Question: Testosterone for genderfluid dysphoria?
K. Julian asks…
I am a genderfluid person with a very obviously “female” body (ie. big hips, large breasts, hourglass figure, high/soft voice, small shoulders, short). I have accepted that the world will always see me as a woman who occasionally cross dresses, as I can’t change my height, bone structure and don’t want to commit to top surgery (though I do think about it sometimes). I am lucky to work for an LGBTQ organization that accepts and acknowledges my identity, but I still experience occasional dysphoria about my features.
My question is about Testosterone. If I could begin to grow facial hair that might be enough. I would love a drop in voice but I am a trained singer and I’m afraid it would ruin years of work I’ve put into learning about my specific voice. Could someone with experience and/or knowledge about taking T give me a rundown of treatment options, general cost, pros/cons? I’d really appreciate it.
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Category: questions 4 comments »
August 16th, 2015 at 9:09 am |
I’m afraid I can’t comment on options or cost, since I don’t know what country you are in.
And I’m sure you know that the problem with T for many people is that you can’t pick and choose the changes (and you are likely to hit voice changes before you get decent facial hair).
For me, the voice change was sudden. Sure, there were warning signs like sounding like I had a cough or bad cold, but I literally woke up one day and a part of my range was gone. Furthermore, voice breaking is a process – mine took about a year to settle and stop being strangely uncontrollable.
The good news is that there are other trained singers who have gone that route. One example is http://www.eliconley.com/blog/transgender-men-testosterone-and-singing-some-advice
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August 17th, 2015 at 6:17 am |
Seconded, voice change generally takes place within 6 months (mine started within a few months), and facial hair that isn’t just a few random hairs can take years. Your body should bulk up more in a more masculine pattern to kind of balance out some “feminine” features though. My shoulders got crazy broad. Some men do have kind of an apple body and short stature (but in the end it’s YOUR body and it’s valid). The voice, you might have to make a sacrifice. You CAN retrain your voice; MTF people do it and so do FTM people sometimes. I used to be able to squeak super high. I can no longer do that. It still kind of blows my mind.
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August 17th, 2015 at 6:29 am |
As far as I know:
Treatments
(with varying doses dependent on doctor & patient. But whatever the dose the effects will follow the same pattern)
Gel
Intramuscular (most used)
Tablet (works but can be hard on the liver over time)
Costs
As far as I know, it’s almost always $120 for the standard bottle, plus needles and such. Only place I know that does cheaper is Strohecker’s in Oregon (they can mail; that’s what I did) for $60 or $90. Usually lasts 3-4 months. If you have insurance they may cover it.
Pros (depends on what you consider pros, but generally)
Bone structure in face thickens (varies person to person)
Voice deepening
More hair
Fat redistribution (takes forever)
Etc
Cons
“In between” phase can be awkward
Voice cracking is awkward
Obviously you’d have to retrain your voice
Probably going to need to have a hysterectomy at some point, ideally within the first few decades, to avoid cancer (T can exacerbate your chances in those particular organs)
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September 1st, 2015 at 7:30 pm |
Sex is ickky and you have a paraphilla therefore you shouldn t transition is not a good enough reason to withhold medical care. But if I may be able to humbly request that we consider if this diagnosis is going to be made that we push for it to be recognized for what it is, another diagnosis that should be considered equivalent to gender dysphoria.
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