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Reddit user /u/NovelDepartment8's Detransition Story

Transitioned: 15 -> Detransitioned: 20
female
took hormones
regrets transitioning
depression
influenced online
doesn't regret transitioning
This story is from the comments listed below, summarised by AI.
On Reddit, people often share their experiences across multiple comments or posts. To make this information more accessible, our AI gathers all of those scattered pieces into a single, easy-to-read summary and timeline. All system prompts are noted on the prompts page.

Sometimes AI can hallucinate or state things that are not true. But generally, the summarised stories are accurate reflections of the original comments by users.
Authenticity Assessment: Not Suspicious

Based on the provided comments, the account appears authentic. There are no serious red flags indicating it is a bot or a fake persona.

The user's story is highly detailed, emotionally nuanced, and internally consistent over a multi-year timeline. The comments reflect a personal, deeply-felt experience with specific medical details (dosage, timelines, physical changes), psychological introspection, and practical advice that aligns with known detransitioner narratives. The passion and criticism of online algorithms and "woke leftists" are consistent with the genuine anger and stigma some detransitioners feel.

About me

I started identifying as trans at 15 while struggling with severe depression, which I mistook for gender dysphoria. Online algorithms fed me a constant stream of transition content, which pushed me to start testosterone at 17 and live as a man for over three years. I quit everything at 20 and focused on my mental health by disconnecting from the internet and just living my life. My body gradually changed back, and I’m now a 25-year-old woman who is at peace and never gets misgendered. I learned that my real struggle was internal, not with my gender, and I finally feel whole.

My detransition story

My whole journey with transition and detransition was a long and complicated one, but I’ve come out the other side. I started identifying as trans when I was 15 years old. At the time, I was incredibly mentally ill, dealing with severe depression and suicidal thoughts all through my teens. I now see that my transition completely disguised that mental illness as gender dysphoria. I didn't have the self-awareness then to understand what was really going on.

A huge part of what pushed me was the internet. I 100% blame online algorithms for reinforcing my echo chamber. I’d look at one thing about being a queer woman, and then the algorithm would show me content about being non-binary, then trans men, transition timelines, passing tips, everything. It felt like I was being indoctrinated into a cult lifestyle by an algorithm, without any real person even needing to be involved. It took me years to realize that I was just sad and empty, and no amount of external change was going to fix what was going on inside.

I started testosterone when I was 17 and was on it for three and a half years. I never had any surgeries. I lived as a man and was "stealth," meaning people I met just thought I was a man and didn't know I was born female. My voice got very deep. But that whole time, I was still struggling. I wasn't getting any better.

When I was 20, I quit testosterone cold turkey. That was 16 months—well, it was back in 2018. Right after I quit, I shaved my head for mental clarity. The first few months were hard internally; I struggled with how I looked and sounded and whether I passed as female. But externally, I received almost no negativity. People were generally extremely accepting. I think detrans people are in a weird spot where both sides of the political debate seem to approve of us for different reasons.

I made a conscious decision to stay off the internet for a while and just live in reality, which was incredibly important. I needed to stop looking at myself through an ideological lens and just be a person. I covered the mirrors in my house and wore loose, comfortable clothes, focusing strictly on comfort and not on how I looked.

My body changed a lot over time. My voice started lightening up about six months after stopping T and continued to change for about a year and a half. It’s now in a distinctly female range, though it’s a bit deeper and raspier than before—I like to think it sounds like singers Nico or Karen Dalton. My face got rounder again after about three years, and I developed hips and curves. I’m 25 now, and my body really settled into its adult shape from 22 to 25. I never get misgendered now.

Going through all of this taught me so much. I don’t actually regret transitioning because I needed to go through it to become who I am now. It forced me to come to terms with the reality of my mental illness. I learned that my depression wasn't about gender. I also learned a lot about my own selfishness, thinking the world cared so much about how I presented my gender. In the end, I’m just a person trying to live, breathe, pay my bills, and hang out with my dog.

I feel at peace with my body now and feel attractive to myself. I don’t subscribe to a lot of typical female beauty culture with makeup and shaving; it’s just my personal preference to be more natural, and that makes me feel whole and real. I feel a sense of pride in being a woman now; it has an inherent special value that I finally appreciate.

The journey also cost me a long-term friendship. A friend of 11 years and I both came out as trans at 15. My decision to detransition was the final straw that broke our friendship. For some people, detransitioning is seen as a call to war, but I’m not a soldier. I’m just a person.

