Edema from exogenous testosterone is typically from estradiol or progesterone, not testosterone.

Not everyone is aware of this, but while estrogens are considered the dominant sex steroid in women, in fact, serum androgen levels in women are higher than estrogen levels most of the time. In fact, women’s ovaries produce approximately three to four times more testosterone than estrogen daily. Only in the last 20 years have we discovered that testosterone is the most abundant biologically active gonadal hormone throughout the female lifespan. By adding exogenous testosterone to a woman, estrogen levels will naturally increase. This is due to a woman's ability to aromatize testosterone and androstenedione to estradiol at a significantly higher rate than a man.

When women complain of feeling bloated right before their cycle, it is also due to water retention. This is because estrogen levels along with progesterone levels increase right before menses. So essentially, additional water weight is likely due to an increase in her total E2 level due to aromatization of the testosterone.

You can always have her levels checked, and we are advocates for closer lab monitoring of women who use exogenous testosterone than men for this very reason.

The two options to eliminate aromatization associated edema would be either to lower her T dose, or consider adding a mild aromatase inhibitor like Diindolylmethane (DIM) to reduce some of the excess aromatization. DIM is safe and sold over the counter.

Also, it is important for women to understand that weight gain once adding exogenous androgens translates to fairly rapid muscle growth, which translates to an increase in weight. So they should pay less attention to their weight on the scale and more attention to how their clothes are fitting. Are her pants getting tighter or looser? Is she noticing her shirts fit a bit tighter through the shoulders (the majority of androgen receptors are found in the deltoids and traps)?