I have just gotten to the 1 year mark in taking HRT medications (which I cannot disclose dosages of on this site). It has been an interesting trip.I was 50 years old when I began The first month I was on a very small dosage and didn't feel a whole lot of change though I had some tired spells. I think the main thing was that I had no bad reactions to the meds. After that I moved to a larger dosage though small compared to what most of the people eventually end up with. I felt some tingling sensations in my breast and felt a little growth there also skin seemed to soften up. After 3 months I went to the doctor and she wanted me to up the dosage. I was happy where I was at and liked the slow change I was somewhat afraid of fast changes so I remained at that dosage for 3 more months and stopped for 3 weeks when I had a colonoscopy, I think the doctor there did not know a whole lot about the effects of my meds and had me stop just to be safe, I am not sure it is 100% neccessary. So 7 months after starting treatment I went back to the doctor and upped my dosage with the new dosage my breasts began growing very quickly and hair started growing back on my head. I had extreme mental clarity also. About a month into the higher dosage I had a 2 week tired spell, but that only lasted 2 weeks. My cheeks have puffed up, now facebook facial recognition does not pick me up even without make up on. About a week ago I woke up one morning felt my breasts, looked in the mirror and saw a girl, I had spent 11 months debating if it was worth it and how much work besides the hormones I would need but now here I am. I go out in jeans with no make up and half the time I get called mam. I still need a little work on my facial hair, 20 hours of electrolysis has gotten rid of quite a bit of it, but I still need to shave every 4 days or so to keep those spotty little whisker patches under control.
