Hi Patty,
Because the cyproterone acetate and the SP inhibit 5α-reductase, aromatase makes lots of estrogens from free testosterone. The anterior pituitary gland measures the total count of sex hormones, concludes it's high, since you are supplementing estrogens too, and stops making Luteinizing Hormone (LH). The testes react to that signal by shutting down the production of testosterone. The longer you supplement, the lower testosterone will drop.
There is a point where it becomes dangerous. Osteoporosis is one risk, and you need DHT to build the resistance against stress. Between 10 and 15 years after GRS, Dutch TSs show unusually high mortality, mainly because of suicide, aids, and drugs.
A gender clinic would conclude it's time for surgery, and after that, stop estrogen supplementation. Estrogens can cause depression too.
For legal reasons, Dutch TSs get 100 mg of cyproterone acetate. I always thought that's a lot. About 25 mg, I don't know, but a common dose among TGs here is 10 mg. TSs don't like going that low, because after all the IPL and the electrolysis, they hate seeing even a few chin hairs come back. They prefer to just let free T slump, because they hate muscle growth too.
So there's no consensus. I and other TGs think you can reduce cypro, and the medical tradition is GRS and stopping estrogens. There is no literature about the long term consequences of using the cypro dose to steer it.
My strictly personal opinion is that the big problem with cypro is that it's a powerful progestin too. As long as you take it, you simply have to balance it with estrogens, because you'll suffer from progesterone dominance if you don't.
Because of this, you are in a catch 22. Free T is too low. There will be consequences. You have to let it increase. But you don't want the chin hair, so you increase cypro. But that makes you progesterone dominant. So you increase estrogens. but that will shut down LH, and decrease free T.
The typical solution in an herbal program is to use a 5α-reductase inhibiting herb that contains no phyto-progestins.
Because the cyproterone acetate and the SP inhibit 5α-reductase, aromatase makes lots of estrogens from free testosterone. The anterior pituitary gland measures the total count of sex hormones, concludes it's high, since you are supplementing estrogens too, and stops making Luteinizing Hormone (LH). The testes react to that signal by shutting down the production of testosterone. The longer you supplement, the lower testosterone will drop.
There is a point where it becomes dangerous. Osteoporosis is one risk, and you need DHT to build the resistance against stress. Between 10 and 15 years after GRS, Dutch TSs show unusually high mortality, mainly because of suicide, aids, and drugs.
A gender clinic would conclude it's time for surgery, and after that, stop estrogen supplementation. Estrogens can cause depression too.
For legal reasons, Dutch TSs get 100 mg of cyproterone acetate. I always thought that's a lot. About 25 mg, I don't know, but a common dose among TGs here is 10 mg. TSs don't like going that low, because after all the IPL and the electrolysis, they hate seeing even a few chin hairs come back. They prefer to just let free T slump, because they hate muscle growth too.
So there's no consensus. I and other TGs think you can reduce cypro, and the medical tradition is GRS and stopping estrogens. There is no literature about the long term consequences of using the cypro dose to steer it.
My strictly personal opinion is that the big problem with cypro is that it's a powerful progestin too. As long as you take it, you simply have to balance it with estrogens, because you'll suffer from progesterone dominance if you don't.
Because of this, you are in a catch 22. Free T is too low. There will be consequences. You have to let it increase. But you don't want the chin hair, so you increase cypro. But that makes you progesterone dominant. So you increase estrogens. but that will shut down LH, and decrease free T.
The typical solution in an herbal program is to use a 5α-reductase inhibiting herb that contains no phyto-progestins.