Skin Moisturizer and HRT

[dankhiar]

Hello everyone. I was wondering which skin moisturizers you guys recommend for hydrating the skin and preventing the appearances of stretchmarks.

I literally just started on HRT, or Hormone Replacement Therapy (MtF), yesterday, and I really don't want to develop stretchmarks because of all the changes my body will be going through. Especially since I've been underweight my entire life (I'm 18), the fat redistribution is going to put a lot of stress in my skin.

Now, unlike a lot of you, I can't go "full hippie"(this is not an offense by any means :)) and make my own soaps and moisturizing creams. But at the same time, I don't trust the store bought moisturizers. I've heard that coconut oil is great for the skin. Is there any specific type of coconut oil I should keep in mind?

 

[Jacques]

Hello everyone. I was wondering which skin moisturizers you guys recommend for hydrating the skin and preventing the appearances of stretchmarks.

I literally just started on HRT, or Hormone Replacement Therapy (MtF), yesterday, and I really don't want to develop stretchmarks because of all the changes my body will be going through. Especially since I've been underweight my entire life (I'm 18), the fat redistribution is going to put a lot of stress in my skin.

Now, unlike a lot of you, I can't go "full hippie"(this is not an offense by any means :)) and make my own soaps and moisturizing creams. But at the same time, I don't trust the store bought moisturizers. I've heard that coconut oil is great for the skin. Is there any specific type of coconut oil I should keep in mind?

Indeed, coconut oil is very good for the skin. I use organic coconut oil non-refined, non-deodorized or non-bleached.

See: https://www.organicfacts.net/health-benefits/oils/coconut-oil-for-skin.html

Shea butter is very good too but more expensive.

 

[michaelrc]

If you have some leaf lard please try it. I think it's superior to all moisturizers.

 

[theos]

Shea butter and coconut oil are indeed very good. But remember good skin comes from the inside out. The better your diet (as in low-carb, moderate protein, high fat ketogenic) the better your skin will be. :)

 

[dankhiar]

If you have some leaf lard please try it. I think it's superior to all moisturizers.

I had to look that up. At first I thought it was gonna be some type of plant oil, but I found out it's the the fat obtained from pigs around the kidneys. I'm not too comfortable with the idea of putting that on my skin This is my ignorance talking. I kind of just want something I can use on a regular basis, perhaps before going to sleep. How exactly would you go about using the leaf lard, though?

Indeed, coconut oil is very good for the skin. I use organic coconut oil non-refined, non-deodorized or non-bleached.

See: https://www.organicfacts.net/health-benefits/oils/coconut-oil-for-skin.html

Shea butter is very good too but more expensive.

Thank you. That was a very informative article. I have this coconut oil jar that I'm guessing it's just called Organic Coconut Oil by the looks of it. It says it's virgin, contains no cholesterol, no trans-fatty acids, and it's not hydrogenated. The article didn't say anything about trans-fatty acids being good. In fact, in didn't even mentioned them; just fatty acids in general. So I'm guessing this is good?

Shea butter and coconut oil are indeed very good. But remember good skin comes from the inside out. The better your diet (as in low-carb, moderate protein, high fat ketogenic) the better your skin will be. :)

Yes, definitely. I'm just in no position to be so "picky" with my food right now for a number of reasons. So I'm doing what I can, improving what I can improve.

Thanks everyone for the replies :)

 

[dankhiar]

This kind of brings me to another question. What about perfume? I'm sure there are many toxic chemicals in them. Are they even safe? And what about deodorants? I don't plan to stop using those any time soon. I'm just curious as to see what you guys do.

 

[Jenn]

Hello everyone. I was wondering which skin moisturizers you guys recommend for hydrating the skin and preventing the appearances of stretchmarks.

I literally just started on HRT, or Hormone Replacement Therapy (MtF), yesterday, and I really don't want to develop stretchmarks because of all the changes my body will be going through. Especially since I've been underweight my entire life (I'm 18), the fat redistribution is going to put a lot of stress in my skin.

Now, unlike a lot of you, I can't go "full hippie"(this is not an offense by any means :)) and make my own soaps and moisturizing creams. But at the same time, I don't trust the store bought moisturizers. I've heard that coconut oil is great for the skin. Is there any specific type of coconut oil I should keep in mind?

