[BlueCoral]

What are the benefits of herbs over synthetics?
What are the benefits of synthetics over herbs?
This is something that's crossed my mind a lot, but never bothered asking since I figured there wasn't really a difference. But every time I bring up herbs for hrt on other various forums people tend to view herbs as being inferior to synthetics??? 
(Hopefully Lotus can chime in too but I'd like to hear from everyone).

[Pansy-Mae]

What are the benefits of herbs over synthetics?
What are the benefits of synthetics over herbs?
This is something that's crossed my mind a lot, but never bothered asking since I figured there wasn't really a difference. But every time I bring up herbs for hrt on other various forums people tend to view herbs as being inferior to synthetics??? 
(Hopefully Lotus can chime in too but I'd like to hear from everyone).

I think to some extent it depends on your goals and your definition of 'inferior'.
Herbs, including PM, act more slowly and IMO the end results are likely to be less pronounced. OTOH, herbs are more easily obtained. Then again we are all different, basically PM worked well for me and produced results in about 3 months but then after about 18months it  did nothing more other than maintain volume. I assume that is down to my body chemistry/physiology but I don't know for sure and maybe synthetics under the supervision of doctors would have given me more, who knows?

[MeganJ]

It's a difficult thing to put into words but essentially I see the two as very different both with their own merits and drawbacks.

For example herbals are way easier to obtain, potentially cheaper and perhaps less like to result in rapid sudden changes.

On the flipside though hrt is much more of a known quantity and can result in extreme changes. 

For me hrt was always a line in the sand, whilst long term use of herbals may result in the desired effects for me it made no sense to continue to take them when I had figured out what I wanted. 

Essentially i see it as if you just want some effects but don't want to transition or are unsure stick to herbals. If you do know or are prepared that you can never go back to being fully male then go for hrt.

Different people want different things out of it but I don't see herbals as a lesser option, we are all different in what we want and need from this so one option is right for one person and not for others.

Having been on hrt for nearly 10 months i would say its not something to take lightly though. If I was unsure I wanted to transition at this point it wouldn't be much fun having to revert to being male again. 

That's based on my own experience and whilst no one size fits all but for me if you don't want to transition don't touch hrt....

Megan

[BlueCoral]

What are the benefits of herbs over synthetics?
What are the benefits of synthetics over herbs?
This is something that's crossed my mind a lot, but never bothered asking since I figured there wasn't really a difference. But every time I bring up herbs for hrt on other various forums people tend to view herbs as being inferior to synthetics??? 
(Hopefully Lotus can chime in too but I'd like to hear from everyone).

I think to some extent it depends on your goals and your definition of 'inferior'.
Herbs, including PM, act more slowly and IMO the end results are likely to be less pronounced. OTOH, herbs are more easily obtained. Then again we are all different, basically PM worked well for me and produced results in about 3 months but then after about 18months it  did nothing more other than maintain volume. I assume that is down to my body chemistry/physiology but I don't know for sure and maybe synthetics under the supervision of doctors would have given me more, who knows?

That's what I like about the herbs, they are very cheap and raise a lot less suspicion from people you live with who are very conservative, to put it mildly.

It's a difficult thing to put into words but essentially I see the two as very different both with their own merits and drawbacks.

For example herbals are way easier to obtain, potentially cheaper and perhaps less like to result in rapid sudden changes.

On the flipside though hrt is much more of a known quantity and can result in extreme changes. 

For me hrt was always a line in the sand, whilst long term use of herbals may result in the desired effects for me it made no sense to continue to take them when I had figured out what I wanted. 

Essentially i see it as if you just want some effects but don't want to transition or are unsure stick to herbals. If you do know or are prepared that you can never go back to being fully male then go for hrt.

Different people want different things out of it but I don't see herbals as a lesser option, we are all different in what we want and need from this so one option is right for one person and not for others.

Having been on hrt for nearly 10 months i would say its not something to take lightly though. If I was unsure I wanted to transition at this point it wouldn't be much fun having to revert to being male again. 

That's based on my own experience and whilst no one size fits all but for me if you don't want to transition don't touch hrt....

Megan

I don't mind transitioning (in fact I rather would, and if the FaceApp is anything to go by I'd be pretty cute); the difference between the two is just really confusing, especially when you look at other people who've only taken herbs and they get a ton of progress, but then I get the idea from others that HRT is more potent then the herbs and if you want breast growth to use synthetics instead...argh.    

I was starting to think about this more too, because I've tried lots of herbs and in different combos without much of a change. I got a little bit of fat buildup on my chest and thighs, but that's about it. The best herbs I found were doing something - I was having less energy, less/no ejaculation, finding it hard to 'get it up' - but nothing more then that. I mean I don't mind that stuff happening, but I'd prefer it if I got physical changes to go along with that so it doesn't seem like I'm wasting time and money just to sterilize myself.

[Coffee]

I view synthetics as the ideal. Less questions as to if and how they work. Whatever opinion a doctor may have about transitioning, they UNDERSTAND synthetics. Every body is different and reacts to things differently, but a doctor is going to be able to change your doses to get you to where you need to be. Herbals are different. We can anecdotally find regimens to start with, mix and match different categories of herbs, but a doctor (at least, not most doctors) won't be much help in pegging what we should be taking, and how much. 

So, yes, I view herbals as the lesser option.

But, herbals are popular for several key reasons:

1. Sometimes we just feel more comfortable with a product that comes from a plant. 
2. Cost (not that herbals are cheap, but there is definitely a lower barrier of entry)
3. Fear of going to a doctor for transitioning (social stigma is lower than it was 15 years ago, but still present)
4. It's an easy way to dip your toe into feminization with a fairly low risk.
5. The slower speed (esp. if you haven't keyed into an ideal herbal regimen) is good for people who want to feminize without transitioning

I'm currently caught in point 2 and 3--less worried about the cost of synthetics as I am the cost of doctor visits. I don't have health insurance, so the visits would be all out of pocket. Easier to afford regular herb re-ups than doctor's visits. Fear keeps me from figuring out if I could somehow afford the doctor.