]

I should have remember the hrt part. I'll just blame my lapse on my sometimers affliction and mild migraine.

You have the hair + you have someone to braid said hair = jealous Laurie

What little I have is as blond as when I was a towheaded  young boy.

Day light                                                                             
 

Fluorescent light

[Faith]

I'll have the wife snap a picture from the back with no braid. I can't do it. My arms don't work that way 

[Jayne01]

Well, I see that most of my labs results are back. I looked at them, I'm clueless as to what it all means. Summation is, everything is in the green ranges, some teetering on the edge. What that means overall?  No Idea.

10 more days to the next Dr visit ..... *drumming fingers on desk* ......

I don't understand my blood test result either. Just a bunch of numbers. Seeing my E and T way out of the green band always makes me smile, since the green band is for males.

Waiting can be a drag. I think all the planets and cosmic forces get together to slow time down when you are waiting for something. I also have 10 days to wait....oooo wait, it's now 9 days to my Dr visit. I see him on the 15th to get my implant and get some more blood drawn this Monday prior to seeing the doc.

We can throw some fruit around to pass the time. I seem to have a huge pile here that came from the direction of that fridge over there.

Jayne

[sarah1972]

I just got the results for my one year checkup. The lab keeps switching between male and female for reference ranges, this time they used male and sure enough the values are all out of control (but that is good since they are in normal female range).
I started off on the lower end of Testosterone and now it is virtually non existent.

Here are the reference values my lab uses, maybe that helps making some sense of it:

Female Estradiol Reference Range (pg/mL)
Follicular Phase 19-144
Mid-Cycle 64-357
Luteal Phase 56-214
Postmenopausal < or = 31

Female Testosterone
2-45 ng/dL

Female Testosterone Free
0.1-6.4 pg/mL


Male Estradiol
< or = 39 pg/mL

Male Testosterone
250-1100 ng/dL

Male free Testosterone
35.0-155.0 pg/mL

Baseline testing is normal and usually doctors check frequently until they have adjusted the medication so you have good levels, then they check every 6 - 12 month. Looking back through my results, Testosterone took about 4 month to get into female range while Estradiol jumped into a normal range pretty instantly.

Good luck with your next test!

Well, I see that most of my labs results are back. I looked at them, I'm clueless as to what it all means. Summation is, everything is in the green ranges, some teetering on the edge. What that means overall?  No Idea.

10 more days to the next Dr visit ..... *drumming fingers on desk* ......

I don't understand my blood test result either. Just a bunch of numbers. Seeing my E and T way out of the green band always makes me smile, since the green band is for males.

Waiting can be a drag. I think all the planets and cosmic forces get together to slow time down when you are waiting for something. I also have 10 days to wait....oooo wait, it's now 9 days to my Dr visit. I see him on the 15th to get my implant and get some more blood drawn this Monday prior to seeing the doc.

We can throw some fruit around to pass the time. I seem to have a huge pile here that came from the direction of that fridge over there.

Jayne

[Faith]

I just got the results for my one year checkup. ...<snip>...Baseline testing is normal and usually doctors check frequently until they have adjusted the medication so you have good levels, then they check every 6 - 12 month. Looking back through my results, Testosterone took about 4 month to get into female range while Estradiol jumped into a normal range pretty instantly. Good luck with your next test! ...<snip>...

Yep, my results show the ranges. I thought (hoped) they'd be farther out of whack. I don't know what it means for the next step. Just have to wait and see.

You have the hair + you have someone to braid said hair = jealous Laurie

OK, I said I'd post a couple hair pics. I am just about to go shower so here it is, 3 days dry and ready to wash.

 

[Laurie]

I hate you. All that hair. I like the way it catches the light. Yours is full of color too compared to my thin colorless little mop and I cropped the picture to minimize the bald areas. I am still waiting for mine to change color. Maybe with this puberty it will.

[Faith]

I hate you. All that hair. I like the way it catches the light. Yours is full of color too compared to my thin colorless little mop and I cropped the picture to minimize the bald areas. I am still waiting for mine to change color. Maybe with this puberty it will.

pm me your address and I'll send some to you. I still have a small pony tail around here somewhere.

[Rachel]

Wow, beautiful hair!

[Sarah_P]

I agree, your hair is lovely!

[Faith]

aww, thanks gals. I love my hair.

My hair was handed down from my Mom. The color is primarily glittery silver. The dark has started coming back in for some reason. Maybe something in my diet. Premature gray runs in family from my Mom's side. I started going gray when I was 17.

It's all natural. I don't do anything other than wash, condition, comb. For many years it was simply Head&Shoulders 1 or 2 times a week. I'm a firm believer in minimal work and natural oils.

I am thinning in the front/top. Male pattern thinning I suppose. I can still hide it easy enough when dry. It's real obvious when wet. By thin I mean, thin for me. Plenty of hair compared to others.

[Jayne01]

Add me to the list of people who like your hair.

[Faith]

minor crisis averted. well, no, not a crisis.  Weather changes bother me. Worst when going cold to warm, like now. Total gray bleak mood yesterday. Morning went wrong, found a clump of something on my blouse, set me off even more. Grabbed the grayest shirt that I had, no face glob, didn't even comb my hair .. went to work.
The day dragged and dragged. Got home, couldn't even greet my wife properly. Flopped on the couch, stuck a pillow over my face and snoozed.

My Wife got depressed from it, not knowing what was what, and took the dog for a walk. I got up feeling a bit improved, hit the streets to find her. Met up halfway through the walk. Big hug + explanation.

Nope, not a 'gender' depression. Same old weather induced crappy mood that I've gotten for years. Best approach that I've ever found is to avoid interaction and sleep it off. I am not someone to talk to when in that mood.

Evening continued to improve. Went to my daughters for her birthday, the Wife made dinner. ICK! crappiest ham I ever tasted. Dinner for me was a bust but I still felt better. By the time I got home I was tired but I felt more like myself.

Today is a new day. Tonight is another therapy session. Then some music, unless we cancel. It's outdoors, too nasty and we don't go. Countdown to the next Dr visit ... 6 days

[Katie Ellen]

Nice avatar picture Jayne! You look beautiful.

Sorry to interrupt the thread. I just had to tell her.

[Faith]

Jayne!  You commandeering my thread and you're not even here?!?!
That's ok, It's a good picture and you need to hear it no matter where it's posted, so come visit and respond. hmm, but to read this you'd have to come here so you wouldn't have to visit being already here. Come visit anyway 

Nonsensical side note. I went for a walk around the parking lot (I do this 3-4 times daily for step count, plus I sit too much) .. I digress. I went for a walk and the sun is shining (almost broke a sweat ... stop digressing ...). So, the sun is shining therefore there is a shadow. Catching this shadow out of the corer of my eye .. hmm .. that's a girl's shadow. Granted, shadows are distorted depending on time of day, angle, blah blah blah. Still, typically no matter how distorted it was it still looked like a guy walking when I bothered to pay attention. Today, I saw no guy in the shadow at all.

progress

now, if only I could get some boobs in the shadow instead of only one boob .....