Our words have power and impact. They can create self-fulfilling prophesies or paradoxically attract the very thing you don’t want.
If you find yourself struggling with negative inner self-talk, I invite you to practice changing the conversation by validating your emotions, avoiding the negation of possible future outcomes and keeping an open mind towards opportunities of personal growth.
If you are experiencing persistent emotional distress, SensibleTips for T Guys advocates for seeking help for mental health concerns.
24/7, free and confidential support for people in distress, prevention and crisis resources for you or your loved ones, and best practices for professionals. Call or text 988 or chat 988lifeline.org.
Peer support hotline is run by and for trans people. The line is available daily from 7 a.m.–1 a.m. PST / 9 a.m.–3 a.m. CST / 10 a.m.–4 a.m. EST. Volunteers may be available during off hours. Call 877-565-8860 to speak to someone now.
The TrevorLifeline is a crisis intervention and suicide prevention phone service available 24/7 at 1-866-488-7386. TrevorText is available by texting “START” to 678678 .
Your fears that you don’t have a body that will transition “well” are, sure, understandable, but there isn’t truly such thing as a body that’s unworthy of transition. Perhaps your changing body won’t suit everybody’s taste, but would you rather live for yourself or for the whims of random people who don’t care about your happiness as long as they’re attracted to what they see?
Transition is for anybody who wants it. It’s okay to be fearful. It’s okay to be uncertain. But it isn’t the end of the world. You are in control, and if you choose to transition to any capacity, it should be at your behest. You and your body are worthy of transition. I hope you are able to seize transition and do what you truly want for yourself.
Elia Bonci, who also spoke to la Repubblica, said: “I took courage, used my deadname and signed up for Miss Italy because fighting transphobia is intersectional and even though I’m not a trans woman, I’ve decided to fight for their rights.”
the whole point is to show how “afab” being used as a replacement for woman is fucking stupid and fundamentally incorrect and. whatever else. and it gives me hope to see the community rising up like this. solidarity and unity and peace on planet earth.
This is extremely important, y'all. They’re trying to Hyde Amendment trans care for people of all ages.
Medicaid and Medicare coverage would go away, no matter what state you are in. ACA plan coverage would go away. Hospitals would fully just have to stop offering trans care, full stop, or lose their federal funding.
I know we hate the phone but we absolutely can’t sleep on this. If you have a Democrat rep, you absolutely have to tell them to hold the line against this.
seeing trans ppl in public is literally life giving. wish there was a normal way to express to other trans people in public that we’re family and that i love them
Testosterone HRT Overview, Guide & Information for All People Seeking It
Hello, we’re a genderqueer person who’s been taking testosterone HRT since 2015. I’ve also worked in a pharmacy and we’ve seen a lot of the roadblocks that comes with people trying to start HRT. Nobody really explains how difficult it can be, even when you get your prescription. Because testosterone is a controlled substance in many places, it creates hurdles. There can be a lot going on, and some folks become very disheartened if their T isn’t covered by insurance. i get that. We wanted to create a relatively easy to digest and succinct post detailing some common hurdles people have to face on the doctor/prescriber and insurance level, as well as after getting their hormones. *please note that a lot of this information is United States centric as that’s where i live, i can’t give information for a country i’ve never lived in, unfortunately.*
If your primary care provider is already familiar and comfortable with prescribing HRT, you can go through them, find an informed consent clinic, or seek an endocrinologist or gender affirming care specialist. Planned Parenthood is a good option for many people. If you don’t have insurance, check to see if your area offers medicaid or other low income insurance plans, T can get pricey in some areas, especially for topical. if you can’t access insurance please look into services like GoodRx that offer coupons and discounted rates for prescriptions.
Your provider will ask you some questions about your experience with gender, any dysphoria, why you want to seek medical transition, if you’d like to seek surgeries, assess your mental health, and then screen you for potential health problems or roadblocks. Your liver enzymes will be screened, as will your hormone levels, blood pressure, and some other things. Make sure your doctor knows to note that you are a transgender patient so that your blood tests are not discarded because your gender says “F” instead of “M” on the paperwork.
In some areas it is required to seek treatment with a therapist who specializes in transgender care to make sure this avenue is right for you. Not everywhere requires this step.
