Thread shift

[42CSurprise!]

Hormones are such a powerful thing. More so than most people can imagine. It makes us who we are. The effects are physical and mental. Our physical make up is based on hormones and our mental make up is based on hormones. So if your a masculine man or a feminine man. It’s hormonal.

Well said... the truth in fact.  Of course, overlaying the hormonal reality of our bodies and minds are cultural and familial attitudes about differences and about gender.  Being different as a child, regardless of what makes us different, is a curse in many situations and with many people.  Men here who developed fleshy chests as teens know all about this.  Some men resist and fight like hell to prove they are worthy males.  Those of us who spend time on the acceptance side of this website are both trying to understand how we've come to be this way, and to be kinder both to ourselves and others who are "different" in society's eye.  Honestly, I'm extremely grateful to be a feminine male.  I don't need to win every battle, to prove I'm always right.  I'm learning patience, kindness and compassion which are among the most beautiful qualities a human being can exhibit.  That is worth celebrating.  Finding a well fitting brassiere helps as well...

[Dudewithboobs]

Agreed. I’ve never really had the macho man male ego crush a beer on the head approach to life. But always felt comfortable as a dude. I’ve had a lot of feminine tendencies growing up and in to adulthood due to just comfort and confident in my skin. Probably why when I developed breasts I didn’t care too tremendously about it. I get nervous as they grow more during times it seems they have. But I’m very comfortable with things and part wonders if it’s cause I have hormonal imbalances that keep me easy going as I hear and read in times I’ve looked in to it that a common effect of elevated estrogen in men is a calming effect of things. 
Im far from a feminine man but feminine things don’t make me feel less of a man. 

[blad]

There is a repeating underlying theme.

I was ready and accepting that it served me best to wear a bra very early on when I developed breasts. Once I tried a bra for the first time it was already obvious to me. I quickly did not mind wearing a bra and preferred how it felt to be supported.

The difficult part is / was how we think others perceive us. We are constantly guided by what we perceive others think rather than our own acceptance conclusions. Typically, as we become seasoned bra wearers, our concern of others perceptions fade away.

[Evolver]

Catching up here, I find myself nodding my head furiously in agreeance with the past several posts.

The way I describe it all, and I hope it makes sense, I won't call it being in touch with our feminine side, or our pink brains, or our inner women - it is our feminine-ness, whether due to estrogen dominance or something more innate, that makes us feel that very special feeling as it pervades every aspect of our lives.

[42CSurprise!]

I revisited a conversation I first encountered a few years ago, perhaps before I came upon this site and noted that someone with the username "Sophie" has been posting.  I'm certain it is our dear friend.  The conversation definitely runs along line discussed here... so I thought I'd share a link for those who want to follow this 11 year long conversation.  Clearly, it is not active at the moment, but it is nice to know we're not alone with exploring the reality of having breasts in more expansive ways.  These are kindred spirits... and may include OTHERS from this website besides Sophie...

https://lingeriebriefs.com/2012/11/08/what-happens-when-men-develop-breasts/

[Brdy64]

I would hope we all have evolved to the point of understanding that we may be guys but we have a trait that is very human but society deems gender specific. The truth is it doesn't matter what you have between your legs, we have glandular, mammary tissue on our chests that are part of the human reproductive system for what ever reason. We have, at least for the moment, decided to retain this mammary tissue and to maintain health, we should, need, to understand how to maintain good health of that tissue and that includes discussing it at a level that, to an outsider might seem unusual or uncomfortable. We have come to that point now and that's a good thing for our mental as well as physical health.

I hated my condition for years, then over time didn't even think about it much at all. I was for most of my life just an A, and then a B cup. Now a D cup and growing.
This recent growing spurt that is still continuing does have me scrambling to cope. Between selecting bras, clothing, and the like are challenging to say they least. 
But perhaps the strangest thing I find myself dealing with is the changes in my hormones. The effects on emotions, interests, and even my choice in colors. 
We have to deal with much more than just this breast tissue growth 🤔

[Normal boobs1]

Oestrogen pervades every cell in our bodies and to some extent changes everything about us no matter how much some guys wish or pretend otherwise.

11th Commandment = Thou shalt bash on

[Brdy64]

Oestrogen pervades every cell in our bodies and to some extent changes everything about us no matter how much some guys wish or pretend otherwise.

11th Commandment = Thou shalt bash on

Hair regrowth is incredible! 
I went from trimming my hair to about 1/4" length due to pattern baldness, to now growing a Mullet with only one area of slight thinning in the back. 
It just started growing about the same time as my last boob growing spurt. 🤔

[42CSurprise!]

...But perhaps the strangest thing I find myself dealing with is the changes in my hormones. The effects on emotions, interests, and even my choice in colors.
We have to deal with much more than just this breast tissue growth 🤔

THIS is what I've been talking about.  Estrogen is working its magic to feminize us.  I don't think this is in any way abnormal, though it can be a cause for concern if being a manly man is important to one's well being.  When we were sixteen years old I don't imagine any of us had problems maintaining an erection.  Viagra arrived to much fanfare and we all know what that is all about.  We reach our peak of sexual potency as teens and it is downhill from there.  That doesn't mean we can't find ways of enjoying sexual intimacy.  As we know women NEVER have to "get it up."

