FTM's and Transitioning

[theoddz]

Originally Posted by atomiczombie

I don't know if there is any other kind of T gel besides Androgel. Does anyone know? I can only use the gel, the doctors won't let me do any other kind.

Drew,

The other topically applied T gel goes by the brand name of "Testim". I used it before I started injecting. The physician who prescribed it said that it had better clinical test results than Androgel when it came to the rate at which it was actually absorbed by the skin. I don't know if that is particularly true or not, because those clinical trials are often sponsored/paid for by the drug companies who market this stuff. That can put a definite slant on things, you know.

I'm sorry to hear that you're having such a difficult time with the acne and such, but remember that you're going through puberty again.....only this time, it's male puberty. The oil glands in your skin are being activated and put into "hyperdrive" and you are also going to note that you're sweating more than you used to. These are some of the effects of T. The key to keeping the acne down right now, though, is keeping those pores scrubbed and clean. Get a loofah, first off. Then get a bottle of a good exfoliating scrub/soap. My loofah is on an elastic cord, and I can really get a good scrubbing in with it. Also, I happen to be one of those guys who comes from a lineage of hairy people, so I have hair all over.....including my back. Some of the acne I get on my back, from time to time, has everything to do with new hairs coming in, ingrown hairs, infected hairs, etc. My girlfriend is also a trained aesthetician, and has been kind and patient enough to do a waxing on my back/shoulders and man, has that helped!!! It almost cleaned up my back acne instantaneously.

Good luck to you!!!

~Theo~

[atomiczombie]

Originally Posted by theoddz

Drew,

The other topically applied T gel goes by the brand name of "Testim". I used it before I started injecting. The physician who prescribed it said that it had better clinical test results than Androgel when it came to the rate at which it was actually absorbed by the skin. I don't know if that is particularly true or not, because those clinical trials are often sponsored/paid for by the drug companies who market this stuff. That can put a definite slant on things, you know.

I'm sorry to hear that you're having such a difficult time with the acne and such, but remember that you're going through puberty again.....only this time, it's male puberty. The oil glands in your skin are being activated and put into "hyperdrive" and you are also going to note that you're sweating more than you used to. These are some of the effects of T. The key to keeping the acne down right now, though, is keeping those pores scrubbed and clean. Get a loofah, first off. Then get a bottle of a good exfoliating scrub/soap. My loofah is on an elastic cord, and I can really get a good scrubbing in with it. Also, I happen to be one of those guys who comes from a lineage of hairy people, so I have hair all over.....including my back. Some of the acne I get on my back, from time to time, has everything to do with new hairs coming in, ingrown hairs, infected hairs, etc. My girlfriend is also a trained aesthetician, and has been kind and patient enough to do a waxing on my back/shoulders and man, has that helped!!! It almost cleaned up my back acne instantaneously.

Good luck to you!!!

~Theo~

Thanks Theo. This has nothing to do with hair for me. My Dad doesn't have very much body hair at all and he can barely grow a thin goatee. It's turning out that I am the same way. I Have been on T since last May and I have barely enough whiskers on my upper lip to shave once every week and a half, and only a handful of whiskers on my chin. Nothing on my back or chest. Slightly more hair in my pits and legs, but nothing major. No more hair on my arms. It's not even thicker. So hair isn't whats driving the acne.

I have an appointment with my doctor next week so hopefully she can help me. This is really getting ridiculous.

[Logicaly]

I got my dosage upped on Friday to .50ml every two weeks, its still low but their waiting on blood work to come back to see how I am doing cholesterol wise and everything.

My only noticeable change for me, im eating, all the time, I am never not hungry. Its only been about 3 months since I have been on T.

[Quintease]

Originally Posted by Logicaly

My only noticeable change for me, im eating, all the time, I am never not hungry. Its only been about 3 months since I have been on T.

My bf is hungry all the time and he's been on T for about 2/3 years, in fact he became a feeder as he was not only hungry all the time, he was also trying to feed me! He's still changing though, he's changed since we got together even. It's quite weird looking at photos of him from only a year ago.

[The Oopster]

Originally Posted by Logicaly

I got my dosage upped on Friday to .50ml every two weeks, its still low but their waiting on blood work to come back to see how I am doing cholesterol wise and everything.

My only noticeable change for me, im eating, all the time, I am never not hungry. Its only been about 3 months since I have been on T.

