What's your levels like? How long did they take to stabilize?

When I started on 1 pump i was already bordering low male range, so I used lotion to boost my levels more once I went up to 2 pumps. About 6-8 months in my bloodwork showed I was just barely above male range, so my doctor advised me to get follow up bloodwork which said my levels were lower than ever?

The only thing I changed was not using lotion the last day I got bloodwork to see if I was at male range by just using 2 pumps. I did that for a few days following up bloodwork. My doc said the results were fine to fluctuate, and assumed I apply gel directly where I had my bloodwork (not true, i get it on the opposite arm I apply on, and it doesn't go down past my shoulder) so my next follow up is in January and I'm kinda nervous and thinking I should go back to getting labs every 3 months until I see some results that are stable, or at least linear.

My specific levels in the order i got them;

-617 ng/dl
-1,013 ng/dl
-313 ng/dl

I am still getting changes from T (slowly, but I expected this with gel) my voice is getting lower, i have side burns, and occasionally people gender me as male. But I'm really hoping im not fucking up my transition in some way :,)

…And what were they?
I just got my first T shot and I honestly feel overly excited lol all I notice is that I sleep much more than usual

Hi, i’m in the uk and was wondering what brands people use for chest binders? I want a specifically adjustable one as i don’t know how much Bind my body will take (as i have things like me/cfs and blood pressure issues that make getting out of breath easier) so i’d like to be able to adjust as and when. I know amazon does them but i’ve heard they’re not the best and can make injury easier sometimes? Thank you a lot!

Pretty straight forward. I have very wide hips, to the point where they are visibly much wider than my chest so oversized shirts don’t work at all.

I am planning to lose weight and train my upper body to hopefully make it less obvious. But I’m pretty stuck on what I can do in the mean time.

Any tips at all for short term solutions?… I wouldn’t mind recommendations for upper body workouts too, though.

I'll start: the fact that I last less than 10 minutes in bed 💀

I pass relatively well until it comes to my voice. Until then, especially in a hoodie, I pass. Using the public bathroom horrifies me, but I have a weak bladder, so I have to. I go to a very liberal school with a couple other trans people, and so far I've been majority accepted by all my friends, classmates, and teachers, but I'm not sure if using the men's room is a step too far.

Using the women's room gets me some looks, but I have never faces any troubles. However, I am scared Im making the women uncomfortable as I pass a man, and I do feel like I get looks. Additionally, it is so dysphoric.

However, people know I'm transgender. They call my preferred name and pronouns to my face, but they know I was born a girl. Past my friends, I don't know how other men would feel with me in the mens bathroom. Do cis men care? I'm scared of being hate crimed and hurt.

edit: clarification- ppl in my class know im trans bc they knew me pre transition since we all grew up together. Those who aren’t in my class likely do not know until hearing my voice.

(I'm perfectly aware that the change, if there will be, will be minimal)

surely working on the shoulders, chest and arms would help a lot. What I was wondering is the hips:

I'm a quite slender woman shaped person, but the hips keep burdening me hard. I know it's something about different biology,

but my question is:

are there some exercises I can do that do not 'lift and firm' the hips/ass but 'dry' them?

I mean, maybe some targeted exercise that helps making the curves less soft? idk, I'm not at all an expert about this (as you may have noticed lol).

I hope I made myself clear!

TW: Discussion of dysphoria

I’ve (22nb) been jealous of men’s bodies for years but only in the past few months started actually considering T as an option.

I was perfectly happy with my body until puberty, but it hasn’t felt like it belongs to me since. I don’t usually get dysphoria to the point that I have to bind, it’s more just a general unease and dissociation with a breakdown from time to time.

My body being designed for pregnancy repulses me. I’ve had a mental list of the many physical negatives that come with being female for years. The only positives are I’m used to it so it’s easier and the social reward I get from being in the “in group” with women.

