r/AskMtFHRT

All is in the title so let's get to the detail

Got my first years with estrogel. Scrotal every day. Got first "change" after six month with nipple more pointy but then, nothing else. Still don't worry too much because it was the beginning

The T level were pretty low, estro devastating this so I didn't take anti androgen right now. My estro level at this time were high, like ~600 pg/ml, doctor says it was high but fine and again, don't feel any problem with it

One year later, I get to proge. Boofing always at night. Still continue estrogel without anti androgen. Feel no change in perticular but level were wonky with sometime going above 800 pg/ml, sometimes something like under 200 pg/ml. Strong suspicion of false result but I was dedicate to make it right and despite all my effort, I still have these number

Still no notifying change so far. Measurement were the same than before, no boobs, no nipple growth. Nothing. I began to worry about it a bit seing people getting a lot of change after one year (on internet but also IRL)

By November, I decided to stop estrogel because the level were instable and going full DIY with enanthate injection weekly, but also an another turnaround of my regiment (who were already transfem related) with supplement like pueraria, fenugreek and vitamins.

So since the beginning of the years, I'm with injection,T is 0,485 mol/L, estro was above 300 hundred for a time but decided to reduce between 200 and 300 (last analysis put me at 211 pg/ml), Shbg is 0,46 nmol/L for those wondering

No evolution so far, no boobs and tits or anything noticeable (little lactation tho but it was fenugreek and it was one night) Stopped phytoestrogens (fenu, pruearia) since may to see if that will altered the effect and added two week ago bicalutamide (25 mg/day). I lose nipple sensibility but also no more seminal liquid when I do my stuff since recently (but before I added the anti androgens)

Feel really desesparate and let down. I'm already in a hard place for my everyday passing but without any evolution or proof it work, I feel betrayed and really bitter about all of this

So now I'm asking. What did I do wrong? What should I do next?

Ps: the number for my testosterone and my shbg are kinda old, like beginning of the years old if you want to know, don't know if that change anything

Hi everyone,

I'm a trans woman in my early 30s and I've been on HRT for a while now. I'm trying to understand my sexuality, and I'm wondering if anyone has experienced something similar.

I know that a decrease in libido is extremely common after starting estrogen, so I'm not really asking about that. My libido did disappear for several months, but over time it gradually came back. I also went through a period where my orgasms felt much weaker, but that eventually improved too. Nowadays I can masturbate again, although much less often than before HRT (roughly once a week or even less, whereas before it was almost every day).

I'm also sapphic. I've always been attracted to women, and that hasn't changed.

The problem is that what came back doesn't feel like the same sexuality I had before.

Even before transitioning, I was never a particularly sexual person. I lost my virginity as a teenager, but then spent around 15 years without having sex and never really felt motivated to seek it out. Even back then, I wasn't very interested in conventional pornography. What I found arousing was usually more psychological or fantasy-based content rather than explicit sexual content.

When I eventually got into a relationship, I discovered that many sexual activities didn't naturally appeal to me. My partner and I found a way to make intimacy work, but looking back, I wonder if testosterone was doing more of the heavy lifting than I realized.

Now, after HRT, I have almost no interest in actual sex with another person.

It's not that I don't desire my partner specifically. I don't feel that kind of desire toward anyone.

I can still become aroused again by fantasy, stories, or psychological scenarios. I still have a libido, I can still masturbate, and I still enjoy orgasms. But I don't fantasize about having sex with people, and I don't find myself wanting real-life sexual encounters.

Sometimes I wonder if HRT didn't make me asexual, but instead revealed something that had always been there once testosterone stopped pushing me toward sex.

This has been really difficult for my relationship. My partner understandably struggles because she knows I still masturbate sometimes, but I rarely want partnered sex. From her perspective, it feels like rejection, even though that's genuinely not how I experience it.

Has anyone else experienced something similar?

I'm especially interested in hearing from trans women whose libido eventually returned, but whose interest in partnered sex never really did.

Did your sexuality fundamentally change after HRT? Did you eventually identify somewhere on the asexual spectrum, or did you find another explanation?

