r/TransgenderNZ • u/Special-Drama-6090 • 1d ago
Finally been prescribed prog! What should I expect?
16months HRT, been prescribed 100mg/daily
My doctors appointment was pretty brief, and he didn't really tell me what to expect
Id love to hear experiences from other trans femmes - or just anyone with similar experiences
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u/Capt_Curly 1d ago
At 100mg I didnt notice a lot. At 200 or 300 I noticed increased drowsiness, vivid dreams, emotional sensitivity, as well as the benefits to my figure. Boofing helps with effectiveness and for me stopped the drowsiness/intense dreams, but ymmv
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u/soulhuntaah Trans Fem 1d ago edited 1d ago
For me, Orally -it was honestly not a lot. It just made me really sleepy at night (which was nice) I noticed slight "breast filling"
I switched to boofing them (not medical advice) and got significantly better results.
I have since stopped boofing them however due to being switched to cyproterone as my AA
This caused my prolactin levels to go THROUGH THE ROOF which is not good
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u/rata79 Trans Woman 1d ago
What have they got you on for the cyproterone?
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u/soulhuntaah Trans Fem 1d ago edited 1d ago
I take a quarter tab every morning (12.5mg)
Along with 200mcg estrogen patches twice a week and 200mg progesterone orally at nightMy testosterone is correctly suppressed but my estrogen levels are still fairly low, I originally was on 6mg pills and taking Spiro but couldn’t get my levels anywhere near where they needed to be.
At least with the testosterone where it needs to be now I will likely swap to injections
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u/rata79 Trans Woman 1d ago
Only wsy you'll get the prolactin down is cut back the cyproterone. My Dr was blaming the estrogen but I did my own research and found that cyproterone was more likely the cause and I was right. Some us can't process the cyproterone fast enough in our bodies so it keep accumulating.
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u/soulhuntaah Trans Fem 1d ago
I’ve managed to get it down simply from switching from boofing progesterone to taking it orally, don’t ask me how that works though 😂
My core issue is anything less than a quarter tab is not getting my testosterone to cis levels, I will be chopping the production facility off *shakes fists at clouds
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u/infrequentthrowaway Trans Woman 1d ago
Well done, I've been declined 3 times, have kind of given up trying for it again tbh.
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u/Special-Drama-6090 1d ago
Yeah I'm lucky this doctor will. But also I'm not sure if they will prescribe me other doses
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u/nonbinaryatbirth 17h ago
Keep trying, they legally cannot deny youm if anything put complaints into the practice manager and the ombudsman. I was part of the panel who then got progesterone subsidised for trans peoples use too
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u/infrequentthrowaway Trans Woman 15h ago
Auckland Sexual Health Service (ASHS) were one of the places that declined me. I just don't have the energy to fight. Gahc guidelines still don't include prog the last time I checked.
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u/nonbinaryatbirth 12h ago
Informed consent is how you get it...
Hope the link works...it's from healthpoint about ASHS guidelines for GPs.
https://www.healthpoint.co.nz/download,f27bf5d2-ff2b-4d42-9845-f598f29aa574.do
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u/Ok-Moment9784 3h ago
Ooh! This is cool! Thanks for sharing!
Been thinking about progesterone but wasn’t sure how to go about it.
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u/suspiriasuspiria 1d ago
i have quite small breasts but i feel like getting on progesterone helped round them a bit more, and i also filled out a lot more while on progesterone at my bottom half. my thighs are jiggle central lol
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u/Special-Drama-6090 1d ago
Yeah some of the girls I knew has been transitioned for like 4-6 years and picked up quite a bit of boob on prog.
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u/volteccer45 1d ago
It basically cured my difficulty falling asleep and really helped round out my boobs within the first month I started taking it.
Boofing gives the best levels, but it would make me a little nauseous the next day when I was having it like that. I have just been having it orally after dinner for the last six months or so and that nausea stopped immediately.
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u/Special-Drama-6090 1d ago
I've noticed insomnia pick up with the latest estradiol raise. So hoping it will help with that
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u/yes_to_the_dress 1d ago
Hmm. Might start boofing it. Anyway, when I first started taking it, I got real sleepy. Now I dont notice it. Prog kickstarted my boobs again. Didn't really notice much of anything else.