Originally Posted by Quintease

My bf is hungry all the time and he's been on T for about 2/3 years, in fact he became a feeder as he was not only hungry all the time, he was also trying to feed me! He's still changing though, he's changed since we got together even. It's quite weird looking at photos of him from only a year ago.

Appetite was one of the first noticeable changes for me and i actually gained muscle mass fairly quickly once I went on the injectable T. People are very shocked at how much I can eat. I swear I eat 10 times what my roomie eats I don't know how he gets by (he is a cismale.)

when I went to .5 but every week that's when things did really start to change. Now I do .25 every week because i'm happy where things are at with that dose.

[Logicaly]

Originally Posted by The Oopster

Appetite was one of the first noticeable changes for me and i actually gained muscle mass fairly quickly once I went on the injectable T. People are very shocked at how much I can eat. I swear I eat 10 times what my roomie eats I don't know how he gets by (he is a cismale.)

when I went to .5 but every week that's when things did really start to change. Now I do .25 every week because i'm happy where things are at with that dose.

Yeah, I am hoping to start seeing some changes now hopefully. I have a gym membership, so I am doing the gym thing as well in order to make sure all my extra weight doesn't just shift around to other places.

I've been checking my weight, and its the same as it was 3 months ago, even though I am eating a ton more, doctor says that is good that its not going up, so I guess that is a good thing.

[atomiczombie]

So, tomorrow's the big day! By this time tomorrow I will have my new chest. The surgery will happen at 7:30am in San Francisco and my surgeon is Dr. Michael Brownstein. I would say wish me luck, but I know I won't need it. He is an excellent surgeon and these procedures are the only ones he does. When I can I will come back and let you all know how it went.

[Ebon]

Originally Posted by atomiczombie

So, tomorrow's the big day! By this time tomorrow I will have my new chest. The surgery will happen at 7:30am in San Francisco and my surgeon is Dr. Michael Brownstein. I would say wish me luck, but I know I won't need it. He is an excellent surgeon and these procedures are the only ones he does. When I can I will come back and let you all know how it went.

That is so awesome man congrats!!!

[Ebon]

I'm really struggling with taking T because I really don't like doctors but I cannot take it without being under a doctors supervision apparently.

[Thinker]

Originally Posted by atomiczombie

So, tomorrow's the big day! By this time tomorrow I will have my new chest. The surgery will happen at 7:30am in San Francisco and my surgeon is Dr. Michael Brownstein. I would say wish me luck, but I know I won't need it. He is an excellent surgeon and these procedures are the only ones he does. When I can I will come back and let you all know how it went.

Wow! Wow! Wow! I am so happy to hear this!

Here's to you, Dr. B, and his colleagues!!!!

[Camo Eagle]

Originally Posted by atomiczombie

So, tomorrow's the big day! By this time tomorrow I will have my new chest. The surgery will happen at 7:30am in San Francisco and my surgeon is Dr. Michael Brownstein. I would say wish me luck, but I know I won't need it. He is an excellent surgeon and these procedures are the only ones he does. When I can I will come back and let you all know how it went.

Way to go AZ! Im happy to hear that you are finally able to do this. Know its something youve wanted forever. Keep us updated.

[wolfbittenpoet]

Gratz about the surgery. You'll do great. I am very jealous.

[atomiczombie]

Sooo, I got through the surgery just fine, and the doc said it went well. I woke up very tired and sore, but the pain meds they gave me helped a lot. I have 2 drains, one on each side that need to be cleared every 6 hours, and the amount of fluid measured and recorded. It has already gone down a lot since yesterday. They put a big binder on me with lots of gauze underneath, and lemme tell ya it is ITCHY under that gauze. I can't move my arms around very well because of the incision stretches all the way under my arms (to prevent dog ears). I am trying to be really good about not moving my arms much, but there are those moments when you forget and you reach for something and the pain reminds you that you aren't supposed to do it. Haha. Overall, my energy is up since yesterday and the oral pain meds are working fine. It doesn't take all the pain away, but it does make me a lot more comfortable. I am only taking the prescribed dose. I get my drains removed next Tuesday, and then Thursday I get my stitches out.

That's all I have to report today, I will come back soon and fill you guys in on more details. Thats for all the support and well-wishes. It makes a big difference!

[atomiczombie]

It's my 4th day after surgery. Yesterday was the first day I decided to go all day without my pain med. I was uncomfortable, but not so much that I couldn't tough it out. I had to take one when I went to bed, however. My pain gets worse then since I have to lie in one position all night (on my back).

