Susan's Place Transgender Resources

Hi everyone and welcome to my she shed!

I am starting this thread to help me keep a record of my transitioning progress and to also help those with my experience of transitioning while living with less than perfect health.

Before I started this journey, I did much exhaustive research, with very few results, on the subject of transitioning at the age of 60+ with health issues to help reassure myself that I would get to complete my journey. So far, the only information I was able to find is that, as long as my health issues are well under control, I would get to transition. Not very reassuring so fasten your seatbelts ladies because this ride is about to start.

I came out to my PC doctor in June last year. I got a referral for my therapist in July 2017. Which led to a referral for my Endocrinologist in August 14, 2017. I started HRT on August 22, 2017. My PC doctor, therapist and Endocrinologist are all very reassuring of my journey. My cardiologist was a bit hesitant at first but after talking with him about all the lastest postive clinical research, he admitted that there was definitely a lot of controversy about the dangers of HRT, but was quick to jump on board and is now also very reasuring.

It is far more reassuring for me to have all of my doctors on board with me. I have never been so happy in my life as I am now. It's going to be a long road and I am happily on my way.

It has been a little over a year since I started HRT and I must say, I am feeling much healthier today than at this time last year. I started RLE and came out to everyone, including social medie, a few months ago. I have been going through facial hair removal for the past month and at that time, my therapist and I decided it was time to start voice therapy and, much to my surprise, he also put a referral for FFS. I had no idea that Kaiser now covers that as well as BA too. My therapist is saying he will get me a referral for GCR some time after June of next year. I sooooo can't wait.

No news yet about the pending referrals. Stay tuned. I will give updates as they come in.

Thanks for following!
Lots of Hugs,
Donica.

@Donica
Dear Donica:  
Your report seems to be all good news.
I will definitely be looking for your updates regarding your referrals.

I am very happy that you started  "Donica's She Shed"  transition thread and journal... 
... it will not only be nice for you but also for your followers to have a lot of your transition progress and information all in one place.... 
But, of course you are still expected to share your transition stuff, thoughts, photos, other comments, etc... on many of the appropriate various threads all around the forums.

Thank you again for starting your thread,
Hugs and well wishes,
Danielle

Hi Donica,
   It's funny but every time I see your name, I think of Christmas. If we threw your name and mine together we could maybe have something. "on Donica, on Monica, on Donner and Blitzen." Well, maybe not!
   I have enjoyed reading your posts, so I am glad you have decided to tell your story. It is great to hear you are much happier. I think you have already gotten past a lot of hurdles. All you have left is the surgeries? Well, piece of cake. You got this. Best of luck to you. You do seem like an awesome woman.
Moni
Oh, let me show my ignorance (something I exceed at) and ask what a she shed is.

Thank you Danielle! You are so sweet girl! And yes, I will use this thread to post general updates and save all the juicy stuff for the appropriate forum threads.

Thank you Moni! What? Ignorant? No, I don't see it girl. I think you are very intelligent. A she shed is kinda like a man cave but for girls. Every girl should have her own private space to get away for a bit of relaxing quiet time. But rest assured, this she shed is not meant in any way to be private. Anyone and everyone is welcome here to post anything they wish.

You know Moni? I think you just may be onto something with that Christmas song  ;D.

Thanks for following ladies! I really value your input. Updates coming soon.
Lots of hugs,
Donica.

Hi Donica,

It is neat to watch your excitement grow as you overcome your hurdles. It must feel great to win over all of your health care providers, and what an advocate your therapist seems to be....lining up all the possible next steps for you. This going to be a fun thread, watching your journey expand. Thank you for making your path visible!

Tia Anne

I'm glad you are here sharing your story. I too have had a rocky road with health concerns. You are right. I would much rather live the life I do now, than the one I was living two years ago. I do regret I can't have the surgeries. But after a life of confusion I'll take anything I can get. I hope you have as much joy as I have had.

Hi Tia and Dawn! Thank you both for joining my journey. It means so much to me to know you will be following along.

Tia, I have been following you and Debi on your honeymoon road trip with much delight. I hope Debi is feeling better. I know it can take a lot of time for these things to get better. I'll check in to your thread in a bit to find where you two love birds are today.

Dawn! I'm so glad that you came to visit my she shed. I am proud to know you and I appreciate all your wonderful words of wisdom. Yes, these health issues are a bitch. But as you said, it is far better to enjoy life the best way we can. I hope you are feeling better today girl.

Thanks for following!
Lots of hugs,
Donica.

"Donica, oh Donica, my encylcoponica, oh Donica the Tattooed Lady" Oh don't mind me, just working on trying to get you a theme song for your She Shed thread. Guess Groucho Marx is not a good fit huh? Anyway, I thought I would stop by, say hi!
Monica

I assume everyone has seen the State Farm Insurance she shed commercial?  :laugh:

Quote from: HappyMoni on September 02, 2018, 08:40:16 PM
"Donica, oh Donica, my encylcoponica, oh Donica the Tattooed Lady" Oh don't mind me, just working on trying to get you a theme song for your She Shed thread. Guess Groucho Marx is not a good fit huh? Anyway, I thought I would stop by, say hi!
Monica

I was thinking a little about that too Moni. So far I got "on Donica, on Monica, on Danica and Minions."? Yes? Oh,,, too much?

Hugs Moni!
Donica.

Quote from: Devlyn on September 02, 2018, 09:46:15 PM
I assume everyone has seen the State Farm Insurance she shed commercial?  :laugh:

Oh yes Devlyn. I have to laugh every time I see it. I thing the hubby has a guilty look on his face. The dead giveaway is the trickling garden hose. I mean really? Or was he just watering the plants? Keep that guy away from my she shed lol.

Hugs Devlyn!
Donica. 

Ok, I have good news! Well, it has been a busy two weeks. Support groups on Tuesdays and Wednesdays and 4 hour electrolysis sessions on Thursdays. Oh,, This just in. My phone is ringing as I write this. It was my first appointment for voice therapy on the 18th of this month. SQUUUEEE!!! I also made contact with the transgender care coordinator nurse of FFS. I just sent in my facial profile pictures. I am SQUEEESPLODING  :D!!!!

Most updates coming soon
Lots of hugs,
Donica.

Hi there Donica,

  Laurie the wandering waif of Susan's place here. I just wanted to say hi as i probably haven't done so yet. I've been ummm distracted lately. Thank you for coming in and providing all of us with your cheery encouragement, well wishes, and other merry comments. You do seem to get around the site almost as much as I get around the country. I also noted you have gotten caught up in our own little reality show "Dating with Danielle in the wilds of Alaska" As you know she's a charmer tha is enjoying being charmed herself up in the frozen wastelands of Alaska, The last Frontier.
  I am pleased to find this thread where we can follow you on your own adventures in wonderland. (pssst, Go ask Alice, I think she'll know.) Oh, btw keep an eye out for a rabbit in a top hat and whatever you do, do NOT follow him down that rabbit hole. I did and nearly didn't make it back. (When logic and proportion Have fallen sloppy dead) It sounds like you are well on your way with Kaiser. I just joined Kaiser in Oregon and have an appointment with the Gender Pathways group on the 17th of Sept to see what door may be opened for me there that the VA doesn't provide. Whether I step through them or not is an unanswered question at this point. I love reading about the steps others like you are taking on their own special journeys.

Hugs,
  Laurie

PS  Tha moaning person is nuts best stay away she also has an alias of Tonie, or connie.  possibly Moonie I know it is something like that. I've met her and she have a very nice wife and boys that take care of her. Someone has to do it.

Hi Laurie! Don't forget the wandering Waif Honey Badgers too. Oh yes, I know you are very busy taking wonderful care of Michelle. You are going to love Kaiser. They are the best. I've read a few other threads about transgender pride groups in Oregon and Kaiser. I've been thinking of moving up there some time in the future. Yes indeed, Danielle is such a charmer isn't she. Wow, all her suitors. How does she do it. Is that morning or Moaning person? I thing I now you are talking about. Thanks for the heads up. Oh, and no rabbit holes for me. I wouldn't be able to climb out anyway lol.

I do have another update! I spent the morning at the Venture Superior courthouse filing all my legal documents. I didn't get home till after 1:pm. Wow, what an ordeal. It was crowded. First go here, then go there. Up stairs, down stairs and finally back up stairs to file all my legal documents for name and gender change. I don't need to go to the gym after that ordeal lol.

Thanks for the warm comments and the heads up!
Lots of hugs Laurie!
Donica.

Hi, Donica.  Congratulations on getting your paperwork filed.  Pretty soon, you'll get the results, and you will legally be you!

