[samj40]

... Unfortunately not the fancy dinner type date, but I FINALLY have a date to see a gender specialist! Unfortunately it isn't until August.

But I'm also having a gastric sleeve done in March, so I'm weary that it might delay my transition until my weight has stablised, which could be well into next year. But ultimately I know losing weight means hormones and top surgery will work better for me, which are two things I'm really keen on finding out about.

So I guess that's a question, has low dose T caused a lot of weight gain for any of you guys? Or has it stalled any possible weight loss? I'm not talking high doses used for full transition, I'm FtN and really just want to become more 'neutral', although I know I can't pick and chose what effects T gives me.

[Ember_42]

Congratulations! It's a long wait but I'm so happy for you that you've at least got an appointment.

I don't have personal experience with T, but the one person I know who has didn't have any issue with weight at all until he had insurance issues and couldn't get it anymore. Then he had a sudden big weight gain that his doctor said was a direct result of no longer having the T.

[Elio]

I am at week 3 on low dose. The first 2 weeks I did see a slight gain in weight before it started moving. I just got lab results and my T went from 26 ng/dL to 93 ng/dL and ESTRADIOL, SERUM 73 pg/mL 26 pg/mL. I am in menopause.

I am going to increase my T dose slightly and see if it helps a bit more with things.

[Rand.]

Firstly, congrats!! That's exciting news! How are ya feeling about it coming up? I think I ended up waiting over a year from the time I first asked my pcp for a referral to the time I got my first shot, so I know the feelz.

I started out really underweight (16.5-17 bmi) and was put on a somewhat low dose for something like 5-6 months. I don't think I had much change in weight or eating habits. I started on some med (probably an SSRI or AP, I can't keep track anymore lol) that made me inhale food like I never had before. I gained just under 30 lbs in a few months. The weight stuck around for quite a while but eventually I regressed back into my old habits and worse (two hypoglycemic episodes... being delirious at Walmart isn't a fun time). I've lost a lot of weight since then. Not sure what it is right now, but in November I think I was down 17 lbs from my peak. I was also more lean than I had ever been, so the extra weight (and possibly more) would have been all muscle mass. I did do *some* working out here and there, which may have helped.

I'm not sure my experience would be terribly helpful for you ><

See what they say, though. Try to make sense of it, and if something doesn't seem to add up, don't be afraid to seek a second opinion.

Are you in touch with your nearest PFLAG community at all? They might be a resource or a link to resources. They can sometimes be very informed about these sorts of things or know someone LGBT-friendly who is.

[Rand.]

Oh, to add - since T encourages muscle growth and muscle requires more energy to grow and maintain, if one is eating smart and putting in some excersise (not going overboard, though), someone who is hoping to lose BF might find that having more muscle can be helpful. But for some, if they aren't careful, they might have the extra appetite but then don't burn it off. It happens sometimes, but not everyone has that increased appetite.