The intrepid reader may recall that in my last post here, I was talking about the resurgence of my sex drive to some extent. Well I may have found out why this is happening, although I find it hard to believe myself.
Tuesday, the 20th, I had an appointment with my Endocronologist at the Milwaukee V.A. hospital. Of course, they did the usual blood tests, I finally got them to do an estradiol test along with the T test and liver and kidney function tests. I got my test results back on Friday, and, either they tested the wrong blood, or something is really messed up with my testie function. The T test came back in the mid 500s, I think it was 548 or something like that, the range being 250 to 1000 for a normal male. The estradiol test came back at 38, below the normal level for post-menapause. If these numbers are correct, it explains my sex drive, but it also means that my body has developed a resistance to spiro. I’ve been taking 100 mg daily for over a year now and my last T test last fall showed me at 111. Also, I’ve been on the Vivelle Dot patch, the .1 size, the largest they make, for more than 6 months, and 2 mg of Estrofem for at least 6 months before that. So, why is my estradiol level that low and my T level that high? Do I need to get them removed to solve this problem? A better question would be, can I get this done through the V.A. health system? After all, I’ve only thought about having them removed for, oh, about 20 years now. It just costs so much for basic things like this! Ugg!
Filed under: Life Experiences, Transgender | Tagged: estradiol, estrofem, hormone, hormones, sexology, spiro, testosterone, Transgender |
TRANScend GENDER 
Well that would definitely explain a heightened sex drive. I didn’t know that your body could develop such a resistance to spironolactone. My next visit to the endocrinologist is coming up in July, and I wonder what mine will be, though I’ve been able to keep my T level in check. I have to admit, I’ve been considering an orchi, and those transsexual friends of mine who have had it tell me it’s another step towards freedom for them.
100 mg/day of spiro has been plenty to drive my T levels down to the teens. However, some people need as much as 400 mg/day to subdue T production sufficiently. Also, your estrogen dosage, whether on the patch or orally, is much too low. You need at least 4-6 mg/day (I take approximately 8 mg/day) of estradiol to obtain an acceptable level of feminization. That means at least 2 patches at the same time, or supplementing your 1 patch with 2-4 mg/day orally, .
Also, estrogen blood levels are virtually useless in determining what dosage works best for you. There are NO studies indicating what levels work best for feminizing MTF transsexuals. So, any doctor who says you should have the same levels as natal females is just blowing smoke with no justification whatsoever. Besides, women’s estrogen levels vary over a very wide range, even within a particular phase of their menstrual cycle, and even more so on a monthly basis.
Finally, a word of caution about having an orchiectomy: Doing that significantly before having SRS can affect the ability of your SRS surgeon to achieve acceptable depth of the vagina. In particular, Dr. Suporn, who is one of the best SRS surgeons in the world, cautions against having an orchiectomy, since, unlike most surgeons, he uses the scrotum, not the penile skin, to line the vagina. Thus, any shrinkage in the scrotum can limit the depth he can achieve without having to do a supplemental skin graft, e.g., from your thigh.
Thanks for the replies! You know the worst part about this whole thing, I just got my prescription for progesterone, but if my T level really is that high, I’d be nuts to start taking it at this time, it would probably have a further androgenizing effect.
I’ve been thinking about supplementing my patch with 2 mgs of Estrofem daily, that’s still a low enough oral dose to not affect the liver much, but it would complement the patch. I used to take it sublingually, so I’d go back to that.
As for spiro, I weigh 135 pounds soaking wet so taking large doses of spiro isn’t in my best interest, also, I have enough enough blood pressure drops from standing up quick already, I wouldn’t want to lower my blood pressure any more.
Of course, I still have to wonder if it was my blood that they tested, my T was down to 111, having it go back up again doesn’t make much sense.
As for orchie and depth, at the age that I am now,52, by the time I could afford to have my outie made into an innie, I won’t have much use for depth. I’m more concerned with sensation and appearance then with depth, I wouldn’t care if it was only an inch deep, it’d still be better than what I now have. For me, the possibility of full SRS is financially doubtful, the orchie takes care of a couple things , such as the need for spiro, it also makes it possible to have the gender marker on ID papers changed in Michigan. So, the orchie does have certain advantages.
Amber,
A small correction: Your prescription is for Provera (medroxyprogesterone acetate), which is a progestin, not progesterone, which is also a progestin but also the only one that is naturally produced in our bodies. I think it’s important and helpful to others to always distinguish between them, since they have significantly different side effects that need to be considered.
As for SRS, don’t count yourself out of being interested or having opportunities for intercourse because of your age. Even lesbians like to be penetrated and to penetrate their partners. It’s easy to say now that an vagina that’s only an inch deep would be OK, but the reality is that it would significantly limit your ability to enjoy a full sexual life and to find willing partners. Besides, these days, we can expect to live to be 100, so you’ve still got half your life to look forward to. It would be a shame to give up the ability to enjoy all of the benefits of being a woman for the rest of your life.
(BTW, I’m 54 and I’m looking forward to enjoying ALL the pleasures of being a woman after SRS.)
I do, however, understand your reasons for desiring an orchie at this point. I also want to make clear that having an orchie does not automatically make you ineligible for SRS by Dr. Suporn or anyone else, but it may limit your options in the future.
Abby