Quote from: KathyLauren on September 07, 2018, 04:55:26 PM
Hi, Donica.  Congratulations on getting your paperwork filed.  Pretty soon, you'll get the results, and you will legally be you!

Yay!!! I'm sooo excited!!!

Thanks Kathy!
Hugs girl!
Donica.

Well, not really an update, but I read a post from Stephanie in her "The Stephanie chronicles" thread about the "I'll still be me". I read it just before leaving for some lab work for my FFS. While I was there, I started thinking about what she had said. I have to admit that I use that phrase, in hopes to, what I think, will ease the shock to my friends when I tell them about me. Truth! I use it because of my fear of loosing them as friends. Stephanie is right in her post. The truth is my not the same person I used to be. I was using that phrase to help ease my own fears of loosing friends.

Yes, I still have the same moral values and for the most part, will still like the same things. But the real truth is, I am different now and my friends see it and they will either accept me or not, regardless of how I tell them.

I usually feel very safe at my doctors office where I get my lab work done. But today was a little different. When I first entered the building, I was deep in thought about Stephanie's post and didn't notice that everyone was staring at my. I checked in with the staff and, as always, they were very warm and friendly. I sat down and waited for my turn and noticed that everyone was still staring at me. As I made eye contact with some of them, they would look away, but others kept staring. I started feeling very uncomfortable. I was so worried that this one guy was going to say something. With my anxiety on high, I think I would of brain locked my self into oblivion.

I usually always get stares and handle them well. Maybe I was feeling a little more vulnerable today after reading Stephanie's post. I mean until now, I always thought I had a fairly decent handle on things. But in reality, I don't have a handle on anything. I will humbly keep moving forward in this wild journey that I have chosen. I appreciate everyone here at Susan's for all the help you give to us all.

Looking forward to my first voice therapy visit next week.

Hugs,
Donica.

Donica,
   There is a period  of time where being self conscious goes with the territory. It is not attached to you as an individual, more to the transition process itself. You must have faith that things will evolve for you. This is basic training, Trans 101, whatever you want to call it. The best thing to do is remind  yourself that this will be okay. Positive thoughts are the best thing for crowding out the negativity. You know what you want Lady, don't waiver, go for happiness! It takes some work though. Early on, I got sort of a sense of power by staring back til people looked away. Then I used a smile which I decided I liked better. I kind of saw it as regaining power. I established control of the situation with the smile. Either they were going to look away, smile back, or essentially declare themselves to be two legged skunks. It is a good way to hold the head up high too. People will respond better to warm, friendly, confident people. If you aren't confident, fake it til you make it. Oh, I too have days even now after a few years where it is hard not to worry what others think.
    A word about Laurie. She is a wonderful woman who came to visit me clear across the country when I had GCS. Unfortunately as she was leaving my room to go, my brother opened the door at the same time and smack, that's where the head injury happened. Ever since then Jeanette left and Laurie appeared. The trauma has had two effects. First she is unable to remember my name. Second, she has developed an intense jealously of my best friend Harvey. Of course, you have noticed her fondness for mentioning rabbits? It is now her obsession. Please humor the poor girl, she is capable of crazy thoughts. After all, what sane person obsesses over simply having a pooka?
Moni
@Laurie, there there, it will be okay, Honey!

Quote from: HappyMoni on September 14, 2018, 09:51:13 PM
@Laurie, there there, it will be okay, Honey!

And seriously, what's the deal with the obsession with refrigerators?

Thank you Moni for your encouraging words. I do use the smile and most of the time I get a smile back. But yesterday at the Kaiser building, there was so many people staring at me that I would have had to wear an almost constant smile as I looked at each person while walking through the building. I thought that would have been even creepier than all the people staring. It is suddenly taking alot more of my strength to remain positive and confident. It does help to remind myself that this is ok and that this is me and that I am sooo much happier now. I just need to remember that when things get nasty.

I unstand now. I didn't reallize that there was a head injury. It all makes sence now. All fun aside, Laurie is a wonderful selfless angel to all the help she gave to you and Michelle. God knows how many others she has help. Her kind words on this forum have help me alot. And with all the fun you ladies have back and fourth is very uplifting and helps to lighten the mood in an otherwise terrifying journey we all go through.

And yes! What is the deal with the obsession with refrigerators? I don't know if I should clean it, sit on it, or just leave everything up there and just dust it once in a while? I believe I once asked if there was some kind of hat that I would have to wear if I got sent to the refrigerator? ::)

Lots of hugs everyone! and thanks!
Donica

@Donica

QuoteI once asked if there was some kind of hat that I would have to wear if I got sent to the refrigerator?

(https://i3.cpcache.com/product/1630384799/I_love_My_Refrigerator_digital_design_Cap_300x300.jpg?height=300&width=300&qv=90&side=front)

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Quote from: Faith on September 15, 2018, 10:21:53 AM
@Donica

(https://i3.cpcache.com/product/1630384799/I_love_My_Refrigerator_digital_design_Cap_300x300.jpg?height=300&width=300&qv=90&side=front)

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LOL! That's lovely Faith. I was worried it would be more in the form of a dunce hat or something to that effect. I'll do that hat with bells on as I know I will most likely be sent to the refrigerator more than once ;D.

Hugs Faith!
Donica.

Quote from: Faith on September 15, 2018, 10:21:53 AM
@Donica

(https://i3.cpcache.com/product/1630384799/I_love_My_Refrigerator_digital_design_Cap_300x300.jpg?height=300&width=300&qv=90&side=front)

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Bwahhahahahaaaa!

Quote from: Steph2.0 on September 15, 2018, 11:09:01 AM
Bwahhahahahaaaa!

Oh dear! I sense something devious going on here? Are my refrigerator hat fears warranted?

Quote from: Donica on September 14, 2018, 04:33:03 PM
Well, not really an update, but I read a post from Stephanie in her "The Stephanie chronicles" thread about the "I'll still be me". I read it just before leaving for some lab work for my FFS. While I was there, I started thinking about what she had said. I have to admit that I use that phrase, in hopes to, what I think, will ease the shock to my friends when I tell them about me. Truth! I use it because of my fear of loosing them as friends. Stephanie is right in her post. The truth is my not the same person I used to be. I was using that phrase to help ease my own fears of loosing friends.

Yes, I still have the same moral values and for the most part, will still like the same things. But the real truth is, I am different now and my friends see it and they will either accept me or not, regardless of how I tell them.
...
I usually feel very safe at my doctors office where I get my lab work done. But today was a little different. When I first entered the building, I was deep in thought about Stephanie's post and didn't notice that everyone was staring at my.
...
Maybe I was feeling a little more vulnerable today after reading Stephanie's post. I mean until now, I always thought I had a fairly decent handle on things. But in reality, I don't have a handle on anything.

Oh my gosh, Donica. I'm so sorry my post messed you up. I post my stuff as a way to vent. It's often stream-of-consciousness stuff with only a little editing to make it coherent, and I don't stop to consider how it might affect others.

I get into the mode where I think everyone is staring, too, but in reality my mind is blowing things way out of proportion. My way of handling it if I feel that way is to just look right past them, but watch in my peripheral vision. More often than not, they were just looking my way and their eyes slide right on by. If it's obvious they're looking, I do as Moni suggests and give them a sunny smile. It's usually returned with the same smile.

You've got a much better handle on things than you want to acknowledge right now. Look at how far you've come, and the plans you have. You're doing great!

Please accept my apologies for ruining your mood. I'll be more careful in the future.

Stephanie

Quote from: Donica on September 15, 2018, 11:22:28 AM
Oh dear! I sense something devious going on here? Are my refrigerator hat fears warranted?

Oh no. Not an evil laugh (this time). Faith just cracked me up with the hat.  :D

An evil laugh goes like this: Mwuuhahahahahahaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah. Wheeze wheeze.

Stephanie

Quote from: Steph2.0 on September 15, 2018, 11:29:49 AM
Oh my gosh, Donica. I'm so sorry my post messed you up. I post my stuff as a way to vent. It's often stream-of-consciousness stuff with only a little editing to make it coherent, and I don't stop to consider how it might affect others.

I get into the mode where I think everyone is staring, too, but in reality my mind is blowing things way out of proportion. My way of handling it if I feel that way is to just look right past them, but watch in my peripheral vision. More often than not, they were just looking my way and their eyes slide right on by. If it's obvious they're looking, I do as Moni suggests and give them a sunny smile. It's usually returned with the same smile.

You've got a much better handle on things than you want to acknowledge right now. Look at how far you've come, and the plans you have. You're doing great!

Please accept my apologies for ruining your mood. I'll be more careful in the future.

