Questions about breast development?

[annajasmine]

I'm 33 and almost done with my fifth month of hrt. During this month I had significant breast growth. I was wondering would my breast continue growing at this rate or does it happen in growth spurts?  Also I'm getting like knots around the center of my breast. The knots hurt for a day or two then disappear is this normal? The knot been have happening for a while now. Since I was fat and already had some male breast. I thought shouldn't get real sore but last month was horrible. I was so sore in the nipple area. They were burning, tender, and puffy is this anything to worry about?

Thanks for any info,
Anna

[iminadaze]

I don't think you should worry (unless it's about how bad the pain might become...hehe)

I also get the pains you are referring to. It started at about 3 weeks for me and I always feel it (but I took phyoestrogens prior to HRT)
Somedays are worse than others. mine really hurt when I'm outside and it is cold.
I't must be a sign of growth. I am now about 3 months into HRT and If I wear a T-shirt, even a loose one, my breasts show through.
and I am skinny and had no chest at all.

[Isabel]

My case (well my road to HRT) is definitively different than other TS, but still with similar results.  I started on hormones on a low dosage about 6 years ago.  However my breast started developing immediately along with the itching and wonderful sensitivity.  Growth was definitively at stages and during periods.  However after about a year the growth pretty much stopped - and I was convinced that that was it.  I loved the sensitivity and softness but their size left  much to be desired.

For the last  years I was pretty much "stuck" with very pointy and conical shaped pair that could definitively been noticed through pretty much any shirt (less so with thicker darker shirts, which was often the trick I used).  Ironically, except for the very occasional joke about men breasts and age no one made a comment about them - Even when shirtless or in a pool or beach.  Of course being so self conscious about them I avoided shirtless situations and if in the pool or beach, i would spend most of the time either under water (where I felt they are less noticeable, thus making me more comfortable), or putting a shirt or towel right after I got out and of course with back to the rest of the people as often as possible.  It was definitively not he best of times - from a breast perspective, of course.  At some point i pretty much stopped taking hormones all together (for unrelated reasons).  The growth stopped altogether (thankfully the sensitivity never went back) and would only vary in proportions with my weight and based on weather.  While all the women in my family are at least a VERY FULL C (including my sisters who was a D+ before reduction surgery, and my mother that has been a D her full life) I had lost all hope of any further growth or development.

Recently, now at 36 with little or no expectations whatsoever for further breast development I decided to restart my intake, but now at "normal" TS dosages.  My hopes were that through some dieting and little fat redistribution I could make my shapeless A-Cup sized breast somewhat ore "normal".  Was I wrong!!!  My breasts went immediately in overdrive and the itching, wonderful sensitivity came right back.  However, more noticeable than size was the their more rounder and fuller shape than they took right away.  They are not so much bigger than before, but unmistakably feminine.  They jumped right away to a FULL A or small but well defined B.  Now if I wear a 36B Bra with a shirt, she shape is clearly outlined and is all mine.  I love it.  Never in my life I've been drawn towards bras, as I felt they didn't do much for me, so i felt more like a cross-dresser when wearing one (not that there's anything wrong with that, but I couldn't relate).  Now it clearly makes a difference and I can see myself wearing bras a lot more often.  Since I have to continue living as a male at least for a while (for work, family, and friend reasons) I would need to control myself not to overdo it LOL.

Since then, i have become a lot more optimistic, and of course I hope for a nice 36C which is my ideal size.  But I must admit that I would be really happy with a FULL 36B as long as they continue to developed as shapely as they are.  At 36 years old I really don't have much hope for it or any additional physical changes, but clearly growth has not stopped completely and it gives me something to look forward to.  Particularly now that I'm back on HRT and this time for good.  My next trip to the pool will be interesting.  LOL.  I think that I can still disguise it as gynescomatia, but I'll soon find out whether people stare or not. 

[Berliegh]

Mine grow the odd spurt every now and then, even after 10 years of HRT but I still haven't got the same amount as a genetic female would have..

[gothique11]

I started HRT in August 2006. Mine grew, stopped, grew, stopped, I lost weight, they shrank -- or seemed to -- although, my whole body got smaller and so did my overall chest and shoulder size... I look at older pictures, or even my brother who was the exact size and build I was, and realize that I'm way tinier than I used to be, at least half if not a bit more than half of the size do to fat redistribution and muscle loss... a whole lot of muscle lost.

Now, they are growing again, after a month or two where they seemed to stop and shrink (and fyi, when women lose weight, ie fat, their breasts tend to shrink a bit and add that to muscle loss... it freaked me out for a bit until I realized what was going on).

So, expect a lot of changes with the HRT, expect growth spurts, etc.

--natalie

[NicholeW.]

Breasts are almost totally fat and will expand and contract with weight gain/loss.

The sore spots and knots are breast buds. They are a natural result of the mammary glands in the presence of estrogen. No, you are likely not getting a cancer or a cyst -- although that may be something women should be aware of, particularly if you have siblings or moms who have recurrent cysts.

Otherwise, sounds like you're growing normally. IM micronized progesterone will tend to put an end to the conical breast-growth. Talk to your doctor about it.

N~

[annajasmine]

Thanks for the information. Here a little update since my original post is about 3 months old. Well the buds have mostly gone for about a month now but still pop up every once in a while. I'm still sore a lot of the times I found that wearing a bra helps a little for the deeper soreness but nothing helps the nipples from feeling like they just been rubbed with sandpaper.


Thanks again,
Anna