Hey there is this thread about skin moisturisers http://cassiopaea.org/forum/index.php/topic,32551.msg531087.html#msg531087

I found that tallow(beef fat) and lard were both really good moisturisers, you would have to render lead lard down before being able to use(I think) its really not as gross as it sounds!
Another alternative would be raw cocoa butter which you can get off ebay and amazon.

For deoderant coconut oil worked for me for a while, 'toms of Maine' brand is quite good too. You want one without aluminium and gluten and all the other nasties. As far as perfume goes I found this article and would reccommend either not using it atall, or spraying on your clothes rather than skin http://www.ourlittleplace.com/chemicals.html

Hope this helps :)

 

[mcb]

Hello everyone. I was wondering which skin moisturizers you guys recommend for hydrating the skin and preventing the appearances of stretchmarks.

I literally just started on HRT, or Hormone Replacement Therapy (MtF), yesterday, and I really don't want to develop stretchmarks because of all the changes my body will be going through. Especially since I've been underweight my entire life (I'm 18), the fat redistribution is going to put a lot of stress in my skin.

Now, unlike a lot of you, I can't go "full hippie"(this is not an offense by any means :)) and make my own soaps and moisturizing creams. But at the same time, I don't trust the store bought moisturizers. I've heard that coconut oil is great for the skin. Is there any specific type of coconut oil I should keep in mind?

You are wise to be concerned about commercial skin products. You can try the suggestions here - they won't hurt. What might matter more is how healthy you are right now. There can be many factors, and identifying health issues can be complex. What concerns me is that you say you have been chronically underweight, and that could be a sign of an underlying metabolic issue. If you could work with a functional/integrative health practitioner now to determine your health status, you might be able to make better-informed decisions. Regular MDs typically wouldn't know what to do.

I could say more - I transitioned MtF more than 7 years ago - but each person's circumstances are different. I really hope your experience isn't like mine, but then (fortunately) few people that do it encounter the problems that I did.

 

[herondancer]

Hi D'Ankhi​ar,

Personally I found coconut oil to be very drying. But that could be because I have "mature skin". ;) Rendered leaf lard is scentless and looks like very creamy moisturizer, kind of like Ponds. You can add some essential oils that will help your skin too, like geranium, lavender or myrrh.

That being said, you are awfully young to be going on HRT. Getting rid of gluten, dairy and sugar may go a long way to solving your metabolic problems. Have you looked at the ketogenic diet thread? It's a long read, but well worth your time. Upping your good fat intake will help too. Many hormones in the body are constructed from the fats we eat. Then there is this thread which is specifically for women.

HRT can be a double-edged sword. It's super-important that you research it carefully. There's at least ten threads about it on the Diet & Health board. Just go to that board and put HRT in the search box. Good luck!

 

[lilyalic]

Coconut oil
Pork Lard
Olive oil (with lavender oil?)

The pork lard and olive oil have been the best for me, make sure if you do try it, to use water also to properly rub it in :)

 

[nicklebleu]

It's actually quite simple to make your own hydrating skin lotion - with any oil you want, or shea butter. See recipe here

 

[xandra]

Something that works for me is organic apple cider vinegar and magnesium chloride (33%)
The ACV kills any bacteria that may contribute to odor and it also re- acidify's the skin. From
what I understand, our skin's natural state is to be slightly acidic. I read that magnesium
chloride has odor control properties, you also get a small dose of
transdermal Magnesium therapy also. There is a thread, search "body odor" that gives som
great information. It does say that magnesium oil alone doesn't work, I think it's the
combination of acv and magnesium that works for me.

 

[mcb]

Something that works for me is organic apple cider vinegar and magnesium chloride (33%)
The ACV kills any bacteria that may contribute to odor and it also re- acidify's the skin. From
what I understand, our skin's natural state is to be slightly acidic. I read that magnesium
chloride has odor control properties, you also get a small dose of
transdermal Magnesium therapy also. There is a thread, search "body odor" that gives som
great information. It does say that magnesium oil alone doesn't work, I think it's the
combination of acv and magnesium that works for me.

