IMPORTANT NOTES: The intent of this guide is to teach FTM/transmasculine people how to dose testosterone, sourcing, etc. Share this document within the right circles, keep privacy, make copies, don’t distribute to glowies or normies against DIY, use common sense!
What is testosterone? Testosterone (T) is an anabolic steroid and *** hormone found in those assigned male at birth.
Since we were not assigned male at birth, we only produce a small amount in our bodies naturally, and produce estrogens instead.
What does it do? Testosterone induces both androgenic and anabolic effects.
Androgenic effects are the masculinizing changes that come with taking testosterone, which includes bottom growth (clitoral enlargement), voice deepening, cessation of menstruation (periods), increased definition of facial features and a more masculine fat distribution, facial and body hair growth, increased libido, acne, etc.
You can think of anabolic effects as changes to your body’s metabolism, protein building and how it uses energy. Anabolic effects include increased muscle mass and strength, increased bone density, increased appetite, etc.
The androgenic and anabolic effects of testosterone are about equal. You won’t necessarily have roider levels of strength nor gain significant muscle mass, especially if you don’t exercise regularly. Your mileage may vary.What kinds of methods can I get T in?
There are multiple ways, each with their drawbacks, pros, and levels of ease in terms of
obtaining them.
Injections
By far the most popular and well known, injections are the easiest to come by if you choose to
DIY.
There are certain esters testosterone is commonly compounded in. Testosterone is esterified in
order to last longer in your body. Raw testosterone injected into your tissues will very quickly
dissipate, which is why testosterone injections all come in ester form.
Testosterone propionate, cypionate and enanthate are the most commonly prescribed
and used testosterone esters.
We will only focus on cypionate and enanthate due to their long half lives, and their basic
interchangeability.
Cypionate’s half life is about 8 days when injected IM.
Enanthate’s half life is slightly shorter. Treat it similarly to cypionate.
Gel
This is harder to find in concentrations required to suppress estrogen on the grey/black market.
These come in packets or in a pump.
Pellets
This cannot be found DIY unless you happen to get it done in a back alley with fake pellets.
Don’t do that.
These are experimental in terms of dosages compared to the other tried and true methods. You
can get them surgically implanted if your insurance covers it. They let out a small dose of T each
day and you don’t have to worry about missing a dose. They last about 3-6 months.Nonbinary/Androgynous HRT?
WIP.
Dosing/Sourcing:
Ideally, you would be on T through legal means. You may not have the privilege or desire, so
this guide may be of better use for you.
Regardless, if you are willing to attempt it, it is often a preferable option to not being on HRT for
many people.
Legal:
If you are in the US: try informed consent through Planned Parenthood, or any endo that allows
it first before attempting DIY. Informed consent is essentially an easier method of obtaining HRT
through signing consent forms knowing the risks, benefits, side effects, etc. on HRT.
Here is a community-compiled US-centric map that shows clinics offering informed consent.
Read carefully.
https://www.transunity.net/us-hrt-informed-consent-map-from-erin/
If you are in Australia: check to see if your state allows a form similar to informed consent. If
you are under 16, this may not be available to you.
If you are in the UK: GenderGP (if you can afford it) is a private healthcare service aiding
transgender people in getting on HRT. It uses a model similar to informed consent and asks
about your plan for transition. They unfortunately do have a bit of a reputation for giving rather
undesirable dosing regimens and can be quite expensive.
DIY:
If you do not want to be on waitlists, have to prove your transness while allowing your body to
feminize, or are unable to get T legally, then you may have to order it online. Learn how to buy
Bitcoin. (If you are a minor, get a trusted adult to purchase the Bitcoin for you, or go to your local
BTC ATM.) Some sites also offer payment in methods such as Zelle, Bank Transfer, Western
Union and MoneyGram. (Keep in mind these methods are often subject to minimum order
requirements, unlike Bitcoin.)If you choose to order testosterone without a prescription, it will be illegal in most countries
(although the risk of a domestic order being seized or let alone, any person in possession of
anabolic steroids for personal use being prosecuted is unheard of).
