Ok uhm..I don't mean to intrude on your ladies' part of the forum but there's something I have to ask here

I'll start by saying that my girlfriend is a pre-op MtF and we're dating long-distance on the internet. I had some issues recently and I broke up with her..but now we're back together. That's a whole other story. I guess I'm gonna explain what I made this topic for

She's been asking her mom to call the Gender Therapist (what she calls a GP) and her mom wouldn't call them for her. She's two years younger than me (she's 17) and I guess she couldn't call them herself. Anyways, her mom wouldn't help her and she went into depression. But her mom finally called and set an appointment for her. She really wants to start hormones and start transitioning in any way possible. She says she hopes that the therapist will prescribe her Antiandrogens (I'm not entirely sure what they even are). She's told me that she's afraid that the therapist won't think she's truly transgendered and will just brush her off. I've never been to a GP before or ever plan on going to one and I also don't plan on taking any kind of hormones so I don't know how that goes either. And I'm FtM so it's probably different. Her appointment with the therapist is on Monday and she's happy that she can finally get to see them but she's afraid it won't go well.

What do Antiandrogens do? Are they the first step into transitioning for MtF's? If the therapist brushes off my girlfriend, is there anything else she can do so she can start transitioning?

I feel kind of helpless because this means a lot to her and I can't really offer any advice. And I also feel kind of stupid because being transgender myself, I should know a little bit about this but I don't.

Any thoughts er...anything? I'd appreciate it

(Sorry if I posted this in the wrong area but since this is about a MtF I thought I'd put it in here)

I was wondering what you were going to post in our area.    The whole forum is our area, all of us, there really isn't one area for anyone group.  Unless of course you don't register.

Anti-androgens are testosterone blockers.  They stop the ravages of the evil "T", well at least to us girls.  It is one of the first steps.  Anti-androgens, Estrogen, RLE.  The best you can do is just give her your support and love.

As far as anything that she can do, if the therapist brushes her off, begin RLE.  Begin living as the girl she is.

If I can be of any further help, PM me.



Janet

Ok. I'll PM you if I need to ask something else, Janet :3

I also welcome your PM's. I transitioned at 17, my first time around... then fully transitioned at 22.

:-)

:3 Thank you, Kelli

Here are some common anti-androgens.

Spironolactone - It interferes with the production of testosterone and it increases the metabolism of any testosterone that is produced. Spironolactone binds to cell androgen receptors and blocks them from binding to naturally produced androgens. In addition with long term spironolactone use, there is a gradual reduction in 5 alpha reductase activity. It is this enzyme that converts testosterone to the more potent dihydrotestosterone.


Finasteride - It's a type II 5alpha reductase inhibitor. This enzyme blocks the conversion of testosterone to dihydrotestosterone (DHT).


Dutasteride - Is very similar to Finasteride, except that it binds to both types of 5alpha reductase, whereas Finasteride only binds to one.


Cyproterone Acetate - It acts by blocking androgen receptors, therefore inhibiting the effects of testosterone and dihydotestosterone.  Not typically available in the United States though.


I think that covers all the more common ones.

At least she is doing something about it at a young age.  Even though I didn't feel this way at the age she is and you are now, I kind of wish I did only for the fact that since it could have come out anyway, I could have done something about it sooner,  I am also afraid of therapy for same reason she is.  I am afraid that once a therapist heres that I had zero issues with my gender until the age of seventeen, then they will think that my issues were caused by other things.  I can't really offer any advice on what to do because I have just come to terms with myself.  Just tell her that she is a making a big step. 

Quote from: Kelli on January 16, 2010, 11:13:13 PM
I also welcome your PM's. I transitioned at 17, my first time around... then fully transitioned at 22.

:-)

Very similar. Sort of transitoned in childhood, then detransitioned at 17 when I saw a psychiatrist who wanted me to try reparative therapy. Finally re-transitioned permanently at 22. SRS at 24.

So add me to those entirely willing to be PM'd. I've also got the benefit of nearly 26 years living postop and one of my best mates is a retired gender psychiatrist (actually until he fell from grace he was one of the UK's leading experts.)

HI Zant, As your pal is in UK the therapist will need some good long talks with her and need convincing that the desire to transition is genuine and not just play acting like the Computer Games players who play a female part and think that makes them transsexual.  At some stage soo your friend is going to proof able to live/study/work in female role. Is she?

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Post Merge: January 17, 2010, 04:13:08 AM

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oops...the GP is the family doctor that everyone in UK must be signed up with to access any medical care...I see my GP for my hormones and he then refers me to consultants or specialists for serious work or examinations at hospital.   GP will most likely not know anything about transexualism so your pal will have to go looking a bit female and convince the GP that she needs to be referred to a specialist psychiatrist (who again may not know anything and may suggest reparative therapy crap etc) and then if she convinces the shrink she's genuinely transsexual he may refer her to the nearest Gender Clinic and it is there they will make the decision about hormones or anti-androgens.
Its all a pain but over here if some idiot goes through the sex change surgery process and then misses the willy and demands reversal surgery the cost is so horrendous ($80-90,000 quoted) that the National Health Service naturally tries to minimize the chance of it happening by making us go through a long Real Life Experience.

Update:

She went to the therapist, and she got a letter saying she needs to see a psychiatrist. And she either got a seperate letter or it was in the letter for seeing the psychiatrist that said she can make her own appointment or something like that. I'm not really sure what happened. We ended our relationship a little while back. Well...I should say I ended the relationship because she practically forgot I existed and got too wrapped up in her own problems. She seemed to grow more distant as time went on and it was starting to hurt me so..I just called it off. Now that we've broken up, she barely talks to me anymore. Even though last year nothing could bring us apart, apparently getting too wrapped up in your own problems can

I'm at the point of the so called "grieving" stage where it's anger I'm feeling rather than being depressed