Stephanie

Oh no Stephanie! Not at all girl. Your post opened my eyes and has helped me mature. Please,,,, there is absolutely no need for you to apologize. You didn't ruining anything and please,,, you don't have to be more careful in the future. It is your truth and honesty that helps many of us mature and get through the day with peace of mind. It was just as you mentioned, my mind blowing things way out of proportion. Everything ended well yesterday. It was just so creepy that this one guy was staring for so long with a disapproving look on his face that freaked me out. Again, he may have been having a bad day.

Oh, and good! I only got the crack me up laugh and not the evil laugh. My refrigerator hat fears are a thing of the past.

Honestly Stephanie, nothing but loving hugs girl!!!
Donica.

I just got a PM today on FB from some old friends we had back when the kids were young. Our kids and theirs went to the same schools and same scout troops. They have been following my transition on FB and have been very supportive.

The PM was to say hello and talk about the kids and the old days. They asked if I would like to get together sometime over lunch or dinner and reminisce. I was surprised they asked.

It would be nice but I haven't seen them in years and the only picture of me they have seen is over a year old, pre-HRT, wig and breast forms. I haven't posted any new pictures to FB yet. I'm feeling a little apprehensive. I'm still getting used to support groups, grocery stores and my doctors offices.

A little apprehensive nothing! I'm down right shaking in my pumps. I have yet to go that far out of my comfort zone by myself. I was thinking maybe when my daughter comes out to visit again, the two of us could get together with them?

IDK? Still thinking about it. Maybe I'll reply with that?

@Donica

Donica, if you don't mind me making a comment about myself again, I've been pushing my comfort zone every day for the past few weeks. People seem to have noticed an improvement in my mood.

I say go for it, push for all it's worth!  :)

Quote from: Donica on September 16, 2018, 04:27:56 PM
I just got a PM today on FB from some old friends we had back when the kids were young. Our kids and theirs went to the same schools and same scout troops. They have been following my transition on FB and have been very supportive.

The PM was to say hello and talk about the kids and the old days. They asked if I would like to get together sometime over lunch or dinner and reminisce. I was surprised they asked.

It would be nice but I haven't seen them in years and the only picture of me they have seen is over a year old, pre-HRT, wig and breast forms. I haven't posted any new pictures to FB yet. I'm feeling a little apprehensive. I'm still getting used to support groups, grocery stores and my doctors offices.

A little apprehensive nothing! I'm down right shaking in my pumps. I have yet to go that far out of my comfort zone by myself. I was thinking maybe when my daughter comes out to visit again, the two of us could get together with them?

IDK? Still thinking about it. Maybe I'll reply with that?

Donica,

They asked you! They're supportive and are on your side. For what my opinion is worth, I think they are the perfect people to make the first contact with. If you can summon the courage, you will be so glad you met up with them. Just beware of happy tears!

Stephanie

Thank you Stephanie! I did respond to their PM and told them it would be lovely to catch up with them again. They are friends with Jessica Lynn. Their daughter went to HS together. Wow! Small world. They gave me their phone number. I told them the next time my daughter comes to visit, we would call and do lunch or dinner. I'll feel more comfortable with my daughter being there with me. I can't wait. Yes, indeed. I'm still working on handling that new emotional thing that is a product of HRT. It seems my eye's leak a lot these days. Most of them are happy tears. I will update everyone when we get together. Hopefully with pictures too. Whooo hooo!!!

Lots of hugs Stephanie!
Donica.

Quote from: Faith on September 16, 2018, 04:41:56 PM
@Donica

Donica, if you don't mind me making a comment about myself again, I've been pushing my comfort zone every day for the past few weeks. People seem to have noticed an improvement in my mood.

I say go for it, push for all it's worth!  :)

Yes Faith! I've noticed that change in you as well. I'm glad to see it. It's time for me to stretch my boundaries too. And of course, you may make any comment you like girl. I welcome any and all comments from everyone.

P.S. Did Stephanie send that top yet? Or was it a dress?

Hugs,
Donica.

Hi Donica,

  I too wonder if it is a shirt or a dress and thanks to coming to your thread I have now seen the refrigerator hat. I love it!! Have you ordered yours yet? Yes you just may need one.  Faith and (St)eph((a(n)i)e) definitely need theirs.
  It's great that your friends reached out to you and that you are hopefully going to get together with them. You'll get used to being out on your own eventually but it sure is easier with someone. And you know the rules, Pics or it didn't happen!

Hugs,
   Laurie

Quote from: Laurie on September 17, 2018, 01:28:57 PM
Hi Donica,

  I too wonder if it is a shirt or a dress and thanks to coming to your thread I have now seen the refrigerator hat. I love it!! Have you ordered yours yet? Yes you just may need one.  Faith and (St)eph((a(n)i)e) definitely need theirs.
  It's great that your friends reached out to you and that you are hopefully going to get together with them. You'll get used to being out on your own eventually but it sure is easier with someone. And you know the rules, Pics or it didn't happen!

Hugs,
   Laurie

Oh dear!!! Faith! I need the link for the refrigerator hat. Amazon is it?

Thank you Laurie! Yes, my daughter really does make it easier for me. She is so sweet. I was surprised to find that she has many trans friends too. I'm getting better. I just shake off the gitters and onward I go. More updates and pictures to come soon.

Hugs Laurie!
Donica. 

Quote from: Donica on September 17, 2018, 01:16:34 PM
Yes Faith! I've noticed that change in you as well. I'm glad to see it. It's time for me to stretch my boundaries too. And of course, you may make any comment you like girl. I welcome any and all comments from everyone.

Thank you , on both counts :)

Quote
P.S. Did Stephanie send that top yet? Or was it a dress?

NO!  >:( At this point I think she needs to deliver it herself .. Air Mail !!

Quote from: Donica on September 17, 2018, 01:50:16 PM
Oh dear!!! Faith! I need the link for the refrigerator hat.

cafepress  I haven't seen it anywhere else.

Quote from: Laurie on September 17, 2018, 01:28:57 PM
Faith and (St)eph((a(n)i)e) definitely need theirs.

Say What?  :angel:  :angel:

Cafepress! Ok thanks! I probably should have kept my mouth shut because now everybody has to wear a hat when we get sent to the refrigerator ::).

Quote from: Faith on September 16, 2018, 04:41:56 PM
@Donica

Donica, if you don't mind me making a comment about myself again, I've been pushing my comfort zone every day for the past few weeks. People seem to have noticed an improvement in my mood.

I say go for it, push for all it's worth!  :)

@Faith
Dear Faith:
Your secret is out....  without and doubt, we have all noticed a big improvement and a happy change in your mood and your disposition as demonstrated by your recent posts on your thread and other various threads around the forums....   oh, and the fact that you have posted and kept up many of your terrific photos of yourself.  As I recall that it was not too long ago that you did not want any of your photos to appear on the threads and posts....

Thank you for coming out of your shell so we can all get to know you better and enjoy our sharing of thoughts and comments with you.... and you with us.
Hugs and more hugs,
Danielle

Grrr    >:(
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;D

Quote from: Faith on September 17, 2018, 06:16:14 PM
Grrr    >:(         where you were
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;D                where you are now

@Faith
I really like your graph!!!  If you can you always want to stay at the "blue" end !!!!
Hugs,
Danielle

I followed a link that Stephanie posted in her thread for a neckless she got. I ordered one that is just a little different. It's a treble and bass clef put together. I like how they rotated the treble clef upside down to form a heart. The chains are to short so I had to order longer chains. Thanks Steph! Off to the doctors.

(https://i.imgur.com/yAdCTEe.jpg)

Donica.

I love that necklace, Donica!  What an inspired design for someone who loves music!

Quote from: Donica on September 18, 2018, 09:57:44 AM
I followed a link that Stephanie posted in her thread for a neckless she got. I ordered one that is just a little different. It's a treble and bass clef put together. I like how they rotated the treble clef upside down to form a heart. The chains are to short so I had to order longer chains. Thanks Steph! Off to the doctors.

(https://i.imgur.com/yAdCTEe.jpg)

Donica.

I actually considered the heart shaped one, but went simple instead. I liked the quote on the one I have: "Music is what feelings sound like."

Nice choice, Donica. Enjoy!

Stephanie

Just a small update and another small step forward. A follow up with my PC for lab work and FFS this morning. He sent an email to the trans care coordinator nurse to help move things along. I will also call her after I finish up here.

It's going to be another busy week. Support group tonight. My first voice therapy is tomorrow morning. Another support group tomorrow night. Another grueling 4 hour visit with my so very lovely needle electrocutioner lady Thursday night.

Wheuu! I have to check my calender but I think I have Friday all to myself. Oh wait! Saturday is an all day local Pride Festival. Lord give me strength!