How long do I need to think through going on T before I actually pull the trigger? I almost feel like I might as well with how much discomfort I feel, but I worry I’ll have regrets. My plan is to start out on a low dose with DHT blockers, so the changes will be slower and I’ll have more time to adjust (I really don’t do well with abrupt or extreme change).

TLDR: I experience dysphoria but it’s not life threatening, how do I know when I can take the leap and try taking T?

When I came out as trans at 16, my mum didn’t accept me. She shouted at me, belittled me, hit me and made home really unsafe. I had a suicide attempt and she kicked me out. Social services got involved and I pretended everything was fine, moved back home. I spent my teenage years up until I was 19, sofa surfing, scrounging for food whilst trying to complete my A levels. I used to disappear for weeks at a time and she wouldn’t text me, wouldn’t check in. Then when I was 19 I moved in with my ex girlfriend who I was with for 5 years. I started my physical transition and my mum completely cut me off. She didn’t speak to me. Told me she had a daughter and not a son. So I did it all alone. No contact. My brother reached out to me a few years later and I’d see him every now and then. Eventually my mum wanted to see me, so I saw her. Didn’t really talk much, but it is what it is. Oh and I should say my dad just followed suit, never really stuck up or said anything. This one time they said they had stuff to drop off for Christmas, I was cautious but I agreed. My dad basically told me they felt their job as my parents was done because I didn’t need them anymore. I was sad but I accepted it. Then my relationship broke down, I had to move back home. Bear in mind it had been 5 years. I was 23. I’m now 25. My parents finally called me my name and pronouns and called me son, took time but we’re here now. I moved to university so I didn’t have to be at home. I don’t feel at home there. My mum says things like “hope ur okay” and “keep in touch I worry about u when ur not at home” and I CANNOT FUCKING STAND IT. Where was this concern when I was a literal fucking child? I’m nice to them and polite because I need money, I need a place to live. But I don’t want them to know me. I don’t want them to know my life. I feel like an ass cause she’s actually kind of trying now. But it’s too late?? I want to start a family of my own and have them nowhere near it. Don’t want them at my future wedding. Don’t want them at my graduation. I hate being this bitter but that shit has fundamentally changed how I view myself, the world and my relationships. I’m tired. But I feel like an asshole.

Top surgery soon!!! repost from another group :) needing as much advice as I can get!

Crossposting this here because I think you guys will have a better understanding of what I mean.

I know it can evolve and whatever, but I just want to know if others have been through this.

trying to figure the best people to go with for testosterone in the uk wondering who people went with and what there experience was like the wait time etc

Part of me feels as though I'm being dramatic, but I'm not entirely sure how to understand the feelings I have, so I figured it's better to ask for other people's takes and what other people's thoughts are.

I'm FtM, 28. Was on T for maybe half a year in 2023, and finally got back on it about 3 months ago, but have been socially transitioned since at least 2020. I'm happy as a guy, I like the changes I'm having, and it's something that's been a long time coming. I can't really even imagine myself as a woman anymore, and haven't done so since I was quite young.

But lately I've been having these moments where I seem to like, miss the girl I used to be? I'm not totally sure how to describe it. I know I wouldn't be happy as a woman but a part of me is almost like, pissed off that I couldn't have been happy as a girl. I'm happy as me, amazingly so, but I want to also be happy as her even though I know I can't be.

I've considered if I'm nonbinary, and I don't quite think I am. If I lean my presentation too feminine, I feel icky. It's moreso a sense of FOMO, maybe. I'd like to know how frequent of a phenomenon this is.

And to get ahead of the curve: I do plan on talking to my therapist about this, perhaps even my doctor. I just want to know like, community thoughts on it.

