I really want to start but I know nothing and I'm scared

This is going to be very vague and probably not as helpful, but i remember this guy online who naturally transitioned ( i would have not known otherwise if he hadn't said so) and he listed all of the things he did i.e exercises, voice exercises, foods, etc.) i'll try to find that for you!

I don't feel like looking it up, but google will find it for you with those words.

In theory it's possible, but for one to actually do it all natural. That's hard. Brayden, do you want to go natural while waiting for T or go natural forever?

Taking supplements should not be taken lightly and it would be wise to check in with your doctor about it.

Also, I can imainge the the slow changes might make one more dysphoric, so if you are planning on taking 'real T'. I would advice just to wait for that and just exercize and eat healthy in the meanwhile. So you're used to it when you start, meaning you won't get too much of a beerbelly.

http://www.lulu.com/shop/tristan-skye-and-sicily-skye/natural-transitioning-an-ftm-alternative/paperback/product-16532595.html

Pretty much the whole routine here is to increase the T produced by your body through suppliments, diet, and exercise. There are some major potential draw backs of going this route. The suppliments can cost as much as T or more. You can damage your liver more easily this route compared to taking testosterone through gel or injection. The results in terms of body/facial hair growth, voice deepening, and fat redistribution tend to not be so great unless you already have higher than average T levels. I did NT for a short period of time (4 months or so) and didn't see much in the way of positive changes compared to how much effort I put in.

Quote from: Nygeel on June 22, 2012, 12:22:23 PM
I did NT for a short period of time (4 months or so) and didn't see much in the way of positive changes compared to how much effort I put in.

Same here, the only thing that I noticed was my voice deepened some, but I was also doing vocal exercises at the same time. Looking back now, everything that I thought were changes were more than likely just placebo =/.

In my honest opinion, if you're just desperate for changes that come with high T levels and want it fast, NT is probably not for you unless your levels are already considerably high. You have to be be committed to buying/taking supplements, a diet, and exercise for a long period of time. Moreover, if you go in NT with expectations of things happening quickly, you're going to be disappointed. So, if you're ready to commit to a new lifestyle and go in with a level mind, then good luck to you!

This is just what I've learned from my short experience with NT. I don't mean to offend anyone. Best of wishes

tristan skye or something like that is the guy who did the whole natural transition thing but its really unhealthy and i dont suggest it. testosterone injections are alot better for you and actually works consistently.

Honestly...I'm rather confused about natural transitioning.  I guess the natural part is making your body produce more T "naturally"?  But why not take a natural hormone that your body already produces some of and add to that?  Rather than putting foreign chemicals and substances in your body, forcing it to possibly produce more T?  That hardly seems natural (or safe) to me.  Do what you will, but I don't understand it.

Well you can definitely make your arms, shoulders, etc more muscular and so on without T. There were a couple people at the trans center last night that used exercise. Of course, I haven't seen the "before".

There are also exercises for lowering your voice. I think you need to be cautious with them.
BTW, I found a little exercise here. I'm trying this.
http://deeper-voice.com/an-exercise-to-make-your-voice-sound-deeper-it-works
Don't overdo and hydrate! It sounds like a typical kind of voice therapy exercise.

Not sure about the vitamins, et. al. There are substances that are natural estrogens (that you could avoid-- soy is extremely high and is actually used in OTC meds for the purpose) and natural androgens. NOt sure  how all these are actually used in the body.

--Jay Jay

Quote from: Adio on June 22, 2012, 05:55:58 PM
Honestly...I'm rather confused about natural transitioning.  I guess the natural part is making your body produce more T "naturally"?  But why not take a natural hormone that your body already produces some of and add to that?  Rather than putting foreign chemicals and substances in your body, forcing it to possibly produce more T?  That hardly seems natural (or safe) to me.  Do what you will, but I don't understand it.

HRT is chemicals, meaning it's not a "natural hormone". Even so-called "bio-identical" hormones are made by pharmaceutical companies (btw, bio-identical is not a medical term, it's just marketing language) with the active ingredients being synthesized in a lab. True that the hormones produced by the body itself are referred to as "chemicals" but it's still different from lab synthesized ones.

All of the "natural" supplements to increase testosterone are also made with cis men in mind. Biologically, if you have gonads that are naturally producing a lot of testosterone some of those herbs, etc. might help to boost that. They aren't testosterone in and of themselves. Therefore, a female-bodied person is going to get a very different result (as female bodied people just have a very small amount of T being produced by the ovaries and adrenal glands - only exception is if you have a disorder such as PCOS in which the ovaries start producing more than normal). As someone else pointed out, there are some serious potential side effects to these herbs as well. And since none of them are regulated and rarely "prescribed" by a knowledgeable person (medical doctors won't usually recommend them and it's very hard to find a legit nutritionist that really knows what they're doing) people self-medicate, upping the chances for side effects.

The last hurdle for "natural transition" is of course that you probably will have a hard time "passing" - even after working out, taking supplements, etc. You also probably could not ever get a legal gender change.

I know all this is a bit of a bummer. I'm one of those "all natural" people, but I'm not actively trying to transition either, so it works out for me personally. I have bulked up a bit just from exercising and I have higher than average T levels naturally which helps me feel more like a guy on the outside at least.

My advice, is if you find you DO want to fully transition, and if you're seriously into the "all natural" thing, take the doctor prescribed injectable T (with very close doctor monitoring of your levels and overall health, watching for side effects, etc.) until you get some noticeable changes. You may go for surgeries to help further your process along and actually get the gender marker change. Most people from what I can tell, stay on T for the rest of their lives, but it's not a requirement, I think it's more a personal preference. For instance, if you don't get a hysto, the T will stop "shark week" from happening. From what I can tell some changes after taking T for a certain amount of time do become permanent (for instance, downstairs growth).

Just don't feel like you have to follow a specific set of rules for transitioning. You can pick and choose certain things and experiment to see what your comfort level is as well as if your body is reacting in positive or negative ways. Hope that helps.