So I just recently hit four months on HRT and I thought I might share some of the effects I've noticed. However I will preface this by saying that this is my second time - I was on HRT for 26 months some 22 years ago... does that really make it 30 months on HRT? At the time I was not very happy with the changes in my body but I was not very happy generally, looking back at photos near the end of the first time I had actually feminised significantly, even to a point where people were unsure of my gender even if I was presenting as male. My body re-masculinised somewhat once I stopped, but it took a few years and even then the original effects were never completely undone, body hair and beard were still finer, skin finer, and so forth. Unfortunately where the T really picked up was alopecia and my scalp has thinned significantly across the top... which has been very depressing and distressing. Oh well! My testes, small to begin with, shrunk during the HRT so probably effected my overall T which has been lowish ever since (so the balding could have been worse, small mercy I suppose). Plus I've been vegetarian for over 26 years now, a relatively healthy one with good iron, protein and calcium, etc; unbeknownst to me until last year it has also been fairy high in natural estrogen, obviously not enough to do anything dramatic but still maybe a potential factor in halting the slide back to full T.
That's the set-up, I've been on HRT again just over four months now... different endo and different drugs. Maybe we can't call it 30 months in total, let's call it 12 and split the difference! I've been astonished at how much my body appears to have responded to the treatment this time. As noted above I wasn't very happy with results last time, very slow and minimal after 24 months, especially in the chest development area. I did now that was common but it was still disheartening, being very tall meant I really needed a bit of a bust.
What have I noticed this time?
- Significant breast growth (still had glandular development left over from last time, so maybe acted as a launching pad?)
- Skin becoming very smooth, my facial features gave softened and I look younger(ish) (I am 47 after all!)
- Gaining weight in some areas - notably hips, bum and boobs - but loosing it off my back, shoulders, upper arms and waist
- I find I'm sweater, that happened last time, and isn't fun. But I do notice that it doesn't smell like man sweat, especially the armpits.
- Body hair regrowth slowing and becoming finer (with help from waxing)
- Beard finer and slower to grow (ditto waxing but now also electrolysis. Yes, beard waxing hurts!)
- More flexible, really noticing it in yoga!
- Scalp no longer itchy, dry scalp so much better now, lost hair appears to be regrowing (with help of Regaine) and has a much softer feel to it.
- I find my voice naturally pitching lighter (not higher) my laugh too
- Zero libido. Absolutely nothing. I still find women beautiful and attractive, but my sexual desires and associated physical responses are completely gone. And I don't miss it at all.
- My female persona is keener than ever before to surface full time, she's deep inside me but closer to emerging, it's not just a thinking thing
I'm pretty happy with progress, or if you like, "renewed progress". If I had tried dealing with my beard and thinning hair before restarting HRT I could be in a position to transition full time, but as it is I expect to have to wait at least another six months. Stay tuned!