With a lot of new faces here, I thought it might be a good time to remind Androgyn's that there are hormone options available.
While the option isn't everywhere, it is becoming more common.

For myself, I use spironolactane (Aldactone). It's a testosterone blocker. I personally prefer it, for now.
I've been taking it for 34 weeks now, some minor changes and a much better temperment for me.

There is also T available for FTA.

As with anything like this, your reaction to different levels can vary by quite a bit.

I just bring it up as a 'new' topic, and to see if there is anything new happening.
If you are diagnosed with GID, you may want to look into this.

Enough being serious,
Ativan

I'm androgyne and have takes the 'mones (E) for 20+ years minus the year when I was in Africa. Tried Spiro for a few months but apart from being the foulest taste on this planet it always worried me with that potassium business and all that time spent in the bathroom. Probably would come off them but my body's been on them so long there are side effects if I try to. Hot flushes, irritability and no libido...

I've toyed a bit with the idea of going on T. There are some effects I'd love, some I'd hate. I'd welcome the muscle and fat redistribution and genital changes, am ambivalent about body hair, wouldn't want my body odor to change or facial hair to grow, and love my high soprano voice. I don't want to masculinize my body per se, just de-feminize it. Tricky.

There is a medicine that is a n estrogen blocker though many dr's are hesitant to prescribe it. I just wanted to amke sure people know it's out there.
I have been on T for almost two years now and it suits me very well. I do a daily gel so I babe the ability to adjust it to my day to day needs. My voice was a very low alto when I started and is a low baritone now. It's taken some time for me to relearn how to use my singing voice.

Have you lost any of your falsetto range? I wouldn't mind extending my range down but I'd be sad if I couldn't hit the high notes anymore.

What changes do estrogen blockers bring? Do periods stop? I'd like that. Do they affect fertility? I'd like that too. I suppose one wouldn't/shouldn't use hormonal birth control.

I do believe that estrogen blockers would alter your fertility though I don't know what effect it would have on your voice if anything.
Being on T does change your voice for sure. You go through a "puberty" in the same way that a natal male does. I figured I'd be able to keep my singing range as long as I worked on it though the dropping time but I found that to be untrue. I had to give up singing while my voice was changing. Once it settled into the new range I was able to start working on my head voice and bring it back up into my old "normal" range though I still don't havethe top of my old normal range. Hard to explain and your milage may definitly vary.

I guess I was wondering what effects estrogen blockers might have considering I've already gone through female puberty.

Can you get a similar sound in your head voice as before, or does it sound completely different? Like a man's falsetto I guess. I'm trying to think of my dad's voice for reference as to what mine might sound like, but he definitely doesn't sing.

If the effects of estrogen causes you depression/GID then a blocker could help with that. It likely wouldn't change your body...but it would effect your mind by removing the estrogen.

As for my singing voice...so hard to say. I'm not trained in music, haven't been in any music prgram since high school choir. ( I'm 29 now, so it's been a while) I sing with the radio and have been stretching my upper range that way. Men sing from their chest, lower throat area where as my female voice comes from my soft palette, head area. So the two ways of singing sound pretty different and I am able to sing from both places. It'a hard to say if I sound like my old self because I can't really tell...ya know? I've not been "brave" enough to record my singing voice either before transition or current. I just sing in the car and while it's important to me...it's not something I share.

Cyndi might be able to shed light as she's heard me before during and after...but my singing has been a tough spot for both of us ing transition and it's causes tears so...not sure if she'll share.

Hmm. I wonder if estrogen could be a factor in my depression and anxiety. They're still pretty prominent, despite numerous meds of all sorts. Something to potentially bring up with my therapist and psychiatrist there.

I'd love to hear more about your voice, but not if it's going to cause anyone heartache. I've been singing in choirs as long as I can remember and it'd suck a lot if T were to take that away. I wish there was a way to tell for sure what would happen.

It doesn't cause me heart ache but I can't discuss it with any justice today as I'm still quite high on pain meds from surgery.
I don't believe it would alter your voice in such a way as to be irreparable. I do know that it'll take more work to keep your range, and it definitly takes time to learn how to use the new lower "men's" range because the way they use thier voice is different. It's not something we female born folks know how to do. Going though "male puberty" literally stretches the vocal cords and makes them longer. Hense the different range. Though where you start from can give you some clue as to where you'll end up. (though YMMV) I've not had any formal voice training and so I've tanken longer to figure it out as it's just been me in the car with the radio. With voice training I'm certain it could speed the learning process up considerably.

Male puberty, eh. Setting aside the voice for now, I'm curious about other aspects. I'm a little worried about acne. I get icky acne that only seems to respond to hormonal birth control, and I'm very self-conscious about it. Did T affect your skin at all?

