I'm so happy for you. keep us up on changes.

All the best in this New Year, new Adventure/Journey for you

Good luck Ebon. Keep us updated.

Rufus

in response to corky:
 

"The T cream is homeopathic and not regulated under the FDA, so the contents of how much organic T one gets is up for grabs, but it also did help the libido. Your mileage may vary as with all things."

does that mean this can be obtained without a prescription? I cannot find a endocrinologist or physician in My state or outlying area that will prescripbe this to Me since I was born female. there is no trans healthcare or treatment in sc. My primary provider siad she would consider it in a dose appropriate for a woman with diminished libido, but from what I understand it isn't enough to get a T level anywhere near male ranges. sadly My care provider is a nurse practitioner and doesn't feel she is suited to help Me with transitioning even though she is willing to continue care for any health issue including gyno.

I know SC has not much community and there are many states and counties near big cities that do not understand the transition process.

but i can help you find suitable help in the GA area. let me know.

good luck, happy new year and welcome

GA
 

the only thing I found in GA was in atlanta which is 6hrs away. I will however be moving to california in 3-6 months top so I can seek treatment.

Good Information
 

Would have loved to have had this thread 10 years ago or more. If I can help, I will give my information. As someone else pointed out, the process, while similar, will be different for everyone but perhaps just the support helps.

Where are you in your transition? I am finished with all I will do in my transition. Started 11 years ago. Had my name legally changed immediately prior to starting T.

How long have you been on T? 10 years.

How much T do you take on a bi weekly or monthly basis? I am not taking any at the moment and doing fine.

How does your body react to your shot intake? I really didn't have any reaction.

Are you pre or post op top and or bottom? Top surgery is done, had complete vaginal hysterectomy, no scars there thank goodness. Won't have lower surgery at my age, mostly because of the cost and phaloplasty is just not proven to me to be a good alternative. After my surgery had my gender immediately changed on my birth certificate and drivers license.

Where and Who did your surgeries? My surgery was done by a great plastics guy in Kansas City. He is not on any list and not sure he even does any others. If you live in the area, I can find out for you if he does. He doesn't want his name out there in forums.

I used to do diversity training and was a pretty big advocate in the community on trans issues. I still get called to do some but since I have kids now I am semi retired ;). I would be happy to share information if it will help anyone.

Drag. Good luck. I'm in GA and had no problem getting T here in Atlanta. I have 4 10mL vials I haven't even touched because I stopped taking it during the summer. I'm going to start again soon though. In 15 weeks, my voice had changed and there was more hair growth.

When I first started I started with creme at the levels for a women whose levels were low. Primarily because I wasn't sure what transtional path was for me and because my levels were low! My dr. was different and gradually increased the dose. However even though you won't get the effects you want it is a place to start, but it isn't cheap it was like 80 t0 90 dollars for a month ...now with the shots i can go ateast three months on 45 dollars. Just something to think about until you get into another situation

Damon, hang in there bud. You will find a way. It is SOOOO hard to be patient when you know what you want and you are ready for it. I have been there myself and I still am. Just don't give up!

So I thought I would share. Started seeing a doctor to get a health checkup, etc so I could get started on T. How long did it take everyone after they first saw their doctor and say hey, I want to start T?

I had all my blood work done, results where a bit off in one or two areas that they are now running more blood work and im waiting on those results hopefully any day now. It seems you go in for one thing, and instead, they find something else wrong.

Initially I had to get a referral from my primary care physician to see the endroconologist. My primary care gave me a list of potential endos told me a little about each one and let me make a decision as to which one I wanted to see.

I went home did a little background research on the proposed doctors, chose the one I wanted to see and got back to my primary care. About three weeks later I had my first appointment with the Endroconologist and about 4 to 5 weeks later, I had my first T shot.

Part of the wait for me was giving my Endroconologist educate himself a bit on Trans stuff. I knew I would be his first "FTM" patient and needed a little time to make a decision to take me on as a patient. I specifically stayed within the group of medical doctors affiliated with my primary care physician because I wanted to do what I could to educate and bring "transitioning" into the conciousness of mainstream medicine here in the SF Bay Area. Up close and personal so to speak.

I get my levels of T and other blood work done quarterly. So far, so good. Good luck to you. It will happen.

Well that stinks (only having one place you can go for care). :-(

When you say suspicious are you saying that you are trying to get it done under a "breast reduction", as your insurance won't pay for top surgery? I have often wondered if there are doctors willing to do that. Then many more people would have the means to get it done.

The only insurance I know that pays for top surgery is Aetna. Does anyone know of any other insurance company that now pays for it at this point?