My thoughts on gender now are that it’s not the most important thing about a person. Life is so long, and you change so much. You learn to focus on being a human being rather than subscribing to ideologies about how to present a certain gender. I benefited immensely from stepping away from the online world, developing real hobbies, and reconnecting with the physical world around me.

Age Year Event
15 ~2013 Started identifying as trans.
17 ~2015 Started testosterone.
20 2018 Quit testosterone cold turkey after 3.5 years. Shaved my head.
20-23 2018-2021 Voice gradually returned to a female range.
22-25 2020-2023 Body and face became significantly more feminine and curvy.

Top Comments by /u/NovelDepartment8:

12 comments • Posting since November 26, 2019
Reddit user NovelDepartment8 explains their decision to quit testosterone cold turkey 16 months ago, shave their head, and rediscover their true self, resulting in overwhelming positivity and happiness.
177 pointsNov 26, 2019
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16 months ago I quit T cold turkey and shaved my head. Since then I’ve had the amazing experience of becoming myself again, just as I am. Received nothing but positivity and have been so happy ever since that I listened to myself and made the decision.

Reddit user NovelDepartment8 (detrans female) explains her detransition after 3.5 years on testosterone, sharing how it disguised her mental illness and her journey to finding peace and pride in being a woman.
121 pointsSep 1, 2020
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To give a little more info- I’ve posted before and had someone or a few ask for a before picture so I decided to post that here. I quit T cold turkey 2018 after 3.5 years on it. I started T at 17 years old and did not have any surgeries. I shaved my head (for the mental clarity), and struggled a lot with passing the first few months internally, although externally I received very little negativity or criticism of my appearance. People were generally extremely accepting- and I think that’s mostly because ya detrans people are in this weird spot politically where people who DONT approve of transitioning approve of us, and people who DO approve of transitioning (mostly- but not always) approve of us. I stayed off the internet for a few months and so I only saw reality which is incredibly important when you’re going through this experience and I would recommend it. (However with COVID that would be hard to do). Either way- I am so happy to feel at peace with my body again and feel attractive to myself. I do not subscribe to a lot of female over the top hygiene culture with makeup and shaving (just my personal preference) and as a result I feel a lot more whole and real in my body. It is a really incredible experience to go through and I needed this transition itself to be who I am now. I was very mentally ill and suicidal throughout my teens and until 20 and this transition 100% disguised my mental illness as gender dysphoria. I am who I am now and recognize that my transition made me come to terms with reality about myself and my mental illness (depression) that no longer portrays itself through a male disguise, but I am learning how to be happy again and grow up and feel like being a woman has an inherent special value to it that is irreplaceable and I am proud to be one. Thanks for coming to my Ted Talk

Reddit user NovelDepartment8 (detrans female) explains how detransitioning ended an 11-year friendship with a fellow trans-identified friend, viewing it as a political betrayal rather than a personal choice.
54 pointsSep 4, 2022
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Ya, lol.

Ex-Friend of 11 years and I no longer speak. We both came out as trans at 15. So many problems in that relationship (it wasn’t just this), but me detransitioning was basically the straw that broke the camels back. We both acted insanely stupid when the final blow out happened. I knew they’d never be able to fully internalize that de transitioning doesn’t mean transphobic.

If I could do it over, I would’ve just kept my life to myself and slowly distanced. With passionate woke leftists, detransitioning is seen as a call to war, but I’m not a soldier I’m just a fucking person trying to live and breathe and pay my bills and hangout with my dog.

Reddit user NovelDepartment8 (detrans female) explains how online algorithms reinforced her trans identity, leading her to feel she was "indoctrinated into a cult lifestyle" after years in an echo chamber.
34 pointsMay 26, 2022
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I 100% blame online algorithms for reinforcing our echo chamber. Real life, Reddit or YouTube or tumblr or instagram goes, oh you participate in this sub/channel/community about being a queer woman? How about this sub for being a non-binary person? Or this sub for all trans people? Or these 100 other subreddits for being a trans person, looking at pictures of trans people, reading about transition timelines. Here, how about this subreddit for passing and this subreddit for vocal training.

Then 5 years passes and you’re like wow i am sad, wow I’m still empty, wherever I go there I am. And then you take time away from the internet, develop hobbies, remove the mirrors from your house, and realize, damn, I was indoctrinated into a cult lifestyle by an algorithm, and it didn’t even take a real person, just an algorithm to make me change my entire life.

Or maybe that was just me, lol.