Accurate dosing
Here are a table of typical doses of testosterone used in transmasculine hormone therapy:
I usually recommend people start on 50mg/week. You can choose to slowly ramp up dosage or
start on a higher dose, there is no evidence that either method is obviously better than the other.
I would not recommend you go over 100/week unless you have obvious signs of insufficient T
levels (still having menstrual cycles, or a blood test showing inadequate levels).
Vials of testosterone are usually compounded at either 200mg/mL, 250mg/mL or 300mg/mL.
This means that for a 200mg/mL vial, every 1mL of liquid will contain 200mg of testosterone. A
10mL vial will then contain a total of 2000mg of testosterone.
We will unfortunately be doing some math here.
The formula to calculate how much liquid to inject is: (amount you want to inject) ÷
(concentration of the vial) = amount to inject per dose in mL
Examples
If you wanted to inject 20mg and you have a 200mg/mL vial,
20 ÷ 200 = 0.1
0.1mL per injection
If you wanted to inject 50mg, and you have a 200mg/mL vial,
50 ÷ 200 = 0.25
0.25mL per injectionIf you wanted to inject 100mg and you have a 200mg/mL vial,
100 ÷ 200 = 0.5
0.5mL per injection
If you wanted to inject 50mg and you have a 250mg/mL vial,
50 ÷ 250 = 0.2
0.2mL per injection
If you wanted to inject 50mg and you have a 300mg/mL vial,
50 ÷ 300 ≈ 0.17
0.17mL per injection
Not too complicated now, hopefully!
How to perform a T injection
Needles can be bought from any pharmacy over the counter in most countries without a
prescription (you may have to ask the pharmacist directly). Most countries also have online sites
that sell appropriate injection needles. Amazon is a popular source for those in America.
There are two methods for a T injection, subcutaneous/subq (injection into the layer of fat under
the skin), and intramuscular/IM (injection deep into the muscle underneath the skin and fat).
Both methods result in identical absorption rates and levels of the drug, whether you prefer subq
or IM is mostly personal preference.
Because of the presence of benzyl benzoate in most steroid site sourced vials, some people
find subcutaneous injections to cause some minor post-injection pain.
Appropriate gauges (needle thickness) for a subcutaneous injection are 25-30g, for
intramuscular, 23-25g. Subq needles are thinner than IM needles, which some people find less
intimidating.
Recommended needle lengths are as follows:
1”-1 ½” (IM, 1 inch is better for thinner people and 1 ½” for thicker people.)
½”-⅝” (Subq, up to personal preference as well as fat content.)
There are many online videos and guides for how to administer an intramuscular or
subcutaneous injection, here are a few decent ones:
Subcutaneous:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=APSPbpqefKwIntramuscular:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W5GAyZzDpNU
Be sure to dispose of your needle tips inside of a hard plastic container or a sharps bin to
prevent injury.
Blood Testing
Regular blood testing every ~3 months or so is useful, but not absolutely mandatory, especially
if not particularly affordable or feasible. Here are some sources of private blood testing if you
cannot access blood testing through the medical system:
Blood tests (US): https://www.privatemdlabs.com/
Blood tests (UK, Ireland): https://www.medichecks.com/
Blood tests (Canada): https://bloodtestscanada.com/
Blood tests (Sweden): https://werlabs.se/
Blood tests (NL): https://www.bloedwaardentest.nl/
Blood tests by mail (Worldwide): https://www.letsgetchecked.com/ - Finger prick.
Get the obvious tests for estradiol and total testosterone. Get your blood taken as close as
possible to your next scheduled injection/dose (trough levels).
Occasional testing of Complete blood count (CBC), Liver function tests (LFT)/Liver enzymes,
Clotting factors test, and Lipid profile test (cholesterol, triglycerides) can be useful to monitor
certain health risks associated with testosterone therapy.
For a full list of potential increased risks of certain health issues associated with transmasculine
HRT, you can refer to this resource: http://www.ftmguide.org/tandhealth.html#sideeffects.
Most of the serious side effects are extremely low in absolute risk.
Polycythemia (high concentration of red blood cells in the blood) is a unique risk for transmascs
taking any testosterone therapy. CBC tests to monitor your hematocrit (red blood cell count) are
recommended.
