Hormone Survival Guide

Get a hobby

Gonna paraphrase Mascara and Hope here: you are more than just a trans man, don't let that define you. This is going to take ages, so try and find some parts of your life that aren't just on-hold for when transition is Done, and which aren't discourse or activism, but are just painting or surfing or studying neuroscience; and all the better if you have something a little obsessive and all-consuming for bad days and worry spirals.

Voice Changes

Voice dropping can be painful, but according to my husband - a coneisseur of werewolf stories - the best are always those that show the transformation as painful and frightening to the werewolf, making that part of the horror. Cool!

A selection of home remedies from a transmasc subreddit:

Stock up on mucus pills. Like mucinex or the off brands. I don’t know if it’s the same for everyone who starts T, but when I did, I have had mucus in my throat constantly. Like sure I had some sinus drainage before but my transfemme friend says this is because of my vocal cords changing. So I get the twelve hour pills and take one in the morning and one in the evening, but you can get like four and maybe six hour pills too.

So much so, my throat hurt for the first six months, solid, then I still got little bouts of soreness and roughness every few months for a year or so. Making up a tablespoon of honey with half a teaspoon of cinnamon and half of nutmeg in a mug of boiling water as a hot drink when it's sore can at least make it feel a little bit better. Good luck! ♥

(I've tried this one, it tastes amazing and works well) green tea with lemon and honey is a great remedy for a sore throat. I’ve used it multiple times and it helps because the honey costs your throat, and the lemon is an antibacterial properties so it may help with the scratchiness as well.

cough drops

for voice pain in general, all the professional singers I know swear by chamomile tea with lemon and honey. Or just water with lemon and honey but honestly that sounds disgusting.

Hot tea and gargling salt water helps me.

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Tessa Romano, singing coach, recommends these general "voice care" tips as part of her dissertation on transmasc singing voices - for periods of heavy mutation or strong pain:

• avoid medications that have a drying effect on the throat, i.e. anti-histamines
• use steam inhalation devices such as a humidifier
• avoid throat sprays, as they make it more difficult to notice vocal discomfort
• be respectful of your vocal range
• avoid clearing the throat or coughing
• avoid loud voice production or speaking in the presence of loud noises
• drink a lot of water (6-8 glasses per day)
• use non-verbal “attention getters” like clapping, waving, hand signals
• lip-sync during events at which unison singing or cheering is occurring
• use proper body alignment throughout daily life
• attempt the release of any extra muscular tension, particularly in the neck,shoulders, jaw and tongue
• avoid speaking during periods of illness
• avoid smoking
• avoid alcohol and caffeine
• when feeling any kind of vocal fatigue, avoid voice use all together
• use sufficient breath support when speaking
• respond to yes-or-no questions by nodding rather than speaking
• do vocal warm-ups every day
• do vocal cool-downs every evening
• limit the amount of milk you drink so as to keep mucous from thickening and causing further vocal fold inflammation

Skincare

General Advice:

• Get a long washcloth (for reaching the back)
• Change your pillowcase very frequently
• Touching your face too much and over-washing can worsen problems
• there are uh diffrent skin types (oily, dry) & i'm sure there's some kind of Claire's guide to figuring out which I am somewhere
• Exfoliting can make things worse for people

Ok so fancy skincare stuff is definitely not my forte, and is somewhat insecurity-making and also googling "is face wash the same as soap? is face wash the same as face cleanser?" is not my masc fantasy; but it sounds like the basics are:

• Wash your face one in the morning, once in the evening, with a specific face soap/face wash.
• Generally, you’ll want to cleanse, tone, treat, and moisturize (in that order) both in the morning and evening.
• For acne-prone skin, get a foaming cleanser; toner with salicylic acid; benzoyl peroxide gel to treat (I actually use BP in the morn and retinol at night); and oil-free moisturizers. Visit r/acne for help