I suppose it does. I worry about its reliance. I have to renew the prescription every 2 months. I forget to take sometimes. What if I'm ship wrecked or what about an apocalypse or being kidnapped.. What happens if I'm incorrectly identified and thrown in jail in some backwards country?

I don't take medication for anything else. In my life, I'm rarely ill. Never had a weight problem. I have colds every two years. I've been hospitalised for cryptorchidism, ironically. And had a bit off FFS and BA. Now, I'm ready to mutilate an otherwise perfectly functioning body to further my goals.

Honestly? I won't romanticise, it bugs me.

Quote from: Miharu Barbie on June 19, 2012, 06:44:03 PM
Oh Laura!  Get on the injectibles if you can.  I take 1 shot every 28 days, on the new moon every month.  Needles are the bomb, sister!

Peace,
Miharu

Don't get me started! we can't injectable HRT in my country! do you American's care? nope!

Quote from: Naturally Blonde on June 20, 2012, 03:57:00 AM
Don't get me started! we can't injectable HRT in my country! do you American's care? nope!

We can't really tell any other country what to do though. Such a dumb policy honestly

As well as HRT I have to take statins to keep my Cholesteraol levels down, thanks to choosing the wrong ancestors.  There is no difference as far as I am concerned.

Quote from: Erin_Grey on June 20, 2012, 04:04:28 AM
We can't really tell any other country what to do though. Such a dumb policy honestly

My point is that you have this thread saying 'Does relying on hrt ever dishearten you? when we can't even get the HRT we want here in the U.K.

I'd like to try HRT shots as I've never tried them and I've fought tooth and nail with the authorities and the NHS to try and get shots and the only way to get them in my country is illegally importing them from another country. So please American's don't take things for granted over there!

Quote from: Naturally Blonde on June 20, 2012, 08:29:40 AM
My point is that you have this thread saying 'Does relying on hrt ever dishearten you? when we can't even get the HRT we want here in the U.K.

I'd like to try HRT shots as I've never tried them and I've fought tooth and nail with the authorities and the NHS to try and get shots and the only way to get them in my country is illegally importing them from another country. So please American's don't take things for granted over there!

If it's any consolation, they hurt 

Quote from: Erin_Grey on June 20, 2012, 08:32:04 AM
If it's any consolation, they hurt 

Yes, but it would be nice to try that option and see if they work better than pills and patches?

Quote from: Laura91 on June 19, 2012, 06:54:08 PM
Well, that's cool for you. Have you experienced any emotional side effects from taking it?

No, and I have been on high-does finasteride for over  20 years.

I did a quick review of pub med, and the best I can found is that finasteride causes depresionn on rodents; and while there are a couple of studies in humans, the studies were not conclusive at all. See belo, for example

BMC Clin Pharmacol. 2006 Oct 7;6:7.
Finasteride induced depression: a prospective study.
Rahimi-Ardabili B, Pourandarjani R, Habibollahi P, Mualeki A.
Source

Clinical Pharmacy Laboratory, Drug Applied Research Center, Tabriz University of Medical Sciences, Tabriz, Iran. ba.rahimi@gmail.com
Abstract
BACKGROUND:

Finasteride is a competitive inhibitor of 5 alpha-reductase enzyme, and is used for treatment of benign prostatic hyperplasia and androgenetic alopecia. Animal studies have shown that finasteride might induce behavioral changes. Additionally, some cases of finasteride-induced depression have been reported in humans. The purpose of this study was to examine whether depressive symptoms or anxiety might be induced by finasteride administration.
METHODS:

One hundred and twenty eight men with androgenetic alopecia, who were prescribed finasteride (1 mg/day) were enrolled in this study. Information on depressed mood and anxiety was obtained by Beck Depression Inventory (BDI), and Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS). Participants completed BDI and HADS questionnaires before beginning the treatment and also two months after it.
RESULTS:

Mean age of the subjects was 25.8(+/- 4.4) years. At baseline, mean BDI and HADS depression scores were 12.11(+/- 7.50) and 4.04(+/- 2.51), respectively. Finasteride treatment increased both BDI (p < 0.001) and HADS depression scores significantly (p = 0.005). HADS anxiety scores were increased, but the difference was not significant (p = 0.061).
CONCLUSION:

This preliminary study suggests that finasteride might induce depressive symptoms; therefore this medication should be prescribed cautiously for patients with high risk of depression. It seems that further studies would be necessary to determine behavioral effects of this medication in higher doses and in more susceptible patients

As a bigender i'm on low dose HRT to ward off GID and to be able to live a normal, calm boy life. My girl mode likes HRT too since it makes changes that please her.

I've accepted that i'll probably be on HRT for life. My body simply needs a chemical that it cannot make. Life without that chemical would be very, very difficult - i've experienced it and i don't want to ever live like that again.

I see it as no different than the other meds that i have to take now as an old bio-male to stay alive. I also chose the wrong ancestors and got a bad grab bag of genetics.

Thanks heavens that we are not living in the stone age and the meds we need to live are generally readily available.

Quote from: Naturally Blonde on June 20, 2012, 03:57:00 AM
Don't get me started! we can't injectable HRT in my country! do you American's care? nope!

I'm so sorry, Naturally Blonde.  We do care!  We do!  I promise, as soon as we're done with Afghanistan we'll be right over.   

(Sorry.... just being silly.  I'll shut up now.)
Miharu

Quote from: Erin_Grey on June 19, 2012, 06:01:20 PM
Like the idea that your body isn't really "genuine" or something. Or that your body is kind of a creation of modern medicine. Blah. It just gets me down having to rely on pills and injectables so that I don't feel like total crap.

No.

Quote from: Laura91 on June 20, 2012, 09:52:02 AM
So you hold a grudge against an entire country due to the laws regarding HRT in your own land? That doesn't make any sense at all.

No, the opposite! I have a grudge against the U.K. I just thought American's might be a little more supportive and try and help me, rather than ignore my posts which is what was happening earlier in the thread.

Just because we can't help you doesn't mean we don't care.  Its not like we (lowly American citizens) have any pull with the U.K. government.

Quote from: Laura91 on June 20, 2012, 04:27:01 PM
If you meant the opposite then you would not have said this:

I think you just like to lash out at people on this board because of your situation. I have been on this forum for a long time and you have done it over and over.

You're right and I really appolgise to you for that. I think it's mainly because I hard such a hard time over here in the U.K with their NHS system and I've become quite hard and bitter sometimes. I'm really sorry hon!

without hormones I wouldn't feel as great as I feel!  But I can say many of us go through periods where we are just scared we will never be enough.  I found that finding a way to feminize yourself even if temporarily(like going to a wig shop if you have short hair) makes you feel tons better.  When you see the girl inside and outside ^^.

Its hard but one day you will get to a point where the image you see in a mirror is that of a woman even if its not super feminized you start to identify with your feminine features(though on the flipside you languish a bit more on your masculine features).

I think that is an even bigger issue than the hormones are!

As far as hormones go I am more scared of never being able to get them again and transforming back into a guy.

  Before starting it, it did.  After the disasterous failure of the herbals with my GID and the prostate problem, it is like the thyroid medication I had to start two months ago.  I take the 3 hormones now in the morning plus the Spiro.  It is not as bad or as important than taking that other hormone, insulin, that more than a few here need.  Take care of yourselves, it'll keep the pill count down as you get older. 
  Joelene