(https://i.imgur.com/4iOJlGE.jpg)

Hugs everyone!
Donica.

Quote from: Donica on September 18, 2018, 12:53:29 PM
Just a small update and another small step forward. A follow up with my PC for lab work and FFS this morning. He sent an email to the trans care coordinator nurse to help move things along. I will also call her after I finish up here.

It's going to be another busy week. Support group tonight. My first voice therapy is tomorrow morning. Another support group tomorrow night. Another grueling 4 hour visit with my so very lovely needle electrocutioner lady Thursday night.

Wheuu! I have to check my calender but I think I have Friday all to myself. Oh wait! Saturday is an all day local Pride Festival. Lord give me strength!

(https://i.imgur.com/4iOJlGE.jpg)

Hugs everyone!
Donica.

Looking nice, Donica! I just finished a two-hour HNT* session myself.

Don't forget to leave yourself time to breathe!

Stephanie

* Hot Needle Torture

Quote from: Donica on September 18, 2018, 12:53:29 PMAnother grueling 4 hour visit with my so very lovely needle electrocutioner lady Thursday night.

Yikes, I don't know how you ladies endure multi-hour face-frying sessions!  One hour is plenty (more than plenty, indeed) for me.

Still, I am glad that you are making progress.  You look great!

Quote from: KathyLauren on September 18, 2018, 01:28:26 PM
Yikes, I don't know how you ladies endure multi-hour face-frying sessions!  One hour is plenty (more than plenty, indeed) for me.

Still, I am glad that you are making progress.  You look great!

It's so much better since I switched to someone who uses blend instead of straight thermolysis. It's slower but I'm showing real progress finally, and she doesn't have to scrape me off the ceiling. It's substantially less expensive, too.

The only problem is it's 1:30 from home. So for a session I'm away for at least 5 hours, six if I stop for lunch - as I'm doing right now, in an excellent Greek restaurant at the sponge docks in Tarpon Springs. Yummy gyro! And they know how to treat you like a lady here!

Squeee!

Stephanie

Quote from: Steph2.0 on September 18, 2018, 12:57:50 PM

Looking nice, Donica! I just finished a two-hour HNT* session myself.

Don't forget to leave yourself time to breathe!

Stephanie

* Hot Needle Torture

Whooo Hooo!!! Taking a moment to breathe. I just contacted the TG care coordinator nurse and she is forwarding my FFS referral to Dr. Kim Woodland Hills. Oh dear, happy tear water leak. And another moment to breathe.

Oh yes Steph! HNT indeed! Someone at Susan's posted something about being able to fall asleep in her sessions. I think is was something like SNT? (Snooze no torture?)

That reminds me, I forgot to ask my PC doctor for a prescription for stronger numbing cream, as my lovely torture Queen suggested.

Hugs everyone!
Donica.

Quote from: KathyLauren on September 18, 2018, 01:28:26 PM
Yikes, I don't know how you ladies endure multi-hour face-frying sessions!  One hour is plenty (more than plenty, indeed) for me.

Still, I am glad that you are making progress.  You look great!

Thanks for your warm comments and your earlier comment about my new neckless Kathy! I thought it was cute how they made it look like a heart.

Stephanie is doing a different type of electrolysis and she may say it doesn't hurt as much (operative words "hurt as much"), I'll bet she still jumps on occasion. I have to do the hot needle torture and at first , it wasn't so bad. But now my torture Queen is getting into the areas with much more sensitivity. She has had to scrape me off the ceiling a few times now.

Now that I think about it, I think it was Steph that posted the "Snooze No Torture" comment when she switched over to the blend method.

Hugs,
Donica.

Quote from: Donica on September 18, 2018, 01:47:12 PMSomeone at Susan's posted something about being able to fall asleep in her sessions. I think is was something like SNT? (Snooze no torture?)

I did fall asleep once.  It was a day when I had a dental block so she could work on my upper lip.  Didn't feel a thing, and slept through my favourite part of the CD.

Quote from: Donica on September 18, 2018, 02:26:22 PM
Thanks for your warm comments and your earlier comment about my new neckless Kathy! I thought it was cute how they made it look like a heart.

Stephanie is doing a different type of electrolysis and she may say it doesn't hurt as much (operative words "hurt as much"), I'll bet she still jumps on occasion. I have to do the hot needle torture and at first , it wasn't so bad. But now my torture Queen is getting into the areas with much more sensitivity. She has had to scrape me off the ceiling a few times now.

Now that I think about it, I think it was Steph that posted the "Snooze No Torture" comment when she switched over to the blend method.

Hugs,
Donica.

It was me, but the acronym is HNN: Hot Needle Nap. [emoji12]

Quote from: Steph2.0 on September 18, 2018, 03:29:16 PM
It was me, but the acronym is HNN: Hot Needle Nap. [emoji12]

Oh yes, I remember now. HNT to HNN. I'll research the blend method to see how it works. BTW, Thanks for the warm comment in your earlier post.

Hugs Steph!

New update. Many of you may already know about all the new changes and coverages this year that Kaiser provides for the transgender community. I think the only thing that isn't covered now is a voice feminization surgery. One for the changes that isn't so great is that they will no longer approve for GRS pre-op hair removal until at least one year in RLE. And of course, along with all the rest of the normal requirements. Apparently not even filing a formal grievance with member services will help anymore. My electrolysis is telling me it could take up to a year to prep for GRS. So it's looking like almost two years before I can get a GRS. I can only guess that this has something to do with handling all the new coverages they now offer? It's probable that I will have to wait the extra time to get a surgery date anyway?

Bummed!
Donica.

Squeee! I just got a call from Dr. Kim's office. I have a consultation appointment for FFS next Wednesday. WHOOHOO!!! Happy happy happy!!!

 :icon_dance: :icon_dance: :icon_dance: :icon_dance:

happy for you

Thank you Faith!

I just realized there's something else I hate about HNT. I have to take off my new neckless ::).

I'm going to the Conejo Valley Pride 2018 festival today. It's an all day event. It sounds like it's going to be a lot of fun. I will update everyone later with pictures.

Enjoy the weekend everybody!
Donica.

Quote from: KathyLauren on September 18, 2018, 02:40:40 PM
I did fall asleep once.  It was a day when I had a dental block so she could work on my upper lip.  Didn't feel a thing, and slept through my favourite part of the CD.

I'm sorry I didn't comment on your post earlier Kathy. How can I get a dental block? I guess I'll have to visit my dentist. I'm not sure which ones worse. I sure could have used one last Thursday. My torture Queen did my upper lip too. She almost couldn't hold me down.

Hugs Kathy!
Donica.

Quote from: Donica on September 22, 2018, 11:38:17 AM
I'm sorry I didn't comment on your post earlier Kathy. How can I get a dental block? I guess I'll have to visit my dentist. I'm not sure which ones worse. I sure could have used one last Thursday. My torture Queen did my upper lip too. She almost couldn't hold me down.

Hugs Kathy!
Donica.

Yes, I went to my dentist.  She is very good at giving needles nearly painlessly.  It involved a bit of juggling to get the two appointments coordinated so I had enough time to get from one place to the other, but not so much time that the freezing was starting to wear off by the end of the electrolysis session.  We alternated sessions with upper and lower lips.

Most times, my dentist numbed the area with about 8 or 9 shots.  One time, she used 12 shots.  That was a bit much, and I was almost too loopy to drive.  She was very good about getting the freezing into the corners of my lips, which is hard to do, because the corners get nerves from both above and below.

I am still working on those areas, but all the mature hairs are gone, so I no longer need freezing.  The baby hairs don't need such a strong zap, and I can handle it on Emla.  Well, kind of.  I can  handle about 15 minutes of it before the Emla wears off and it is just too much.  So recent sessions have been 15 minutes of upper and/or lower lip, followed by the balance of the session on some other area.

I just got back from the Conejo Valley Pride festival. I was only there for 2 hours. It was hot, almost 90 degrees. The breeze helped. I ran into a few of my support group friend as well as making a few new friend. It wasn't as big as last years but it was still fun. I managed to walk through all the booths in about 20 minutes. The rest of the time was spent chatting with friends and the very lovely LGBTQIA+ team leader of the Indivisible Conejo group who is sponsoring a free makeup Clinic tomorrow morning that I will be attending. As you all know, I sooo need help in the makeup department.

I think I was swatting at a Bee with my right hand.
(https://i.imgur.com/J3q8ZlN.jpg)

The stage for this afternoon bands. Maybe I come back to get in some dancing.
(https://i.imgur.com/XNjQSXp.jpg)

The only other picture that wasn't blurry was kind of a missed random shot but it shows some the booths.
(https://i.imgur.com/2sbOeOM.jpg)

Tomorow morning,,,, onward to the much needed makeup Clinic.

