I am going to start my transition but want to do it slowly so my family has time to adjust to this. I'm starting on oral T for now and want to take only the proper daily dosage once a week, so basically take the T one day then not again till the following week. I know this will take a long time and I may do it faster later on, but my question for now is will it still have the effect on me it would have had if taking it every day, that is if I took it every day for 2 weeks would I get the same effect taking it once a week for 14 weeks? I've read that the changes are cumulative so I thought this might work. Any thought or info on this? 

Welcome to Susan's Place. From what I understand, Oral Testosterone isn't an option because it has some problems with it. Normal dosage for FTMs would be by injections or jells. Injections are weekly and jells must be applied daily in order to provide the proper levels.

When  the proper levels are reached and maintained for a sufficient period of time, you period will stop and changes would take place at about the same rate of normal male puberty. If the dosage is insufficient, the testosterone might be overpowered by your estrogen production and the treatment you suggest could be useless. When deciding to take testosterone you must be ready to face any possible change as testosterone is pretty effective and there isn't any half way when using it.

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Thanks.  So basically if I take the proper oral dose for a day that gets my level of T up to the level needed to initiate changes it will work but slowly because my level will drop back down within a day or so. The changes are cumulative, that is if I take the proper dose and it makes a slight change in me the next dose will make another slight change, etc. and over time I will see changes, correct?

If your taking oral testosterone, you will be the first I know of on the site. Testosterone has a longer half life in the body so unless you take the prescribe amount, it's difficult to build effective levels as your current dose would normally add to the previous dosage. Combine that with the fact that testosterone is present in both genders however female levels are lower than male levels as the chart shows. MTFs can often get by with low dosage because testosterone is suppressed by other drugs but a blocker isn't normally provided to FTMs because testosterone is normally provided to produce levels around 600 ng/dl which blocks testosterone. In addition estrogen is very powerful in that a you need much less of it than you do testosterone. Estrogen also has the advantage that menopause levels aren't that much below the levels of a younger female.  You really need to discuss this approach with your doctor because I suspect what your considering isn't likely to work very well.


ESTRADIOL LEVELS
SEX                     pg/ml
Women (> 18 years old)   
      Follicular Phase  30-120
      Ovulatory Peak   130-370
      Luteal Phase      70-250
      Post-Menopausal   15-60
Male                    15-60

TOTAL TESTOSTERONE LEVELS
SEX      ng/dl        ng/ml
Females  6 - 86     0.1 - 1.2
Males  270 - 1100   2.4 - 12
Conversion factor: 1 ng/ml = 3.47 nmol/l

Yes and no. The changes are cumulative but not all changes are permanent. If you saw any changes in a one day/week dose that are irreversible (such as voice drop, facial hair growth, clitoral growth), those would stick around and potentially continue to progress. However, anything that is not permanent (muscle growth and fat redistribution in particular) wouldn't stick and wouldn't be cumulatively progressing.

Typically, it takes a certain period of time in a certain therapeutic range for the testosterone to "shut down" the ovaries and estrogen production. Not that you couldn't potentially see changes before that, but that tends to be when changes really begin to progress for guys.

As with all our transitions in general, your mileage may vary. You may be particularly receptive to changes on testosterone, or you may not be. If that is the only way you feel comfortable progressing right now *and your doctor approves*, then see what it might do for you. However, big swings in hormones are not really fun for anyone of any gender or blend of gender (physically and emotionally). I would definitely recommend discussing strategy with your doc before doing anything other than what they tell you to do. It may be possible to take a different formulation (such as a gel) that you can still take daily but at a much lower than "normal" dose in order to keep your T levels higher than female but lower than normal for male if that is more comfortable for you. That would prevent the huge hormonal swings, at least. That may be possible with pills as well through pill splitting or lower dose formulas. But you really need to discuss with your prescribing doc to make sure there will be no negative impact on your health to a once weekly approach.

Thanks for all of the replies. I'll check with my doctor before doing anything.

