Two Weeks Post-op

Two weeks ago I finally Gender Confirmation Surgery. All of my life a physical part of my body did not belong, an actual birth defect in that, while I am female, this physical thing that was attached to me was actually a piece of male anatomy. How utterly weird is that? I had no choice in the matter. Though wrong, it was simply the body that I had developed. While I never accepted that it was truly part of me I had to use it. There was nothing I could do to change my body. I always loathed this birth defect but the thought of having this surgery was always a mere fantasy. There were no experienced surgeons nearby performing such a thing and the cost was astronomical.

However, within the past few years things have changed. There are more hospitals putting teams in place to offer the full slate of gender related surgeries. And many insurance companies are now covering the cost. Even Medicare and Medicaid. The gender specialist I see in Iowa City informed me almost two years ago that the University of Iowa Hospital was putting such a team together. How perfect would that be! A surgical team less than an hour's drive away! In July 2018 I had an orchiectomy by one of the doctors training for gender surgeries and had a chance to discuss when they might become available. First I was told the Spring of 2019. But it kept getting pushed back until finally the first gender surgeries were to occur in the Fall of 2019. I was ready.

Meanwhile, I learned of a few transgender people who were planning on having their surgeries done at the University of Wisconsin Hospital in Madison. They had a team that had been performing these surgeries for well over a year and had developed a very good reputation. These friends pointed out that they preferred having their surgery done by an experienced team as opposed to acting as guinea pigs for the first surgeries in Iowa City. Then in July 2019 I drove one friend to Madison for her surgery and stayed a week while she had her initial recovery. I had a chance to see the University of Wisconsin Hospital myself and meet the surgeon. I was convinced. I had a consultation with this surgeon regarding my own surgery and the date was set for December 10th, 2019.

That was two weeks and two days ago. The surgery went very well as has the recovery, my having surprisingly little real pain and immobility. Oh sure, there is still quite a bit of swelling and scarring that will require a few weeks of healing time, and a persistent soreness that should also dissipate over time. I am to refrain from sitting straight up, or directly on my bottom for at least 30 days but this is a minor inconvenience. My body is finally as normal as is possible! I am in a very happy place.