So here we are, acknowledging that our bodies and minds are changing.  Breasts have accompanied us along the way... some of us for a long time and some of us more recently.  Self-acceptance is critical if we're to find peace of mind in the world.  At the moment I'm finding myself putting a brassiere on first thing after rising and spend the morning appreciating what nature gives me to fill the lovely brassiere I'm wearing.  

[Brdy64]

At the moment I'm finding myself putting a brassiere on first thing after rising and spend the morning appreciating what nature gives me to fill the lovely brassiere I'm wearing. 

I grab my bra first thing in the morning too. I feel naked without one on.

I catch myself looking down my shirt at the girls as well. They are a part of me about a much as any other part of my body.  

I really don't have issues with being endowed with breasts, I like my breasts.

I do have issues with people misgendering me because of my boobs. Or simply being nosey and gandering at them. 

[blad]

I am fine having boobs and wearing a bra daily.

A well fitting bra makes the boobs easy enough to live with, and I mostly forget about it most of the day.

It is concern about others peoples assessment that is the only negative to me.

[WPW717]

Have been following this thread for a while and have had a good laugh at the comments because I have been thinking about this a lot ( the pinking of Bob’s life)
I have gotten to the point of they are big ( 44” under bust and 50 1/5 bust)
Have tried gynecomastia shirts-yuk-, then on to camisoles with support- helpful for a while- then on to a heavy duty pullover bra. The wife has been helping to get the correct size and fit.
A lot of east west side breast with spillover at armpits.
  The looks are becoming more frequent but only at the gym. No one has said anything yet but I was speaking to a fellow who was remarking how he has become a house husband after marrying a woman 20 years younger than him. We had a good laugh about the changes that age has made in our lives . He is 60,and I am 73. The conversation centered around the same topics of what society considers feminine tasks and our maturation into the enjoyment of doing them.

My personal experience has been mostly with breast development outwardly but the inward changes have grown very noticeable lately. The hormonal stew is different in me than most but the effects are the same.
Estrogen levels are normal for a man but the T levels are near castrate levels. No fat on hips but only breast development and a large change in the way my skin feels. Have begun to enjoy showering with a body wash instead of wash rag a bar of soap 
I am really getting a great education from you guys and Sophie.
Months ago deciding not to fight the changes but accepting then welcoming 
them has made a huge difference in my enjoyment of my life and retirement.
The cancer scares of the past months have abated only have a mammogram to go to completely rule out the diagnosis.
I has come down to idiopathic hypogonadism of a large magnitude not often seen. Genetics vs vaccine injury, who knows but I remain in a great space mentally when the medical community is saying I should be  depressed.
Never been happier 
Bob

[oldguy]

Have been following this thread for a while and have had a good laugh at the comments because I have been thinking about this a lot ( the pinking of Bob’s life)
I have gotten to the point of they are big ( 44” under bust and 50 1/5 bust)
Have tried gynecomastia shirts-yuk-, then on to camisoles with support- helpful for a while- then on to a heavy duty pullover bra. The wife has been helping to get the correct size and fit.
A lot of east west side breast with spillover at armpits.
  The looks are becoming more frequent but only at the gym. No one has said anything yet but I was speaking to a fellow who was remarking how he has become a house husband after marrying a woman 20 years younger than him. We had a good laugh about the changes that age has made in our lives . He is 60,and I am 73. The conversation centered around the same topics of what society considers feminine tasks and our maturation into the enjoyment of doing them.

My personal experience has been mostly with breast development outwardly but the inward changes have grown very noticeable lately. The hormonal stew is different in me than most but the effects are the same.
Estrogen levels are normal for a man but the T levels are near castrate levels. No fat on hips but only breast development and a large change in the way my skin feels. Have begun to enjoy showering with a body wash instead of wash rag a bar of soap
I am really getting a great education from you guys and Sophie.
Months ago deciding not to fight the changes but accepting then welcoming
them has made a huge difference in my enjoyment of my life and retirement.
The cancer scares of the past months have abated only have a mammogram to go to completely rule out the diagnosis.
I has come down to idiopathic hypogonadism of a large magnitude not often seen. Genetics vs vaccine injury, who knows but I remain in a great space mentally when the medical community is saying I should be  depressed.
Never been happier
Bob

Only 72, and we are experiencing the same things.  I still use soap in the shower.  Body hair is sparse.  Never been happier.  Retirement helps, a lot.

[Brdy64]

I'm still new here so I don't know what the site was like before I arrived.
I can only say that the conversations that I have read here resonate with myself, and I am better able to understand my own feelings after hearing from y'all.
Growing up in a very conservative environment where the genders must fit into a predefined outline is extremely difficult when you don't actually within the model.
I never really did fit within the model, and lately have been drifting further away from it. 
It has been very confusing for me because my emotions have been on edge. Over the last year I have been experiencing emotions that I never really felt before. There have been a lot of changes all of a sudden. I'm understanding now that I'm going through the hormone stew that's Brewing inside my blood.
As someone eloquently put it here on the site: "The girls are doing a hostile takeover of the body". 

Thanks to each and every one of you! 😉

[WPW717]

OG,

Sparse hair was the first thing I noticed about 2 years ago. Couldn’t get a doc to draw a hormone panel.
“Oh Bob, you are just getting older”. Then there was a rapid loss of strength, upper and lower which was significant. Still no curiosity on the docs part. 
Then a search for a new doc, then Covid, then , then, then…
Happy to be alive for my retirement !
And you ? I like the new me.