Hi everyone, I'm a 22 year old MtF and I'm about to start HRT. I'm really excited, but I have a question.

My Dr.'s a Gynecologist and from what I've seen here most people go through an endo. I'm not sure what medication they're going to give me and I haven't seen the Dr. yet, but the nurses said it would be a once monthly injection. I live in Alabama, so I'm pretty lucky to have found someone less than an hours drive away.

I was wondering if anyone else does something similar?

Your American doctors go through a full medical training then further training in a special field while our British doctors do the full training and then mostly seem to stick as family doctors and don't feel the need to specialise although looking at all the doctors letters I've had in last few years the different doctors have quite a range of qualifications after their names.
In recent years we are finding that our family doctors only works a 2/3 days a week and will be doing some specialised work elsewhere.
None I've met have known anything about TS or hormones so like most UK TS I had to wait to get seen at local gender clinic.

I think you have been rather unlucky Lilac

All the doctors I have come across have been very well trained in this condition. In fact the only one I ever wanted to take issue with was the first so called specialist I saw back in 1976

But to answer the original point yes it's not unusual, although in the UK the HRT tends to be done by our GP's

I am in Minnesota and the main doctor here for ftm is a gynecologist.  I know she does mtf as well but I am only have seen her for the ftm.   In fact, she runs the the trans clinic here.  She has a passion for it.

I think it really doesn't matter what field they are in as long as they have the knowledge to manage it

It appears the specialties are defined differently according to each country. In Denmark I've been a stand-in nurse on two different endocrinologic wards, who dealt mainly with difficult diabetes care and thyroid diseases and the doctors there knew nothing about HRT. Transsexuals go through gyneocologists regardless of gender.

Some gyn's are pretty liberal here accepting to start you on HRT based on a referral from a GP without the psychological evaluation. Even without referral you could see one, but you would have to pay the visit yourself. Most transsexuals probably go this route if they don't want operation later on. I went through 1,5 year evaluation at the GIC, however, which sucked and didn't really give me any benefits as far as clarification or personal development. It would have been necessary for me anyway, however, because even a name change is not allowed without it! The good thing about it was that after the evaluation I was referred to the gyneocologist at the national hospital and when I compare the psychological effects of my HRT with those of other transsexuals I know I believe I'm getting a better HRT regimen than they are. One of the differences is that I get way less Androcur than most other transsexuals and since that is known to cause depressions that alone may contribute to the good mood effects of my threatment.

Overall I'm happy with seing this gyneocologist and she sure knows how to treat a woman. That's her job.


Tippe

My doctor is an OBGYN who runs a small and very discrete TG practice. I have been seeing him for nearly a year. I felt an instant rapport and couldn't be happier!

I've yet to start, but I assure you I will probably never see an endocrinologist, as they are very, very rare where I am and they have some other work to do.

I'll be seeing a psychiatrist, a generalist physician and a psychologist, probably. I think some also go with only a generalist physican who has experience in the field and a psychologist.

Did you know that an endocrinologist's diplomas don't give much more knowledge about TG problems than any other physican's diplomas ? Endos who know more in that field have followed extra courses or learned by themselves or with experience. Read more about this on Andrea James' website, tsroadmap.com.

My doctor is a family and OB/GYN doctor as well.  She has a lot of experience with transgender people.   I have only had one appt so far, but she knew her stuff.  I say go for it.

Thanks for the additional replies, it's good piece of mind.  Especially since I haven't even talked to the actual doctor even after my first visit there (at the time of the first post), they're having me take a lot of liver tests.

The waiting is killing me, but at least the Doctor is trying to be careful.