(Congrats on your surgery, and thank you for taking the time to talk during your recovery!)

Sorry for all the questions. I could just head over to the FtM's, but it's nice to have an androgyn perspective since I'm not looking for all the MALE-type changes as fast as possible, you know? We have different goals.

To flip the coin on this conversation, I'm interested in the female side of HRT.  Being an androgynous physical male, I want to have some of the female effects of HRT but not to totally transition.  To be precise, I want to have the smoother skin, slightly more feminine features and small round breasts (at least A cup but no larger than B) but I also want to keep my penis fully functional.  My girlfriend is supportive of my desires but she DEFINITELY doesn't want me to lose any sex drive or ability to use my factory installed equipment! 

Does anyone have any experience in, I guess you'd call it, partial MTF HRT?

re: partial MtF
It's all about dosages. Consult a spiecialist, everybody's dosages vary, for some people very little will do too much, and for some others too much will do very little

I'm taking a very small dose of E daily to control my GID which was giving me uncontrollable, wild swings between boy and girl mode, and unbearable mental "storms" with incessant, repetitive thoughts of being a girl (i'm bigender). I was out of control during those episodes, and quite frankly they frightened me. The episodes started out of the blue and were coming more and more frequently.

The wild swings/mental storms are gone now, and i live a pretty typical boy life. Yes, there have been some physical changes but i'm still well within the physical range of normal, older males. Girl mode is still there but now she's a much nicer, much quieter presence. Libido is still present but it's not exactly like being a 18 year old LOL..... it's a small trade that i'll gladly make to have peace in my head.

E has been a miracle drug for me.

 Ordered my first load of Estradot patches, only a very low dose, but both myself and my wife worry about sex drive getting knocked out, so hoping that such a low dose wont do too much damage, basically want the best of both worlds, but dont think i will get it somehow.

Ok I am mtf and not androgyn but I think I can set some fears to rest here...

I am on a full feminizing dose of HRT and have had an orchidectomy and I am still functional in a 'male capacity'. The buisness still stands at attention whenever I am sexually aroused.

So it would seem to me that one of you androgyn types on a low dose of E should be fine in that department.
Now however....
Once you start E or T blockers you will no longer be able to attain very strong erections. Full erections will still be possible but they will be rare. Most the time the best you will be able to manage is about 3/4 erect. Not an issue for a girl who could care less if she had it or not but it may be an issue for those who like their male equipment fully functional.
Orgasm will still be possible but there may be some mental barriers to get past.

Julian,
If you supress your natural E you will need to take T. You simply can not go through life without one of the two. Your bone health requires it.

Quote from: Ember on October 14, 2011, 09:35:20 PM
To flip the coin on this conversation, I'm interested in the female side of HRT.  Being an androgynous physical male, I want to have some of the female effects of HRT but not to totally transition.  To be precise, I want to have the smoother skin, slightly more feminine features and small round breasts (at least A cup but no larger than B) but I also want to keep my penis fully functional.  My girlfriend is supportive of my desires but she DEFINITELY doesn't want me to lose any sex drive or ability to use my factory installed equipment! 

Does anyone have any experience in, I guess you'd call it, partial MTF HRT?

Suppose I must have. Have done pills, injections, patches and gel plus that Spiro stuff for a short while as well.

Not wishing to be crude here but in my experience one's 'performance' is very dependent on how interested one is in the other person. If you really fancy them then no problem but if it's all a bit of a chore and getting boring then there's a big difference.

It's statistically unlikely to get bigger than a B Cup unless one starts HRT in one's teens. Not saying it can't happen...

As I mentioned elsewhere do not use gel if you are with a partner as it can effect their cycle.

I've been using Spiro for something like 34 wks. Some loss in sex drive, but it wasn't that high to begin with.
I suppose I would be concerned if I had a partner, but I don't. In fact, having less without someone, it actually helps.
Doesn't tie up as much of my thinking and feelings as much. It's there, it's just quieter.

Body hair is less, especially my legs, and shaving my face is not needed for 3-4 days easy.

The biggest change is attitude. Almost no anger.
Hasn't gone away completely, don't get it wrong but, it's far less than at anytime I can remember.
(If you knew me before, and you know me now, you can see the difference.)
It's a lot easier to just be happy sometimes.
I have found my dysphoria to be far less than it was. A lot of negativity is just not there.
That's by far the biggest thing. It's like when you accept or find out who you are x10.
It is the best thing.

Ativan

To be honest I can still get angry But I do know what you mean, definitely think more clearly. Not sure if it was the same for you but I went from being a smart kid to a dumb one when I hit puberty. Not saying the smartness has returned but definitely more clarity of thinking.