The trans folks are asking: Does testosterone make you gay?

It’s Pride month, and young trans men’s fancies are turning toward…testosterone injections, of course!

Whether we’re already on our T journey or thinking about starting, it’s an exciting prospect. And according to one TikToker, there might be something extra exciting about starting T.

“I don’t know if you know this,” says Kai, aka @godcomplexion on TikTok, “but testosterone definitely makes you gay.”

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Color us intrigued…how so?

Kai goes on to explain that his endocrinologist informed him before starting on testosterone that some folks’ sexuality has been known to change. But Kai wasn’t buying it. Until…

“Some dudes be looking not too bad,” he says, surprised to suddenly start considering other men attractive after a lifetime of being exclusively attracted to women.

Now I know what you’re thinking: The L Word already told us about this, albeit in that show’s characteristically sloppy fashion. After Max—the show’s haphazardly-written transmasc character—starts taking T, he’s surprised to find himself checking out other dudes. And while the show didn’t handle it in a graceful or respectful fashion, this is a phenomenon that previously straight-identified trans men and nonbinary folks experience when starting on T.

Related:

Revisiting ‘The L Word’ as a trans masc person

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Other transmascs chimed in to give advice on this topic on a Reddit thread from eariler this year. “It’s not that it will exactly change your sexual orientation,” one poster said, “but it might change what exactly you’re into.” Another poster clarified that while many guys take T without seeing significant changes to their sexuality, it’s possible that one’s sexual desires might be “clarified” after starting hormones.

“There does seem to be a minority of people who find it totally changes their sexual orientation extensively, i.e. go from gay to straight or straight to gay,” they explained. “More often it just adds nuance or creates expansion (ex. people become comfortable identifying as bi or pan rather than straight or gay).”

Related:

This Jonathan Bailey discourse proves why we need ‘homosexuality training’

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So basically, it all depends on the individual, which isn’t a very helpful answer but is nonetheless true. And Kai’s original theory is certainly a fascinating one.

“It does make so much more sense,” he explains, “why men are so homoerotic with each other. It’s the testosterone.”

He ends the video on a high note. “Testosterone makes you gay,” he says. “Show this to every alpha man that you know.”

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