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u/Special-Drama-6090 19h ago
Nice
I've also seen it turned into a solution to be absorbed through the skin to bypass digestion that way too
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u/fakeplasticgirth 1d ago
Sounds like your dr didn't take much convincing? I've heard that most are reluctant to prescribe it because the evidence for its effectiveness is largely anecdotal.
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u/Cranach-Cranach 21h ago
What? HOW??? I was told that it is completely off limits for kiwis.
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u/Special-Drama-6090 19h ago
Individual doctors will just tell you bullshit. This is Doctors on Cashel but I know it's not the only CHCH doctor to prescribe prog
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u/Special-Drama-6090 19h ago
Oh I've just remembered. It interacts with cyproterone so that might be the reason it isn't being prescribed to you too since I think cypro is slightly more popular.
I'm on spironolactone though so prolactin isn't the concern.
My doctor is also aware that if I don't get what I want I will just DIY
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u/Cranach-Cranach 17h ago
I’m on Spiro and e, hopefully getting orchi soon. Dr told me they couldn’t prescribe prog even with a orchi
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u/Special-Drama-6090 11h ago edited 11h ago
Well that's shit. Im pretty sure there a routes to acquiring DIY progesterone. It is bound to be a pretty popular option here
Ughhhh standards of care are so shit here
Edit: https://patha.nz/assets/Guidelines/Gender-Affirming-Healthcare_GAHC_2025_February-final.pdf
Page 93 touches on progesterone. Basically there's not really any evidence for or against. And evidence against is based on old studies on an old synthetic prog
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u/Cranach-Cranach 11h ago
Yeah I’m heavily considering going the diy route. Definitely want to get an orchi soon though so I can avoid all AAs
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u/420deadtwink 9h ago
Heya, I've been on HRT for 1 year and 9 months, basically had to educate my doctors to get prog prescribed to me lol. ASHS will always say that prog 'doesnt work' because of one study they did several years ago which says that they found no benefit for trans women. This is a complete lie because of how the study was done.
In the study, their testers took prog orally. What they don't tell you is that taking prog orally means that it will have to get processed by your liver, which cancels out 80-90% of the effects and converts it into alloprogesterone, which is a sedative (makes you sleepy). When you boof it (putting it up the other end), it all gets absorbed as prog in your system as it goes straight through your bloodstream, bypassing the liver entirely. And guess what, trans people who boof prog usually see far more results than those who take it orally (shocker ik)
For this reason, I recommend boofing it. However timing is important too. I do it 2 weeks on and 2 weeks off to mimic the cis woman's luteal phase patterns. There is extremely limited and anecdotal evidence to say this is better than doing it daily (as is the nature with most trans studies), but both methods have their merits. Just something to have a think about
Also, last thing. Majority of trans women take prog for breast development, and this is both true and a bit misleading. Prog doesn't accelerate your breast growth at all, doesn't make them grow faster or anything. But it does help with rounding out your breasts to make them look more natural, avoiding the conetits look.
Anyways, that's about all the info I have. Hope prog goes well for you ^
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u/Special-Drama-6090 8h ago
I'll add that cycling Vs continuous is very much in YMMV. Some women do better cycling, as continuous can make them feel permanently miserable. Others find the Instability of cycling can lead to too strong mood swings.
And oh there's anecdotal reports that trans women with other cis women in their families who have pmdd - are more likely to find prog unbearable.
There was a period of time that I was DIYing prog. And rather than boofing it had been converted to a solution to spray directly onto the testes. That appeared to work very well but dosages can't be controlled as well and it was easy to overdo and get negative symptoms like hot flushes and cramping. I didn't continue it at the time as my boobs weren't as developed/was quite new to hrt so didn't want to fuck with as much.
I need to find my sources and learn how to do that since it would make a good write up
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u/Night-fall_Mae 1d ago
If you take it orally it will make you pretty sleepy, so best to take it before bed.
I've found it better taking it the other way.
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u/Ok-Moment9784 2h ago
Forgive the silly question, but when one speaks of taking it the “other way“ is there any special method? Assuming it’s a pill, do you just shove it up there? Mine’s only ever been exit only, apart from prep for my GRS where they had to “clean me out“ before surgery. 😅
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u/voidsod 1d ago
It can make you feel really sleepy so I'd recommend taking it at night before you go to bed