March 31, 2009 6:38 PM BST
Hi Angelyn,
Please take note everybody: THE “TWO YEAR RULE” IS A MYTH.
Genetic females’ oestrogen levels start increasing around the age of 7 or 8, ramping up further from the age of 10 or 11 onwards. Girls do not achieve full breast growth in two years so why anyone should think a genetic male would is almost beyond me, except that I realise it’s a myth perpetuated by the internet…
Full breast growth in genetic females AND in m2f’s on HRT takes SEVEN TO TEN YEARS. You may know a young girl and noticed her breasts growing and think that a couple of years later she is fairly well-developed, but her hormones will have been active for many years by this time; MUCH more than two years.
Everyone IS different, but it is unrealistic to expect hormones in a genetic male to work that quickly. My mum was a B-cup for years, until her mid-twenties when she grew further to a C-cup. At this age she could well have been producing high levels of oestrogen for 18 years! I have a long way to go…
I’ve been on hormones for 4½ years and am still growing. Development varies wildly, but it’s usually pretty slow and gradual. Slow and gradual is not a bad thing, it probably means a more natural shape will be achieved in the long run. Development with synthetic (and more dangerous) hormones such as ethinylestradiol or Premarin is usually quicker, but may or may not end up in a less natural shape due to the unnaturally quick growth. Conical or tubular breast shapes are not uncommon with these types of synthetic hormones.
I’m taking bio-identical estradiol (ie exactly the same as is produced in a genetic female body) and I would advise anybody to try this first, but above all BE PATIENT.
So what type of hormones are you on Angelyn? It makes a difference.
But generally speaking I would say yes you are foolish to plan breast implants at such an early time. Give it years not months; several years, minimum five before you seriously think about it, in the meantime just be patient. It takes time. If you have implants too soon they will look extremely unnatural due to the lack of breast tissue for them to sit behind. I’ve seen dreadful pictures of girls who have gone this way; imagine a tennis ball, or a grapefruit cut in half and implanted under the skin, that’s what implants without sufficient breast tissue look like, even if implanted under the muscle.
The downsides to implants are many. I personally would rather end up with small breasts that are my own body tissue and which look, feel and behave as such, than have silicone implants and associated scars.
Implants don’t last forever, they will need replacing usually after about 10 years, more surgery, more hassle, more expense, more risk, perhaps more scarring. They are also more “obvious” than people may think.
I have a very close friend who had implants done after 18 months on Premarin. They look fine, but she slightly regrets rushing into it. I was with her recently when a guy she had become friends with remarked out of the blue on her “nice boob job”. She doesn’t like her scars, they’re not bad, but they show, and always will. When she lies down her breasts look entirely false, of course, such is the nature of silicone.
I’m now an A-cup and have done away with inserts, I often wear gel bra’s which give a knockout cleavage, but even with an unpadded bra my breasts just look “right”. They are small but a nice shape. They feel great, especially when someone else touches them! They look fine even without a bra, even on a topless beach, guys still like them even though they are small. And like I say, I am still growing.
This two year thing is nonsense, so girls, please stop repeating unsubstantiated stuff you’ve heard on the internet. 7 – 10 years is normal. Go and read a biology book or just ask yourself, how many 9 – 13 year old girls do you know with fully developed breasts? Yeah, sure, everyone knows of a well-endowed 13 year old girl… but when she’s 21 she will be truly fully developed!
So do yourself several favours, Angelyn and heed this advice – WAIT! It is WAY to early to have implants.
xx
March 31, 2009 8:17 PM BST
One other point to add if eventually you opt for SR surgery, you will probably find that you will go up a cup size within a year of being post op. But Lucy is spot on, especially the point about developing beast tissue before implants just imagine a condom stetched over half an orange that would be what the effect would be and another consideration if you do have implants too early and as you delvelope natural tissue it can distort the original shape, making your nipple go to the sides, top or bottom. Gender born females develope slowly from an early age then go through growth spurts.
