# Is birth control ineffective for pre-op trans women? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [June 9, 2017, 4:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-birth-control-ineffective-for-pre-op-trans-women/788523 "2017-06-09T16:36:24Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 14\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![femmejean](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/0ea827/32.png) [@femmejean](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/femmejean)\ **Post date:** [June 9, 2017, 4:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-birth-control-ineffective-for-pre-op-trans-women/788523/1 "2017-06-09T16:36:24Z")
This is regarding some questions I saw on the subsection, asktrans of Reddit. There was a debate whether people looking to transition should take birth control from a GP. Some said yes since it would lower testosterone levels and although in small amounts, feminize the male body while others said the synthetic form of estrogen posed a high risk of blood clots and was more importantly ineffective. So, which one is it? This can be a thread on sex hormone and what levels are adequate to create masculinization/feminization of the body. Does the combination pill do anything for young pre-op trans women? Would it make a difference if a male of the same age was castrated? Though small, I assume the higher but small amounts of estrogen in comparison to testosterone would result in a small but significant increase in breast size, softer skin etc… ---
**Author:** ![quimper](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/7c8e57/32.png) [@quimper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/quimper)\ **Post date:** [June 9, 2017, 4:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-birth-control-ineffective-for-pre-op-trans-women/788523/2 "2017-06-09T16:51:29Z")
nm ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [June 9, 2017, 4:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-birth-control-ineffective-for-pre-op-trans-women/788523/3 "2017-06-09T16:55:08Z")
A trans woman is not going to get pregnant no matter what drugs she is or is not taking. A pre-op trans man might, but that doesn’t look like what you’re asking. ---
**Author:** ![Amateur\_Barbarian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/59ef9b/32.png) [@Amateur\_Barbarian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Amateur_Barbarian)\ **Post date:** [June 9, 2017, 5:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-birth-control-ineffective-for-pre-op-trans-women/788523/4 "2017-06-09T17:21:03Z")
I think the question is about the hormone effects. IANAD, but I think the levels of hormone in birth control are only a fraction of what trans women take to adjust their physiology, so it would be pointless or irrelevant to take The Pill. I can see it being a… folk or street remedy, since BC pills are readily available (vs. stronger hormone pills that need close medical supervision), but I can’t see it being a regular practice nor recommended by any sensible medical therapist. ---
**Author:** ![scr4](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/59ef9b/32.png) [@scr4](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scr4)\ **Post date:** [June 9, 2017, 5:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-birth-control-ineffective-for-pre-op-trans-women/788523/5 "2017-06-09T17:34:49Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > A trans woman is not going to get pregnant no matter what drugs she is or is not taking. A pre-op trans woman could get a woman pregnant though, isn’t that what we are talking about? ---
**Author:** ![susan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/susan/32/17537_2.png) [@susan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/susan)\ **Post date:** [June 9, 2017, 6:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-birth-control-ineffective-for-pre-op-trans-women/788523/6 "2017-06-09T18:25:33Z")
People shouldn’t self-dose with hormones. It’s dangerous and your internet friends aren’t medical professionals. ---
**Author:** ![femmejean](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/0ea827/32.png) [@femmejean](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/femmejean)\ **Post date:** [June 9, 2017, 6:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-birth-control-ineffective-for-pre-op-trans-women/788523/7 "2017-06-09T18:25:54Z")
> [@Amateur\_Barbarian](#): > > I think the question is about the hormone effects. > > IANAD, but I think the levels of hormone in birth control are only a fraction of what trans women take to adjust their physiology, so it would be pointless or irrelevant to take The Pill. I can see it being a… folk or street remedy, since BC pills are readily available (vs. stronger hormone pills that need close medical supervision), but I can’t see it being a regular practice nor recommended by any sensible medical therapist. speaking of measurable levels, do you have any cites that would show the difference? ---
**Author:** ![femmejean](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/0ea827/32.png) [@femmejean](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/femmejean)\ **Post date:** [June 9, 2017, 6:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-birth-control-ineffective-for-pre-op-trans-women/788523/8 "2017-06-09T18:28:23Z")
> [@susan](#): > > People shouldn’t self-dose with hormones. It’s dangerous and your internet friends aren’t medical professionals. This isn’t debates but surely I believe in any scenario it would be better than forcing them to be masculine when they clearly don’t desire that? ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [June 9, 2017, 7:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-birth-control-ineffective-for-pre-op-trans-women/788523/9 "2017-06-09T19:22:41Z")
