Transwomen have periods too you know! Just no bleeding

[OrchidInTheSun]

I give you the latest in batshittery:

threadreaderapp.com/thread/1016753976211996672.html

FFS

@Keeptrudging, . I get that during my period. It's shit, isn't it? I hope it eases soon.

I don't know about the menopause - I am sure there are some that would enjoy being ladies of a certain age, a bit flustered and forgetful and wafting around with a few hot moments. Very much doubt they would stop hormone therapy to achieve it though.

I do think the knicker magnet would be the perfect solution for them. Google it and see if you are not familiar with it. The patter is perfect and it comes in lovely colours. There is a nice sparkly pink one for periods which does not mention ladies, so is nicely gender neutral. (Also works for prostate problems with a more manly name - very versatile).

That's a good point. Would HRT be available for transwomen?

Well it is - the late transitioners would be at least perimenopausal, if not post meno.

Poppycock.

I don't have a uterus anymore due to having had a hysterectomy, so I do not have periods or menstruate. I do have ovaries therefore I have a hormonal cycle that has an effect on me over the month (I get sore boobs at a certain time like I used to get around the time I menstruated).

Oestrogen can have an effect on the bowel and aggravate IBS. It is not a 'period' if you have abdominal pain relating to female hormones if you do not have a uterus with a lining to shed.

irritablebowelsyndrome.net/triggers/can-hormones-trigger-ibs/

I think I may have lost my words. This is just..... Can you peak your peak? Think I just did.

maybe its their prostates cramping?? can prostates cramp

A knicker magnet would also help with that

sabinaapplecross I don't know about that, I wouldn't have a clue what a prostate feels like but I believe the pain of prostrate cancer can come and go. I think someone upthread said something about the concoction of pills that transwomen take can inscrease the risk of cancer. Even more reason for this individual to stop trying to ignore their biology and get themselves to a doctor ASAP.

Oh Em Gee!! Maybe it is the mythological Blue Balls they are suffering from?

Would HRT be available for transwomen

No because the R stands for replacement. You can't 'replace' something you never had.

No because the R stands for replacement. You can't 'replace' something you never had.
That question was tongue in cheek.
But knowing how deluded some transwomen can be, I wouldn't be so sure about the answer.

"natural cycle of hormone fluctuations"

Almost one of the first sentences. I wonder what is "natural" about being on HRT for life. Also the "I absolutely love how much trans girls talking about the reality of their periods pisses transphobes off. It makes you feel so powerful! Really tho it's just that they're so weak. I mean, us existing is enough to upset them, so..." just shows you the real motivation.

As an aside, I love the irony that while they claim transphobes are "weak", they are the ones crying that using the wrong pronouns will lead to death.

That cartoon is so disingenuous. 'Oooooh, angry transphobes! Tee hee! All I said was I have something like a period...didn't even use the word menstruate! Silly transphobes haha!'

This doesn't wash with me, Bria. You very deliberately set out to talk about your 'periods' as being the same as actual periods. As well you know.

It's the AGPs that claim to have period symptoms. This is a really informative piece on autogynephilia sillyolme.wordpress.com/2009/12/28/autogynephilia/

The cartoon really sums up the logic behind the pretend periods. The writer has literally no answer for women pointing out their actual biological functions. But you know, facts are totally boring and uncool.

What's next, transwomen have miscarriages too? If I look hard enough I'll probably find something suggesting they know how that feels but I really couldn't bear to.

I see NoDykeDoesDick has linked to my essay on autogynephilia... and given me the greatest complement as an educator 'informative'... thank you.

A few comments here to correct some misinformation... but first a confirmation. No, transwomen do NOT experience "periods". Even if the pituitary (the part of the brain that indirectly controls them in women) cycled, it wouldn't create any symptoms since it would only effect a male's T levels if they still had their ummm balls... which are already subject to minor fluctuations on a daily, even hourly basis in healthy men based on a complex cognitive feedback mechanism (e.g. T levels increase when thinking about sex... go down when they become fathers and think about parental tasks). After SRS, there would be nothing that could respond to changing pituitary hormones (called "gonadotropins").

