I've started a new thread because I'm absolutely convinced that R1 is different from its predecessor. Before I started on R1, I needed around 3g/day in order to maintain my mental balance. Now I only appear to need 1g. Furthermore, if I exceed 2g for more than a couple of days, I start to develop severe headaches ranging from the very base of my skull where it meets the spine to the crown area. This never happened with the previous formulation. Lastly, as before, the amount required to sort my mind out is the same as that required to keep me growing.

All in all, my experience is that R1 seems to be 3-4 times stronger than before (or my requirements have been reduced by a similar factor, or something intermediate).

Further evidence:
I'd read in another thread http://www.breastnexus.com/member.php?action=profile&uid=14069 Misty say:

...
I tried 3000-4000 mg/day and actually found my gender dysphoria started increasing (almost to pre-PM levels). The desire to cross-dress returned, and I found that I wanted to ramp the PM up even more. When I return to 1000-1500 mg/day my mental condition once again calms down and the dysphoria disappears (along with the related desire to express as female).
...

This accords with my experience too.... something that I did not experience with the previous formulation.

There may be nothing to it, but be warned to look out for similar experiences if you take high doses of R1.

B.

The differences you and Misty note may be why others, like me, are having issues even with lower doses. Mine have been largely gastrointestinal, and might be related to the prescription medication metformin, but I have had problems. I started with 500 mg/day on Feb 19, and I finally made it to 1500 mg about a week ago, but I have had to jump through some hoops to get here. I take 2 mg of loperamide at bed time (it is known as Imodium and is available over the counter in the US). I also have to take a healthy dose of psyllium before meals, then take my medications and other supplements, including PM, after the meal or else the results are explosive. The psyllium helps to regulate everything, especially if I consume too much dietary fat, such as the amount of butter or margarine one might reasonably use on a couple pieces of toast. I've also had to almost completely eliminate coffee as it speeds up everything too much.

R1 is the only form of PM I've ever tried. I guess the good news is if 1000 mg does for you what used to require 2 or 3 times as much, it will be cheaper in the long run.

I'm like Monika, the current formulation is all I've ever taken (still working on my first bottle) but it was a rocky start for me. If Byrony is correct and it's 4-5 times stronger, or even twice as potent, there's no wonder my body was sent reeling when I dropped in 1000mg. Now I'm at 1500mg and things are going well for me emotionally and my body tolerance has adjusted. I'm very pleased with the mental "rewiring" aspects at this dose and I have sensations of breast development but I don't know how they compare in severity to others. ...and do "severe" sensations equate to more or faster development anyway?

I have a bachelors degree in Agricultural crop production and I can't help but wonder if much of the variance we are discussing is a result of environment. Plants react dramatically to their environment and growing conditions so every lot of PM that came from a different location or harvest date could easily be very different from another lot. And from what little I know about this plant, the demand for PM and the development of the countries it comes from, I doubt there are any refined cultivars that you could expect consistent traits from even if it is actually farmed. Sugar beets, for example, have been intensively selected for high sugar content, extractability, yield and a host of other agronomic properties however, each year depending on the weather and field they are grown on, the expression of those traits still varies. Now instead of talking about pounds of sugar, lets talk about milligrams of PM and our sensitivity to it. See what I mean? ...I don't know much about anything for sure but this is one of the few times I felt like I could offer something technical to our discussion. Nonetheless, what I've described is simply an educated GUESS.

I'm going to add in to this one now, I didnt say anything before because I thought it was 'just me'.
Firstly, Bryony's headaches sound exactly like mine.

After my 2 months lay-off in Jan-Feb-March, I started back with a part bottle of pueraria.co.uk that I had in the drawer. That lasted about a week or so and then I switched to R1 at 2 x500mg a day then ramped up over about a week to 3x (2x500mg). I know thats a bit of a quick ramp up, but I know I can tolerate that level for a few days and I wanted to get myself saturated asap(!).

The headaches started almost at once, which didn't altogether surprise me so I dropped back to 4 a day, but they continued so I dropped to 3 and then two. Its only been this past few days on 2 a day back on the p.co.uk stuff ( R1 all used up now) that the head has really cleared. Before my lay-off I was on 3 x 500mg R1 ( 2 @ 7am, 1 @7pm) and during the layoff I had no real desire to x-dress.

However I noticed that as soon as I went up to 6 a day I did start to want to dress and then I remembered that ages ago, whilst on the old formulation, I was slightly surprised that after a while at high levels the x-dressing did come back, more than it had in the early stages.

I've been thinking about it the last day or so and I wonder if it is something to do with the feedback loop boosting natural T production ( I've also noticed a slight increase in 'morning glory', recently as well) to try to balance the bodily hormone levels, once the E goes above a certain point, and then that in turn somehow screwing our unbalanced brains and causing the GD to work loose again... or something!!

In addition... yes, whilst on the R1 I did get extremely 'ripe' but that seems to have subsided now. I have also always had a feeling that I am slightly allergic to PM in general - it seems to cause me to sneeze a lot all the time and my nostrils are 'crusty' ( TMI, sorry!), as though I have hayfever in the middle of winter. That went completely during my lay-off and came back with a vengeance whilst on R1 but has subsided again now.

I just wish it was having as much effect on my boobs as on the rest of me!

I also have only used the R1 form of pm.

