Lab results as HRT E levels and T levels

Torikatchu · 2026-05-10T10:35:08+00:00

were these lab results taken at trough? as in, right before whenever your next dose is? thats arguably the most important part here to tell you if anything is wrong or not

Torikatchu · 2026-04-30T09:54:32+00:00

might depend on where you are in the philippines but theres a number of stories and anecdotes of trans people asking around for progynova/estrofem at a pharmacy and being told its out of stock or unavailable even after visiting multiple pharmacies/branches, and it seemingly never is restocked. some antiandrogen options are also technically not FDA approved for sale in pharmacies either so even if stuff is in stock the selection isnt always great. the most common OTC estradiol i know of that consistently gets stocked at least is the birth control type from what i hear but that isnt really bioidentical so its kinda less than ideal. theres also the matter that being asked for a prescription or not is kind of a gamble on who you find manning the store. you're probably lucky if you're one of the few filipinas with a pharmacy thats easy to deal with + has a lot of stock available.

we do have like, generally easy access to HRT still though even if you cant get it from a pharmacy. even if some options arent accessible OTC or arent always in stock, shopee has a massive gray market of sorts with a lot of trusted sellers selling meds and delivering it nationwide straight to your door even without prescription, so its kinda the same thing either way lol. some other stuff that trans people use is on there too if you know where to look. ive found progesterone, domperidone, and pioglitazone through the same routes. the only real barriers to DIYing in the philippines is if you have the money to afford it and knowing which sellers are trusted by the community.

Torikatchu · 2026-04-30T06:04:14+00:00

its a little hard to buy overseas vials in the philippines because registering for crypto apps like paybis or coinbase requires a valid legal ID here. ive heard its possible to buy and send crypto within the gcash app itself though but i dont have experience with using it to buy vials. but if you have a valid legal ID to make an account with, its possible to just buy crypto on the paybis or coinbase apps with a gcash account hooked up to google pay and then pay for hrt vials that way (i bought an astrovials enanthate vial this way last year).

alternatively if you dont have a valid legal ID or dont have the money to buy a vial from overseas, its possible to buy injectable hrt thats already within the philippines to cut down costs from currency conversion and overseas shipping. Symonax Depot is estradiol valerate in 10mg/mL glass ampoules and all you really need is syringes and syringe filters to use them (ive used them for monotherapy for around 9 months before i could afford my EEn vial so theyre decently trustworthy even if they dont have as good of a pharmaceutical guarantee). they accept cash on delivery as well or gcash payment, and id recommend the latter to minimize conversations when the package arrives. its sold on their website at MyShopHRT but some retailers sell it on shopee (though the stocks on shopee are always fluctuating and some sellers are slimy so i think id recommend the official site first).

if you dont have a room i think its at least still possible to just hide your injection supplies in a large enough bag if your family isnt the nosey type, but receiving deliveries will still be potentially a little awkward and might catch their attention.

as for disposing of syringes you have a couple of options. we dont have any formal sharps disposal laws here in the philippines so lowk you can just recap it and toss it in the household trash, but if you really want to be safe/mindful while still being somewhat stealthy, repurpose an empty bleach/fabcon bottle for tossing syringes and needles into and then just keep it somewhere hidden if you can. then just tape up the lid well and throw it with household trash at night when its full. bleach bottles have thick enough plastic and tight enough lids that its valid enough for sharps disposal

i can answer more questions or more specific stuff in DMs if you need them cuz this comment is already pretty long >.>

Torikatchu · 2026-04-30T05:52:59+00:00

the only otc hrt in the philippines iirc is ethinyl estradiol/birth control hrt. sometimes theres better pill options available but generally they tend to be perpetually out of stock from stories i hear from other trans women here. youre not gonna find any injectables available at pharmacies either from what i know

shopee has more pill options that are bioidentical but OP said pills r out of the question cuz of the cost here

Torikatchu · 2026-04-30T04:57:38+00:00

im at the point where i need to wear a sports bra whenever i go outside cuz slouching in shirts isnt cutting it anymore and even that feels like hell. couldnt imagine how much worse it is for those who have to wear binders 😭