Second, it has been well demonstrated in several studies that AGP transwomen's pituitaries do NOT respond to hormones in the same way as women... though... some gay men and "homosexual transsexuals" do:

sillyolme.wordpress.com/2015/12/28/brain-power/

But even that would NOT mean experiencing "periods" since there are no ovaries to respond to the pituitary hormones to complete the feed back loop that causes the cycling... and certainly no uterine lining to respond to the changing ovarian hormones to create the cramps, etc. Further, HRT is held steady, so would NOT cause cyclic symptoms in any case.

Oh... and yes... the medical term for the hormones given to transfolk is "HRT" as they are used to replace the original with cross-sexed ones. Yes, older transfolk continue to receive HRT as we age... though some silly docs think they should be reduced to mimic menopause, as though that were a good thing! (( I'm currently having this disagreement with my Kaiser assigned endocrinologist since I'm in my early 60's... after having been on HRT since I was a teen ! )).

About "hot flashes"... anyone who experiences significant reduction in sex hormones (T, E, or P), male or female, will experience them. Thus, if a transwoman who is post-op is suddenly taken off of HRT or had their customary dose reduced, hot-flashes may occur. I can tell you from personal experience, they are very unpleasant.

Back to AGPs and "periods"... this is wishful thinking on their part. They so badly want "proof" that they are "really" female in some mystical hidden fashion that any discomforts that fit the stereotypes of the menstrual cycle is misinterpreted as being such.

After reading this thread and thinking about it today... I'm actually wondering if my doc wasn't "educated" by some silly older AGP into thinking that experiencing menopausal symptoms is a "good thing"... cause an AGP just might perversely like the idea, just as they like the idea of having menstrual cramps!!!

Oh that’s interesting re the periods thing and autogynephilia. I started my own transition from “trans people need rights” to “this is fucking batshit bonkers nonsense” after seeing a tweet from a former colleague who was trans (mtf) about how she experienced period symptoms. I am beginning to think that this is all a fucking experimental theatre piece. I hope so. I wish I just hadn’t checked Twitter that day.

Ohhh... I forgot... NO, the HRT that transwomen receive does NOT increase the risk of cancer. In fact, transwomen on E, etc. experience a reduction in total cancer risk due ot the reduced risk of prostate cancer. IF they have SRS, the risk of testicular cancer is obviously eliminated. The only risk that might be increased is breast cancer... but interestingly, the stats have not shown that to be significant and mostly seem to be the same risk as non trans men (yes, men get breast cancer too). The risk of cardiovascular events is increased, but no more than women using birthcontrol experience. And taking baby asprin can reduce that risk.

so its only women that cant stay on HRT for more than, what is it? 10 years? Becaus eof increased risk of uterine and breast cancer right? Typical! But does protect against osteoporosis.

Do trans women have any risks associated with taking female hormones and losing the testosterone? (are you an endocrinologist?)

silly

I’d be interested to see work on that. It’s my understanding that any hormone supplementation increases cancer risk one way or another. You may have a drop in risk to one system but oestrogen is a powerful driver of many cancers.

Reeldoop, Bool'...

The risks of using cross sex HRT are not zero, but not amazingly high. There is a gross exaggeration on the risks that occurs on the web, both by nervous transfolk and by those who would see transfolk denied medical interventions. The greatest risk of estrogen is to those who have the genetic profile of estrogen sensitive breast cancer in their family, which is true for both sexes... and thus true for those transwomen from those families. The next greatest risk is of blood clots leading to vascular events. A recent paper showed them to be elevated, but no more so than for healthy women taking birth control. Chose your risks... but realize that an elevated risk of a low risk event is still a low risk event.

