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From a 50 year old married man who asked if going on Estrogen for 30 days would help.

From a 50 year old married man who asked if going on Estrogen for 30 days would help.

  By -- Mar 16, 2022

We know that to be true because estrogen (which is something of an antidepressant itself), even in moderate doses, routinely resolves both the dysphoria and the depression while SSRIs alone do not. I know this answer leads to further concerns but that is an issue that needs to be addressed in person between you and a therapist.

Given your life long gender dysphoria, there is good reason to believe that estrogen would probably relieve your depression and anxiety by relieving your gender dysphoria. That brings us to the "further concerns" I mentioned. As you know, estrogen is a feminizing agent. Once people with issues such as yours start to take estrogen, typically they find that it is very hard to stop taking it. Not only does it give them a feeling of well being, they soon learn that if they stop taking it, even for a few days, the depression and anxiety return. A 30 day trial, even on a low dose, would probably yield the same result. Permanent relief will only come with the constant intake of estrogen. That, of course, would lead to more and more feminization of your mind and body. You and your family would have to learn to live with that.

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