List of DIY HRT Resources:
HRT Science, DIY Guides, and DIY Suppliers
HRT and Trans Science Information
Do your own research; it’s important!
All trans patients, especially those taking charge of their own HRT, should know how that HRT works and affects them. Doctors often know very little about trans health and the effects of HRT, and the majority of what they do know comes from other trans patients. Having a basic understanding of how HRT works and what it affects will help you navigate your healthcare better and have more ground to stand on when advocating for yourself.
General Resources
Clinical Guidelines with Information on Hormone Replacement Therapy — Transfeminine Science
A collection of clinical guidelines from across the world, the international and Canadian sections will likely be the most useful. Primarily focused on transfeminine people’s needs, but most of the information is also relevant to transmasculine people.
r/TransDIY Wiki
Large and frequently updated wiki for the largest online trans DIY community. It links to both medical and legal resources, as well as guides for DIY.
Ten simple rules for reading a scientific paper — National Library of Medicine
It’s important to know how to properly read a research paper, this introduction is good for beginners and will help you get the hang of it.
Transfeminine HRT
An Introduction to Hormone Therapy for Transfeminine People — Transfeminine Science
An extensive article on the science behind transfeminine HRT. It details the basic effects and timelines, covers different estradiol administration options and antiandrogens, and explains how to monitor hormone levels and what to look for.
Transmasculine HRT
Hudson’s FTM Resource Guide
The “Testosterone” section features good introductory explanations to the science of testosterone HRT and its associated health considerations.
The Testosterone Survey Zine
The results of a 400-person survey about the effects of testosterone. It touches on many aspects of transmasculine transition in a very personal way. The survey covered gender and personal identities, age, dosages, transition progress, and changes both physical and mental. Pay What You Can.
Collections of Transition-Related Scientific Papers
Trans-Related Papers — TransexualidadFTM
Google Sheet of nearly 4000 papers touching on trans experiences ranging from the medical to the sociological.
Transgender Research Papers — Umbrary
Wiki listing nearly 700 papers, likely a broad overlap with the previous resource, though this one does cover more niche/experimental HRT regimens.
Articles — Transfeminine Science
Articles written by transfeminine people for transfeminine people about HRT, explained in plain English with links to the relevant papers.
Guides to DIY HRT
Note on the disadvantages of DIY approaches
DIY HRT comes with unique risks and disadvantages not present in clinical care settings, understanding them is very important for those pursuing DIY HRT. DIY HRT is fundamentally less safe than what a competent doctor will prescribe to you, especially if you don’t have a doctor following your DIY transition to prescribe blood tests. DIY HRT can be homebrew or pharmaceutical grade. Homebrewed medication (medication produced from raw materials in someone’s home) is nearly never as safe to inject as pharmaceutical HRT, and sterility and freedom from contaminants are very difficult and expensive to check for.
Nevertheless, DIY HRT can often be more accessible than medical HRT, and in some cases will help you avoid some of the disadvantages of access HRT through clinical care (ex: dealing with medically incompetent providers, facing discriminatory treatment, and so on). However, any patient purchasing HRT from a non-medical source should carefully research the supplier and ensure that medications they receive match the description, including both packaging and (for pills) other characteristics such as the shape, colour, and markings.
If you are considering DIY HRT we strongly recommend you consult guides and articles to learn about the science, understand what risks DIY HRT exposes you to, and most importantly understand best practices and how to limit risks associated with DIY HRT. See the Self-Referred document (found below) for more information about some of the risks.
Transfeminine DIY HRT: the Ultimate Guide— DIYHRT Wiki
A strong beginner-friendly transfeminine DIY HRT guide. It focuses on American resources and topics, so Canadian services mentioned are limited.
Transmasculine DIY HRT: the Ultimate Guide — DIYHRT Wiki
Strong beginner-friendly transmasculine DIY HRT guide. It focuses on American resources and topics, so Canadian services mentioned are limited.
Self-Referred: A Quebec Trans Health Survival Tool by ASTT(e)Q
Contains a good section on risks associated with DIY HRT (pages 29-31). While still a good resource, much of the other info is outdated (published 2012). Problems with DIY HRT discussed include: getting correct dosage, inconsistency in administration method, product reliability, needle sharing/reuse, no monitoring.
French version: Je me réfère: Un guide de santé et de survie pour les personnes trans du Québec by ASTTeQ Contains a detailed guide on DIY HRT in French starting at page 25
Suppliers and Getting DIY HRT
Legality
Transfeminine HRT
Neither Estradiol nor any known antiandrogens are controlled substances, which means they are legal to own. However, like all prescription medications, they are illegal to buy or sell without a prescription or license. They are also not legal to import, and though customs seizure is rare, it does happen. Customs seizure is unlikely to result in prosecution, and most sellers are willing to reship or reimburse in case of seizure.
Transmasculine HRT
Testosterone and all known anabolic steroids are schedule IV substances, meaning possession is legal, but buying and selling are restricted and punished under the Controlled Drug and Substances Act (CanLII). Buying and selling testosterone carries much heavier legal risk than other hormones or non-scheduled medications, and we recommend you familiarize yourself with the law.
Transfem HRT Suppliers
As there are more transfeminine HRT suppliers, the following websites exist to track which are available and currently selling.