The mix of hormones in birth control pills is not the same as the mix in a normal female body. If it were, then women would never be able to get pregnant. And while I don’t know about this specific mix, one possible outcome of misuse of hormonal drugs is that they produce the _opposite_ of the hormone’s normal effect, due to the body adjusting its receptors to compensate (or overcompensate). So a trans woman taking birth control pills could actually end up becoming even more masculine (or more likely, more masculine in some randomly-selected ways and more feminine in others). ---
**Author:** ![Amateur\_Barbarian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/59ef9b/32.png) [@Amateur\_Barbarian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Amateur_Barbarian)\ **Post date:** [June 9, 2017, 9:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-birth-control-ineffective-for-pre-op-trans-women/788523/10 "2017-06-09T21:12:35Z")
> [@femmejean](#): > > speaking of measurable levels, do you have any cites that would show the difference? The estrogen and progesterone content of most BC pills are readily available; I know the trend went from what are now considered massive doses in the early days to lighter and lighter doses, to where most pills today would be comparable to the “mini-pills” of the 1970s. I have no idea what dosages are used for feminization, only that they have to be monitored closely. ---
**Author:** ![Ambivalid](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/a5b964/32.png) [@Ambivalid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ambivalid)\ **Post date:** [June 9, 2017, 9:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-birth-control-ineffective-for-pre-op-trans-women/788523/11 "2017-06-09T21:24:22Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > The mix of hormones in birth control pills is not the same as the mix in a normal female body. If it were, then women would never be able to get pregnant. And while I don’t know about this specific mix, one possible outcome of misuse of hormonal drugs is that they produce the _opposite_ of the hormone’s normal effect, due to the body adjusting its receptors to compensate (or overcompensate). So a trans woman taking birth control pills could actually end up becoming even more masculine (or more likely, more masculine in some randomly-selected ways and more feminine in others). I know excess exogenous testosterone gets converted by the body to estrogen but I’m not familiar with estrogen somehow getting converted to testosterone. I don’t think there is a metabolic pathway for such conversion. IOW, it’s a one-way street. ---
**Author:** ![engineer\_comp\_geek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/engineer_comp_geek/32/504_2.png) [@engineer\_comp\_geek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/engineer_comp_geek)\ **Post date:** [June 9, 2017, 10:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-birth-control-ineffective-for-pre-op-trans-women/788523/12 "2017-06-09T22:10:26Z")
**Moderator Note** > [@susan](#): > > People shouldn’t self-dose with hormones. It’s dangerous and your internet friends aren’t medical professionals. > [@femmejean](#): > > This isn’t debates but surely I believe in any scenario it would be better than forcing them to be masculine when they clearly don’t desire that? In the OP, it was specified that the BC pills would come from a GP. Let’s not have any discussion in this thread about self-medicating and keep the discussion relative to hormones (of any sort) that have been prescribed by a medical professional. Also, while it hasn’t been a problem yet, just to be clear, let’s not have any discussion about where one might obtain hormones over the internet, or from any source other than a qualified medical professional. The discussion of hormone levels and their effects on the human body is factual and is well within the bounds of GQ. Let’s just not have any “how to” type posts. Anyone interested in “how to” information should consult with an appropriate medical professional. ---
**Author:** ![astro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/9dc877/32.png) [@astro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astro)\ **Post date:** [June 10, 2017, 1:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-birth-control-ineffective-for-pre-op-trans-women/788523/13 "2017-06-10T01:30:50Z")
Discussion re BC pills as transitioning aid here. Some posts are germane to the OP’s questions. [http://www.tgboards.com/forums/viewtopic.php?t=9127](http://www.tgboards.com/forums/viewtopic.php?t=9127) ---
**Author:** ![Raja\_Naga](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/f4b2a3/32.png) [@Raja\_Naga](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Raja_Naga)\ **Post date:** [June 10, 2017, 5:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-birth-control-ineffective-for-pre-op-trans-women/788523/14 "2017-06-10T05:08:08Z")
> [@scr4](#): > > A pre-op trans woman could get a woman pregnant though, isn’t that what we are talking about? Uh… no? That’s certainly a thing, but taking birth control made to keep afab (assigned female at birth, which includes trans men like me) people from getting pregnant wouldn’t keep trans women from getting other people pregnant (which is not just women). The only things you could do to help that are the usual… condoms, doubt someone would do a vasectomy if they’re going to get gender affirming bottom surgery in the future anyway. OP wanted to know if BC would help with feminizing, that’s all. Which I really doubt it would to any noticeable degree, especially when you’re already doing HRT w/estrogen. Feminizing is really not the point of birth control… hell I use it as a trans man to make menstruating less traumatic/easier to deal with, so.