Stopped injections moved to pills

[shanetastic]

I haven't had great luck with injections at all since I started them so I recently changed back to taking pills daily.

Now, I know this has been debated to heck and back but are they just as effective as injections or close to it?  I just couldn't do injections anymore because it always hurt and I haven't had a good experience with it for months so I changed.

[Ashley315]

there is no evidence of either being more effective.  Some say shots are, others say pills are.  I think any changes HRT causes are purely genetic and not really based on any other factors.

[Janet_Girl]

My endo likes the results of pills over shots.  And I tend to agree.  And i am not real big on shots anyway.

Janet

[shanetastic]

Thanks guy.

I have just been worried that I am hurting myself overall by moving back to pills.  I hated shots to death because they just never agreed with me but I just kept doing them because I always felt like they would have a better effect.  I'll just stop worrying now and go with the flow again :]  No more needles yay!!!

[Alyssa M.]

You are working with a qualified endocrinologist who has experience with transsexual patients, right? Then no worries. I'd trust your doctor.

The risk of oral estradiol is that it passes through the liver an extra time (immediately after digestion) and in processing it, blood clots can form, which can be extremely dangerous, as in life-or-death, call an ambulance now dangerous. So you should make sure that you don't have other risk factors for blood clots, and that you know what to look out for that might signal a problem.

But since you're young and don't smoke (right?) you should be okay. The only thing that should matter in terms of effectiveness (other than the hormone you're using -- premarin versus estradiol, e.g.) is the level in your bloodstream, regardless of how it got there.

~Alyssa

[shanetastic]

my endo prescribes estradiol.

And yeah she wouldn't let me do pills if I was a smoker.

I get blood tests every 6 months as well.

[paulault55]

There is always a debate on which one is better, pills, injections, gel or patches, i was self medicating for 10 months using gel and got good result, I am now under an Endo's care and he likes patches so i switched. it feels like I'm getting more Estrogen even though the dose was reduced a little bit. I have friends that swear by injection and those that swear by pills, i don't think it really matters much, it's the results that count.

Paula.

[vanna]

there is a difference if you check the research of E1/E2 conversion but eventually they all lead to the same place.

some people also respond better to different delivery methods

[LittleAlice]

I have been experiencing typical results on pills for the last 6 months with exception when my body decided my current dosage was way too weak. I have been thinking about the whole injection thing... is it painful? How often do you need a dose on Injections?

[Hypatia]

I switched from pills to injections last year, with the intention of going easier on my liver. I soon discovered that injections work waaayyyy better for me than pills ever did. All the effects of E were suddenly increased. I'm much happier with the injections than I ever was with the pills. The idea that there's no difference between them sounds ridiculous from the perspective of my experience.

As for the relative amounts of each delivery method-- I asked my endocrinologist how can you compare the quantity effectively delivered to the body's tissues. It isn't at all simple to figure out, with one taken orally every day and the other intramuscular biweekly. And the the effective amount of the oral E is reduced by having to go through the digestive system. But by how much? I have no idea.

So I don't see how anyone could make a statement that there's no effective difference between the two, when we lack the data for a quantitative comparison. To be more specific I'd have to cite the dosages I had of each, which isn't allowed here. My doctor never answered my question, I don't think he has any idea either.

[vanna]

agrees"

also this fear of needles has nothing to do with actually having the injection. I cannot remember the last time i felt the injection and i do all of mine. Comes down to good quaility supplies
For me the results are undisputable.

your own milage will vary ofc

[Ashley315]

Okay, If you are on pills and your blood work shows that you have X amount of E in your system.  You should theoretically get the same results as if you were on injections and your blood work shows that you have the same X amount of E in your system.  E is E theoretically and it "should" not matter where you get it from.  You hear people who claim to have better results from one or the other, but, what those claims lack and really can not prove one way or the other is, that what if you had not switched from one form or the other.  How do you know you would not have still achieved the same results?  Maybe it was just time for you body to respond in that way to the E and it wouldn't have mattered if you were on pills or injections.  The end results would have been the same.

The fact is, we just don't know if one is "better" than the other from a results point of view.  People claim better results from both and people claim 0 results from both.  Another problem with it is, How do you quantify results?  It's not something that you can put a number to or measure.  Everyone has their own ideas of what "results" are.  Maybe what you are feeling is nothing more than a placebo effect based on a biased idea that one is better than the other.

I'm not saying that one isn't better than they other.  One may very well be better.  I'm considering doing both injections bi weekly and a pill daily.  Seems to me that might be the best way to go.  If one happens to be better than the other, then you got the grounds covered.  Sorta the way I feel about taking progesterone.  There is no evidence that it helps in any way, but there is reason to believe it can help with breast development so I figured, it can't hurt and if there is even a small chance it will yield better results, go for it.

[Hypatia]

You hear people who claim to have better results from one or the other, but, what those claims lack and really can not prove one way or the other is, that what if you had not switched from one form or the other.  How do you know you would not have still achieved the same results?  Maybe it was just time for you body to respond in that way to the E and it wouldn't have mattered if you were on pills or injections.  The end results would have been the same.

No. I had been taking oral E for over two years, on steadily increasing doses, and the results were consistently modest. Within a week or so after my first injection, my nipples began growing thicker and longer, my breast size increased. In a few weeks my nipples had tripled in size. That's how I quantify results, measurably and objectively. Results like that are impossible to dismiss as just a coincidence. I'll believe my own body before I believe statements like "We just don't know."

I had stopped using progesterone months before that, because I never saw any result from it. There's only one way to account for my sudden and dramatic breast development. Injections work better for me is all I can say, I don't know about you though. YMMV.

some people also respond better to different delivery methods

I think this is the sensible way to approach the question instead of making sweeping statements that aren't backed up by anything.

[Ashley315]

There could have been many other factors involved in your case.  I still stand by my statement.. There is no proof that one is better than the other.  That being said, I don't care what method you use.  Hell inject yourself with anything you want or take any pill you want.  doesn't make a difference to me.  Any endocrinologist will tell you that E is E and I'm WAYYYY more inclined to believe them over someone on a forum.

[Yasuko]

I use climara the patch







removed medication info Jay

[Annwyn]

If you ask many people what works best, pills or injections, you'll get a great many responses varying intensely in range.