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Side effects
Dec. 28th, 2007 06:17 pmI've been using the HRT patches since Monday - you slap a fresh one on every three or four days to keep a continuous level of hormones going, and nowhere above the waist, presumably because they carry an increased risk of breast cancer and of heart problems.
It's too early by some weeks or months to expect any gross physical changes but I have noticed what may be a side effect in that I have had tense muscle pains across my back since starting on the course.
These are the same pains I get whenever I'm wound up over something, be it stress at work or a relationship going wrong. They are relieved by standing under a hot shower and appropriately enough by the relaxation I get when cross-dressed. I suspect a massage would also do me a lot of good. What I think is happening is that the hormones are making me more susceptible to being keyed up and that all my residual anxieties, that ordinarily wouldn't have any impact, are winding my back into knots.
I think I would still be having problems but the hormones may be making the effects worse. If it continues into next week I'll stop wearing the patch and consult the doctor. In the meantime I am cultivating serenity and thinking happy thoughts. I also have wheat beer, and books by Charlie Stross, Warren Ellis, Ken MacLeod, Al Reynolds and Richard Morgan.
Update - I slept the night wearing my boobs, which I don't normally because I have to wear a bra to keep them in place, and I also only recently acquired a pair that wouldn't burst on me, then loafed around the house today in my nightdress. My back is significantly improved.
It's too early by some weeks or months to expect any gross physical changes but I have noticed what may be a side effect in that I have had tense muscle pains across my back since starting on the course.
These are the same pains I get whenever I'm wound up over something, be it stress at work or a relationship going wrong. They are relieved by standing under a hot shower and appropriately enough by the relaxation I get when cross-dressed. I suspect a massage would also do me a lot of good. What I think is happening is that the hormones are making me more susceptible to being keyed up and that all my residual anxieties, that ordinarily wouldn't have any impact, are winding my back into knots.
I think I would still be having problems but the hormones may be making the effects worse. If it continues into next week I'll stop wearing the patch and consult the doctor. In the meantime I am cultivating serenity and thinking happy thoughts. I also have wheat beer, and books by Charlie Stross, Warren Ellis, Ken MacLeod, Al Reynolds and Richard Morgan.
Update - I slept the night wearing my boobs, which I don't normally because I have to wear a bra to keep them in place, and I also only recently acquired a pair that wouldn't burst on me, then loafed around the house today in my nightdress. My back is significantly improved.