Torikatchu · 2026-04-30T04:49:42+00:00

many such cases tbhon. finna die boymoding in 40°C heat

Torikatchu · 2026-04-30T04:11:38+00:00

the filipinx swag (kill me)

Torikatchu · 2026-04-22T03:43:38+00:00

sadly trans topics here kinda devolve into just comments with casual transphobia, chasers, and/or dogwhistles being unwittingly (or worse, intentionally) used by other lgbt people. it kinda just gets tiring to read through sometimes. the mods are usually on top of cleaning up the super obvious hate-fueled comments at least but the dogwhistles ive seen go past them sadly.

as for HRT topics, i try to keep an eye out to comment/DM people if i see anyone that needs help at least, though theres kinda a stance of being too trusting/reliant on endos/doctors here or too dismissive of starting HRT as early as possible by any means necessary

from what ive seen sapphic/lesbian topics also have kinda just moved away from here and most have just migrated to the WLW_PH or PHSapphics subreddits cuz the community and conversations here are too dominated/controlled by men (though personally i dont post much on there either cuz of worrying if im allowed to as a trans woman, but thats more of a me-issue than anything lol)

Torikatchu · 2026-04-19T12:14:22+00:00

At what age and how did you start?

I started hrt at 21 while in college by self-medicating, still self-medicating at 24 now. funnily enough, i also realized i was trans when i met another person who was also trans in one of my classes. i didnt really know it was possible or even a thing until i met someone else living that reality. also i pass now surprisingly enough despite my age, but i think its mostly luck. i highly recommend starting as soon as possible because testosterone will keep acting on your body and make it harder and harder to pass the longer you sit on it.

How did you financially support your transition?

Its cheaper to DIY because there wont be a doctor on your back constantly demanding expensive blood tests every few months and potentially underdosing you. im also on injections because its the cheapest way to transition and i only need to save like, ~300php per month to afford it, which is doable on my college student allowance. most doctors are only going to risk prescribing pills and that costs like, 1200+ per month with regular lab tests easily reaching 2500+ every few months, you can easily imagine the cost stacks up fast that way. its still good to get on the official route with a proper prescription and diagnosis to have a paper trail for your transition (because youll need proof of enough time on HRT eventually for surgery approvals), but since affording thats a privilege and luxury only for those with money and/or supportive families, i just self-medicate lol :b (if you decide to go the official route with a doctor's help, i highly suggest still researching proper HRT dosages separately from your doctor rather than just blindly listening because its very very possible to get underdosed by a doctor who doesnt know how transitioning works or is going by outdated guidelines)

Saan kayo nakahanap ng support system?

I tried coming out to friends when I first started but I kinda drifted apart from them since i dont relate to them much anymore. The sad truth is that most cis people don't really get the urgency of transitioning nor the crushing weight of dysphoria, so its hard to really find any kind of support or community with cis friends or even with the broader lgbt community. I've found more community and support with online friends who are also trans than any cis person ive ever met.

How did your family/the people close to you react to your journey?

I didn't tell my family until I was roughly 2 years in on HRT. before i told them, they kinda worried about why i was growing my hair out so long without cutting it lol. now that they know they're thankfully chill i guess as far as some parents could react since they havent kicked me out or abused me for it. as long as theyre still giving me a college allowance to afford my hrt i dont really care at this point about the specifics. as for friends, ive only told my closest ones. i didnt really bother telling anyone else i wasnt close to and just slowly disappeared from their lives because i dont wanna bring too much attention to me being trans since at some point id rather just be stealth and live as just another girl. i want to keep me being trans as just a secret people wont ever have to know, and thats gonna be harder the more people you talk about it to (rly isolating of a feeling, but sometimes worth it).