March 31, 2009 11:00 PM BST
I don’t think Angelyn was actually asking about the ethical or legal implications, but rather the “biological/medical” benefits/disadvantages of being on HRT pre-srs. I can’t really think of any reason medically why you need to be on HRT for any length of time before having SRS. If you were on it for too long it may affect the amount of donor material available.
Some say it doesn’t make a difference, I was on hormones for almost 3 years before SRS and I found donor material WAS affected, but with Dr Suporn’s skill and technique, the outcome was absolutely fantastic with no problems like lack of depth.
So it probably won’t make much of a difference, but it may depend on your surgeon and his technique. “Old-fashioned” penile inversion is certainly more dependant on the size of penis though, so be warned – don’t leave it too long. And to those who think that depth won’t be important – just you wait! It is.
I certainly can’t think of any advantages of being on hormones for a long time before having surgery.
And yes, Angelyn, save your money, have SRS sooner and by then you won’t be fretting about the size of your boobs.
xx
April 2, 2009 5:03 AM BST
Whenever we discuss hormones with TG/TS people, it may be important to remember that many of us are here because we had abnormal sensitivity to androgens and estrogens as fetuses. We know so little about what makes us us, that it would be foolish to ignore the fact that hormones may affect us differently than GG/RG/GM. The variation of sensitivity to hormones, even within our community, means that the recommended "wait and see" approach is probably far more practical when estimating maximum growth. My male body took a spurt in my mid thirties and I "buffed out" significantly, much to my later dismay. Hormones are VERY POWERFUL drugs and the body is a very complex system. I recommend erring on the side of caution.
April 2, 2009 1:04 PM BST
Danique, you looked very natural to me.
Nikki
April 2, 2009 1:05 PM BST
Danique, you looked very natural to me.
Of course, I'm insanely jealous now!
Nikki
April 4, 2009 7:27 PM BST
All my doctors and shrinks recommended wait for a MINIMUM of two years on hormones before considering augmentation.
I had mine done after five years, having gained only size A/B naturally. The younger you start, the higher the chances are of you getting bigger naturally. (This is not writen in stone, more a generalisation).
And because I am quite big in myself, I needed a fairly large implant to keep things in proportion. (I am now a C/D). Therefore my surgeon (who specialises in breast augmentation surgery privately and for the NHS) went for the long route, inserting expandable implants and gradually increasing the size over a period of months until they looked right. This gave my own tissue time to accommodate the implant, giving a very natural result.
I have since had the 'expandables' replaced with sealed ones, but this is entirely a matter of personal choice, and not necessary. And over the last couple of years they have settled, and lost that initial 'boob-job' look of sitting high and firm.
Have patience, and like others have mentioned already, natal females grow slowly and we get the best results by copying them.
Good luck.
June 11, 2009 1:00 PM BST
I was on hormones for over 4 years but never grew more that a A+ which didn't give me the correct looking chest to pass on the street...fisrt glance from EVERYONE was at my chest then my face then OMG! So I had about 2 sizes implants and am now I'd say basically a B but because of the fact that the implants are put under the muscles I find a C cup best.
Surgoens prefer under the muscle as that keeps the implants from sliding about. GG boobs grow in the soft tissue which mean they are soft and floppy but will drop eventually.
But if you look at a pix of a bodybuilder (for research!) you see that the pectoral is a very flat bottomed muscle and there is quite a gap in the middle. This means that 'maybe' my boobs wont sag but also I can't get the lovely squashed together cleavage look!
My implants were best French make and leaftlet said to think about a life of ten years.
Did anyone see the youtube of the poor woman with the monster implants? Tiny little woman - not sure from where maybe Phillipine/Puerto Rica - with soccer balls. Said they weighed 4 bags of sugar each = 8pounds? Had them to be the new record holder. Reporter asked how her back would stand up to the strain but husband quickly chipped in to say she exercised regualry.