I feel like I'm a bit of an outlier with pm. During the times when I was concerned about losing my brain rewiring, my response has always been to increase rather than decrease my pm dosage. This has resolved the problem so far instead of worsening it. So long as I spread out my pm intake and use progesterone cream, I haven't had any problems with pm-induced headaches or backaches. The worst experience I had with symptoms was when I was going cold-turkey with pm.

It's feasible I could still have breast growth at 1,500 mg of pm, but it's the brain rewiring I'm more worried about. I have slightly reduced my dosage for the high days, but it's still above everybody else's range here. I haven't had any major issues with the reduction. Maybe I could reduce the dosage again and see what happens.

Maybe age has a big factor in determining how well our body tolerates pm? If I'm not mistaken, I'm the youngest one who has posted in this thread. Perhaps that's way I have more leeway with my pm dosage?

Off Topic reply to MonikaT:

Hi Monika,

I don't know if I'd mentioned it before, but if you are still eating wheat, I'd strongly suggest trying to do without it. I gave it up for 99% off the time 4 years ago, and I rarely need antacids/lansoprizole etc.

Have a look at this: www.wheatbellyblog.com
I wasn't aware of it when I went on my low carb lifestyle, but it looks like getting rid of wheat was the main reason for my physical health improvements.

B.

At levels over 2500mg a day, it triggers acid reflux to the point that I have trouble breathing. It seems this happens more when i use the powder rather than the extract, for some reason....but I can feel it with either.

Was scaring the hell out of me until I figured out what it was lol....oh well at least it made me quit smoking! But anyways, its not just pm that does this....SP is way worse, as is sugar, wine, anything spicy.

I had only been taking about 1 or 2 gs a day but I'm just not growing on that. Argh....Maybe thats just too much for me. It did seem that I was doing much better growth wise and mentally on the pre-R1 formulation.

I have also never used any PM other than Ainterol R1, so I can't comment on the difference with other formulas or brands. I agree with Doodlebug that different "batches" could vary from one another (especially since I've read some articles that the efficacy of PM is largely dependent on the time of year it is harvested). Still, there's no use in worrying about what we can't control.

When I first came to this forum breast growth and feminization were my primary goals. That was a difficult decision for me since I am married (20+ years), have 4 children and a successful career. All of that was jeopardized to some degree by those desires (which had gotten to the point I could no longer ignore and felt I had to act or I would go crazy). The desires and anxiety were affecting my relationships and work (significantly).

PM changed that dramatically. The anxiety is completely gone. I am more productive at work and closer to my family than I have ever been. I no longer feel compelled to express as a women (in fact I am very content with who I am). That doesn't mean that I don't prefer femininity -- I do in fact. I just don't have the overwhelming urges I had before.

So my only dilemma is that fact that PM will certainly change me physically. As bryony has stated before that's OK as the PM gives me the soundness of mind to deal with the changes. But I still have the potential issue of the changes becoming so pronounced that my family, friends, and coworkers will notice.

It's possible that such drastic changes will never materialize since I experience the mental benefits at relatively low doses. There definitely are changes happening though! My breasts are sore all the time and my nipples are extremely sensitive. I do believe there is growth occurring -- I just don't know how much will happen at my current dosage. I am also noticing fat redistribution, and I have already commented on the skin softness. I *really* like all of the changes and effects!

The bottom line is that some of us here are more committed to remaining "male" than others, simply because we are further along in life and have more at risk (and less time left). I'm not minimizing the decision for anyone, and in many ways I envy the younger and unattached members as you are freer to pursue the dream that is out of my reach. That being said, I truly treasure all the insight and advice I get from everyone here. I am happier now than I can ever remember being before...

Misty

Off Topic reply to MonikaT:

Hi Monika,

I don't know if I'd mentioned it before, but if you are still eating wheat, I'd strongly suggest trying to do without it. I gave it up for 99% off the time 4 years ago, and I rarely need antacids/lansoprizole etc.

Have a look at this: www.wheatbellyblog.com
I wasn't aware of it when I went on my low carb lifestyle, but it looks like getting rid of wheat was the main reason for my physical health improvements.

B.

Yes, you've mentioned this on several occasions. The GI troubles I've had with metformiin began again with either PM or a medication I took briefly. Unfortunately, they continued after I stopped the medication. I'm not sure I can give up wheat, and that doctor's book is a bit flawed and has some misinformation. The last time I looked at a glycemic index chart, a Snickers bar still had a higher glycemic index than whole wheat or white bread, though I must admit the Snickers bar is far tastier than bread or pasta. Also, I was checked for celiac disease and seem to not have that problem, though it may have been temporarily induced by the medication I took briefly since it is a DPP-IV inhibitor, and that enzyme has something to do with digesting proteins such as gluten. Adding soluble fiber, probiotics, and sauerkraut to my diet has helped a lot. I'm not sure why I haven't eaten much sauerkraut in the past 20 years or so. I actually do like the stuff and read that we need to eat fermented foods to maintain healthy gut bacteria.

...

Maybe age has a big factor in determining how well our body tolerates pm? If I'm not mistaken, I'm the youngest one who has posted in this thread. Perhaps that's way I have more leeway with my pm dosage?

I'm guessing that you have/had far more testosterone that I have/had to deal with! Maybe that somehow counteracts the extra PM? Just guessing.

B.