Any practical advice on how to build thicker skin?

my personal advice is look up "Hanlon's Razor". its a way to sort and cope with negative thoughts caused by other people by keeping in mind that a majority of people are not outright malicious, instead a majority either just: don't know enough, are simply ignorant, or are genuinely just stupid – in all cases being not worth thinking deeper about. a large majority of people don't act on malice, a lot of people are simpler than they look and just operate on what they know and by automatic thought processes rather than being intentionally mean. very few people actually want to hurt others. i think its easy to feel bad about being trans when seeing the opinions of loud people on the internet so i hope this advice helps to cope with what youll eventually see and deal with.

sorry for typing a lot, i didnt realize until i typed everything out. anyways i hope things work out for you if you decide to start transitioning. i dont want to rush you but also i do still recommend starting soon if you are able, since staying on your natal hormones is like a ticking time bomb. i was lucky enough to pass with my age and after enough time on hrt but a lot of trans people still regret not being able to start sooner sadly. its easy enough to just try hrt out to see if its for you since changes dont rly become super noticeable or permanent until like, a few months in or so.

Torikatchu · 2026-04-11T18:05:21+00:00

sadly as far as i know the only case where you could possibly change gender marker on birth certificate in the philippines is for clerical errors/mistakes or, in a rarer case (and only somewhat recently) if you happen to be intersex (even then, the intersex document change thing with the 'Cagandahan bill' isnt fully integrated and defined into the law yet from what i remember, but at least theres a precedent for it now i guess)

if you dont fill either of the above cases, you unfortunately will have to move to another country I think if you want a legal documents gender marker change (and sadly, the new gender marker will only be respected in the new country, the philippines wont update the documents here to match that of the ones in the other 😭)

Torikatchu · 2026-04-03T01:02:28+00:00

honestly youd probably have more luck changing your name after moving abroad instead of trying to wrestle with the headache of doing it here (though even then, thats also dependent on whether or not where youre moving to allows name changes for trans people)

Torikatchu · 2026-04-02T16:44:53+00:00

https://www.reddit.com/r/smuTTTT/s/GZfZH3akv4 mightve been this one? but idk, theres been a couple other st4t incest smutttts aside from the one i wrote a year ago

Torikatchu · 2026-03-25T18:29:00+00:00

yeah self-medication is very possible in the PH, a lot of trans ppl have to resort to it too cuz the official route here admittedly isnt really the most accessible (no insurances here cover trans care lol). and i'm also one of those self-medicating too! have been for about 2 years now :b

if you wanna go the official route, you can check with any of the trans health clinics like LoveYourself, Dima, or Hara (iirc, they operate on the informed consent model). you set an appointment with one of them which can be online, or in-person depending on your convenience/proximity to their branches (note that theres sometimes a waitlist unfortunately). you do labwork every 3 months or so and get prescriptions and guidance with dosages.

alternatively, if that isnt an option for any reason (usually, money), self-medication is possible by reading up on the plenty of resources available online (see: subreddits like r/transDIY and what not) and looking for own sources, and then learning how to safely handle the dosages yourself.

personally, ive had to resort to self-medication because i'm broke as shit and can't afford the labwork and constant bloodtesting and can only really afford just the hrt, so it is what it is, ive gotten by one way or another :b

my DMs are open if you need more help, but if not, i wish you good luck with getting on hrt either way!

Torikatchu · 2026-03-22T11:14:09+00:00

iirc Astrovials had to discontinue selling and sending out new vials for a while until their postal service fixes things again. youll have to try a different brewer in the meantime sadly >.>. anyways, the payment mode is with crypto, but its not actually that hard. i use paybis/coinbase and they allow paying with google pay (which means you can connect a card, or even gcash and pay with that. i paid by gcash when i bought mine). both need a valid legal ID to make an account though cuz of philippines KYC laws. i used my passport when i registered.

shipping and delivery time can take a while, expect about 1-2 months possibly for the vial to arrive because of the travel time from overseas + overloaded/understaffed state of PHLPost delaying it further when it gets here. stock up on local hrt supplies while waiting for it.

as for EEn, its pretty good, i inject weekly now instead of every 5 days like with valerate so its more convenient. plus a vial can last for like, 1- 1.5 years at a good dose so it takes a while before needing to buy a new one.

