#estrogen

HOW DO PEOPLE HANDLE THAT MANY NEEDLES? Let me count how many times I've been injected with something.. 1.. 2.. 3.. 3 TIMES! MY WHOLE. GODDAMN. LIFE. HOW DO YOU HANDLE THAT?!! HOW DO YOU EVEN LIKE. MOVE YOUR ARM?!!!

I am transfem and have been on HRT for 2 years. I have always had a very small penis and when I was younger I developed phimosis requiring an emergency circumcision. Since starting HRT my penis has shrunk considerably, sub 2-inches when semi-erect and often inside my body when flaccid.

For the past several months I've been noticing the underside has been raw with cracking and peeling skin. When I itch or when I get erections it often bleeds as well. I think it is partially caused by friction when making out/having sex with my panties on, but it happens other times as well. Sometimes it is painful, but that is rare. I try and moisturize but it doesn't seem to help much.

Any idea what could be causing it and how to prevent it?

Well, the shrinkage is definitely fairly natural with HRT! As is skin-thinning, which can increase your probability of skin irritation.

What you're describing could totally be caused by the combination of estrogen thinning your skin and chaffing from friction (which can be increased if your panties are on the tighter side and/or if you don't use lube!).

But it could also be a yeast infection or an allergic reaction to some sort of soap/detergent you use! Your skin being thinner can make you more sensitive to things like that as well!

Honestly, I would start by checking your hygiene products and things like soap and cleaners. They might have fragrances or harsher things in them and you might need to try something else and wait for a bit to see if that helps your symptoms calm down.

I'd also make sure, especially while you're currently dealing with raw skin and occasional bleeding, to use lube if you can when having sex. You don't need to take off your clothes but try and make sure you have some moisture so that you don't aggravate your symptoms too much.

Make sure your clothes aren't too tight, that can also cause things like this. And if none of that works, start looking into other options. Could it be a yeast infection or something like lichen sclerosus? Look into the types of conditions and infections that cause dryness like that.

I'd definitely recommend just straight up seeing a doctor about this but if you don't have that option, these are fine steps to start with. And it could be a yeast infection and if that's what it sounds like (after you've tried other stuff), maybe you wanna try some of the OTC creams for it!