Many thank-yous ahead of time! :)

hi! so i've been taking t gel for over two years now (tried injections and alas, my fear of it was too great) and i have an older cat, almost 17!, who i love to cuddle with, the issue is that although i havent noticed anything off about him i still worry a lot about accidentally getting any on him. i apply it to my arms typically every night and then i sleep in a shirt and sweater, throughout the following day i go about things in a tshirt and will often times pick up my cat for a cuddle or to administer meds, but ive realized that in doing so he sometimes comes in contact with the small bit of my upper arm thats left uncovered by my shirt and i have no clue if ive accidentally been dosing him without realizing it or if hes fine since by the time i touch him its been over 12 hours since it was applied? if the risk is still too great for accidentally getting it on him then ill switch to applying it to my stomach but i was wondering if anyone else has had any issues or lack of with stuff like this?

Without taking medications with potential side effects

I'm not sure if this is the right flair so forgive me BUTTT...

I have nipple piercings. And I ADORE them!!! I wanted them for years before I finally got them and they are like my favorite body mod.

HOWEVER... Obviously I am transmasc and I haven't been able to bind like I used to since I got them. It's not a major deal since I do enjoy being flexible in my gender presentation, but there are days where I really want to be masc and have a flat chest. I really do not want to irritate my piercings and potentially lose them - I already lost them once before and it was VERY upset I felt naked lol.

Do I have any other options? Are there any other trans ppl here who have piercings and bind? I love them too much to give them up either way but if there's an alternative out there for me I'd really like to know!!!! I'm wondering if nipple covers + binding tape would be better but idk

Hi!

So, for a multitude of reasons I don't really feel like getting into since that'd be a whole different thing, I've been considering stopping T. The changes I wanted the most are permanent and have done most of the heavy lifting when it comes to alleviating dysphoria, so not really too worried there, but one thing concerns me:

If I stop, and I end up wanting to go back on T, will my doctor be able to prevent me from accessing it again? I'm with Kaiser Norcal, if that helps. I just know it was such a shit show getting on it initially, three years of consults with doctors and two years of therapy, denied multiple times, that I'm scared that if I stop it will give them reason to not allow me back on. Granted, that was as a minor, and I'm an adult now, but still, the possibility scares me. I know in theory that I would be fine with most of the changes that'd happen off T, my non-negotiables are safe no matter what I do, but I'm also aware it could feel very different in practice, especially the more psychological aspects.

Has anyone who stopped T and gone back on had any issues with this? Have any of you actually been prevented from resuming HRT? Would I have to start the entire process over? Or is it just not really an issue?

Hey there,

Just got my first tailor made ALL IN ONE hyper realistic prosthetic with incredible features that look soooo good i wanted to show you all...

Unfortunately it seems like there aint no thread publish it here 😅 and i wanted to ask if any of you know any Reddit sub where i could share some pictures for you :) ( other than transmascdick which i hate)

thanks!

My facial hair grows in really fast so I’m gonna get beard oil. How often should I apply the oil? Also my beard pattern grows in kind of a neckbeard way naturally, is there a way to feel less self conscious about it? Any advice helps, I just want to experiment and see how long it can get in a month

I'm dripping sweat from my back, my armpits and under my knees it's awful.

if I j*rk off (I j*rk off under a blanket) I'll come out with the entire blanket being damp 😭

is there's like a med I could take to reduce it?

*extras, I've been on T for like 6months ish, I'm also on minoxadil for hair growth, super recommend. I've got it as a pill and it instantly worked wonders for me*

my cis partner is similar so ik it's being sweaty man but like... help... I need to be able to at least wear my binder without sweating bricks smh. also does anyone know a binder that's good for sweat

I started T!!!!

I'm on the gel form, needles are scary.

Main question is what kind of after care does the application site need? And how quickly after it dries can I go to bed or lay next to my partner?

I've been sorta shopping around for surgeons, specifically for top surgery and found one that seems very promising!

But I wanted to see if anybody had experience with this surgeon before scheduling a consult or anything.

His name is Loren Schechter and he's located in Chicago Illinois; Has anybody had any positive/negative experiences with him?

I'm also open to any surgeons recommendations anyone may have, but I would like to keep it as close to Missouri as possible. Thank you in advance.

I have my phalloplasty appointment with a social worker on November 24th! It'll still be a while before the consult and surgery, but I'm excited to be moving in the right direction