this post was submitted on 25 Mar 2026
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[positive] hrt really do things (quokk.au)
submitted 3 days ago by erin@quokk.au to c/mtf@lemmy.blahaj.zone
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i looked up photo was pre hrt
holy im cute girl now vs depressed boy with long hair
estradiol really helps mental health more stronger than lot of psych meds but yes slowly but even after a month i feel much better
no fucking erections no fucking muscle grow in no fucking strong jaw muscles no no no no, fuck te$t0$ter0ne i hope i get more changes after second year of hrt

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[–] dandelion@lemmy.blahaj.zone 17 points 3 days ago (1 children)

These are my experiences as well - estrogen helped my mental health more than anti-depressants, running / exercise, therapy, meditation, or literally any other intervention I have tried.

It is maybe comparable to taking drugs, tbh - my overall mood is much better, I am life-affirming, etc. and all of that happened before I was seen as a woman or my body changed. I swear it's something to do with the brain not working well on the wrong hormones.

[–] TheLeadenSea@sh.itjust.works 8 points 3 days ago* (last edited 3 days ago) (2 children)

Yup, look up biochemical dysphoria! For me it's not that estrogen makes me happy, but it stops me being depressed like testosterone does, although I'm pre orchi so idk if it's specifically low e or high t that causes my depression - but yeah it's literally like a different filter on the world depending on my brain chemicals ¯\(ツ)/¯

Edit: also prog does weird things to my mood

[–] dandelion@lemmy.blahaj.zone 6 points 3 days ago (1 children)

ah, yes - that's the phrase ✅ I wish there were more research on biochemical dysphoria, I feel like the evidence for it right now is mostly anecdotal - I don't think there is any cognitive science that sheds light on why hormones might do this (or even that they really do)

I found that the presence of T is mostly the issue for me, but I do think high levels of E do make me happy. Post-op, when my E gets low I no longer have the depression symptoms I had pre-op (probably from T coming back?), but when I inject I do feel high usually (esp. if my levels dropped low enough), and I can find E can make me more moody in general - the lows are lower, the highs are higher.

[–] erin@quokk.au 3 points 2 days ago

i have high T pre hrt 20-27 nmol and im experienced depersonalization some times derealization suicidal thoughts, depression etc etc and it all from puberty start at 12 biochemical dysphoria really need research

[–] gandalf_der_12te@discuss.tchncs.de 5 points 3 days ago (1 children)

idk if it’s specifically low e or high t that causes my depression

i think it's high T at least for me, i only take t blockers now and i have better mood

[–] erin@quokk.au 2 points 2 days ago

im remember when i starting hrt with cyproterone holy shit it like painkiller after blocking receptors after some hours i feel better and less psychotic