I'd really appreciate hearing your experiences.

Hi. I am on estradiol valerate in sesame oil subcutaneous injection once a week. I administer it in the abdomen. Was just wondering if anyone has had mild itching on the injection site and slight redness?

I’m a 35 trans woman that has been battling the “what ifs” and “is it worth it” thoughts. So I wanted to prove to myself that I was or was not. I always knew I was, but fear is a real asshole. My therapist and I determined that biochemical dysphoria is likely big for me. So I started depo-estradiol and used it for two weeks. I had a bit of time where I could experiment and just see.

After the first dose I was focused on seeing if anything felt different…it didn’t. No noticeable change. This was disheartening because I saw so many people say they felt the fog lift and the relief within hours or a day or two. I went the whole week and noticed nothing.

The second shot. I almost didn’t take another dose, but I decided I better give it a real chance to find out and so I took it. Within a day of the second dose. I felt the effects. I discovered that I do have emotions. I’ve always just been an eh type person. The only emotions was anger and then just bland. But now I feel things. I teared up at situations. I felt joy. I was happy maybe for the first time ever. I caught myself smiling. Not faking it to get by. I caught myself smiling just because. I talked more at work instead of being a grumpy knot on a log. I enjoyed my existence. I was happy to be alive and that might be the first time in my life.

So I have to stop the treatment for now. I have things I have to get settled in my life before I actually start. But I have my answer. I am a trans woman and I will not deny myself any longer.

TL;DR:
I took two weeks of estrogen injections. I did this as a trial to see if I am really a trans woman. I experience joy, and sadness, and just emotions in general for the first time ever. I was actually happy to be alive for the first time ever. I now know for sure I am a trans woman.

What is an optimal estrogen level? Like what should I be hoping for? I just got my labs done and I don’t have my results back yet but I’m 51 years old and I just want to know at what level do most people feel is a good spot to be at? I know it’s different for everyone but I just want a general idea, like above 100 above 150? I’m
On the .1 patch and I haven’t done any labs since March so I will find out my results sometime next week

So I’ve been on hrt for 3 months, i’m obviously pre surgery and all that lovely stuff.
But like I wanted to ask if this is normal;

>!When i get ‘excited’ i start leaking clear liquid.!<

>!I can’t really get fully erect anymore.!<

>!I can’t cum anymore, it’s just more clear liquid and that clear liquid continues to leak out for the next many hours.!<

>!The skin and tissue of my pp get swollen when i get ‘excited’ and i touch myself (not erect - swollen) and the swelling goes down after a while.!<

Now I know that my girlfriend experiences basically the same when she gets like this but I have never heard of this happening to trans women.

Please advise ‘o’ great sages 🙌

It’s pretty far from me, but planned parenthood doesn’t take my insurance. Do they get started quickly? Are the doctors kind? I have severe anxiety and while I know the campus is big I have more anxiety with speaking 1 on 1 to doctors than big crowds or places. Any doctors I should watch out for? Any that are especially good or bad or fast or slow? Thank you in advance! I’m very anxious about all this. Any doctors thst do informed consent so I can get this done quickly? Thanks in advance!

I am 2 years and 11 months on hormones

- Been on injections since month 1, E always above 150pg/ml

- T always below 40ng/DL

- on and off Prog, longest was 7 months, 100-200mg taken rectally

I still can't pass even when trying my hardest including with voice and everything else. My regimen I've tried has been roughly 7 times changes and I haven't seen changes since about 6 no this past starting HRT. I've been tested for all sorts of thyroid disorders and hormone issues and we can't find out why I'm not seeing changes. I just want to be a girl so fucking bad I hate it.