Hugs Everybody!
Donica.

@Donica
Dear Donica:
WOW, almost 90 degrees there?   Here it has been wet, rainy and cold lately, today never got over 42 degrees.

Thank you for sharing your recap of your fun day at the Pride Festival.   
Your posted pictures were very nice see, you look wonderful and comfortable being yourself.
How was the makeup clinic???  Any good tips?

Thanks for posting your update.
Hugs and well wishes,
Danielle

@Donica
And I was thinking, "that should be Donica's profile picture". And behold :D

Very nice :)

Glad to see you out and about as yourself supporting our community.

Good job. I hope the makeup session is a good help for you.

Hugs,
  Laurie

Quote from: Donica on September 19, 2018, 04:21:32 PM
New update. Many of you may already know about all the new changes and coverages this year that Kaiser provides for the transgender community. I think the only thing that isn't covered now is a voice feminization surgery. One for the changes that isn't so great is that they will no longer approve for GRS pre-op hair removal until at least one year in RLE. And of course, along with all the rest of the normal requirements. Apparently not even filing a formal grievance with member services will help anymore. My electrolysis is telling me it could take up to a year to prep for GRS. So it's looking like almost two years before I can get a GRS. I can only guess that this has something to do with handling all the new coverages they now offer? It's probable that I will have to wait the extra time to get a surgery date anyway?

Bummed!
Donica.

But Kaiser does cover voice therapy, and they way things change, I wouldn't doubt surgery will soon be added.

Hugs and smiles from a California girl

Thank you Danielle, Faith, Laurie and Jessica for all your warm and encouraging comments. I had a great time and I didn't feel the least bit out of place. This morning I went to a free makeup clinic. I learned a lot of tricks and things  about makeup. One important lessen, I need to go with a eye liner pencil instead of a ink/gel type. As you can see, My upper eyelids overhang my eyelashes a bit and the ink/gel type smears before it dries. When I close my eye's I look like a raccoon lol. I think I would like a more burgundy color lipstick too. Well, what can I say? It was my first attemped at a full makeover. I'm not sure which one I like better? The before? or the after? I may post this in the before and after forum. I'll let you be the judge.

(https://i.imgur.com/aOX836R.jpg)(https://i.imgur.com/zSk9GUd.jpg)

Hugs,
Donica.

Hi, Donica.  I see what you are talking about with the eyeliner and lipstick, but I do prefer the 'after'.  You look good.

I've never tried gel or ink eyeliner.  Maybe I should.  I have tried the pencil type, but I can't really get the pencil to 'write', so the effect is very understated.  I probably should do a makeover so I can learn what the heck I am doing. ;)

Quote from: KathyLauren on September 23, 2018, 03:39:52 PM
Hi, Donica.  I see what you are talking about with the eyeliner and lipstick, but I do prefer the 'after'.  You look good.

I've never tried gel or ink eyeliner.  Maybe I should.  I have tried the pencil type, but I can't really get the pencil to 'write', so the effect is very understated.  I probably should do a makeover so I can learn what the heck I am doing. ;)

I think your right about the eyeliner pencil Kathy. The last time I used one, I almost poked my eye out trying to get it to write. The nice thing about he ink/gel type is that it's a color stay type that won't run when it dries. I could add some eyeshadow to help hide the smear. I understand they have a remover that works well too. I'll have to do some experimentation with it.

It's been another hectic week. I had my initial consultation with Dr. Kim for FFS yesterday. He took a few more pictures and ask what I wanted done. Hair line, forehead and brow ridges, raise the eyebrows and fix my upper eyelids because they sag. He said the bags under my eyes would be cosmetic but he said he would talk to the board and get it covered too. Rhinoplastic, Raise upper lip, jaw line and chin. He ordered a CT scan and will present my case to the board some time next week. If he can't get the board to cover my under eye bags, it will cost me $3170. Some things are a must and some things may not help or even turnout worse. It's all still up to the board just who much they will do.

I was very pleased with my consultation and Dr. Kim was very nice and friendly and explained everything in great detail. I am very happy and can't wait to get this behind me.

Hugs,
Donica.

Quote... can't wait to get this behind me ...

Oh, getting that worked on too? :D

Sorry, I'm in a mood today.

Quote from: Donica on September 27, 2018, 08:24:51 AM
It's been another hectic week. I had my initial consultation with Dr. Kim for FFS yesterday. He took a few more pictures and ask what I wanted done. Hair line, forehead and brow ridges, raise the eyebrows and fix my upper eyelids because they sag. He said the bags under my eyes would be cosmetic but he said he would talk to the board and get it covered too. Rhinoplastic, Raise upper lip, jaw line and chin. He ordered a CT scan and will present my case to the board some time next week. If he can't get the board to cover my under eye bags, it will cost me $3170. Some things are a must and some things may not help or even turnout worse. It's all still up to the board just who much they will do.

I was very pleased with my consultation and Dr. Kim was very nice and friendly and explained everything in great detail. I am very happy and can't wait to get this behind me.

Hugs,
Donica.

@Donica
Dear Donica:
Well now, all of this sounds like terrific news.   I can only imagine how excited you are to finally get your consultation and to explore your FFS possibilities.  Please continue to keep your followers updated about your next action regarding your proposed proceedure.

Thanks for your posting and update.
I am happy for you and wishing you well as always,
Hugs,
Danielle

Quote from: Faith on September 27, 2018, 08:33:32 AM
Oh, getting that worked on too? :D

Sorry, I'm in a mood today.

Haha Faith! I wish. Unfortunately there isn't much to work with back there ;D.

Quote from: Alaskan Danielle on September 28, 2018, 01:08:10 AM
@Donica
Dear Donica:
Well now, all of this sounds like terrific news.   I can only imagine how excited you are to finally get your consultation and to explore your FFS possibilities.  Please continue to keep your followers updated about your next action regarding your proposed proceedure.

Thanks for your posting and update.
I am happy for you and wishing you well as always,
Hugs,
Danielle

Thank you Danielle! You are always so warm and encouraging. It may be a month before I here back from the FFS team. I will update everyone as soon as I here from them.

Meanwhile, my voice feminization therapy and FHR (HNT) is well under way. One VFT session every two weeks and 2 to 4 hours of FHR per week. Yay!!!

I love your new avatar. You have such a beautiful and bright smile. Your smile is very powerful. It can brighten anyone's day.

Warm hugs girl!
Donica.

Quote from: Donica on September 28, 2018, 09:23:23 AM
Haha Faith! I wish. Unfortunately there isn't much to work with back there ;D.

:(

I've always had a small, flattish, male butt. Wednesday I put on some jeans, they fit more snug than I remembered. I showed my wife and she said, "You've got a girls butt, that's why"

Woo, time to revisit those 'too loose' jeans for me

OH, anyway, things may change in that department for you as well.

Quote from: Faith on September 28, 2018, 09:50:54 AM
:(

I've always had a small, flattish, male butt. Wednesday I put on some jeans, they fit more snug than I remembered. I showed my wife and she said, "You've got a girls butt, that's why"

Woo, time to revisit those 'too loose' jeans for me

OH, anyway, things may change in that department for you as well.

Oh yes, things definitely change in that area. I'm not sure about the butt for me, but the thighs! When wearing a skirt or dress, the chafing can get to be a real problem. Thankfully I discovered "slip shorts" which are a bit like long-legged underwear. They go halfway to my knees and take care of the chafing. Quite comfortable, too.


Stephanie

Quote from: Faith on September 28, 2018, 09:50:54 AM
:(

I've always had a small, flattish, male butt. Wednesday I put on some jeans, they fit more snug than I remembered. I showed my wife and she said, "You've got a girls butt, that's why"

Woo, time to revisit those 'too loose' jeans for me

OH, anyway, things may change in that department for you as well.

Yes Faith! I seem to be getting one of those too. But it's sure taking it's time getting here lol. Be sure to thank your wife for her wonderful comment.

Hugs girl!
Donica.

Quote from: Steph2.0 on September 28, 2018, 10:10:41 AM
Oh yes, things definitely change in that area. I'm not sure about the butt for me, but the thighs! When wearing a skirt or dress, the chafing can get to be a real problem. Thankfully I discovered "slip shorts" which are a bit like long-legged underwear. They go halfway to my knees and take care of the chafing. Quite comfortable, too.


Stephanie

Me too Steph! My thighs are growing must faster than my butt. I do hope my backside catches up soon. Thank God for stretchy jeans.

Hugs Steph!
Donica.

