How Do I Prepare For Feminizing Hormone Therapy
There are many steps to help you prepare, including:
- Patient education to explain how treatment works and what to expect. This includes reviewing risks and benefits.
- Medical history to check for estrogen-dependent conditions, like certain breast cancers and endometriosis.
- Physical exam to ensure you are healthy enough to start feminizing hormone therapy.
- Lab tests, including a blood panel, urinalysis and liver function test.
- Mental health evaluation to make a gender dysphoria diagnosis. It also confirms your understanding of therapy and ability to agree to it.
Can I Change My Gender Identity
Yes, although its likely not going to be on purpose. Gender can be pretty fluid, and your identity might change as you uncover new groups, labels, and ways to identify yourself.
Once you discover a comfortable category, you can change your outward appearance to match your new identity. This process may include:
- Changing your name and pronouns
- Social transitioningtelling your loved ones about your identity and asking them to use your new name and pronouns
- Legal transitioningchanging your legal documents to reflect your gender
- Medical transitioninghormone replacement, operations, and other medical procedures
Can You Be Trans And Non
Transgender people have been in the spotlight of LGBTQ+ movements ever since Stonewall, but their acceptance is a more recent affair. Were gaining deeper knowledge of this identity with each passing day, and medical fields are beginning to catch up.
Non-binary identities are nothing new, either. Many cultures have a so-called third gender or refuse the binary altogether, but the Western world is still confused. Nevertheless, more members of new generations are finding refuge in this alternative expression, making it worth mainstream attention.
Today, we discuss these two terms and zero in on their relationship. After all, Bust Bunny is all about aiding transitioning individuals in making their bodies match their vision of themselves. Why stop at breasts?
Our educational resources are here for non-cis people and allies alike. Well help you comprehend the intricacies of gender and how you can best express yours.
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What Is Transgender Hormone Therapy
Transgender hormone replacement therapy is the administration of hormones to help patients acquire the physical characteristics of their preferred gender. Feminizing hormone therapy is administered to individuals who wish to transition from male to female and involves taking estrogen, progesterone, and testosterone blockers. Female-to-male transition patients receive testosterone throughout the course of their hormone replacement therapy. Hormones may be taken via oral pills, injections, or absorbed through the skin via a transdermal patch or topical cream.
The Center For Transgender Health Team At Johns Hopkins
Embracing diversity and inclusion, the Center for Transgender Health provides affirming, objective, person-centered care to improve health and enhance wellness educates interdisciplinary health care professionals to provide culturally competent, evidence-based care informs the public on transgender health issues and advances medical knowledge by conducting biomedical research.
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My Transition To Hormone Therapy:
Within five weeks from the initial contact, I unwrapped my first delivery of patches and anti-androgens. After about ten days, I quickly realised that the anti-androgen tablets were not working for me psychologically so I emailed GenderGP. Within 24 hours, I talked with a prescribing nurse who advised me to stop the pills. Within a week, I was driving to Birmingham to learn how to self-inject the triptorelin blocker the best, though most expensive, anti-androgen available.
My life completely changed after that slight bump in the road. The oestrogen worked quickly to alter my body in ways that felt right. Together with the blocker, it completely changed my psychological profile, and any anxiety just melted away.
Since that point two years ago, my transition has continued well. GenderGP is only an email away and has always responded within 24 hours. They insist on regular counselling sessions every six months , as well as routine blood tests. Ive also found a voice therapist through their website.
While I have not come out to the world in general, I can see that this is at least a possibility once I deal with my profoundly deep voice. I only wish I had known about GenderGP sooner.
Unfortunately, my GP surgery declined to work with GenderGP on prescribing, so Ive had to pay for my hormones myself. I was fortunate enough to be able to do so. However, GenderGP evaluates each case individually regarding possible financial help toward costs.
Transitioning Later In Life: My Long And Winding Road
So, in December 2017, I finally gave in and went to see my GP to ask for a referral to the NHS. At the same time, I began a transgender herbal remedy regimen from an American source that had a lot of good reviews. They seemed to know what they were talking about. I realised it would be at least a year before the NHS would see me due to long waiting lists.
In that initial consultation, my GP was superb, ordering a full spread of blood tests and referring me to the Leeds Gender Identity Clinic. She would also perform quarterly blood testing on my liver and kidney function to check that my herbal regimen was not causing irreversible harm. I had already decided that I could give it another year on herbs before the risks became too high and that if the GIC failed to deliver, I would seek alternative private help. I put it off because I was sure that going private would be too expensive.
Finally in March 2018, I spent an hour chatting with a nurse on the phone during my initial GIC screening. She said she would be happy to put me on the waiting list but told me that I wouldnt hear anything for approximately 12 months.
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Largest Survey Of Transgender Adults
The researchers analyzed data from the 2015 U.S. Transgender Survey, which comprises survey responses from 27,715 transgender people nationwide. Participants, who were at least 18 when they were surveyed, completed extensive questionnaires about their lives.