There's a lot less fluid coming out of my drains. The first 2 days it was about 10cc's per side every 6 hours. Now it's down to 5cc's per side every 12 hours, so there's a lot of healing going on. Tomorrow I will go in and get them removed, and I am glad because the place where the drains go in gets sore if I move too much. I have more and more energy each day and feel the need to get up and walk around frequently. It is still very itchy under my dressings, but that sort of comes and goes. The place where I have the most pain is under my arms. I have absolutely no pain in the center or sides of my chest.

That's all for now, I will check in tomorrow and let you all know how it went getting the drains out.

[Linus]

Congrats, AZ! Glad to hear things are going well. It's interesting that Dr. V has said that I won't need drains because of the way he's doing the surgery (this has me puzzled as I've always heard that double incision requires drains.. Theo? Koop?)

Anyways, I do have a question: for those that got a recliner, what kind (manufacturer/make?) did you get? I tend to sleep on my side and a recliner might be a good way to avoid that -- plus I've always wanted one.

[atomiczombie]

Originally Posted by Linus

Congrats, AZ! Glad to hear things are going well. It's interesting that Dr. V has said that I won't need drains because of the way he's doing the surgery (this has me puzzled as I've always heard that double incision requires drains.. Theo? Koop?)

Dr Brownstein told me that drains lessen the possibility of infection and speed up the healing process. If your doc has a better way, then that's cool because they are a pain in the keester.

[EnderD_503]

Congrats again, Atomic!

Originally Posted by Linus

Congrats, AZ! Glad to hear things are going well. It's interesting that Dr. V has said that I won't need drains because of the way he's doing the surgery (this has me puzzled as I've always heard that double incision requires drains.. Theo? Koop?)

I dunno exactly why it is that the way some docs do it don't need drains, but apparently the doc I'm looking at using in Mississauga, if I ever manage to save enough money, (Dr. McLean) doesn't use drains either. Maybe someone who knows more can shed some light on why some docs use them and others don't...?

It's weird that you mention that Atomic, cause I heard the opposite...blah, I dunno lol Edit: I've heard of very few who don't use drains though, so I dunno if no drains is actually something new/better or just unorthodox.

[Linus]

Originally Posted by EnderD_503

Congrats again, Atomic!



I dunno exactly why it is that the way some docs do it don't need drains, but apparently the doc I'm looking at using in Mississauga, if I ever manage to save enough money, (Dr. McLean) doesn't use drains either. Maybe someone who knows more can shed some light on why some docs use them and others don't...?

It's weird that you mention that Atomic, cause I heard the opposite...blah, I dunno lol Edit: I've heard of very few who don't use drains though, so I dunno if no drains is actually something new/better or just unorthodox.

Is OHIP not covering this? I thought SRS was covered? or did it get delisted, like Alberta?

[Thinker]

Originally Posted by EnderD_503

Congrats again, Atomic!



I dunno exactly why it is that the way some docs do it don't need drains, but apparently the doc I'm looking at using in Mississauga, if I ever manage to save enough money, (Dr. McLean) doesn't use drains either. Maybe someone who knows more can shed some light on why some docs use them and others don't...?

It's weird that you mention that Atomic, cause I heard the opposite...blah, I dunno lol Edit: I've heard of very few who don't use drains though, so I dunno if no drains is actually something new/better or just unorthodox.

Hey Ender... Dr. DuPere in Toronto was my surgeon. I had the full-on bilateral male chest reconstruction w/ nipple grafts, and he opted not to use drains too. I was under the impression he made that decision during the course of the surgery though.

The first question I remember asking him was about the drains, and his reply was that he didn't feel they were necessary. I took that to mean I wasn't draining a whole lot. ??? I also took it to mean that it could be case-by-case with him.

I've read quite a bit on the subject, and most of what I've seen indicates that the use of drains is like what Drew said......to increase healing time and reduce the possibility of infection. All I've really seen on the flip side is that the surgeon feels they aren't necessary.

I would hope that if the surgeon determined the patient was going to sit with a lot of fluid buildup over the next 3 or 4 days, he/she would opt to use drains.

Of course, this is all just speculation on my part based on what I have read.

[T D]

Originally Posted by atomiczombie

Dr Brownstein told me that drains lessen the possibility of infection and speed up the healing process. If your doc has a better way, then that's cool because they are a pain in the keester.

I'm curious about how much help you've needed post surgery. Are you able to take care of your needs alone, or have you had someone come in or around to help you out? This is always a question for me when considering any surgery.

Hope things are going well for you, Drew!