@leonatotom
I too was under the impression that oral testosterone was not indicated for FTM due to the risk of liver damage. I checked out the Hudson's Guide and this is what it details:

Oral testosterone
Chemically unbound testosterone, if taken orally, is not effective for masculinization since it is immediately deactivated by the liver. However, two chemically-modified forms of testosterone have been successfully shown to induce masculine secondary sex characteristics when taken orally: methyltestosterone and testosterone undecanoate.

Methyltestosterone (C-17 alpha methylated testosterone)
Methyltestosterone is one of the earliest available oral testosterones. Its chemical structure is the hormone testosterone with an added methyl group at the c-17 alpha position of the molecule. The use of oral c-17 alpha methylated testosterone for masculinization is obsolete due to its toxicity to the liver. As such, methyltestosterone is not recommended for FTM hormone therapy. Brand names include "Metesto," "Methitest," "Testred," "Oreton Methyl," and "Android."

Testosterone undecanoate
Testosterone undecanoate is not a c-17 alpha alkylated hormone. Therefore, it is considered a safer oral form of testosterone. It is designed to be absorbed through the small intestine into the lymphatic system, posing less burden on the liver. Brand names for testosterone undecanoate include "Andriol," "Androxon," "Understor," "Restandol," and "Restinsol." It is not available in the United States.

One disadvantage of orally administered undecanoate is that it is eliminated from the body very quickly, usually in 3-4 hours. Thus, frequent administration is necessary-- usually between 3-6 capsules a day. This can prove to be expensive when compared to injectable testosterone.

Finally, when used in FTM hormone therapy, it has been reported that oral testosterone undecanoate has not always been successful in suppression of menstruation.

I have been on testosterone for 3 months. Due to my age, 61 & the oldest transitioner my nurse practitioner has, and a couple of health conditions I was started on an extremely low dose on a bi-weekly basis. At my 2 month check up I lobbied for and received an increase to my dosage. Now I'm on a low dose with the same frequency. My 2 month T level was approximately 4 times that of my pre-T level, still not in a normal male range but obviously going in that direction. I have been able to see and feel some changes but they are not outwardly noticeable by those around me. Of course, as is said around here frequently , YMMV (your mileage may vary).

Good luck!

Just so you know, 17 alpha alkylated (basically all oral) Testosterone is notoriously hepatotoxic. That is the reason Depo-Testosterone was developed in the 1970's (that and subsequent delivery methods entirely bypass the liver initially). It is also the reason even to this day we still find adverse affects to the liver in the drug facts of all Testosterone (despite the fact that other delivery methods have yet to be found to directly adversely affect the liver; they simply don't). And, at least in the US, it isn't prescribed for this use for this cause.

I flat out wouldn't go with 17AA. Any other option? If so, I strongly recommend you go with whatever it is.

That aside, I'm on a "low dose" and have been for a couple of years now (principally due to secondary polycythemia; may or may not still be an issue. It can come and go). It ultimately doesn't matter, high or low dose, the affects are cumulative. Time is the main factor in changes. In other words, TT level so long as it is within a male range will still virilize you to your genetic potential regardless of dosage volume (they're not mutually exclusive; hence the need to check levels on a semi-regular basis).

I've actually noticed faster changes as regards my androgenic hair development since lowering my dose. However, my initial changes at an inhuman TT level (~1,400's the initial 3-4 months) were not overnight. Took several months for anything substantial; things others at-large would notice. Generally, that's 6-12 months. YMMV.

Thanks. I'm seeing my doctor this coming week to discuss with him.  So basically if I get my T level up to a male level for even a few hours then it will make a slight change for the things that aren't reversible in me that will be added to with the next dose. I have read that clit size is the first thing to change and that the change for it comes rather quickly. How long did it take to see a noticeable change in anyone on here?

I was doing injections, a "full" dose once a month for the first three months until I went to a full dose twice monthly. After a year, I switched to a half dose weekly. When I initially started, I saw bottom growth within the first couple of days. That growth continued through the first 4 months or so then plateaued. When I changed to a half dose once a week after a year, I had another short growth spurt and that is where it remained since. It is the very first change I noted outside of feeling mentally better. It seems relatively common that it is one of the first things to change.