Susan's Place Transgender Resources

Is there an optimum range of T for effects?  I mean does each person have a specific dosage that would be found through experimentation through them and their doctor, that would provide the absolute primest results? 

Do you have experience with such a thing?  Have you worked with your doctor and found a perfect dose for yourself? 

Considering that virtually no medical studies have been done on dosage or long term effects of T on female biology, that's a real crap shoot. Throw in the, "everyone's a little different" or has different health things going on (existing conditions, existing hormone levels) factor and that throws it off even more. Simple observations of FTMs show that T produces a range of results and a lot of things effect the results. So I would say, "absolute primest results" is a personalized thing and not something the medical field can even predict. I think even now doctors have pretty much just made up dosages for the purposes of transition just from educated guesses because again they don't have any studies on transmen. It takes working very closely with your doctor, getting medical tests continually and finding a level that gives you the results you want to see with the lowest possible ill effects.

and that is just what I said in my post.  I may have not worded it well but I was figuring this part

Quote from: Andy8715 on March 09, 2011, 10:23:36 PM
I mean does each person have a specific dosage that would be found through experimentation through them and their doctor, that would provide the absolute primest results? 

would get what I am trying to ask across. 

Quote from: Andy8715 on March 09, 2011, 10:49:27 PM
and that is just what I said in my post.  I may have not worded it well but I was figuring this part

would get what I am trying to ask across.

Guess you have an answer then. See what other people say, but they'll probably say something similar - it's very individualized.

Of course it's individualized.  I'm not denying or disputing that fact.  I'm trying to see if it's actually possible.  I added more to my original post so.

Quote from: Andy8715 on March 09, 2011, 10:23:36 PM
Is there an optimum range of T for effects?  I mean does each person have a specific dosage that would be found through experimentation through them and their doctor, that would provide the absolute primest results? 

Do you have experience with such a thing?  Have you worked with your doctor and found a perfect dose for yourself? 

Yes. I have for me. And I had to consider the following:

1. Age: being near an age where menopause could start. If I had started younger I may have had a diff dosage

2. Body type: already stocky and short also had to be taken into consideration

3. Health effects: for the 1st 2 years I had blood work every 3-4 months to ensure no severe side effects hit. Now I have blood work once or twice a year.

If/when I get a hysterectomy done, then I'd have to adjust it then (or if menopause hits, whichever is first).

The first few months of taking T was where I did that "optimization" to figure out what dosage I need. My last blood work showed me in the 600 range for T which is more than adequate.

Yes, there is an optimum range of T for the effects. The goal (for most) is to create or mimic the same measurable levels of hormones that occur in healthy men who are not trans & do not have other conditions.

It will be a personalized/individualized dosage that will produce these results.

There are so many factors about how your body handles synthesized hormones that are unique to you. For example, you have a certain number of androgen receptors cells. That varies by the person. The number of cells capable of funneling T and making it useful for the body is limited by this number. Also, different people have different sensitivity in their androgen receptors. More sensitive androgen receptors produce more androgenic effects with less 'fuel.'

Finding the 'right' dose is definitely a trial & error system of dialing in on what your body does and monitoring. But since your body is always changing as you age and in response to other things happening to you (physiologically, your environment, your behavior), it isn't even correct to say that you have one idealized dose. You theoretically could find *one* idealized dose for NOW, and that may change over time too. You have to be monitoring and adjusting to optimize the dosage holy grail.