Hormone Hangover: 6 months off T (FTM detransition)
My voice dropped, my Adam’s apple grew, and the stubble is forever. Six months off testosterone I’m curvy again, but my body will never just snap back to the way it was before.
Overview
Elle Palmer recounts the physical aftermath of six months off testosterone after three years on the hormone. She explains that while her periods, body hair, fat distribution, and muscle mass have largely reverted toward female patterns, her voice drop, facial hair, and Adam’s apple are permanent changes that will not reverse without intervention. She reflects on what testosterone could not alter—her bone structure, height, and genitalia—and shares smaller shifts in appetite, sex drive, and even sweating, concluding that her body has been permanently altered and will never simply "snap back" to its pre-transition state.
Full Video Summary
Elle Palmer, a 20-year-old FtMtF detransitioner, discusses the effects of hormones on her body after six months off testosterone. She begins by recalling her female puberty at age 12, during which her hips widened, she began menstruating, developed breasts, and grew taller—changes she barely noticed at the time. She then contrasts this with the effects of taking testosterone at 16. Her voice dropped almost immediately, becoming hoarse within the first week and noticeably deeper after the first month, reaching its lowest point within a year. She explains that this change is permanent: the larynx enlarges and drops, throat cartilage thickens, and vocal folds change, meaning her voice will never naturally return to its pre-testosterone state without training. Elle identifies two permanent effects of testosterone: her voice and facial hair. She shows her Adam’s apple and notes that she must shave every three to four days, with stubble on her neck and face. Once testosterone stimulates facial hair follicles to produce thick, dark hair, she says, they do not revert; she plans to pursue laser hair removal. She also clarifies what testosterone cannot change. After female puberty, her bone structure remained unaltered: she retained wide hips, narrow shoulders, small hands and feet, and a female facial structure. Testosterone did not make her taller, broaden her shoulders, narrow her hips, eliminate her breasts, or create male genitalia. However, many effects have reversed since stopping testosterone. Her periods returned two months after cessation, initially lighter and less painful than before. Her body hair has thinned dramatically; after six months off testosterone, hair on her legs, chest, and arms has become light and sparse, requiring far less shaving than before, though she suspects some extra body hair will remain permanently. Fat has redistributed to female patterns, restoring curves to her hips, thighs, face, and chest, while the muscle mass she quickly built on testosterone has disappeared, leaving her shoulders narrow again. Elle notes several other lasting or changed traits. She developed loud burping on testosterone, which has persisted. Off testosterone, her appetite and sex drive have dropped significantly; she no longer experiences spontaneous sexual attraction and now desires emotional connection before intimacy. She also observes that her sweat smells sweeter. She concludes by emphasizing that detransition does not mean simply snapping back to her pre-transition body. Her voice, facial hair, Adam’s apple, and throat structure are permanently altered, and while some masculinizing effects have faded, her body chemistry has been irrevocably changed.