Reddit user NovelDepartment8 (detrans female) explains her voice returning to a female range and body re-feminizing 1.5 years after stopping testosterone, offering hope and advice to others.
34 pointsMay 27, 2022
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Hey! My voice returned to a female range from 0-1.5 years off T! I was on T for 3.5 years, and had a very deep voice. After 6 months it lightened, and continued lightening for a year after that, and has since leveled out. This was 4 years ago I stopped T and my body has changed so much since then, my face got round again after 3 years, I have hips/curves now. Absolutely no misgendering ever. Everyone’s different, but give it some time, a lot of people do get a female range back! It won’t be exactly how it was, but seriously, it just takes some time so don’t stress a whole lot even though it’s hard not to. For now, try focusing on other things about yourself that could ground you. Engage in the hobbies you’ve always loved, or make new ones. Practice grounding techniques, take a yoga class, sit outside and just let the sun beat down on you. You’re a person and change takes time, but don’t doubt the process! We are here for you.

Reddit user NovelDepartment8 (detrans female) explains her post-detransition physical and mental changes, advising that bodies feminize into the mid-20s and the focus on appearance fades with time.
17 pointsAug 25, 2022
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I transitioned from age 17-20 and IDd as trans from 15-21. I’m 25 now, and my body and face changed dramatically from 22-25. I never get a second glance, called he, or asked my pronouns tbh. My body and face became a lot more feminine and “curvy”. You will get your adult body in your mid 20s most likely and look quite different too. Don’t be scared. Life is so long, and so much changes. You learn so much about being a human being versus trying to subscribe to ideologies about presenting as a certain gender. Your brain will change a lot too, and be more centered on other things that don’t include your looks/ the way you sound/act. I never regret what I went through, it taught me so much about myself and (honestly, it taught me a lot about my selfishness, to think the world cared so greatly about how I presented my gender). It’s good to spend time outside, and reconnect with your human self, and interact with the world. One thing I did was cover my mirrors in my house, and wore pretty unattractive loose fitting clothes / focused strictly on comfort for a long time. My voice changed a lot from year 20-23 as well, I think I have a voice recording in my post history.

Reddit user NovelDepartment8 (detrans female) explains how searching "am I trans" online leads to a biased, one-sided affirmation of being transgender, rather than advice to treat underlying issues like depression or simply be a teenager.
7 pointsMay 27, 2022
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I think that googling phrases similar to “am I trans” is the problem that got a lot of us here, because in since 2012, all you’ll find is “yes, you’re trans.” Never once did I watch a video or read an article from my leftist sources that said, “you’re 15- maybe stay off the internet, and go outside, get treatment for your depression.” (Which is actually what I needed), instead it was “seek a gender affirming therapist, seek a gender affirming adult out in your life, and watch these 7,000 trans you tubers talk about their transition.”

Reddit user NovelDepartment8 (detrans female) comments on infertility, sharing that her cis boyfriend is infertile and she finds it a relief as she always wanted to foster to adopt.
6 pointsMay 27, 2022
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Hi! I’m sorry you’re having to have such complex and long term thoughts about this at such a young age! Whatever happens, please know, there are soooo many people who do not want biological children, and never will. I just found out my long term cis boyfriend is fully infertile (he’s fine with this), and I’ve always wanted to foster to adopt children, so for me this is nothing but relieving and makes me confirm he’s the one I definitely want to stick with!

Reddit user NovelDepartment8 comments on their experience with voice changes 16 months after stopping testosterone, noting they rarely pass over the phone but always pass in person.
5 pointsDec 3, 2019
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All I did for voice stuff was talking in the “scratchy” tone for a while. A little bit of YouTube vocal training but it didn’t change much. That, and try to be less monotone, I still don’t pass over the phone 100% of the time, maybe 50% or the time. I’m super monotone, but In person it’s never an issue though which I find more important

Reddit user NovelDepartment8 (detrans female) discusses her successful voice re-feminization 5 years after detransition, sharing apps and resources that helped her regain a female voice after being stealth with a "fully male" voice.
4 pointsJul 29, 2023
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Feel free to look at my post history for the last voice post I made about a year ago. If anyone has any questions about voice timeline please let me know I’ll do my best to answer them. But I did have a fully “male” voice, very deep, and people did not know I was FTM at the time (stealth).

Some apps I’ve been using to help train my voice are Voice Pitch Analysis and Voice Tools. There are various youtubers that do vocal training videos, and I don’t want to share any specific ones here but just search “voice feminization” and you’ll see a lot pop up.