‘Gotta book in that makeover’

The effects of being a ‘druggie’

Many people ask what the effects of taking hormones are. I can only speak for the ones I have been prescribed, as I have not tried the ‘over the counter’, herbals &c. I have heard some can be quite effective, producing similar results. Availability and strengths depend where you are, and the quality and speed of results and side effects obviously vary considerably from person to person. I’ll confine the the remainder of this to what happens in the UK.

I was started by Russel Reid on a combined pill, œstrogen and progesterone @ 3 per day, (=150mg), plus an œstrogen externally applied gel, @ 2-4 shots of a pump dispenser, (=2.5-5.0g) per day. Started on 2, (2.5g). The pill was called Ovran, and is no longer available. It has been replaced with the lower dosage per pill Ovranette. Simple conversion, take more! Actually, I didn’t, for the reasons below.

I was on this original dose for about 5-6 months. The first thing I noticed were the night sweats. I likened it to the menopause in reverse. Definitely unpleasant, but died out after about 3 months. Then my character started to change. I found I was much calmer, the instant irritation at almost anything not going my way slowly started to disappear, speeding up exponentially. I liked that, and so did everyone else.  I didn’t notice, but apparently my features started to soften up. My tastes changed, becoming more sensitive-vindaloo to madras J-lighter beers and so on. Smell became more acute. Hair, which luckily I still have, grew better, and body hair declined, but not totally. I still need the monthly leg shave, though the chest has stayed almost clear. Lower body? Let’s not go there! There is, but softer. ‘Nuff said.

There was some slow chest development, up to about A/B, but that’s all. The younger you start, the more you tend to get, but don’t expect big ones. Applied last year for augmentation surgery as a supplement to the main op, is available on NHS if you shout long and loud enough. I did, and will have them before this summer.

After about 6mths, I started to experiment with the dosages to find what suited me best. It’s not something you can describe, just you ‘feel’ when things are right. With GP’s approval, and for 2mths per change. Firstly, up to 5g of gel. Too much. Down again to 2.5g. Then down to 100mg pills. Much better. Felt good, and myself for the first time ever. Stayed here for about another year. Ovran changed to Ovranette, no changes. Then GP decided to go for a straight œstrogen pill. I would like to add here that he did try and find out as much information as he could for me, but it’s like the masons, not much was forthcoming. The progesterone helps the breast development, but as there had been no change there for some time, I reckoned it would be ok. It was.

Then GP retired, and new one is lady. Excellent, just what I hoped for. She was also very good, but still knew little about TG. She tried, but not much available. My theory is that no-one really knows.

The other major side effect was my blood pressure. It started to rise slowly to a dangerous level. More pills. That brought it to merely too high. I moved soon after this, and also stopped the gel. BP still high, but better. Latest GP agreed to go to an œstrogen patch, plus the gel, at the lower dose. Since then, BP has dropped to normal. Wouldn’t be surprised to find out the pills had something to do with it J.

So, nothing exciting really, just pleasant for the recipient. Me.

Latest thing will be the anti-androgen. Start that soon, and will report results. I hope to be able to say it enhances the effects of the hormones, and I may even be able to reduce them further. Post-op, it will then be a whole new ballgame. Played without anyJ. I know I will then have to take a small œstrogen supplement, but no more than the usual HRT. A friend is on a 2mg patch. I could live with that.

Sue.X