I'm guesiin I wasn't on the OTC because I needed a prescription for mine. The cost varied on the strength

Good Luck Damon.

This is going to be hard isn't it?
As for T, my doctors are all through a Catholic hospital.

Are you in KC, would it be possible to find a doc there? My ins pays for my T. The doc set it up that way as the T being necessary (for something)

j

KC doc
 

Hi Damon,

If you live in KC there is a Trans friendly doctor in KCKS. Dr. Lee has a clinic off of SW Blvd and would probably be able to refer other doctors in the area if you didn't want to go there.

Oh, well, seriously Damon, if your insurance covers top surgery, then there is a physician in your network that will do the work. It shouldn't matter where your therapist or psychiatrist work in order for you to get a letter for surgery. If you are certain it is top surgery you want, you really should look into it instead of settling for a breast reduction. One less surgery! Lots would kill to have your insurance to cover their top surgery. You're lucky!

Glad you found a psych doc you like!

Good Luck with whatever route you take. :)

Just my thoughts, for what they're worth.

That's the problem. The docs in my network are NOT trans-friendly. Therefore, the majority will NOT do top surgery.

Actually, DamonK is in the same boat as me. You have to get two doctors to write that it's a medical necessity. Although Aetna covers it, it doesn't explicitly say just go and do. There are some hoops to go through. My company recently switched to Aetna (thank you Anthem for trying to jack up rates 800%!) and the doctor I'm seeing (out of network) is good and very trans friendly but I may try to find a doctor that is in network and trans friendly (not always possible). At the least, this doctor I'm going to ask if she can recommend a surgeon or two since she's known to the transmen community here.

I'd like to go to the one that Theo recommended but I don't know if that would then be covered by insurance or not.

Exactly. And since the docs work at a catholic based place, it makes it even harder for me.

Since the therapist is trans friendly would they perhaps know of a doctor that is also trans friendly that could help?

To the guys who may be getting the "Run Around" from your insurance companies regarding Top Surgery. I experienced some of the same frustrations. I am not trying to be insensitive to your plight and here is how I got around it. I decided to save up the money and pay out of pocket. It took a few years to put the money together but in the end, for me, it was gratifying. I took back the control over my own body.

I know this may not be an immediate solution while you are negotiating your way through the maze of documentation, paperwork required by medical providers. It may seem impossible to save that kind of money, the cost is approximately $10,000 but just putting something aside may also offer you some sense of control over your own individual life and the direction your life moves forward. Good luck.

Yes, I am aware of that. I am also a member of WPATH.

This may be helpful, Damon, to find providers, including doc #2 for a letter/other resources for finding a provider.

http://www.wpath.org/ (formerly HBIGDA).

http://wpath.org/Documents2/Referral...rces-01-05.pdf

Same here. Insurance coverage was not ever going to be an option for me.....not at that particular point in my life anyway. And like you, I totally get how daunting (and possibly impossible) it may be. I gave up everything but the basics for a while in order to save the money.

I also know of a guy who said 'screw it' and took out a loan. He got himself in a position with his budget where he could make the monthly payments and went for it.

In the meantime, I wish you all the very best with your efforts to make this happen.

Other than that, how's your progress, TD?

Well, like I said.. the doc is trans-friendly. It doesn't mean he's THAT trans-friendly, and quite frankly, top surgery is the least of my worries.

The health related one, which also will lead to transition, is.

Congrats! It's must be a great feeling.

Its an amazing feeling Linus, today is a good day :)

this is exactly where i started. we had the best insurance. and although they picked up all Avery's surgeries, because he was born with cleft/cranio, instead of fighting i just finally did it on my own.

insurance doesnt even pay for the T. i pay out of pocket for everything.

there is a dr in nyc that does some surgeries for a fraction of the cost if you can prove you dont have the resources and sometimes doesnt charge you at all.

Packin, good to see you.

I will find out his name. i read the story a few months back about him doing a free surgery to a ftm from philly.

i will find it and put it out here.

it said if i remember correctly he does 3 a month for the "less fortunate"

i just took it as the ones that can only go so far, with wanting/needing surgery

This article reminded me of the conversations here about saving for something so meaningful.

A "spending fast"!!!! I love it!

http://money.cnn.com/2011/01/14/pf/a...x.htm?hpt=Sbin

So I went into the doctor's today for a follow up, they have done tons of blood work lately and while my cholesterol is a little high, 9 points over what they would like, I got my first T prescription today!

I just need to wait for it to arrive in the mail, and I have an appointment on Tuesday to learn how to self inject, and for my partner to do it as well.

In the mean time, I also need to work on getting my cholesterol down more.