Transgender DIY HRT Website hrt.cafe Down
Trans-identifying people who want to begin taking opposite sex hormones but are not able to access them quickly through the “informed consent” method, in which they go to a doctor who will write a subscription for these hormones without intensive evaluation or explanation of side effects, often turn to the DIY method of acquiring hormones. The DIY method of obtaining hormones consists of ordering hormones from suspicious source countries like China, India, Brazil, or Russia, or ordering the base ingredients for the hormones from these companies and synthesizing them in a personal bathtub. Furthermore, some trans-identifying people order hormones that have been already been synthesized in bathtubs by others. The DIY method is often used by teens who want to start HRT while hiding it from their parents.
One of the largest websites for the DIY method was hrt.cafe, a directory for dealers that sell hormones to trans-identifying people without a prescription. The infamous DIY HRT website, which was formerly run by trans-identifying male Bobposting and sponsored by trans influencer Keffals, used hrt.cafe as a resource. The hrt.cafe website has recently become inaccessible, though. Hrt.cafe’s DNS records were purged, which suggests that hrt.cafe was operating illegally and that it was ordered to shut down by the authorities. When using the DIY method, trans-identifying people are warned that their hormones may be seized by customs officials or laced with fentanyl and other hard drugs, so the trans community is well aware that the DIY method is shady at best and illegal at worst. However, this method is still often recommended and used by trans-identifying teens who want to start hormones without their parents knowing, and the people recommending the DIY method often have bad intentions.