Gender-affirming hormone therapy may be prescribed by your healthcare provider. In hormone therapy, estrogen or testosterone is used to help your body make changes that match up better with your gender identity, embodiment goals, or both.

Providers may offer hormone therapy to support the treatment goals. Those who need hormones can see primary care, internal medicine, or family medicine providers. An endocrinologist may be needed for medical complications. Providers are trained to be culturally sensitive to the unique needs of the transgender and gender diverse community.

The timeline of when these changes take effect and the potential side effects can be different for each person, so it’s best to talk to your provider about what you’d like to achieve with gender-affirming hormone therapy. (Items with a * denote changes which are permanent and will remain even if hormone therapy is stopped.)

Testosterone-related changes may include:

• A lower (deeper) voice*
• Growth of the external genitals (clitoris)*
• Growth of body and facial hair*
• Loss of scalp hair (baldness)*
• Decreased fertility
• Increased muscle
• Change in fat pattern and possible weight gain or loss
• Changes in mood
• Changes to your skin (including increased oil and acne)
• Changes to sex drive, sexual interests, or sexual function
• Stopping of monthly bleeding (period)
• Dryness of internal genitals (vagina)

The timeline of when these changes take effect and the potential side effects can be different for each person, so it’s best to talk to your provider about what you’d like to achieve with gender-affirming hormone therapy. (Items with a * denote changes which are permanent and will remain even if hormone therapy is stopped.)

Estrogen/androgen-blockers related changes may include:

• Decreased size of genitals (testes)*
• Growth of breasts*
• Decreased fertility
• Decreased muscle strength
• Change in fat pattern and potential weight gain or weight loss
• Decreased spontaneous genital arousal (erections)
• Changes in mood
• Changes to your skin (including softening and less oil)
• Decreased growth of body and facial hair
• Changes to sex drive, sexual interests, or sexual function