Are Hormones Working or is it Placebo?

Dr. Z addresses a question almost every client starting hormones asks: Is it a placebo, or are the effects and benefits of estrogen I'm experiencing actually real?

Why do people take feminizing hormones: To alleviate the psychological distress of gender dysphoria (white noise humming, inability to focus, mind fog, anxiety, depression, mental angst). To experience secondary sex characteristic changes. As a test—because feminizing hormones don't immediately produce physical changes (unlike testosterone), people feel safer trying them to see if they help dysphoria or make them feel more connected to their authentic selves.

Can it be a placebo? Yes, it's possible. Your mind could be operating on a belief system or expectations of what estrogen should do, and you're experiencing perceived benefits because your mind believes you're supposed to. This is valid to ask, especially because you've questioned yourself for so long; your mind needs absolute proof, leaving no stone unturned.

In this video, Dr. Z addresses:

Why you don't realize how much dysphoria you're carrying (conditioned to pain over time, adjusted pain threshold). Why does part of you subconsciously want hormones NOT to work (if they don't work, you don't have to consider scary transition steps)?