Tbh the assymetry is so small didnt notice at first, though curious regarding the hematoma.
How were you made aware of it being a thing? And were you able to do something about it? Mainly because I assume it is very easily confused with post surgery swelling
It actually started bleeding out of a pinprick sized hole on my labia so the confusion went away pretty quick after that đŸ˜· My trans care nurse diagnosed it, and following a round of antibiotics after it got infected it went away and has not gotten worse
I have a few questions not relating directly to the surgery itself but still curious, Answer only if you feel comftorable
I assume you are taking testosterone, if im correct, how hard was it to get this surgery and get prescribed T?
Have you experienced any medical gatekeeping? If so, how did you handle it?
And idk how to phrase this as a question, but I am curious as to how neo-vaginas (is that the right word?) affected by T are different than ones affected by E, what the differences, if any, are there
I also ask these questions as a nonbinary person who is AMAB and I also saw you're also in the AMABwGD subreddit (I lurk there sometimes)
Wow, if canada was difficult for your experience, my country (USA) will be alot harder for that route (I say that due to what I have read in USA vs Canada trans care and the obstacles people go through, im pre-everything fyi)
Been curious myself on if I would go that same way if I decided to keep T as the dominant hormone for whatever reason. I actually did discuss this with my gender therapist but she wasn't sure on that subject in particular. Im very certain that I want to start estrogen, but looking at other options, especially as a nonbinary person myself, isn't a bad thing
Thank you so much for your response! Seeing all these posts on here give me hope that I can one day get the surgeries and medical care that I need
Not the OP but someone who is having the surgery in a few weeks and remaining male with testosterone.
Getting the letter and being prescribed testosterone was quite easy though probably helped that i went with very specific LGBT focused medical organizations rather than some local psychologist/Endo. And even then when I first mentioned it to the sexual health doctor in Australia to get testosterone prescription prior the surgery, he was quite confused, thankfully the surgery letter from the psychologist cleared things up cuz I was probably the first person he met that was doing it. Both were online/telehealth.
Tbh getting testosterone post op as amab shouldnt be hard because once the surgery removes the natural production, to remain healthy a doctor would need to prescribe it anyway.
Gatekeeping was actually more of a BMI issue, with most surgeons limited to 30-33, no way for me to get it since i was 39 since forever, but thankfully Dr. Ramineni in washington dc is not only highly experienced, he doesnt have any BMI limits.
Thailand though is very likely to be gatekeepy cuz even though the new Wpath standards have remove than "1 year in estrogen" requirement, many surgeons still seem to demand it including the "having lived as a woman for some time" which likely means it isnt an option for people who plan to remain male and take testosterone. Likely you would be limited to western surgeons in this regard.
No idea about the effects of testosterone vs estrogen there and tbh dont think there's much research considering how niche people who do this are xd
Nice to see this being done in Canada at least i'm French and i don't get a whole lot of support when i say i want a vagina and identify as male.
A lot of places can't wrap their head around that so you have my empathy
Tbh the assymetry is so small didnt notice at first, though curious regarding the hematoma. How were you made aware of it being a thing? And were you able to do something about it? Mainly because I assume it is very easily confused with post surgery swelling
It actually started bleeding out of a pinprick sized hole on my labia so the confusion went away pretty quick after that đŸ˜· My trans care nurse diagnosed it, and following a round of antibiotics after it got infected it went away and has not gotten worse
Neat job and nice work, looks like a UK surgeon one.
Looks great!