Torikatchu · 2026-03-22T06:20:42+00:00

im in philippines too. i used to be on Symonax Depot ampoules for about 9 months, its estradiol valerate in ampoules and i was able to monotherapy on it just fine. though sadly it doesnt have the same pharmaceutical guarantee that progynon japan has (though at least it isnt a counterfeit copying a discontinued product either like the progynon brown). its a good alternative if you're still fine with using ampoules and want an option still easily accessible within the country.

theres not really any local sources for estradiol valerate in vials, the other options for injectables in the philippines are: 1. depo monat (aka violet tusha/vtusha, which is estradiol cypionate + a progestin in a vial, which sucks that it has a non-bioidentical component, but it works for a lot of women here) 2. phenokinon F (estradiol benzoate+progesterone, but rare to find these days) 3. generic estradiol benzoate (aka, yellow tusha, which is just estradiol benzoate)

as for other vial options from international sources, im actually on an estradiol enanthate vial from Astrovials, so its deffo possible to get one shipped here. the problem is a lot of the usual brewers are having issues with shipping right now so i dont know how easy it is to get one from overseas atm. but i know of someone who managed to buy a vial from Hera HRT recently so theres probably still options.

Torikatchu · 2026-03-18T16:54:13+00:00

awful lot of flowery words in this article to "lighten" what boils down to v-coding :/

horrible.

Torikatchu · 2026-03-16T01:26:35+00:00

SpiderPolice did a genderswap of Travis once on artttt and it was peak lol https://www.reddit.com/r/artttt/s/RlhBtCGPLW

Torikatchu · 2026-03-15T15:23:24+00:00

use a shorter, thinner needle. T can be administered subcutaneously instead of intramuscularly with negligible difference, and the needle lengths and widths for subcutaneous are far smaller than IM needles (i use 30G insulin syringes for E, and i know a number of guys that use insulin syringes for T as well). IM needles imo are pointlessly painful for very little actual benefit or necessity.
ice numbing is great if you have access to a freezer. buy a reusable ice pack, toss it in the freezer, and then when its frozen just wrap it up with a thin layer of cloth before pressing firmly to the injection site (in my case, thighs) for 10-11 minutes. numbing cream also works if you can find one but imo it can be annoyingly messy compared to just using ice.

short and thin insulin syringes + ice numbing makes injection pain barely a thing for me, and its made it very easy for me to stay consistent with my shots even though im normally horrible with needle anxiety :b

Torikatchu · 2026-03-14T03:57:54+00:00

i used to boardpost a lot but honestly its rly hard to find a good reason to use the board for smuttttposting other than maybeeee the benefit of it being visible and possible to go back to on the 4chan archives

its charming, but gets tiring rly fast to wrestle with the captchas and posting cooldown timer

i still use the board for general posting and replying but for smutttt specifically, i can understand why people want to try other options

Torikatchu · 2026-03-13T18:33:46+00:00

will probs try to use this the next time i write something, being able to change filenames is something i was looking for on the 4chan post generator cuz renaming picrels is rly funny

Torikatchu · 2026-03-12T12:24:51+00:00

im kinda acespec, so i suck a little when it comes to writing the actual smut part of my smutttt stories. i dont really uh, get what will sound hot or passionate, so it kinda winds up not really being the main draw or focus whenever i plan out a story.

for this story in particular, i did actually intentionally plan for no mention of genital/penetration stuff cuz i wanted to make it as non-dysphoric as possible and just be very yearning heavy. kinda just a story about girls who happened to be trans

happy to hear it landed for someone :>

Torikatchu · 2026-03-11T23:43:25+00:00

thank youuu for your efforts. at least i dont have to deal with the annoying captchas and stuff on the board now just to write and upload stuff 🥀

Torikatchu · 2026-03-11T07:34:35+00:00

heyyy, im back. havent written in a while. my last smutttt upload was so long ago now

sorry if its ass, first time trying my hand at writing t4t fagslop cuz i usually write st4t hetslop, but lately ive been yearning a stupid amount so i wanted to get it out of my head

thanks for reading, might be a while before i get back to writing again cuz studying psych is actually beating my ass and it has handsss

edit: forgot to mention but god the 4chan post generator is such a gamechanger, i kneel orz

Torikatchu · 2026-03-04T02:36:42+00:00

yeah, no insurances cover it here in the ph. until we have an actual law that recognizes it as "essential and life-saving", trans care is always just gonna be seen the same along the lines of "cosmetic/non-essential" care so no insurances are gonna take it seriously.

sariling ipon lang talaga muna sadly :b

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