Has anyone else have their abdomen, hips, butt, and lower back itch after a shower while taking Estradiol and Spironolactone around the fourth Month?

hi all, just looking for some advice or guidance to help quell my brain fodder.

i'm on DIY HRT, about to come up to 3 months (4mg estro via gel arms/inner thighs, 12.5mg cyproterone weekly) and all seems to be well in terms of breast bud development and such, but i have some issues that sent me spiraling.

a little while back (maybe 4-5 days), one of my nips became sort of shy in a way i suppose? it developed a crease along the nip itself which i assumed to be some kind of inversion. this sent me spiraling as i frantically googled it (which ik i should NEVER do) and it told me i may have breast cancer of some form?

i'm not experiencing many other symptoms such as dimpling, swelling, no new hard rock-like lumps or anything like that, only other main thing is some minor pink-ish discolouration around the areola. i can feel the breast buds underneath starting to grow which is nice.

i just have been in a pit because i've convinced myself i have breast cancer, is this accurate? am i true in my thoughts and if so where do i go from here? who do i speak to about this? i have concerns about my GP as i'm not entirely sure how trans friendly they are.

or am i just overthinking this and it'll pass after a while? i genuinely appreciate any thoughts or advice given here, so please feel free to speak your mind

y'all are awesome!

edit: forgot to mention, the nip can come out on its own with a little bit of sensitivity, sometimes does it itself as well. just if that's relevant at all.

I've been on hormones since October 2017. I'm a fairly skinny/average sized person, but i still have some belly fat and basically no fat on my hips or thighs. I've heard/read that after 10 years your body should have redistributed nearly all of your fat cells to more feminine places, but after nearly 9 years I'm still not noticing much of a difference. It's giving me a lot of dysphoria, and honestly kind of triggering my eating disorder thoughts. I wanted to know if anyone else has had a similar problem and if they know what to do about it.

I be had to go to the pharmacy a couple times and talk to the regarding my estrogen and they’re very nice but I can tell they’re judging me because I’m picking up the hrt for myself. I get really uncomfortable with it when I have to see them face to face. I’m only 8 weeks into my transition. Thoughts anyone?

Hi all, so I am going through a heat wave that lasts three days. Outside temperature is 96 degrees. I live in WV and I dont have centrail air conditioning. What I do have are two window ac units which work great at keeping the first floor of my house at 77 or below if the outside temperature is less than 90 degrees. I work from 4pm to 10pm on wednesdays and 2pm to 10 pm thursday through sundays. Just this past wednesday, my house was at 75 degrees when I left for work at 3:30 pm. When I got home at 10:30 pm, my house was at 81 degrees and was at 81 degrees at 10:30 last night on a Thursday. I am unsure how hot my house gets between 4pm and 10:30 pm. I imagine that the temperature could be going up to maybe 84 or 85 but it may only be going up to 81 or for all I know it could be going up to 90 while it is 96 outside. When I came home the past two nights my house was a little warm but not hot nor was it unbearable. iIs my estradiol valerate going to be okay? I have read a lot of hype online if estradiol valerate is okay after being in temperatures above 77 and there is also not much credible information on this. Some say that estradiol valerate is automatically degraded if it endures temperatures above 77 and some say the valerate can withstand temperatures up to 86 and even 90 for a whole week or even months. I have checked my valerate vials and they seem fine with no discoloration or cloudiness but I have read that it can be bad and show no visual signs of being bad after enduring higher temperatures in posts left by others. I asked the manufacturer if valerate vials are okay if the temperature goes above 77 and they said they have not conducted studies of the effects of higher temperatures on estradiol valerate and to keep estradiol valerate between 68 and 77 degrees. My thing is, how does the manufactuerer know that estradiol valerate has to be between 68 and 77 if they havent done any temperature testing? I have asked my doctor about if my valerate vials are going to be okay after being succomed to temperatures above 77 in the 80s in the evenings which is believed to be for around 4 to 5 hours and I am waiting to hear back from her. Any input from other transwomen about if they think estradiol valerate is okay if it endures temperatures higher than 77 in the 80s and up to 90 degrees for three days of a heat wave for 4 to 5 hour intervals each of such days would be great.

