Find answers to common questions about hormone therapy, peptide treatments, and what to expect from your care at Alpha Hormones®.
Alpha Hormones® is a medical practice in Pasadena, California. Our team provides hormone health, weight management, and related medical services. Care starts with an individual clinical evaluation.
We participate with select major commercial PPO plans and eligible Original Medicare or Medicare PPO plans. Coverage depends on your plan, benefits, service, and location.
We do not accept HMO, Medicare HMO, IPA, TRICARE, Medicaid/Medi-Cal, or Kaiser Permanente plans.
Visit our insurance verification page before scheduling so our team can review your eligibility and available benefits.
Verification does not guarantee coverage or payment. Patients remain responsible for deductibles, copayments, coinsurance, and non-covered services.
We offer self-pay services, membership programs, and insurance billing for eligible plans and services. You may also use FSA and HSA cards for qualifying expenses.
CareCredit financing is available for eligible services, subject to approval and CareCredit’s terms.
Review our pricing options or visit our CareCredit page .
Please have your photo ID, current insurance card if applicable, completed intake forms, medication and supplement list, and any relevant laboratory results or medical records.
We send telehealth access instructions before your visit. For an in-person appointment, arrive early enough to complete any remaining registration requirements.
Yes. Recent laboratory results and relevant medical records can help your provider understand your history and may reduce unnecessary duplication.
Your provider checks whether the records are recent and complete enough. They then decide whether more testing is appropriate.
Requirements depend on your condition, medical history, prescribed medication, location, and applicable federal and state regulations.
Your provider will explain whether you need an in-person exam, lab tests, or more follow-up before starting or continuing treatment.
Parking is available in the building structure near Bellefontaine Street and Fair Oaks Avenue.
Enter Huntington Medical Plaza at 800 Fairmount Avenue, Pasadena and take the elevator to Suite 323.
When medically appropriate, your provider may send a prescription electronically to a local retail pharmacy. Certain customized medications may instead require a licensed compounding pharmacy.
The dispensing pharmacy may contact you to confirm your information, review pricing, and coordinate pickup or delivery. Your provider bases prescribing decisions on your medical evaluation. We cannot guarantee a prescription.
We work with qualified licensed pharmacies, including Strive Pharmacy and Belmar Pharmacy .
Pharmacy selection may vary according to the medication, availability, patient location, provider judgment, and applicable regulations.
Interstate prescription fulfillment depends on the pharmacy, medication, patient location, provider eligibility, and applicable laws.
Please confirm delivery availability with our team and the dispensing pharmacy. Alpha Hormones does not coordinate international prescription shipping.
First, meet with a provider to find out whether a hormone program is appropriate for you. Depending on the selected plan, membership may include consultations, laboratory monitoring, medication, supplies, delivery, and stated member benefits.
Monthly and annual memberships renew according to the terms selected during enrollment.
Cancellation requests must be submitted in writing. A 30-day written notice is required, and payments scheduled during the notice period may remain due under the applicable membership agreement.
Review the Subscription and Cancellation Policy for complete terms.
Your provider sets your follow-up schedule based on your history, symptoms, lab results, treatment, and response.
You may need more frequent monitoring when treatment starts or changes. Your provider may then adjust the schedule once your condition is stable.
Yes. Continue seeing your primary care provider and other specialists so your care stays coordinated.
Alpha Hormones serves as one part of your overall healthcare team.
Patient education
Hormone replacement therapy uses prescribed hormones to address clinically identified hormone deficiencies or menopausal symptoms. Your provider tailors treatment to your symptoms, health history, lab results, goals, possible benefits, and risks.
TRT refers specifically to testosterone replacement therapy. “Bioidentical” describes hormones that are chemically identical to hormones produced by the body; it does not mean a product is automatically safer or more effective.
Diagnosis generally requires compatible symptoms together with consistently low testosterone levels. Confirmatory early-morning testing and additional evaluation may be needed to identify the possible cause before treatment is considered.
Your provider first reviews your symptoms, health and family history, medications, and examination findings. They may also review lab results, fertility goals, and reasons a treatment may not suit you.
A consultation does not guarantee a hormone prescription.
Certain medical conditions may make hormone therapy inappropriate or require specialist evaluation. Examples can include hormone-sensitive cancers, unexplained bleeding, blood-clotting conditions, recent cardiovascular events, uncontrolled hypertension, severe untreated sleep apnea, elevated hematocrit, liver disease, pregnancy, or other significant medical concerns.
The relevant considerations differ between testosterone therapy and menopausal hormone therapy.
Response time varies. Some patients notice changes within several weeks, while others require more time, additional evaluation, or dose adjustment. Improvement is not guaranteed. Your provider assesses your response through symptoms, lab monitoring, and follow-up visits.
Depending on the hormone and clinical indication, options may include injections, gels, creams, patches, oral medications, vaginal products, or other formulations.