Because some transgender people do not want hormone treatment, the study focused on 21,598 participants who had reported that they wanted to receive hormones. Results were analyzed based on when participants began hormone therapy: 119 began at age 14 or 15 , 362 began at age 16 or 17 , 12,257 began after their 18th birthday , and 8,860 participants, who served as the control group, wanted but never received hormone therapy.
The participants answered several questions about their mental health, including their history of suicidal thoughts and suicide attempts, and their history of binge drinking and illicit drug use. They completed a questionnaire to assess whether they had experienced severe psychological distress, meaning they met criteria for a diagnosable mental illness, within the prior month.
Jack Turban
In addition, participants who began hormones in early or late adolescence had lower odds of past-month binge drinking and lifetime illicit drug use than those who began hormones in adulthood.
Doctors Debate Whether Trans Teens Need Therapy Before Hormones
Clinicians are divided over new guidelines that say teens should undergo mental health screenings before receiving hormones or gender surgeries.
Laura Edwards-Leeper, a child clinical psychologist in Beaverton, Ore., who works with transgender adolescents, said they absolutely have to be treated differently than adults.Credit…Kristina Barker for The New York Times
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An upsurge in teenagers requesting hormones or surgeries to better align their bodies with their gender identities has ignited a debate among doctors over when to provide these treatments.
An international group of experts focused on transgender health last month released a draft of new guidelines, the gold standard of the field that informs what insurers will reimburse for care.
Many doctors and activists praised the 350-page document, which was updated for the first time in nearly a decade, for including transgender people in its drafting and for removing language requiring adults to have psychological assessments before getting access to hormone therapy.
But the guidelines take a more cautious stance on teens. A new chapter dedicated to adolescents says thatthey must undergo mental health assessments and must have questioned their gender identity for several years before receiving drugs or surgeries.
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This is definitely the easiest, cheapest and a very natural way to progress your feminine appearance. Every girl wants to grow out her hair and having longer hair can make you feel more girly & fem. Maintaining your hair is very important and you will need a lot of self care to have a nice long hair. Use good quality products & oils to keep your hair in good condition. It does take time to grow your hair long but it is definitely worth the wait.
What Does This Mean And How Is It Possible
Not every person who is transgender undergoes gender-affirming procedures. Of those who do, some may transition medically, nonmedically, or both.
The Beyond Gender Project states that nonmedically transitioning, or social transitioning, means that a person begins living as their gender without medical procedures, such as hormones or gender-affirming surgery. A person may socially transition by changing their name or modifying their appearance.
But gender and gender presentation are social constructs. Gender involves norms, behaviors, appearances, and roles that society associates with men and women. For example, people may expect a woman to have long hair and wear dresses, and may expect men to wear suits and have short hair and facial hair.
A person does not have to conform to societal expectations of gender. For example, a woman may wear trousers and have short hair, and a man may wear skirts and have long hair.
A transgender woman does not have to grow their hair long, wear stereotypically feminine clothing, or act in a way that society expects women to act.
How a person expresses their gender is personal, and socially transitioning does not mean that a person must conform to gender roles and expectations.
A person can socially transition as much or as little as they wish. Transgender women may find all, some, or none, of the following tips helpful while transitioning without hormones.
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How To Get Hormones As A Transgender Minor
For young people who are sure they want to make a gender change, getting on hormone blockers and maybe hormones can help a lot.
You need to be sure, though.
Hormone blockers will stop your puberty. If you stop taking them, your puberty will start again.
Hormones may change your body so you can not make children.
If you are not an adult yet, these are the ways you can get them.
Treatment For Children And Young People
If your child is under 18 and may have gender dysphoria, they’ll usually be referred to the Gender Identity Development Service at the Tavistock and Portman NHS Foundation Trust.
GIDS has 2 main clinics in London and Leeds.
Your child or teenager will be seen by a multidisciplinary team at GIDS including a:
- clinical psychologist
- family therapist
- social worker
The team will carry out a detailed assessment, usually over 3 to 6 appointments over a period of several months.
Depending on the results of the assessment, options for children and teenagers include:
- family therapy
- group work for young people and their parents
- regular reviews to monitor gender identity development
- referral to a local Children and Young People’s Mental Health Service for more serious emotional issues
- a referral to a specialist hormone clinic for hormone blockers for children who meet strict criteria
Most treatments offered at this stage are psychological rather than medical. This is because in many cases gender variant behaviour or feelings disappear as children reach puberty.
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You Don’t Need Surgery Or Hormones To Be Trans
A popular misconception perpetuated by TV shows, films, and general misinformation is that being trans means someone needs to “medically transition,” or get gender-affirming medical procedures, to be seen as valid.
The idea that gender-affirming care is one size fits all and people stop HRT only because they regret their decision is often used as a political argument to justify anti-trans medical bills that suppress access to medical care for trans people.