Hormone therapy in general is very safe and effective as long as you take a reasonable dose.
Sources:CAUTION: If there is not a source listed, please check
https://www.eroids.com/reviews/ before buying.
US Sourcing:
RoidBazaar US
(Accepts Bitcoin, Zelle, Bank Transfer, Western Union, Money Gram)
Author’s Note: Personally, I have purchased from RoidBazaar and have had really good service,
even after I fucked up Bitcoin sending. I purchased 3 vials of Odin Pharma’s T enanthate
compounded at 250 mg/mL. It’s been great.
ALL Testosterone Enanthate - https://us.roidbazaar.me/testosterone-enanthate/
ALL Testosterone Cypionate - https://us.roidbazaar.me/testosterone-cypionate/
US-DomesticSupply.ws
(Accepts Bitcoin or Western Union, *high minimum order requirements*)
Testosterone Enanthate -
https://us-domesticsupply.ws/94-testosterone-enanthate
Testosterone Cypionate -
https://us-domesticsupply.ws/95-testosterone-cypionate
Canada Sourcing:
Alpha North Labs
(Accepts Bitcoin, Interac E-Transfer)
Testosterone Enanthate -
https://alphanorthlabs.com/product/testosterone-enanthate/
Testosterone Cypionate -
https://alphanorthlabs.com/product/testosterone-cypionate/Australia Sourcing:
Austeroids
(Accepts Bitcoin)
Testosterone Enanthate -
https://austeroids.is/product/vita-testosterone-enanthate-250-mgml-x-10ml/
https://austeroids.is/product/omnia-testosterone-enanthate-250-mgml-x-10ml/
Testosterone Cypionate -
https://austeroids.is/product/omnia-testosterone-cypionate-200-mg-ml-x-10ml-test-c/
https://austeroids.is/product/vita-test-cyp-200-mg-ml-x-10ml-testosterone-cypionate/
https://austeroids.is/product/sparta-test-c-200-mg-ml-x-10ml-testosterone-cypionate/
UK Sourcing:
RoidBazaar UK
(Accepts Bitcoin, Zelle, Bank Transfer, Western Union, Money Gram)
Testosterone Enanthate -
https://roidbazaar.me/satan-pharma/testosterone-enanthate/
Testosterone Cypionate -
https://roidbazaar.me/satan-pharma/testosterone-cypionate/
Steroids UK
(Accepts credit/debit card)
Testosterone Enanthate -
http://anabolic-steroids.shop/injectable-steroids/enanthat_250
http://anabolic-steroids.shop/injectable-steroids/testo-enane-10
Testosterone Cypionate -
http://anabolic-steroids.shop/injectable-steroids/cypionat_250Testosterone Gels -
http://anabolic-steroids.shop/gel
EU Sourcing:
RoidBazaar EU
(Accepts Bitcoin, Zelle, Bank Transfer, Western Union, Money Gram)
Testosterone Enanthate -
https://eu.roidbazaar.me/eu-warehouse-4/testosterone-enanthate/
https://eu.roidbazaar.me/europe-domestic/testosterone-enanthate-250-1297/
Testosterone Cypionate -
https://eu.roidbazaar.me/eu-warehouse-4/testosterone-cypionate/
https://eu.roidbazaar.me/europe-domestic/testosterone-cypionate-250-1296/
International Sourcing:
Almost all steroid sites will ship internationally, but there will always be an increased
risk to ordering internationally for seizure of packages versus ordering domestically.
Unfortunately, many countries lack international sources. Order at your own risk.
RoidBazaar Int
!! Has a good reputation in the roid community for successful international shipments.
(Accepts Bitcoin, Zelle, Bank Transfer, Western Union, Money Gram)
Testosterone Enanthate -
https://roidbazaar.me/pharma-grade/testosterone-enanthate-250/https://roidbazaar.me/SCIROXX-Pharma/testodex-enanthate-250/ https://roidbazaar.me/7Lab/testolab-e-250/
Testosterone Cypionate https://roidbazaar.me/xeno-labs/testosterone-cypionate-250/ https://roidbazaar.me/SCIROXX-Pharma/testodex-cypionate-250/ https://roidbazaar.me/7Lab/testolab-c-250/