Make sure you talk to whoever is prescribing the testosterone to you about insurance, and if they are aware that testosterone is a controlled substance. A controlled substance is a substance that has been restricted by your country’s government or governing medical organization and has to be monitored carefully. You need what’s called a “prior authorization” from your doctor in order to get your insurance to give you your hormones in most states. Talk to your doctor and pharmacy about prior authorizations for your testosterone and syringes if you need them.
Currently, the only forms of testosterone available for masculinizing HRT are testosterone cypionate (injectable), topical gel, and patches. Topical forms are usually applied daily, injections can be done once or twice a week, or even more or less frequently if a person needs it. There is no pill option available for masculinizing HRT currently.
HRT and Administering Testosterone
When you get a prescription, how things go will depend on if you get your doses administered at the clinic, or if you choose to do them at home. If you are not comfortable self administering, ask if they will at the clinic. many places offer this service.
if you choose to administer at home, if you are using injectable T, note that pharmacies may give you the wrong gauges of needles because they don’t often give out needles for HRT. You need two different sizes- a thicker, longer needle for drawing from the vial, as testosterone cypionate is thick. You will have a large 18g needle for drawing and a small 22 or 23g needle for injecting. Sanitize your injection site and your hands, never using the same needle tips twice for any reason. Never use needles that have touched another surface, and get a sharps container.
Make sure you are injecting in different spots every time you inject. you do not want to inject into the same patches of skin every time, as this can cause tissue damage, tissue death (necrosis), and severe scarring after long periods of time of having to heal but being interrupted over and over again. inject into slightly different spots every time to make sure your skin and muscle tissue can heal.
When applying topical T, make sure you clean the skin before putting it on, and do not shower or go swimming for 2 - 5 hours after application. make sure you cover the skin with some kind of clothing. You want to make sure it doesn’t rub off on other people, as other people can absorb it as well by touching you. Do not ever have someone else apply topical testosterone for you, even if they are also trans, as this can mess with their levels in a bad way.
After starting T you may have to adjust your dose over time to achieve desired effects. if so, you will start on a starter dose and then you can move up to higher doses as your body adjusts. This process is called titration.
Growth and thickening of facial and body hair begins 3 - 6 months after treatment starts and the full effect happens within 3 - 5 years.
Menstruation (periods) stop. This occurs around 2 - 6 months within starting treatment, and is one of the most desired effects.
Voice deepens. The vocal cords thicken, which can cause uncomfortable sensations in the throat for a time, such as a scratchy feeling, dryness, tightness, pressure, and a ‘sore’ throat that isn’t sore in an illness related way. This begins 3 - 6 months after treatment starts, and the full effect happens in 1 - 2 years.
Body fat redistribution begins 3 - 6 months after treatment starts and the full effect happens within 3 - 5 years.
Growth or enlargement of Adam’s apple.
Clitoris grows larger, and vaginal lining can thin and become drier. Some experience vaginal atrophy and/or painful levels of dryness, while some maintain a healthy level of vaginal fluids without problem. This begins 3 - 12 months after treatment starts, and the full effect is usually seen within 1 - 2 years, though some experience growth over a long period of time if their dose is low.
Change in body odor and increased sweating occurs within 1 - 3 months of starting treatment.
Muscle mass and strength increase, this will begin within 6 - 12 months and the full effect will be seen within 2 - 5 years.
Possible libido increase, though some report no changes or even the inverse.
Potential but not guaranteed balding or receding hairline, which is treatable, and not seen in everyone.
Potential increase in energy in general, some report an almost antidepressant like effect.
Possible increase in red blood cell production leading to high blood pressure, which is treatable via medications and donating red blood cells when appropriate and safe.
Do NOT become disheartened if you do not see the effects you want to see right away. It can take several years for the full effects of certain aspects of medical transition to show themselves. Stay patient, talk with your provider, talk to other trans people.
There is not really a guide book to masculinizing HRT and medical transition, most of the information there is is passed along between each of us. We will continue to edit this post as we think of more important information.
A 1950s newspaper detailing the third marriage of Robert Allen (1914-1997), a trans man.
Daily Mirror issue from Friday, August 30th 1957.
Robert was a trans man from Lancashire, England. He was one of the very first people to legally change sex in the United Kingdom in 1943. Robert led a quiet life and after his 1957 newspaper appearance (pictured above) remained out of the public eye until his death in 1997 at the age of 83.
Somehow, this article is more respectful to trans people than many current news.
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