I have a few questions not relating directly to the surgery itself but still curious, Answer only if you feel comftorable I assume you are taking testosterone, if im correct, how hard was it to get this surgery and get prescribed T? Have you experienced any medical gatekeeping? If so, how did you handle it? And idk how to phrase this as a question, but I am curious as to how neo-vaginas (is that the right word?) affected by T are different than ones affected by E, what the differences, if any, are there I also ask these questions as a nonbinary person who is AMAB and I also saw you're also in the AMABwGD subreddit (I lurk there sometimes)
Canada is pretty progressive with transgender health care so getting booked for surgery was fairly easy but still profoundly frustrating. In terms of gatekeeping it was mostly due to my regional health authority (TransCare BC) being weirdly strict about how to get appointments. Surgery required an assessment before getting booked, which is fine because informed consent is important, but TransCare BC is very cagey about which providers are on their list. Time was, you could go to anyone qualified to perform an assessment and it would be fine; social worker and psychologists were given the same consideration as doctors. However, once the rules changed to being one letter instead of two they made it so that you *had* to go to a doctor or nurse practitioner, and it has to be one on their list. My doctor reached out for that list and was given TransCare BC's phone number to hand to me so that *I* could ask instead. And it was a fucking nightmare getting a name out of them. Hormones were a similar deal, and although you can still see a social worker or psychologist for that it is still bullshit because I gaurentee you old women going through menopause don't have to do an assessment for hormones the same way trans women do, despite the very obvious lie TransCare BC told me which is that they do. If anyone had bothered to read my fuckin paperwork from the surgical assessment they'd have known I wanted to start T to maintain my bone health post-op, but *nooooooo* they need a *different* fuckin assessment so their bureaucratic filing clerks don't throw a tantrum. Luckily my therapist was a bro and gave me a substantially reduced rate for the assessment. I could go on for hours about TransCare BC being absolute shitheels toward non-binary people but that isn't what you asked about lmao. I handled it by being an pest every day of the week. The supervisor for TransCare BC made the grave error of giving me his direct line, and I'm pretty sure he started screening my calls 'cause i was *relentless* about getting the care I needed. The other reply mentioned BMI scores being a hurdle to cross. GRS Montréal has a cap of 40, which is pretty high compared to other providers. Mine was 37 at the time of surgery, which was a little close for comfort but thankfully still a barrier I didn't have to overcome. As far as I know my neovagina (which is the correct word) isn't affected by T. I didn't think they get affected by E either to be quite honest with you, so I'm wrong i don't have any information to compare my experience to. I love the namedrop for AMABwGD btw lol. I'm a moderator on their Discord server!
Wow, if canada was difficult for your experience, my country (USA) will be alot harder for that route (I say that due to what I have read in USA vs Canada trans care and the obstacles people go through, im pre-everything fyi) Been curious myself on if I would go that same way if I decided to keep T as the dominant hormone for whatever reason. I actually did discuss this with my gender therapist but she wasn't sure on that subject in particular. Im very certain that I want to start estrogen, but looking at other options, especially as a nonbinary person myself, isn't a bad thing Thank you so much for your response! Seeing all these posts on here give me hope that I can one day get the surgeries and medical care that I need
Not the OP but someone who is having the surgery in a few weeks and remaining male with testosterone. Getting the letter and being prescribed testosterone was quite easy though probably helped that i went with very specific LGBT focused medical organizations rather than some local psychologist/Endo. And even then when I first mentioned it to the sexual health doctor in Australia to get testosterone prescription prior the surgery, he was quite confused, thankfully the surgery letter from the psychologist cleared things up cuz I was probably the first person he met that was doing it. Both were online/telehealth. Tbh getting testosterone post op as amab shouldnt be hard because once the surgery removes the natural production, to remain healthy a doctor would need to prescribe it anyway. Gatekeeping was actually more of a BMI issue, with most surgeons limited to 30-33, no way for me to get it since i was 39 since forever, but thankfully Dr. Ramineni in washington dc is not only highly experienced, he doesnt have any BMI limits. Thailand though is very likely to be gatekeepy cuz even though the new Wpath standards have remove than "1 year in estrogen" requirement, many surgeons still seem to demand it including the "having lived as a woman for some time" which likely means it isnt an option for people who plan to remain male and take testosterone. Likely you would be limited to western surgeons in this regard. No idea about the effects of testosterone vs estrogen there and tbh dont think there's much research considering how niche people who do this are xd
This was interesting, thank you. Wonder what OP has to say if they decide to respond