Quote from: Donica on September 28, 2018, 10:22:55 AM
Yes Faith! I seem to be getting one of those too. But it's sure taking it's time getting here lol. Be sure to thank your wife for her wonderful comment.

Hugs girl!
Donica.

HAH, I think my big grin took care of that. She said guys and gals that lean that way would both be checking me out (and I have seen guys lean to get a better look, just not at me)

Quote from: Steph2.0 on September 28, 2018, 10:10:41 AM
Oh yes, things definitely change in that area. I'm not sure about the butt for me, but the thighs! When wearing a skirt or dress, the chafing can get to be a real problem. Thankfully I discovered "slip shorts" which are a bit like long-legged underwear. They go halfway to my knees and take care of the chafing. Quite comfortable, too.

Stephanie

minimal thigh increase for me, at least on the inside. I do seem to have the appearance of hips ... getting curvy :D

Quote from: Faith on September 28, 2018, 10:33:21 AM
minimal thigh increase for me, at least on the inside. I do seem to have the appearance of hips ... getting curvy :D

I don't know if I'm getting hippy, but I do have a slight amount of scoliosis, which makes my left hip protrude just a bit more than my right. So my best side is my left, both for body shape and because of my hairline.


Stephanie

Hi everyone! I have been doing some research and following a few threads here at Susan's about FFS. I was planning to have my daughter help me get through the first week post-op. I am now thinking that I may want to get extra help during this period from a personal nurse. I have just started following Becca's FFS journey and she mentioned having a 72 hour nurse. I will be getting FFS through Kaiser SoCal (LA) Senior Advantage. I have been googling for post-op nursing care in SoCal but I'm not having much luck. I was wondering if anyone knows of such post-op nursing care in the LA/Ventura area?

Donica.

I have great news. Mid last month, I did my lab work for FFS. I had a follow-up with my PCP. He told me that my lab results came back anemic. So my PCP ordered more test. I have been worrying about this for the past month. The good news, My new lab results for my PCP and my Endo all came back normal. No anemia. None, nada, nothing, not a trace. It must have been a little hiccup. Weeeuuuwww! My E level is 157 pg/ml and T is 14 ng/dl. Yay!!! Back on track. I see my Endo next week. I hoping she will up my E dose a bit. One dreaded thing she is not going to let me slide on anymore is a mammogram ::).

Happy Hugs!
Donica.

Quote from: Donica on October 03, 2018, 11:12:54 AM
I have great news. Mid last month, I did my lab work for FFS. I had a follow-up with my PCP. He told me that my lab results came back anemic. So my PCP ordered more test. I have been worrying about this for the past month. The good news, My new lab results for my PCP and my Endo all came back normal. No anemia. None, nada, nothing, not a trace. It must have been a little hiccup. Weeeuuuwww! My E level is 157 pg/ml and T is 14 ng/dl. Yay!!! Back on track. I see my Endo next week. I hoping she will up my E dose a bit. One dreaded thing she is not going to let me slide on anymore is a mammogram ::).

Happy Hugs!
Donica.

@Donica
Dear Donica:   
Well, that is wonderful news, it is always good to get a 2nd confirmation test to make sure the first one that reported bad news is actually correct.   This is certainly a nice new updated report from your doctor.

Regarding your planned FFS, do have any kind of a proposed date that you might want that to happen?


Ahhhh, the much feared and dreaded MTF gauntlet of the Mammogram !!!  I have had 2 already and so far they are easy-peasy, no need to be self-conscious or fearful....  in fact the last mammogram I had was a wonderful affirmation, the technician just about choked when during our conversation as I had removed my top and bra... and ready for the "titty-squisher" procedure when I admitted that I was a trans-woman, they could not believe it!  Certainly a big boost to my female ego.   I consider the Mammogram to be a female right of passage!

Thank you for keeping us all up to date with your life goings-on.
Hugs and well wishes,
Danielle

Quote from: Donica on October 03, 2018, 11:12:54 AM

One dreaded thing she is not going to let me slide on anymore is a mammogram ::).

Great news on the lab tests, Donica!

As for the ma'am-o-gram, no worries. I wrote about it on my thread (of course), but when I got my first one it turned out to be a very cool affirming moment. Judy, the tech, had no idea I was trans until I admitted it. I had no choice after she asked how long it had been since my last one, and I had to say never. She was just awesome about it. I'm sure you'll be fine, too.

Stephanie

Ha! Nice one, Danielle. We posted almost identical stories at the same time!

Stephanie

Quote from: Alaskan Danielle on October 03, 2018, 11:39:15 AM
@Donica
Dear Donica:   
Regarding your planned FFS, do have any kind of a proposed date that you might want that to happen?

Thank you for keeping us all up to date with your life goings-on.
Hugs and well wishes,
Danielle

I was thinking it wouldn't happen until early next year. But my support group friends are saying it could happen before the end of this year. It would be great if I could get done in early December. I still have 3 weeks before I here back from Dr. Kim.

I love your description "The Titty-Squisher". I haven't heard that one before. On a funny note, one of my support group sisters asked the tech if she would squish it a little harder lol. She is a silly women :D.

Edit: Thank you both Danielle and Stephanie for the ma'am-o-gram encouragement. I guess there's no hiding the trans thing if this is my first titty-squisher. Or may, if the tech asks when my last one was, I'll say "last year of course". Or not.

Hugs Danielle!
Donica.

Did my nails in preparation for tonight's Gala. This is my first Gala. I'm going to wear a long white gown with pink flowers and a white sweeter. Full makeup with pale pink lipstick. I will be wearing my new silver strappy sandals with 1 inch heels. I'm already tall, I don't need to be any taller ;). I will also be wearing the diamond necklace on the left in the picture from a earlier post. I will post updates and hopefully pictures too, tomorrow because I'm sure I will be getting home too late for an update tonight. I almost forgot, I bought a new pair of diamond earrings for the occasion.

(https://i.imgur.com/CrDhGj6.jpg)

I know! I know! Pictures or it didn't happen.

Hugs,
Donica

Here's the earrings. I ordered a pair diamond danglies over a month ago from Amazon. They are still out for delivery, stuck on the road somewhere.

(https://i.imgur.com/Ktpkmmd.jpg)

Oops! I'm sorry for withholding! The Gala is sponsored by The Diversity Collective of Ventura County. Tickets start at $54 and go as high as $500+. We booked a table for 8 for our support group friends. It's going to be a fun night.

Donica.

Wish you a great time, have a few G&T's for me (on a detox )

Quote from: davina61 on October 06, 2018, 04:52:58 PM
Wish you a great time, have a few G&T's for me (on a detox )

Oh, not for me thanks. Maybe a glass of vino when I get home.

Quote from: Donica on October 06, 2018, 10:52:00 AM
Did my nails in preparation for tonight's Gala. This is my first Gala. I'm going to wear a long white gown with pink flowers and a white sweeter. Full makeup with pale pink lipstick. I will be wearing my new silver strappy sandals with 1 inch heels. I'm already tall, I don't need to be any taller ;). I will also be wearing the diamond necklace on the left in the picture from a earlier post. I will post updates and hopefully pictures too, tomorrow because I'm sure I will be getting home too late for an update tonight. I almost forgot, I bought a new pair of diamond earrings for the occasion.

(https://i.imgur.com/CrDhGj6.jpg)

I know! I know! Pictures or it didn't happen.

Hugs,
Donica

@Donica
Dear Donica:
Thank you for posting the pictures....  beautiful matching colors for your fingernails and your toenails... nice job doing them yourself!!!
Very nice job... and very pretty nails...

Hugs and well wishes going to your event!!!
Danielle

Quote from: Donica on October 06, 2018, 11:16:17 AM
Here's the earrings. I ordered a pair diamond danglies over a month ago from Amazon. They are still out for delivery, stuck on the road somewhere.

(https://i.imgur.com/Ktpkmmd.jpg)

Oops! I'm sorry for withholding! The Gala is sponsored by The Diversity Collective of Ventura County. Tickets start at $54 and go as high as $500+. We booked a table for 8 for our support group friends. It's going to be a fun night.

Donica.

@Donica
Dear Donica:
Wowzers.... very beautiful earrings!!!    Enjoy yourself at the Gala event... and it sounds like that you will have a great time with your support group friends and at you table for 8.... a fun time which I am sure that you will post some pictures.

Hugs and hoping that you will have a great time.
Danielle

Quote from: Alaskan Danielle on October 06, 2018, 06:38:31 PM
@Donica
Dear Donica:
Wowzers.... very beautiful earrings!!!    Enjoy yourself at the Gala event... and it sounds like that you will have a great time with your support group friends and at you table for 8.... a fun time which I am sure that you will post some pictures.

