For the last 9 months I have been taking black cohosh supplements and have been following the recommended dosage on the package.  I like the way it makes me feel - sort of mellow.  I am wondering if there is any advantage to increasing the dosage and whether there is a safe limit.

At some point, I want to start a more serious transition process, including HRT, but for now testosterone suppressants will have to do!

Thanks in advance for any advice,

Although this is only a herbal concoction please understand that taking more than the prescribed dose can still be dangerous. For example...

QuoteLarge doses of black cohosh have been reported to cause

nausea,
dizziness,
seizures,
visual disturbances,
reduced pulse rate, and
increased sweating.

Additionally, herbals are usually only of minor benefit, if at all. Menopausal genetic women may gain some benefit from the anti-androgenic features of herbals such as black cohosh but that's primarily because the herb is only working against a low level of testosterone. When up against the powerhouse effort of testes it doesn't stand a chance. You might find you start sweating a lot and may put on weight, that is the usual effect of low T in genetic males.

Miril, I'm a supplement user too, and I'm getting great results. Please remember we all have to follow these guidelines found in the Hormone Replacement Therapy forum when discussing our supplements:

Quote from: Susan on July 26, 2013, 11:49:03 PM
You may discuss over the counter, prescription medications, and (OTC) herbal supplements in the HRT board provided doing so falls under the terms of service.

You may not disclose excessive copyrighted information on the site that you do not own the rights to, and you may not use trademarked program names.

You are prohibited from making medical diagnoses or recommending a specific product, or course of treatment. You can and should recommend that someone should discuss topics of that nature with their doctor.

A, B, and C of Rule 8 from the Terms of Service applies to HRT drugs which require a prescription by law.

Items A, and C also apply to discussion of OTC herbal alternatives to prescription HRT drugs.

Quote
8. The discussion of hormone replacement therapy(HRT) and it's medications are permitted, with the following limitations:

A. You may not advocate for or against a specific medication or combinations of medication for personal gain. This is strictly prohibited.
B. You may not discuss the means to acquire HRT medications without a prescription. The discussion of self medication without a doctors supervision is prohibited.
C. The discussion of recommended or actual dosages is strongly discouraged to prevent information obtained on this site from being used to self medicate.

You may not discuss Pueraria Mirifica or Diane-35 on this site at all due to their being linked with serious health complications.

If we feel that someone is intentionally violating part A of rule 8, all mention of that product will be prohibited on the site. This has already happened once before with Diane-35.

https//www.susans.org/forums/index.php/topic,145429.0.html

Hugs, Devlyn

Devlyn,

Roger that - I will make sure I follow the guidelines!

Thanks,

I tried Black Cohosh a long time ago.  I got minimal changes at the cost of nearly debilitating migraine headaches.


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I've split the off-topic post into its own thread and moved us to the HRT section as general housekeeping. 

Hugs, Devlyn

Before starting HRT in 2013, I had tried various herbal roots and leaves, like hops, fenugreek, red clover, soy, black cohosh and so on.
I did not mix them all at once, but rather used one at a time for a few weeks to see what happened.
My reaction to hops and fenugreek was strongest, but I could notice an effect of some kind with each of the powders or extracts.
In my experience, increasing the dose did not give me more of the desired effects at all, but more of the negative ones. At one point I could not sleep properly any more, I had hot flashes and my testes became soft and small. I do not know what I have done to my hormone balance back then, and maybe I don't want to know. Things recovered after a few weeks, but I became much more careful after this experience.

Since starting my "real" HRT (CPA until SRS, bioidentical estradiol in gel and tablet form)  I have never experienced any unpleasant side effects like that, and the positive effects have been much more stable, predictable and noticeable.

Thanks all - this is really helpful.   I think the last point is the one that seems the most consistent with what I have read about vitamins.   Ramping up past recommended dosage generally has no greater efficacy and results in either money being pissed (literally) down the drain or increases the likelihood of negative side effects.  The available information about supplements is all over the map - hence my question here.  I think I am going to stay where I am at.   I do feel a certain low key "mellowness" and while it may be just all in my mind, I am not seeing any negative effects.   I will never confuse it with a doctor approved and monitored HRT program!