madscientist (imported) wrote: Tue Jun 18, 2002 12:04 pm How can one tell the difference between breasts & just saggy pecs?
a fair enough question, and one that I am honestly going to have difficulty answering...... but here goes anyway
As I said in my post "
"Pippa (imported) wrote: Mon Jun 17, 2002 9:55 pm The structure of them feels as if it has changed considerably, they are no longer just fatty deposits. I am quite sure that the change in how they feel (not just the size) is due to my milk ducts developing.
From my perspective, (being the person that can FEEL the sensations from having my breasts touched and masaged), I will try to explain what I meant by saying that the way they feel has changed...... I can feel internal structures INSIDE my breasts, these are not muscles, nor is it just a fatty deposit. There is in fact some structure inside each of my breasts that developed due to the hormone treatment. From my studying medical documemtation, I was able to find out that the female breasts as they mature develop milk producing ducts. These ducts will mature with time and the 'right' hormone levels.
This is where the progesterone comes in, it is the female hormone that helps support (maintain) pregnancy. During pregnancy the woman's progesterone level increases. During the woman's first pregnancy her milk ducts will mature as part of the effects from the hormone levels.
Now I am not taking progesterone in the sort of doses that would mimick being pregnant, I am taking it in the sort of doses that mimick 'normal' female levels, so my breasts have developed to the extent that would occur in a female that has not been pregnant. (One day I am planning on changing the dose for a few months to mimick pregnancy, just to see what it's like, and find out what effect it will have on my body.)
With the breasts development I have experienced, at first my breasts were very 'perky' and pointy, (this was when I was taking Oestrogen alone). After adding progesterone to my hormones, I noticed that my breasts changed shape and became much more rounded, more like a womans rather than a teenage girls. During this whole process I could feel when massaging my breasts, the development of the internal milk ducts. The whole breast development phase was also accompanied with great breast tenderness, at times it was painful to even WALK, let alone run.
I also do breast examinations, and soon I will get my first mammogram, because the risk of me developing breast cancer is similar to that of any other woman on long term HRT, and of a similar age.
I hope I have been able to explain that breasts are much more than just fatty deposits, and that there is a structure inside them that has sensation, and feels different when massaged. Afte 'saggy pecks' for a few years before starting my HRT, I can say that there is a real definate difference between that and true breasts.
Pip
:tongueout