Hugs and hoping that you will have a great time.
Danielle

OMG, I was told I am beautiful repeatedly tonight. Everyone I meant told me they love my dress. Yes I said I would update you all tomorrow but I just couldn't wait. OMG there was a lot of money flowing around there tonight. Had a wonderful time. I will update tomorrow with pictures. Hay ladies, SoCal rocks.


Sent from my XT1585 using Tapatalk

Thank you Danielle! The Diversity Gala was a huge success. The Diversity Collective of Ventura County are wonderful people. The Oxnard Heritage Square is a beautiful place. There are some 11 historic homes, a church and a few other building from the old days around Oxnard that have been moved here, restored and preserved. They are stunning.

(https://i.imgur.com/W7GiacU.jpg)  (https://i.imgur.com/O2SogY4.jpg)

The goody bags and the podium.
    (https://i.imgur.com/zKthBqP.jpg)

Congresswomen Julia Brownley.
    (https://i.imgur.com/i8R4Pma.jpg)

I had to show some of to homes after dark. Beautiful!
(https://i.imgur.com/Nss7wDf.jpg)  (https://i.imgur.com/JxO6CQr.jpg)

(https://i.imgur.com/BRqERhZ.jpg)

Mayor Tim Flynn and Councilwomen Carmen Ramiren were also some of the many speakers. Wonderful performances by VC Loud @ Queer, some of which brought tears to my eyes. Neil and Keith Coffman-Grey from AIDS/HIV Awareness were given the Diversity Gala Vanguard Award. An Auction, I believe was provided? by the Ventura County Rainbow folks. One of the items was a weekend stay at one of the resorts in Palm Springs and all the wine you can drink, valued at $6500. It was auctioned off for $1200. Wow!

Everyone was so friendly. I couldn't believe how many compliments I got all night. I didn't take a selfie of me at the Gala but you can see Ava trying to photo bomb one for my evening pictures of the homes.

I didn't overdo my makeup did I?
    (https://i.imgur.com/96rbsCm.jpg)

Ave took a panoramic picture of the Gala and she posted it on FB. You can see me looking at my phone ::). I had a wonderful time and definitely a must do next year.

Hugs,
Donica.

BTW! I know why Grandma doesn't wear heels. I was sooooo glad to kick them off last night.

Donica, it is clear you had a wonderful time at the gala.  Thanks for the pictures, it looks like it's real.
The pool party in Northern California here at my place was an evening full of "Where's Donica and Danielle?"
Are pictures of us skinny dipping allowed?......I think not!!!

Hugs and smiles from a Northern California girl

@Donica
Dear Donica:
WOW ........ wonderful photos of all the things going on at your gala event.... and you look terrific in your new photo too.   Hmmm, what was in the goody bags ???

Oh yeah, getting those high heels off of your feet after being on them all day can indeed be a big relief!!!! 
For relief my suitor #4 and I exchange very enjoyable foot massages from time to time when we are out and about all dressed up....  I recommend it for everyone.

Thanks for posting about your happy time at the Gala Event and the wonderful photos.  The weather here lately would not cooperate with a similar outdoor event.

Hugs and well wishes,
Danielle

Quote from: Jessica on October 07, 2018, 05:38:31 PM
Donica, it is clear you had a wonderful time at the gala.  Thanks for the pictures, it looks like it's real.
The pool party in Northern California here at my place was an evening full of "Where's Donica and Danielle?"
Are pictures of us skinny dipping allowed?......I think not!!!

Hugs and smiles from a Northern California girl

@Jessica
Dear Jess:
Well, regarding your "after 10K race" pool party.... it seems that @Donica had a wonderfully enjoyable alternative..... but me, not so much... my Saturday nite was very uneventful, cold and wet day outside, stayed in and had my chair in front of my propane stove and sat and read a book most of the evening...  I enjoy doing that but....  .....  I missed the good times at your home pool party and the good times with Donica.
 
I could feel sorry for myself, but I am a happy girl in spite of all those disappointments.

Hugs and hugs,
Danielle

Oh dear, yes, private indeed girl.

Quote from: Jessica on October 07, 2018, 05:38:31 PM
Donica, it is clear you had a wonderful time at the gala.  Thanks for the pictures, it looks like it's real.
The pool party in Northern California here at my place was an evening full of "Where's Donica and Danielle?"
Are pictures of us skinny dipping allowed?......I think not!!!

Hugs and smiles from a Northern California girl

Sent from my XT1585 using Tapatalk

Donica, sorry I'm late. I was a bit .. indisposed .. You look wonderful. I'm glad you had a great time out. There's nothing quite like being out and about as yourself. The only thing better is doing it at a party (or social event, which you can change to a party)

faith

Great photos, Donica!

Quote from: Donica on October 07, 2018, 11:58:39 AM
I didn't overdo my makeup did I?
    (https://i.imgur.com/96rbsCm.jpg)

Not at all.  You look great!

You look fantastic Donna! Sounds like it was a great event, so nice to see powerful supporters attending.

Hugs,

Sarah

Dear Danielle, Sarah, Kathy, Jessica, Faith and Davina!
Thank you all so much for your lovely replies. It was a wonderful night for all of use. We only had one vacant seat at our table. Our wayward sister had some unexpected minor issues just before the Gala. This group of friends are from my Trans Alliance Ventura support group which meets every first and third Tuesday night of each month. We had 5 lovely sisters and 2 handsome Gents at our table. I think there was around 100 people there but who's counting? The event lasted from 5:PM till well past 9:PM. I don't think they closed the place until 10:PM.

There was a lot of booths with local business donors, sponsors and caterers with just about any kind of food you wanted. Oh yes, there was even an open bar :icon_drunk: Yes, I had  just 2 glasses of Chardonnay :angel:

As for the contents of the goodie bags, There's a bandana from the Coastal Orthodontic care group, which will come in handy post-op FFS, a free HIV Rapid Test complete with 4 prophylactics ???, A BECAUSE Community Memorial Health Systems notebook with tabs, a couple of ball point pins and a few invitations to things like AIDS Walk next year, and some from the surrounding area support groups and businesses. The usual goodie bag stuff.

Thank you all again for your wonderful comments.
Warm hugs,
Donica.

Just a quick update. I just got back from my tri-monthly follow-up visit with my Endocrinologist. I talked to her about changing over to Estradiol Valerate self injections. I went in armed with a very interesting read by Dr. William Powers that SassyCassie and Stephanie talked about in their threads. I talked to her about Dr. Powers findings on the imbalance levels of estradiol, estrone and total serum estrogen and there effects on MTF development, as well as his beliefs that estradiol should be closer to 300 pg/ml.

1: Kaiser follows the WPATH protocol for transgender health, so my doctor is bound to those standards. Which mean estradiol at 200 pg/ml max for younger patients, and in my case, (older patients) my doctor feels it's safer to be at 157 pg/ml or less and no progesterone. (She did say maybe on the progesterone after my GCS and I get off spiro).

2: Kaiser does not require my doctor to monitor estrone and total serum estrogen. They are only required to monitor estradiol levels, along with all the other important vitals. My doctor does agree with Dr. Powers but her point is that if the level of estrone and total serum estrogen were that high, my estradiol level would be very low, in which case my doctor would increase my estradiol. Since the amount of estradiol I take is in a normal range, and my blood levels of estradiol is where she wants it (cis female range), there is no concern.

3: My Endo is very happy to put me on estradiol valerate self injections. However, the Valerate seems to be in short supply so she would put me on MI? injections. The same results as Valerate. In her opinion, there would be no benefit to change over to injections, other than less wear and tear on the liver and kidneys. And since my liver and kidney functions are well within the normal range, she doesn't see the point of putting me through the extra pain of injections. (Valerate and MI is a think oil base and requires a deep muscle injection, which is why the needle is so long.)

So, not being convinced, or at least not sure that the injections would produce a better result, I guess for the time being, I will stay with the oral pill. I have always herd that the injections produce a better result, but as with progesterone, it depend on who you talk to and the fact that YMMV. Wandering through the dark, wanting nothing but the best for myself, I will continue my research and maybe in three months, I'll switch.

Oh ya! My Endo didn't let me get away without a mammogram this time. She just looked at me with this big ear to ear smile and said, "Welcome to the club Donica!".

Warm hugs,
Donica.

Quote from: Donica on October 15, 2018, 04:33:33 PM
Just a quick update. I just got back from my tri-monthly follow-up visit with my Endocrinologist. I talked to her about changing over to Estradiol Valerate self injections. I went in armed with a very interesting read by Dr. William Powers that SassyCassie and Stephanie talked about in their threads. I talked to her about Dr. Powers findings on the imbalance levels of estradiol, estrone and total serum estrogen and there effects on MTF development, as well as his beliefs that estradiol should be closer to 300 pg/ml.

