(07-10-2012, 02:02 PM)sarahlouise41 Wrote: i've just started taking fenugreek and wild yam after reading lots of articles online about the subject. they seem to be two of the most commonly recommended herbs although i'll be grateful for any recommendations to add to the mix. i have one question though. i've seen the comment about effects being irreversible after six months crop up a few times. what does that actually mean? does it mean that growth can go back down before that period if you don't keep up your regime or does it mean that they'll keep growing after a certain period of time whether you keep up with the pills or not? have you by then kicked in some kind of hormonal change that means breasts will keep growing a bit like they would during puberty? i'm wondering if you managed to get to a certain cup size and stopped taking the pills is there a danger they could keep growing?
First. Wild Yam is hardly recommended at all anymore, it used to be a lot, until people started realizing that the body can't actually make any use of diosgenin. It has to be made into hormones in a lab.
Fenugreek is still used, but you'll absolutely HAVE to do something about testosterone as well for it to even begin to have any reasonable effect at all. You should also probably use a "truer" phytoestrogen such as red clover or hops along with it.
The most common fenugreek based plan is also known as the greenbush plan, and it's fenugreek, red clover, maca, and saw palmetto. I think? Someone else correct me if I've got that wrong.
Exact doses depend on the person and exactly how far you're wanting to go. I think most males will generally want to use a standardized extract for saw palmetto and take about 640mg per day OR 1280mg per day, depending on how far they want to go. Less is possible depending on the amount of DHT you are producing which generally depends on age, but more than needed shouldn't hurt anything other than your bank statement either. Unless you don't want to go full on transition, then even slightly over can be problematic.
Fenugreek and red clover/hops would be the phytoestrogens in your plan. Fenugreek is less a phytoestrogen and more a phytoestrogenic. In other words, it provides a boost, but isn't enough to do much on its own. But combined with another phytoestrogen, it can boost it's effect.
Maca is an adaptogen whose effects would be better explained by someone other than me, I'm not completely clear on what it does.
All that aside... The first question we need to ask is: how far do you want to go? Are you just a guy wanting some boob, but otherwise still consider yourself a guy? Or are you wanting to fully transition to female?
If the latter, I greatly doubt that anything other than at minimum, saw palmetto and pueraria mirifica can get you there. And I'd honestly suggest something more closely resembling my plan, though dosing would need to be adjusted and some of the "extras" might not be necessary in your case. I started out with very excessive T, so I needed extra blocking. I also have a high bp and heart rate, so I needed stuff for that. And I'm on a very very lean diet, so I needed a few extra vitamins and minerals.
