Testosterone for low desire — what to track
Every testosterone prescription for a woman in the UK is off-label, because no testosterone product is licensed for women here. That's not a red flag — it's a known gap that both NICE and the British Menopause Society address directly, and it's worth understanding before assuming "off-label" means unusual or unsupported.
What "off-label" means here, specifically
A licensed product — in practice, usually a testosterone gel or cream formulated and licensed for men — is prescribed at a fraction of the male dose, adjusted for a woman's physiology. This is standard, guideline-supported practice, not an experimental workaround, but it does mean there's no UK product with a female-specific licence, dosing chart, or product leaflet to compare against.
What NICE actually says
NICE NG23 addresses this under altered sexual function: consider testosterone supplementation for menopausal women with low sexual desire if HRT alone is not effective. Two things worth noting in that sentence: it's a "consider," not a default, and it comes after HRT alone, not instead of it. Guidance from NICE and the British Menopause Society both point to trying a proper course of conventional HRT first, since low libido during perimenopause has multiple possible causes that HRT alone sometimes resolves.
What a trial looks like, and what to log
- Starting point: what HRT you were already on, and for how long, when testosterone was added.
- The symptom itself, as specifically as you can describe it — not just "low libido" but what's changed and since when.
- A check-in point around 6 months — guidance points to this as the usual window to assess whether it's making a difference.
- What happens if there's no change: testosterone is generally stopped rather than continued indefinitely on the chance it might help later, since low desire has other causes it isn't the answer to.
What it doesn't cover
A testosterone add-on doesn't replace a wider look at the causes of low desire — relationship factors, other symptoms of the transition, sleep, mood, and vaginal symptoms all play a role, and a prescriber weighing a testosterone trial is likely to ask about all of them. See vaginal dryness, libido and urinary symptoms for that side of the picture.
This is general information, not medical advice. HormoneLog does not recommend, calculate, or adjust any dose, including testosterone. Whether a testosterone trial is appropriate, and at what dose, is a decision made with a prescriber based on your full history.
Vaginal dryness, libido and urinary symptoms — what to record. · HRT formulations explained. · What to bring to a 3-month HRT review.
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About HormoneLog
HormoneLog is an iOS app from Baker Ventures LLC for tracking perimenopause and menopause symptoms and keeping an HRT record: what you took, at what dose, from when, and what changed afterwards. It is built for the appointment, where "it has been bad lately" is worth far less than a dated record of frequency and severity. The app is in development.
HormoneLog is a record-keeping tool. It does not diagnose, does not score you, and makes no claim about symptom relief. The guides on this site link to NICE, the NHS, the Menopause Society and peer-reviewed sources, and say plainly where the evidence is thin. Everything here is free and needs no account.
Questions and answers
Is testosterone licensed for women in the UK?
No. There is currently no testosterone product licensed for women in the UK — every prescription is "off-label," meaning a licensed product (usually one made for men) is prescribed at a much lower, adjusted dose. This is legal and established practice, not experimental.
What does NICE actually recommend?
NICE NG23 says to consider testosterone for menopausal women with low sexual desire specifically if HRT alone hasn't helped — a "consider," not a first-line recommendation, and only after a proper trial of HRT first.
How long is a typical trial before deciding if it's working?
Guidance points to roughly 6 months before assessing benefit. Low libido has many possible causes, and testosterone is stopped if that window passes without a noticeable difference.
Can HormoneLog track testosterone for me?
HormoneLog logs what you record — including a testosterone add-on alongside your main HRT regimen — but it doesn't recommend starting, dosing, or stopping it. That's a prescriber decision.
HormoneLog. “Testosterone for low desire — what to track.” Baker Ventures LLC, September 8, 2026. https://hormonelog.bakerventuresstudio.com/guides/testosterone-for-low-desire-what-to-track/