this post was submitted on 24 Jul 2026
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Is it safe?

I know estradiol pills fuck liver so I can fix this problem by switching to injections but I wonder if this is the case with progesterone?

I can't do the buffing stuff every night, sorry lol.

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[–] WillStealYourUsername@piefed.blahaj.zone 4 points 4 days ago* (last edited 4 days ago) (1 children)

There's no data that indicates that injections are better for breast size. I've seen people switch from injections to other routes and claim they got growth from doing so, and I therefore doubt it's about one route giving better results than any other.

Injections are very practical however and bypass the liver so I do recommend them because of that

[–] Grail@multiverse.soulism.net 1 points 4 days ago (2 children)

Damn, I still don't know what anyone's talking about with the liver pill thing.

[–] Domi@lemmy.blahaj.zone 2 points 3 days ago (1 children)

Hey Grail, yeah this is an important think to be aware of. When You take pills orally they are processed through the liver, this puts strain on it. The same would be true if You took paracetamol every single day. It's a small amount of stress but it can build up and lead to reduced liver function. This is why we keep an eye on liver function during blood testing for hrt. Basically it means Your liver is always working hard to remove the stuff You're putting into your body.

If you use gel or injectables or even sublingual pills, it bypasses Your digestive system and liver and goes straight into the blood where it can be used by Your body. There is no long term deleterious effect on Your liver that way. After 6 years on pills I think it might be sensible for You to consider shifting intake method. If You have a doctor supervising Your treatment You could talk with them about it.

At the very least maybe get some liver function tests if You have that option available.

I don't think there's any reason for You to panic, I know plenty of girls that have been on oral E for years. The problems with liver function take a very long time to build up. This is really about the effects after 10, 20, 30+ years that we're trying to avoid.

[–] Grail@multiverse.soulism.net 2 points 3 days ago

Thanks! I'll bring it up with My endocrinologist next appointment!

[–] gandalf_der_12te@lemmy.blahaj.zone 3 points 4 days ago (2 children)

when you swallow anything, it goes in your intestines, and the blood stream absorbs it and leads directly to the liver before it goes anywhere else. so, all the hormones pass through the liver first before going anywhere else. that's why people say that it hits the liver harder. while if you take them from a needle in the arm, then it doesn't go directly to the liver.

but i'm no expert on how this actually affects the liver etc. could be that it plays no big role anyways. i'm not expert here.

[–] WillStealYourUsername@piefed.blahaj.zone 7 points 4 days ago* (last edited 4 days ago) (1 children)

Hormones often become far less efficient when swallowed due to the processes they undergo before going out to the rest of your body. With estradiol the difference is big because a lot of the estradiol is turned into estriol which is both less efficient as an estrogen and linked to breast cancer

It's the same with progesterone but I don't know that any of the metabolites are linked to anything bad. It's why the experience of oral vs rectal administration of progesterone is so different

oh interesting. Today i learned!

in fact if i have to guess, i'd say that it makes no difference. all the hormones pass through the liver eventually (probably multiple times) until they decay. so, in 5 hours they maybe pass through the liver 100 times? idk. so it's 101 times if you swallow orally vs. 100 times if you take needle, almost same thing.