There is a small and vocal group of people who have “detransitioned” and actively say they are no longer trans. But research suggests a majority of people who stop HRT do so for other reasons. Some trans people never take hormones at all.
“Nobody needs to be on hormone therapy. Nobody needs to undergo any medical, surgical, or other procedure, or even therapy despite what people have told us for many years to be trans,” Dr. Jerrica Kirkley, the medical director for Plume, told Insider.
Stopping treatment doesn’t make a person not trans, Kirkley said.
What Is The Difference Between Transgender And Transsexual
Transgender is a non-medical term that has been used increasingly since the 1990s as an umbrella term describing individuals whose gender identity or gender expression differs from the sex or gender to which they were assigned at birth. Some people who use this term do not consider themselves as matching a binary gender category of either strictly male or female. In addition, new terms such as gender non-conforming, genderqueer, bigendered, and agendered are increasingly in use.
Transsexual is a historic, medical term that refers to individuals who have undergone some form of medical and/or surgical treatment for gender affirmation or confirmation . Some transsexual individuals may identify as transgender, although many primarily identify as the male or female gender to which they have transitioned.
People who identify as transgender but who do not seek medical or surgical treatment are not transsexual.
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Can A Person Have Gender Dysphoria And Not Seek Gender Affirming Treatments
Not all individuals with gender dysphoria choose to undergo medical or surgical treatment. For one, gender affirming surgeries are very expensive and are sometimes not covered by insurance. People with gender dysphoria decide which treatment options are right for them. Some are satisfied with taking hormones alone. Some are satisfied with no medical or surgical treatment but prefer to dress as the felt gender in public. Some people make use of Trans affirming social networks online and in local supportive communities to cope with gender dysphoria and claim a gender identity and forms of expression that do not require medical treatments. Some individuals choose to express their felt gender in private settings only because they are either uncomfortable or fearful of publicly expressing their felt gender. People who are denied or have no access to gender affirming treatments can become anxious, depressed, socially withdrawn and suicidal.
Practical Guidelines For Transgender Hormone Treatment
Adapted from: Gardner, Ivy and Safer, Joshua D. 2013 Progress on the road to better medical care for transgender patients. Current Opinion in Endocrinology, Diabetes and Obesity 20: 553-558.
KEY POINTS
- In order to improve transgender individuals access to health care, the approach to transgender medicine needs to be generalized and accessible to physicians in multiple specialties.
- A practical target for hormone therapy for transgender men is to increase testosterone levels to the normal male physiological range by administering testosterone.
- A practical target for hormone therapy for transgender women is to decrease testosterone levels to the normal female range without supra- physiological levels of estradiol by administering an antiandrogen and estrogen.
- Transgender adolescents usually have stable gender identities and can be given GnRH analogs to suppress puberty until they can proceed with hormone therapy as early as age 16.
Hormone regimes for transgender men
1. Oral
2. Parenterally
- Testosterone enanthate or cypionate 50200mg/week or 100200mg/2 weeks
- Testosterone undecanoate 1000 mg/12 weeks
3. Transdermal
- Testosterone 1% gel 2.5 10 g/day
- Testosterone patch 2.5 7.5 mg/day
i.m., intramuscular.*Not available in the USA.
Monitoring for transgender men on hormone therapy:
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Transitioning Without Hormones Later In Life By Robyn M
by GenderGP | Feb 3, 2022 | Gender Questioning, Non-Binary People, Trans Man, Trans Woman, Trans Youth
In May 2016, I retired from the Fire Service after 30 years as an operational Firefighter and Fire Officer. For the previous 20 years or so, my wife and I had known that I was most likely transgender. But I had managed to separate this side of me from my day-to-day life with very therapeutic private cross-dressing sessions.
How To Start Identifying As Non
If you feel that the category of non-binary matches your identity, its time to put it to the test. Usually, people start with small steps and only move on to more invasive forms of transitioning once they feel confident.
You might:
- Start using she/they, he/they, they/them, or neopronouns
- Start using a gender-neutral nickname
- Get a haircut and change your clothes to match your identity
- Use a chest binder to appear less feminine
- Shave or go through hair removal to appear less masculine
- Look into hormone replacement therapy
- Look into gender-affirming medical practices
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Does Everyone Who Is Transgender Decide To Transition
No, not all transgender people transition. For those who do, not all transition in the same way. Some may transition socially and not medically. Some may transition medically by doing one or only a few of the procedures listed above. Some may take hormones and decide not to have any surgeries, or just choose one kind of surgery and none of the others.
There are many reasons for the differences in how people transition. These medical procedures can be very expensive, which means that not everyone can afford them. Some transgender people may have health insurance that covers transition-related procedures, and some may not. And finally, but most importantly not all trans people want all of the available medical procedures.
Regardless of whether a transgender person chooses to transition and how they choose to do it, they’re no more real than other trans people who dont transition. Someones gender identity should always be respected no matter how they decide to transition socially or medically.