Am I an endocrinologist? No. However, not only have I been researching the science papers regarding trans issues (all of them) for decades. My college roommate was likely the first U.S. post-op transwoman to have gone to medical school (Stanford class of '85) post-transition then opened her own private primary care practice in LGBT medicine with the largest trans patient list in the country. (It was called the Sea Horse Medical Clinic and was located in Silicon Valley California). So SHE was the transgender endocrinologist (not board certified as there is no certifying board for transgender specialty... but she is The Expert if anyone ever was). She was a member of HBIGDA / WPATH of course. My own education included a focus on biology and psychology (among a couple other unrelated subjects of which I'm considered a world class expert). Anyways... Dr. Shaffer and I had MANY deep discussions regarding the science of transgender medicine and I even worked with her on several of her research projects over the decades.

As for HRT for older women being cut off... yeah... that's silly. Seriously. The studies show mixed results. Frankly, the studies were difficult to interpret because they lumped ALL HRT as the same when we have very good reason to believe that some treatments are very different than others. For example, conjugated estrogens (Premarin) do not have the same effect as Estradiol... and don't get me started on the fact that some of these studies from decades past were with DES! Many of the HRT protocols included using a mixture of an estrogen with a synthetic progestin like MPA... Ummmm.... yeah about that... MPA is a very effect birth control agent but it also has the neurological side effects such as drastically reducing libido in both men and women (in fact, its used as a chemical castration on sex offenders) and reduces the neuroprotective effect of endogenous progesterone in the brain (that is to say... that brain cells will die !).

Another problem with the studies is that they focused on determining the health benefits vs. risks using indicators that have nearly nothing to do with HRT use. For example, they focused on heart attacks in one of the largest studies but ignored quality of life.

The upshot is that many studies in women that lead to the current "wisdom" that women shouldn't be on HRT for very long is from a mix of bad HRT protocols and from bad study metrics. More recent studies focused on quality of life suggest that HRT using estradiol and micronized progesterone may be safer (never none zero risk) and provide better quality of life for many women.

Oh... and other risk factor differences between transwomen and the majority of women... no possibility of exacerbating endometriosis, ovarian problems, etc.

In the final analysis, using modern HRT protocol of Estradiol and Micronized Progesterone (twice daily) does have risks... but not great ones (taking paracetmol / tylenol has risks too....) and the benefits for both woman and transwomen (each for their own reasons) may (and often do) outweigh those risks.

Well at least form Bria's username I can assume they enjoy a good bit of irony.

The 2015 Menopause guidelines do not impose any arbitrary time limits on HRT for women.

For most women, hrt is definitely beneficial up to 50 and the benefits outweigh the risks. From 60, the risks and benefits are similar. 70 onwards, risks usually outweigh benefits, especially if you have past history of heart attack or stroke.

After 5 years the risk of breast cancer increases, but returns to average after another 5 years. This does not apply to oestrogen only therapy.

Mostly it is a balancing of the risks and benefits based on your individual risks and health. You need a good GP to help with this.

The biggest problem is that many GPs are not up to date with their training in menopause and hrt. This is a result of the studies that came out around the millennium when hrt was dropped like a hot brick, and not enough training in the area at med school. So you have to learn as much as you can yourself.

My GP does not do women's stuff and the prescribing nurse wants me off hrt after 5 years 'because the risks outweigh the benefits' which is not true as my risks are low and I am early 50s. I need a decent GP I think there is a lot of 'Labours of Eve' stuff at work in anything female and reproductive - it seems ingrained into society even though we seem to have long given up Church.

Rod Liddell gives this a mention in The Sunday Times today

www.thetimes.co.uk/article/irelands-leo-roars-like-any-eu-bully-but-his-uk-flights-threat-is-all-hot-airspace-xwwv7gxn0?shareToken=52a1fa01a926237dce231f5039964a2c
(5th subsection)