The recommended route depends on medical appropriateness, symptoms, risks, convenience, response, cost, and patient preference.
We may teach eligible patients how to give their prescribed injections at home. Training may include dosage, preparation, injection technique, supplies, storage, disposal, and when to contact the clinic.
Yes. You can submit previous lab results for review. However, your provider may need newer or additional tests based on their date, measurements, and your current health.
A provider may consider continuing or adjusting an existing medication after reviewing your medical history, records, laboratory findings, current treatment, and clinical needs. We cannot guarantee refills or dose changes.
No. Membership, self-pay, and insurance-based options may be available depending on the service, eligibility, clinical needs, and insurance coverage. Our team can explain the available options before enrollment.
Treatment duration varies by person. The decision to continue depends on your diagnosis, symptoms, response, preferences, laboratory findings, and changing balance of benefits and risks.
Review the need for continued treatment with your provider at regular follow-ups.
Testosterone levels and related symptoms may return toward their pretreatment state after you stop therapy. Do not change or stop prescribed treatment without first discussing it with your clinician.
External testosterone can suppress sperm production and may significantly reduce fertility. Patients who are trying to conceive now or may want future fertility should discuss this before starting treatment.
Testosterone therapy is generally not recommended for men planning fertility in the near term.
Hormone therapy is not a guaranteed weight-loss treatment. Treating a documented deficiency may support certain body-composition goals in some patients, but nutrition, physical activity, sleep, metabolic health, medications, and other factors remain important.
Monitoring may include symptoms, testosterone levels, blood pressure, blood counts or hematocrit, medication response, side effects, and prostate-related evaluation when appropriate.
The schedule depends on your age, medical history, formulation, dosage, laboratory findings, and treatment response.
Possible effects may include acne, oily skin, fluid retention, increased blood pressure, increased red blood cell concentration, reduced sperm production, changes in urinary symptoms, breast tenderness or enlargement, and worsening of certain sleep-related breathing problems.
Report new or concerning symptoms to your provider.
Yes. FDA labeling now includes warnings that testosterone products can increase blood pressure. Your provider should check blood pressure before and during treatment, especially if you have high blood pressure or cardiovascular risk factors.
Current evidence does not establish that appropriately prescribed testosterone therapy causes prostate cancer. However, prostate history, symptoms, age, risk factors, and appropriate monitoring should be considered before and during treatment.
Known or suspected prostate cancer may require specialist evaluation before treatment is considered.
No. Estrogen-blocking medication, hCG, or other adjunctive treatments are not automatically required for every patient. They should be considered only when clinically appropriate after reviewing symptoms, laboratory findings, fertility goals, benefits, and risks.
Hormone therapy can help relieve symptoms such as hot flashes, night sweats, sleep disruption, and vaginal discomfort in appropriately selected patients.
Potential risks vary by medication, route, dose, duration, age, and medical history and may include blood clots, stroke, gallbladder problems, or certain cancers. Review these factors with your provider.
For many patients who have a uterus and use systemic estrogen, progesterone or another progestogen is prescribed to reduce the risk of excessive growth of the uterine lining and endometrial cancer.
The appropriate regimen depends on your medical history and treatment plan.
Hormonal changes can sometimes cause spotting. However, you should still discuss bleeding with your clinician.
Seek prompt evaluation for bleeding after menopause, heavy or persistent bleeding, bleeding after sex, bleeding associated with pain, or bleeding that changes unexpectedly.
Coordinate birth control and hormone therapy with your prescribing clinicians. Do not start, stop, or combine hormonal medications without discussing your medical history, contraceptive needs, symptoms, and potential risks.
Compounded hormones have not been shown to be safer or more effective than FDA-approved hormone products. Compounded preparations are not reviewed by FDA for safety, effectiveness, manufacturing quality, or consistent potency in the same way as FDA-approved medications.
Compounding may be considered when a patient has a specific clinical need that cannot be met by an available FDA-approved product.
The body absorbs and processes each route differently. Effectiveness, convenience, dosing, interactions, skin transfer precautions, and potential risks vary by hormone and patient.
No route is universally best. Your provider will recommend an option based on your individual circumstances.
Telehealth prescribing depends on the medication, patient location, provider licensing, clinical circumstances, pharmacy requirements, and current federal and state law.
An audio-video medical evaluation, in-person examination, laboratory testing, or additional follow-up may be required. Telehealth availability does not guarantee that a controlled medication will be prescribed.
Understand how our board-certified providers evaluate peptide medications, including FDA-approved treatments, medically appropriate off-label uses, compounded preparations, regulatory categories, and ongoing monitoring.
Schedule a ConsultationEvery patient’s health history, concerns, and goals are different. Schedule a consultation with one of our medical providers to ask questions, discuss available care options, and determine the most appropriate next steps for you.
Schedule Your ConsultationPrefer to speak with our team? Call (213) 334-4111.
