Post Cycle Therapy (PCT) for Female Steroid Users?

Q: What would post cycle therapy (PCT) be like for female steroid users and for what reasons?

A: In the case of pre-menopausal females, tapering the anabolic-androgenic steroids (AAS) would be the best treatment.

Anabolic steroid administration, like males, causes the HPGA to shutdown. However, stopping the AAS will produce menopausal like symptoms, therefore tapering until menses returns is best. The labs follicle stimulating hormone (FSH), luteneizing hormone (LH), progesterone (P) and estradiol (E2) will be the best indicator. They will show if the HPGA is affected adversely. In marked contrast to a man, the period typically returns within 1-2 months and will occur while tapering.

I would NOT suggest “selective estrogen receptor modulators” (SERMs) or aromatase inhibitors (AIs) for a woman! NEVER! It is the equivalency of forcing them into menopausal symptoms. The HPGA/HPTA are very different. In fact, SERM/AI (such as Nolvadex and Arimidex) are used in Breast Cancer, which includes a significant number of adverse effects. Decreasing E2 in a man is far different from doing the same in a female. E2 and P are the main female hormones. Just imagine how a man feels that receives Androgen Deprivation Therapy (ADT) for Prostate Cancer.

About the author

Michael Scally, M.D.

Medical doctor

The research of Michael Scally focuses on returning individuals to normal physiology after the discontinuation of anabolic steroids. Dr. Scally has presented his medical protocol for the treatment of Anabolic Steroid Induced Hypogonadism before the Endocrine Society, American Association of Clinical Endocrinologists, American College of Sports Medicine, and International Workshop on Adverse Drug Reactions and Lipodystrophy in HIV. Dr. Scally is the author of "Anabolic Steroids - A Question of Muscle: Human Subject Abuses in Anabolic Steroid Research."