Is it true that the shots are more effective that the pills?

[teeg]

Also I only have to worry about my HRT once every 2 weeks.

This is one of the major reasons I'm switching to shots...

It's so annoying carrying the pills in my purse and figuring out how to take them three times daily without looking like I'm taking drugs or something...

[Hideyoshi]

Once I got my dosage right, pills are working fine for me. I experience none of these emotional changes throughout the day or whatever that these people are saying since I take half my dose in the morning and half at night. The thing I would be concerned about with injections is messing up and killing myself by hitting a vein with E and the peaks and valleys that come with only getting a dose once every one or two weeks as opposed to consistently every day. The thing about pellets is that they're so damned expensive.

I was already used to taking a bunch of daily medication for autoimmune problems, so the extra 8-some-odd pills I take a day for HRT/t blocking don't really bother me

[Jennygirl]

Pellets are definitely expensive at first, but not in the long run. Once the T factories are gone, it requires a much smaller dose which is actually very comparable to pills because you really only need a few... I think my endo charges around $75 per pellet and at such a low dose (he mentioned likely around 2-3) will only need to be repeated every 6 months. 3 * 75 * 2 = $450/year. That is super cheap!

Okay I'm gonna stop being a pellet cheerleader. I always do this. Sorry y'all!

[Katherine]

I'm using the gel and I can honestly say that after 6 months I do see an obvious change in my breast growth (I'm 60).  It seems to work better for me than the patches I was using.  I haven't tried pills as I believe they go through your liver on the first pass after being digested.  I don't like needles so I haven't gone there yet. 

[Kira357]

I will take other side from Pebbles.  I have been on the pills for the last 39 months and I am a B cup.  But nothing real has happened in the butt/hip area.

It all comes down to YMMV.

This. We are all pre-programmed with the genetic code to be a boy or girl. When T is the predominant hormone, the "boy code" is activated, and when E is the predominant hormone, the "girl code" is activated. When we switch our predominant sex hormone, initiating transition, the dormant genetic code you already have is what you get.

Part of that code may include a better response to one particular delivery method over another, but if your female genetic code is programmed for A-cup breasts then switching delivery methods probably won't magically give you double-D's.

Do all cis-women have double-D's? No. And they get their E internally, directly from the ovarian folllicle and starting at a very young age. At the end of the day, It's all about your DNA and YMMV.

[Rachel]

I am on pills and I take E, AA, P and Fin, 10 pills a day in all.  Which is a lot of pills and sometimes I use to forget if I took them and have to think ( I get up at 3:15 A.M. For work) for a while to remember. I now use a nickel heads and tails for am and pm.

My PA said he would cycle me through pills, patched and injections to see how i fair on each method. I started on pills and he did not switch me. I have had good success but who knows how I would respond on injections. I have to admit I was thinking of asking about injections when I go back in December. I am a little nervous to use a needle.

I asked about pellets ( covered by insurance) and wanted them but they do not offer pellets. I go to a LGBT center in Philadelphia. I thought about going to another provider but I really love where I go. I feel very comfortable there.

[Ltl89]

It seems like those on injections are much happier than those of us on pills.  I'm seriously considering switching for this very reason.  Don't know how to deal with insurance coverage and how to physically get the inejctions (there is no way I'd be able to do it myself) but we'll see.  I'm just tired of feeling like I'm getting less results or moving at a slower rate than everyone else in my age bracket, even at a pretty high dose.  And considering the fact that injections are heavily promoted and endorsed by most who went down that route, there must e something to it. 

[Cindy]

I'm with Jenny. Implants, nothing else gets close.

And extra bonus, you don't come off them for SRS.

[Ltl89]

I'm with Jenny. Implants, nothing else gets close.

And extra bonus, you don't come off them for SRS.

Implants sound great, but they are quite expensive.  I've been wanting to try it, but it makes saving up for SRS and other things more complicated with that expense on top of everything else.  Not to mention the fact that it doesn't seem to be available through every endo which is especially hard considering how much transcare is lacking in most places.  I'm in NY and wouldn't even know where to go for it.  At the end of the day, as tempting as it seems to go that route, it's just not worth it or possible for me in the long run.  Injections on the otherhand does sound possible and effective.  I don't know.  All I really know is that I want to be more happy with my current presentation and pills aren't doing as much as I'd hope.  But you know me, I complain all the time.  It's sort of my MO, lol.

[Cindy]

It really annoys me how we as a community are ripped off. In Australia implants cost me about $120 for six months, I get half of that back from Medicare (our universal medical insurance) . The endo I go to specialises in treating menopause, guess what, menopausal woman don't want pills, patches or injections, why should we?

Our medical concerns deserve the same care as any other woman gets.

So why should we be treated any differently?

OK I've finished my rant!

[Sydney_NYC]

I just switch to injections for my estrogen this week and had my first session on how to self-inject at the same. Even though my doctor commented on how well HRT is working for me we both agreed that switching to injections will help speed things up. Also after 7 months on HRT (pills) my testosterone was still on the high side ( Total Testosterone: 187 ng/dL, Free Testosterone: 4.8 ng/dL) and she didn't want to up the Spiro any more. (She also increased my Finasteride.)