Our skin's natural state is also "covered in bacteria," and those bacteria function as part of our immune defenses. You might not want to kill too many of them, just because they smell. So do we, when we're healthy.

 

[Mark]

This kind of brings me to another question. What about perfume?

My perfume looks exactly like a cigarette. LOL.

Joking aside, perfume doesn't necessary need to be on your skin - you could put it on your clothes assuming body chemistry isn't needed for the scent.

And what about deodorants?

You might try not using soap on your armpits and just wash them with your hand and warm water. That's what I do these days and I no longer need to use deodorant, or at least rarely ever. That might not work for you though depending on the climate where you live.

 

[dankhiar]

@Thorn
Thanks for the links and information. The chemicals article is a little dated; can only imagine how much things have changed (for the worst) since then. It feels like there is no way out of it. I mean, it's kind of obvious knowing that all of this chemicals are bad, but that kind of just puts it into perspective. Though, somehow I'm just not ready to give up nail polish. I'll be looking into the recommended deodorant.

On a related note, I'm glad I don't wear makeup (besides eyeliner and sometimes mascara, which is already not good). Doing research into that might be good as well, but just the sound of my pores getting clogged up is very off-putting for me to even consider it. I'm more of a chapstick kind of girl anyways, and even regular chapstick is not good I wonder if I can use some of those natural moisturizers as chapstick. I'd make my conclusion once I read the thread. And since make-up is what I'm talking about now, I wonder if there's a natural colorant I can use in the chapstick to give my lips a somewhat stained look. This is kind of exciting, but I'll do that tomorrow as I'm already sleepy.

@MB
Thanks for the reply. I currently weight 114lbs and measure around 5'6.5ft. I don't think that's too bad. I'll also be putting some weight now that I'm on HRT, I hope. But being healthy is more important than the weight itself, and I know for a fact that I could be better. I'd switch to a keto diet in a heartbeat if I could, but I really am in no position to do that at the moment. I'm just not stressing it because there are other areas that I can indeed focus on. And that's what I'm doing, little by little.

Do you mind sharing your experiences if you think I, or even others, can benefit from it? It'd be greatly appreciated, but it's also ok if you rather not :)

Personally I found coconut oil to be very drying. But that could be because I have "mature skin". ;) Rendered leaf lard is scentless and looks like very creamy moisturizer, kind of like Ponds. You can add some essential oils that will help your skin too, like geranium, lavender or myrrh.

Drying? :O Interesting. Which characteristics of the coconut oil did your skin not enjoy so much? I'll look into the essential oils too.

That being said, you are awfully young to be going on HRT. Getting rid of gluten, dairy and sugar may go a long way to solving your metabolic problems. Have you looked at the ketogenic diet thread? It's a long read, but well worth your time. Upping your good fat intake will help too. Many hormones in the body are constructed from the fats we eat. Then there is this thread which is specifically for women.

HRT can be a double-edged sword. It's super-important that you research it carefully. There's at least ten threads about it on the Diet & Health board. Just go to that board and put HRT in the search box. Good luck!

I thought the younger the better. Either way, I'm not giving that up. I have waited years for this and it's finally happening. I may not be able to get off gluten entirely, or eat as much fat as I would want, but I can definitely do without the sugar. Maybe I'll start there. I've read a few pages on that thread, but not enough for it to count. I have read on it all over the forums however, plus the occasional article on sott regarding it. It's upsetting because it's so difficult to be healthy in this society. I have a friend who started on it but gave up after about 3 months, never had what he needed. He did lose 30lbs though. I'll check out the thread tomorrow.

The pork lard and olive oil have been the best for me, make sure if you do try it, to use water also to properly rub it in :)

Bathe in it? I thought I was supposed to leave it on the skin.

Thanks for the link, nicklebleu. Always good to have around. Though, I think I'll start with a basic one for now.

This kind of brings me to another question. What about perfume?

My perfume looks exactly like a cigarette. LOL.

Joking aside, perfume doesn't necessary need to be on your skin - you could put it on your clothes assuming body chemistry isn't needed for the scent.

Yeah, I could start putting the body splash on the clothes instead of on my skin, like Thorn also said.

Thanks everyone. You are all so helpful