- HRT Cafe (aka hrt.coffee and DIYHRT.cafe)
- DIYHRT.market
Transmasc HRT Suppliers
eroids
A trustworthy review forum for websites selling anabolic steroids.
Alpha North Labs
A seller based in Canada that even accepts e-transfer as payment, so you don’t have to deal with importing or crypto.
Transfem and Transmasc HRT Suppliers
The following websites sell both E and T (Including in raw powder form) as well as other substances, though their reliability isn’t the best.
Cryptocurrency
For those who do not want to own cryptocurrency or deal with managing a crypto wallet, Paybis is a service that lets you buy crypto directly to any wallet with minimal fees. Account verification requires ID but buying cryptocurrency to a wallet does not require a verified account, just a valid email. Many DIY HRT guides and website (such as hrtcafe.net) have information on how to use crypto to buy DIY HRT.
Injections
Transgender Health Injection Guide — Fenway Health
A good beginner-friendly guide on self-injecting hormones both intramuscularly and subcutaneously.
Buying in person
Most Canadian pharmacies will sell needles without a prescription and give out sharps disposal containers for free, no questions asked.
Buying online
Needles can also be obtained online at the following websites:
- See DIYHRT Wiki injection supplies website list
- Amazon
- Medlabgear
- West End Medical Supplies
- United Canada
Note on Insulin Needles
Fixed-needle insulin syringes are perfectly acceptable for subcutaneous hormone injections, and are in fact preferred by many because they minimize loss of product in the needle dead space.
Cactus Montreal
Cactus offers free injection equipment as well as other drug harm reduction supplies. They also offer supervised consumption sites, drug and STI testing, and other blood infection screenings. You can visit them at 1244 Berger St, H2X 1M1, Montreal. According to one DIYer we spoke to, Cactus will not test the purity of HRT.
Blood Testing for Self-Monitoring
Requisitions
For those in Canada who can’t afford or access private testing, getting blood tests for your DIY HRT through the public system is still an option, even if it’s trickier and more time consuming.
There are a few private blood test services that will test your blood without a referral – for Canada see Blood Tests Canada below. However, in Canada standard lab testing (both public and private) requires a referral from a doctor. Some patients are able to find the kind of doctors (public or private) who they feel will run tests a patient requests without asking many questions, but keep in mind that doctors largely will not be willing to test your levels if you tell them directly you want the test to evaluate self-administered medication. However, it isn’t too difficult to come up with a decently convincing reason for why you want a hormonal profile. For example, it’s common for DIY patients to say they have a US doctor who prescribes them HRT -a good excuse for why there are no HRT prescriptions in their file- and ask for a blood test from a generic GP (some also use this as an excuse when trying to transition from DIY to prescription HRT). Generally, private doctors are much less likely to pry for a reason to test you than public ones; private doctors will likely give you any blood test you ask for if you give them a general reason why and don’t act highly suspect.
Once you get a requisition, you can get tested. You don’t have to follow up on your results with the doctor who gave you the prescription if you are worried they would find your results suspicious. While you are not breaking any laws and cannot get in trouble for doing this, doctors will likely give you a hard time or even refuse to work with you in the future if they catch on that you are being untruthful with them or using them to test self-administered medication without their knowing. Doctors are not allowed to report patients to the police for buying or using restricted/controlled substances such as hormones. Thus, there is little legal risk to patients from disclosing DIY HRT to doctors. However, regardless of these legal protections, in rare cases some doctors have been known to refuse to provide any care, gender affirming or otherwise, to patients on DIY HRT, so requesting a blood test for that purpose does pose a risk.
Most labs will send you the results directly, many will also include reference ranges for you to compare against (make sure they’re the appropriate gender, labs are very likely to agree to send you an amended report if you call and ask for the reference values changed).
Patients have a right to see all their test results. The lab will send you your results directly if you ask for them. If you have RAMQ, tests should be available on Carnet Santé Quebec for 30 days after the results are sent. Signing up for this service takes time, so we recommend doing it before you expect the results (ideally before the test itself).
Note on Reference Values
While standard reference values for blood tests are available online, each lab may have their own slightly different scale that accounts for variation in the instruments they use. Though we prefer to use the reference values provided by labs, the difference does not matter much.
Private Online Blood Testing Services
Blood Tests Canada
A paid service for patients in Quebec, Ontario, and Manitoba to order blood tests. This is by far the most straightforward option for DIYers in Canada since you don’t need a requisition from a doctor. Unfortunately it’s 200$ for a hormonal profile
Maple
This service allows you to get a requisition for a blood test online anywhere in Canada except Nova Scotia and New Brunswick. International students insured by Blue Cross can get this service reimbursed in full.
Dialogue
A private virtual global medical health service that is frequently included in employee benefit packages in Canada. After signing up, you can pay for a consultation with a doctor who will give you a requisition for blood testing. Canadian McGill students (who are by default) insured by the SSMU health plan can get reimbursed for Dialogue services. Understand your coverage here.
Online Resources and Communities
- TransHRT Hormone Forum
- International Transgender Health
- Transgender Professional Association for Transgender Health
- Transgender Medicine — Clinicians’ Group