I wanna start hrt as soon as possible, and can likely start it within a month. I also figured that I should start laser hair removal as soon as possible, but I’ve realized I can’t quite do that right now since I actually tweezed two hairs on my face a few days ago and I’ve only just learned that you shouldn’t do that if you want laser. I’ve also read that doing laser hair removal after staring hrt can be less effective, and that you should start laser a bit before or at the same time as hrt. I shouldn’t delay starting hrt to get a bit of laser before or at the same time right? I should start hrt and then start laser as soon as I can do so?

So, I've been on HRT for 2 years and 4ish months now and the fact that my breast growth has become not noticeable for a while now is making me sad, honestly.

From February 2024 to February 2025, I was on cyproterone and estradiol gel and my breast development was pretty clear, with the pains and all (my estradiol levels were just barely below 200 pg/mL), but in February/March 2025, I switch to pills because it is a more comfortable way of intaking medicine in my opinion and my estradiol levels did get significantly lower (from 13 pg/mL at their lowest to 69 pg/mL at their highest), so I just switched back to the gel February of this year, so I truly think that's why it stagnated for that whole year.

Since then, my estradiol levels have gotten pretty high (342 pg/mL in the latest blood test I did), but the breast development situation hasn't improved at all. I started to feel breast pains more frequently just like before, however there's not much growth going on.

Is it a genetics things? My mother does have big breasts, but my cis sister was in a pretty similar situation to mine regarding breast size until she got breast augmentation when she was in college (unfornately, that wasn't really a possibility for me). My sister was on birth contral from her mid-10s all the way to her late twenties though, so I don't know if her breasts didn't really develop much because of that or if it was a genetics thing, hope you could enlighten me about that.

I always see these girls on twitter on progesterone with huge breasts, is progesterone the way? With my estradiol levels, there should be more growth, right?

So i am checking my blood work results and i am completely lost on how to read it

Please help

Pituitary Function
Prolactin 9.9 4.0-19.0 ug/L

Reproductive and Gonadal
Estradiol HI 1705 <162 pmol/L
Testosterone LO <0.4 8.4 - 28.8 nmol/L

this is sorta a specific question, ive been on and off estrogen for the past year, or so and 1 thing ive noticed that i dont rlly see talked about is that, for me, estrogen doesnt just make emotions hit harder, but my normal baseline headspace feels different. its like my brain idles differently when i’m on and of e. like it feels genuinely different.
also, ive been off estrogen for about 2 months, and during that time my antidepressant has become pretty much useless. but when i was on estrogen, it was very effective. (and to clarify i was still depressed on estrogen, the only thing that really worked was estrogen + this antidepressant together.)
has anyone else experienced something similar? not just stronger emotions on e, but a fundamentally different baseline mental state, or estrogen changing how effective your medications are?

I am scared I’ll be stuck like this, I don’t mind being a pretty boy when I want to but I want to be the woman who’s always been me trapped underneath this skin.

It took me so long because I was afraid of my people disowning me, then it was drug addiction for years, now that I’ve been sober for 4 years, I’m ready. I have always been scared I wouldn’t be pretty, I said screw it, because honestly it’s going to kill me not to, even if I don’t transition good, but I kinda hope I’ll be pretty, that I’ll feel good about it.

My voice is 100 percent woman on command and beautiful, I go to the gym and do targeting fem work outs, I eat healthy and have an amazing skin care routine, I’m doing all the foot work.

Mother God please bless me with your beauty and grace, I will not squander your gift, I will not be an ugly woman inside, but be the light and love you’ve put into my heart over the years. I will be a good woman either way but being touched by your hand giving the gift of beauty and the movement of grace would make me so very thankful. I love you and I trust you and it’s in you mother I pray Amen

https://preview.redd.it/ajk0ps8v3zah1.png?width=598&format=png&auto=webp&s=14660ea202c0e42e5e0f6867e1c0a0cc62125b8f

https://preview.redd.it/v9sly0hy3zah1.png?width=1070&format=png&auto=webp&s=d93db4e4ae26ef52c4f19b4e26f87848154b846c

questioning ease not the precedent

So Next week i have a Blood test to see my levels. Do i have to take my e pill the night before? Or should i Skip It?

Thanks for the help