Let’s Talk Bottom Growth
Because everyone could stand to learn a thing or two.
So…bottom growth. That’s a thing. It’s one of the earliest changes for individuals assigned female at birth who begin taking T. And it’s an absolutely wild ride. A rollercoaster ride that isn’t adequately talked about before most people enter the theme park, so I’m happy to share my two cents.
When I started T in June 2020, I noticed the beginnings of my bottom growth within a week. My “downstairs button” became increasingly sensitive and a bit more visible than it had been before. I ended up needing to shift from wearing my usual cheeky underwear to wearing a pack of Jockey’s boxer briefs to be able to effectively distance myself from the almost constant sensation.
Nearly two years later, my bits have settled down, but they do look fully unrecognizable from their initial form. And I like that. I like that my bottom growth can function as something phallic, while my internal genital sensitivity is also operational. It’s the best of every world for me (and for my partner…wink wink nudge nudge).
Nearly two years later, my bits have settled down, but they do look fully unrecognizable from their initial form. And I like that.
But, it’s still tricky to talk about bottom growth in effective ways that aren’t beating around the bush (both literally and metaphorically…okay, I’ll see myself out now).
There just isn’t that much information out there for people who may encounter bottom growth as an upcoming change on their body. When I initially wrote this piece in 2020, there was next to nothing: one interview from Chella Man, a handful of subReddits with semi-helpful sketches, and a couple of YouTube t-update videos where bottom growth was mentioned in passing.
Now, we’ve got a bit more to choose from. For starters, there’s this article you’re currently reading. Hi! Hehe, I love a good fourth wall break. Moving on…I also found an outstanding resource page from FOLX HEALTH when I did some updated research for this article. Take a look at the detail on these!
These two image sets should be able to provide a lot more context for you, but if you’re still struggling to translate what you’re seeing on the screen to your own body, you can also try to picture a miniature crescent hot dog. That’s a fairly simple comparison without as many medical terms that also gets drawn pretty frequently in T-discourse circles.
Back to the general lack of information, when I was prepping to go on T, my endocrinologist mentioned bottom growth once during our appointment in May 2020, and never circled back to it — which is absurd to me. Your genitals literally change in feel and appearance, and we aren’t gonna talk about that for more than 30 seconds. I’m sorry, what?
If you’re considering going on T and the thought of bottom growth is making you hesitate, that’s completely understandable. What I will say is that it’s not going to impact your ability to go through your day in any meaningful way, and it can be exciting to see because — at least in my experience — I was eager for any sign that the T shots were working. It can also be fun to come up with new names for your bits: anything from “bits” to “lil dick” to “T-dick” to “lil man” to “Bop It” to the traditional “bottom growth” is up for grabs.
This aspect of going on T can be exhilarating and liberatory, and I hope my two cents was able to give you a bit of comfort as you embark on this piece of your journey.
With love,
Oak
March 2022
This article has been heavily edited since its initial publication in November 2020. As I have grown in my understanding of my gender and body over the last year and a half since this was first written, I thought it would be wise to provide a more updated version.
