In regards to the grimness and anxiety which has been created in me as a result of living as a man.

Will Hrt lighten the load a little? Will it give me a new lease on life if you know what I mean?

I've found the whole experience of manning up to be deeply traumatic. I joke around a lot and i have fun sometimes but I carry all this terror from having confronted reality as a man. I wish i could go back to when I was 20, girly and secure in the world.

  It will in most cases.  It has for me.  The effects on your emotional well being will vary from others who take it.  You will more likely change from one type of moods for different set of moods and severity of those moods.  Often that causes the person to get on and off a few times the HRT treatment which is not good.  The health providers will not prescribe HRT for purely therapeutic reasons, this has not been approved by anyone in the medical field.  I got a stern warning from my Dr this week that I should start crossdressing or he will drop me as a patient!  This is a liability issue against their licenses. 
  Joelene

Thanks. I am going to transition because I'm living as a woman. It's not an alternative therapy method for me lol. But interesting idea none-the-less.

You aren't cross dressing? You are really missing out!!!!

  Definitely helps your overall mood and your outlook on life. Before HRT I was rather gloomy (emo maybe? lol) and now I smile like crazy so much so that some days my jaw hurts from smiling! A natural high is the best way I can describe it lol.

I can vouch for what they're saying! I used to be this stone face that was kinda zombie walking thru life. Now I'm mostly happy, with the occasional emotional wreck every now and then.

The doctor said "he's going to drop you if you don't start cross dressing soon" WTF This is the small minded poorly informed brick wall some people are up against.
"You aren't cross dressing? you are really missing out!!!!" On what? sorry I don't get that either....
I personally don't cross dress anymore, I don't feel the need. Is it any kind of indicator as to wether I'm suitable for hormones or not, Absolutely not! In my case I had to swap out my T for E in order that I could move on and be happy in myself.
Will hormones help therapeutically? There's a really good chance that they will if you're suffering from GD. I personally think the biggest benefit from taking them might well be the sense of... peace or well being that you may get if you're a suitable candidate. After all it's what's in your head that's giving you this problem in the first place.

Quote from: smooth on January 05, 2012, 05:57:36 AM
Will hormones help therapeutically? There's a really good chance that they will if you're suffering from GD. I personally think the biggest benefit from taking them might well be the sense of... peace or well being that you may get if you're a suitable candidate. After all it's what's in your head that's giving you this problem in the first place.

I agree with the rest of your post but this is perfect!

Quote from: Joelene9 on January 04, 2012, 11:06:03 PM
  It will in most cases.  It has for me.  The effects on your emotional well being will vary from others who take it.  You will more likely change from one type of moods for different set of moods and severity of those moods.  Often that causes the person to get on and off a few times the HRT treatment which is not good.  The health providers will not prescribe HRT for purely therapeutic reasons, this has not been approved by anyone in the medical field.  I got a stern warning from my Dr this week that I should start crossdressing or he will drop me as a patient!  This is a liability issue against their licenses. 
  Joelene

Maybe its time to look for another "provider" or an Informed Consent Clinic Joelene! Sounds pretty lame and like your "provider" hasn't read the latest SOC V7, or if they have doesn't "get it"!

Hormone therapy will have a significant effect on your psychological state, especially estrogen. What moods and emotions you experience and to what degree is somewhat a "Your Mileage May Vary" scenario, but generally you might run into mood swings and strange, sentimental feelings before you feel the calm, especially if the testosterone is trying to fight to stay above castrate level (50 ng/dl) or above the female range (10-80 ng/dl). Hope this helps.