We are always curious to know the unknown and when it is related to transgender’s health, it’s a kind of a mystery to everyone. The normal question rises in everyone’s mind is that what makes the difference ciswomen and transwomen; does transwoman experience menstrual cycle or not? Now, it is the question of what they actually experience or not throughout their journey especially the transwomen.
Thereās one thing cis and transgender people agree onātrans women and transfeminine people donāt get periods. People who were assigned male at birth (AMAB) generally came out of the womb without ovaries or a reproductive system that can support a pregnancy, so they donāt bleed every month in preparation for one. Itās generally seen as one of the net positives about being a transgender woman as opposed to a cisgender gal. A cis woman can feel bloating, cramps, violent mood swings, nausea ā all.
A trans girl can experience the same PMS symptoms as a ciswoman if she has undergone the hormone replacement therapy (HRT) for over a year. According to a 23 old yeas girl, she takes a cocktail of the antiandrogen spironolactone and estradiol, a form of estrogen. About five months into her treatment, she began experiencing a predictable pattern of symptoms: First would come to the soreness and swell in her chest along with bouts of nausea; the next day, sheād endure painful abdominal cramping lasting minutes at a time, as well as constant nausea, hot flashes, dizziness, photosensitive migraines, and bloating. This cycle, she says, lasts for about six to seven days and repeats roughly every five weeks.
If those symptoms sound familiar, itās because of billions of cis women all over the world experience similar symptoms while menstruating. Along with insomnia, general muscle fatigue, joint pain, acne, and a host of other side effects, all the afflictions Ashley reported are symptomatic of premenstrual syndrome (PMS) or premenstrual dysphoric disorder (PMDD).
The transwoman has admitted that she gets the regular symptoms since she began HRT. It turns out, she’s not alone in her experiences ā itās not impossible for me to develop a āperiodā after all. Another trans girl ofĀ 24-year said that although she almost always felt nauseated in the morning, sheād recently experienced excruciating āmorning sicknessā for a nearly weeklong stretch before it abated.
After speaking with about 10 diversely identified people who identified as having PMS-symptoms, I saw only one possible explanation: AMAB trans people can and do seem to experience period-like symptoms as a part of HRT.Ā Just like cisgender women, transwoman can experience period range which is barely noticeable or almost non-existence. It is not necessary for every transwoman to experience the same symptoms. Some of them has admitted that they havenāt identified a hormonal cycle of their own, but it was clear that others had, and they werenāt limited to feeling sad and wanting chocolate.
Trans people have often experienced opposition from others when they meed their needs.
There is a lack of medical literature regarding the effects of HRT on transgender women, although high doses of estrogen may cause side effects, which tracking can help you identify.
So, we can say that trans women get all of the non-uterine symptoms of a period when their estrogen levels fluctuate.