As far as the injections go, the nurse showed me the first time. The second time the nurse with do the syringe and watch me self-inject, then the 3rd time they will watch me do it all. Once they are confident I can do it on my own, then I will do it on my own every 2 weeks. With a 21 gauge needle, there was hardly any pain whatsoever (barely felt anything). It goes pretty deep in the thigh muscle, and the stuff is pretty thick. So we'll see how it goes. It could be in my head, but I swear a had a little breast growth on the 2nd day after my injection. (My wife thought so too and that made her happy as well.)

[noleen111]

I am on injections, and I am very happy with the results.

[Joanna Dark]

Pellets are definitely expensive at first, but not in the long run. Once the T factories are gone, it requires a much smaller dose which is actually very comparable to pills because you really only need a few... I think my endo charges around $75 per pellet and at such a low dose (he mentioned likely around 2-3) will only need to be repeated every 6 months. 3 * 75 * 2 = $450/year. That is super cheap!

Okay I'm gonna stop being a pellet cheerleader. I always do this. Sorry y'all!

That's a great price. Would this be before of after SRS. Like what do you mean by shutting the T factories down. Cause I know some peeps say that as soon as T is suppressed all you need is E.

[Allyda]

I'm very happy for all of you girls who've gotten switched from pills to injections. I wish all of you the very best.

I got switched to estradiol cypionate injections but my insurance won't cover them. I've alerted my Endo concerning this, and have asked him to switch me to estradiol valerate injections instead. I'm hoping my insurance will cover the estradiol valerate injections because they are covering my estradiol valerate pills.

If they don't, I'm afraid I'll be stuck with pills as I can't afford $100. per month for syringes and the estradiol cypionate. I just wanna cry.....

Ally

[Sydney_NYC]

Mine isn't covered at all under insurance. The estradiol valerate is more expensive up front, a 5 month supply costs me about $108, but broken down monthly, it's about $21.60/month. My HRT doctor also switched me from the Propecia dose to the Proscar dose of generic Finasteride (5x the dosage). It's funny that the price of the generic Propecia Finasteride costs me $28 for a 3 month supply (was $158 a year ago), to just $13 for the generic Proscar dose of Finasteride.

[awilliams1701]

I don't get why the insurance would cover some methods but not others. I could see it being all or nothing. Weird.

[awilliams1701]

Rectally?!?!?!?!?!?!!?!?!?

Let me cite a study from: http://www.maturitas.org/article/PIIS0378512299000213/abstract

The bioavailability of oestradiol gel (1.5 mg) is 61% of the tablet (2mg). As the bioavailability of oestradiol tablet (taken orally not Sublingually) is 1%. Thus oestradiol gel is 0.61%.

The bioavailability of oestradiol gel (1.5 mg) is 109% of the oestradiol patch. The bioavailability of oestradiol tablet (taken orally not Sublingually) is 109%+39%=148% of oestradial patch. Hence, bioavailability of oestradial patch is 1/1.48=0.67%

As matter of effectiveness / speed of absorption, the following ranking of methods applied (No.1= fastest):

1. Inhaling
2. Sublingually (8-10%)
3. Rectally
4. Intramascular injection (10%)
5. Skin implant
6. Orally (1%)
7. Skin patch (0.67%)

The cited study / figures support this view.

[Jill F]

After what I've been hearing, I am getting the pellet implant done two weeks after my orchi for sure.

No more "Jill Pills".  EVER.   

And not having to go through "minipause" before any major surgery is awesome.   I don't think I can handle two weeks without E anymore.

[Jennygirl]

After what I've been hearing, I am getting the pellet implant done two weeks after my orchi for sure.

No more "Jill Pills".  EVER.   

And not having to go through "minipause" before any major surgery is awesome.   I don't think I can handle two weeks without E anymore.

Congrats, Jill! You probably won't even need that big of a dose since you won't be fighting testosterone after the orchi. Way to go girl, you're gonna love it! Great decision!

[Jennygirl]

That's a great price. Would this be before of after SRS. Like what do you mean by shutting the T factories down. Cause I know some peeps say that as soon as T is suppressed all you need is E.

My endo said for me there are two ways to suppress T... 1) estrogen and/or 2) gonad removal.

When he started me off, he said that 3 pellets would be enough to suppress the T, no AA's. He said I will never need spiro and that hardly anyone ever does. But doing only 3 pellets before gonad removal means a slow transition- which may be good for some... But I wanted to go full steam ahead so I started at 7 and eventually went up to 12 (his max). Also I always like to state the only reason I am posting amounts here is because pellets are administered by endos only ~ it is surgically implanted... A reminder that any other dosages for other methods will not be allowed (sorry for the disclaimer).

After gonad removal (orchi/srs), he said 2 or 3 will be the max and the rate will be down to 5-6 months. He encouraged me to get orchi sooner because it would be drastically cheaper for me... But since I wanted to get SRS I decided to stay on the high dose and wait.

As with anything, the less stuff you put into your body to get the desired effects are probably better. That is why oral is so horrible.. The amount that you would have to eat to comparatively feminize the same amount versus a pellet is just crazy... Pellets are super efficient, much less estrogen going into your body by weight with much greater effect. Win-win