1: Kaiser follows the WPATH protocol for transgender health, so my doctor is bound to those standards. Which mean estradiol at 200 pg/ml max for younger patients, and in my case, (older patients) my doctor feels it's safer to be at 157 pg/ml or less and no progesterone. (She did say maybe on the progesterone after my GCS and I get off spiro).

2: Kaiser does not require my doctor to monitor estrone and total serum estrogen. They are only required to monitor estradiol levels, along with all the other important vitals. My doctor does agree with Dr. Powers but her point is that if the level of estrone and total serum estrogen were that high, my estradiol level would be very low, in which case my doctor would increase my estradiol. Since the amount of estradiol I take is in a normal range, and my blood levels of estradiol is where she wants it (cis female range), there is no concern.

3: My Endo is very happy to put me on estradiol valerate self injections. However, the Valerate seems to be in short supply so she would put me on MI? injections. The same results as Valerate. In her opinion, there would be no benefit to change over to injections, other than less wear and tear on the liver and kidneys. And since my liver and kidney functions are well within the normal range, she doesn't see the point of putting me through the extra pain of injections. (Valerate and MI is a think oil base and requires a deep muscle injection, which is why the needle is so long.)

So, not being convinced, or at least not sure that the injections would produce a better result, I guess for the time being, I will stay with the oral pill. I have always herd that the injections produce a better result, but as with progesterone, it depend on who you talk to and the fact that YMMV. Wandering through the dark, wanting nothing but the best for myself, I will continue my research and maybe in three months, I'll switch.

Oh ya! My Endo didn't let me get away without a mammogram this time. She just looked at me with this big ear to ear smile and said, "Welcome to the club Donica!".

Warm hugs,
Donica.

Hi Donica, I have Kaiser also.  My endo is a bit conservative and tricked me into a dose lower than I thought.  Luckily I questioned it where a stand in endo replied with acknowledging that something was screwy and basically stepped in and set a proper dosage.  I will be requesting a change in doctors.

Hi Jessica. Yes my Endo started me on a low dose in the beginning but 6 months in she increased my dose to where it is today.

On another note, I requested a new Kaiser member card with my new name and gender on it from the My-Kaiser website. I even sent a message that read, "Please make sure my new card have my new name and gender on it." They even sent me a reply stating "Yes, your personal information has been updated and you will receive your new card soon." They sent me a card with my dead name and gender on it????? So, off I go to member services and try again ???.

Hugs,
Donica.

Tomorrow marks the 6th week since I filed my legal documents for name and gender change. The clerk told me my court order would be ready by then. I have been checking the local superior courts website for my case status and it is still pending.

On September 1st 2018, California changed the laws for name and gender change. We no longer have to appear in court before a judge and no longer need a Declaration of Physician. One of my support group sisters filed her documents on September 3rd and I filed mine 4 days later. She happened to be the first person to file under the new laws. Her court order was supposed to be done by Monday of this week, with mine being ready by tomorrow But,,,,,

There seems to be some confusion assigning the cases as they are no longer assigned to a physical courtroom but still have to be assigned to a judge for signing. Where to go? What to do? Since my friend and I are the first to begin receiving our documents, we are the first and only ones that have started calling and lighting the fires under the systems back sides. My friend has already been calling the courthouse trying to find out where to go from here. She was told it may take another 3 weeks to correct the issues ::).

I will check their website again tomorrow and then if nothing has changed, I will begin calling too. By then they should be getting a few more calls from confused petitioners.

And still,,,,, we wait.
Donica.

Yes bet nobody told the judges what was happening

Just a quick update. I had my second voice therapy session yesterday. It was like my first session except I met my permanent therapist. It was more of a meet and greet, getting to know my needs. I have been having trouble with hoarseness several times a week. I thought it might be from over practicing my feminine voice, but my therapist thinks it may be do to what she calls vocal hygiene. Less coffee, more water and using different methods for clearing my throat. Like humming and swallowing, sips of water and a few other interesting methods. I need to stop clearing my throat ???. Next session, in two weeks, begins my voice training exercises.

I called the courthouse last Friday about the status of my name and gender change petition and the civil clerk told me that my documents were sent to the judge earlier that day and to expect my court order to be ready by this Wednesday. I will call again tomorrow.

Tomorrow will be one month since my first consult with Dr. Kim for FFS. He told me it would take that long to get back to me and schedule my next consult. I will also begin calling him tomorrow. Fingers crossed!

On a happier note, we where invited to a LAPD Chief Of Police LGBTQ community outreach forum tonight. There will be a few speakers and some Q&A. The LA county LGBTQ events tend to be quite large. The whole thing is going to be streamed live on FB. My daughter is in town. I thought we would go together. It was very short notice. I just heard about it this morning.

Hugs,
Donica.

A while back I posted about some old friends that contacted me after coming out on FB. Our kids grew up together in school and scouts. They wanted to get together over dinner to catch up on old times. That dinner was last night and I'm glad we did. We all had so much fun. I want to thank everyone here for encouraging me to do this.

The women sitting across from me on the left is one of my old friends. Her SO had to work the night shift so he couldn't join us. Her lovely daughter is sitting next to her. My lovely daughter is sitting next to me on the right.

(https://i.imgur.com/H7fbmcp.jpg)

There was a colorful elderly (81 year old) gentleman with his wife that stopped by our table to compliment how lovely us gals looked :-*. (There was alot of giggling and laughter going on). We asked him if he would take a picture of us but he misunderstood and thought we asked him to be in the picture. He replied, " Why yes! I'd love to!", and sat down next to my friend.

Our wonderful and very colorful photo bomber.
(https://i.imgur.com/63G8vDd.jpg)

He was full of compliments but had to leave because his wife was giving him a bit of a stink eye lol. She was very lovely too actually.

We had such a wonderful time that we will be doing this again when my friends SO and her sister and her SO can all get together again. My friends sister grew up with Jessica Lynn and maybe she will join us too when she's not traveling the world Speaking on behalf of the LGBT community. She really gets around.

Big hugs everyone!
Donica.

Hi Donica,

  What a lovely group of ladies. Oh that poor man is in trouble for sure when they get to their car. Oh My! you naughty girls.

Hugs,
  Laurie

GOL! ;D

Quote from: Donica on October 26, 2018, 12:21:06 PM
A while back I posted about some old friends that contacted me after coming out on FB. Our kids grew up together in school and scouts. They wanted to get together over dinner to catch up on old times. That dinner was last night and I'm glad we did. We all had so much fun. I want to thank everyone here for encouraging me to do this.

The women sitting across from me on the left is one of my old friends. Her SO had to work the night shift so he couldn't join us. Her lovely daughter is sitting next to her. My lovely daughter is sitting next to me on the right.

(https://i.imgur.com/H7fbmcp.jpg)

There was a colorful elderly (81 year old) gentleman with his wife that stopped by our table to compliment how lovely us gals looked :-*. (There was alot of giggling and laughter going on). We asked him if he would take a picture of us but he misunderstood and thought we asked him to be in the picture. He replied, " Why yes! I'd love to!", and sat down next to my friend.

Our wonderful and very colorful photo bomber.
(https://i.imgur.com/63G8vDd.jpg)

He was full of compliments but had to leave because his wife was giving him a bit of a stink eye lol. She was very lovely too actually.

We had such a wonderful time that we will be doing this again when my friends SO and her sister and her SO can all get together again. My friends sister grew up with Jessica Lynn and maybe she will join us too when she's not traveling the world Speaking on behalf of the LGBT community. She really gets around.

Big hugs everyone!
Donica.

@Donica
Dear Donica:  
Wow, thank you for posting your terrific update.... 
I will repeat what the older gentleman stated.... "What a lovely group of ladies."

It looked like that all of you and your daughters had a wonderful time....
.... and Donica, you do indeed look lovely!!!

Hugs and hugs,
Danielle

Oh my dear God!!! I just got the news a few minutes ago. My name and gender change has been approved. I am soooo in tears right now. Case Status: Post Judgment. Name change: Granted. Gender change: Granted. Issuance of new birth certificate: Granted. I am so happy!!! I am now legally Miss Donica.

Also, I got an email from Dr. Kim this morning. I have been approved for FFS!!! Yay!!!! He said he would call me today to go over all the details.

I want to take a drive out to Venture today and get my certified copies of my court order but I don't want to be on the road and miss Dr. Kim's call. The tears are too heavy right now to drive anyway. I'll just chill today and let it all sink in. I will update again after I hear from Dr. Kim.

These are just the things I needed to hear right now. <<SQUEEEEEEEESPLOSION!!!!!>>

Big hugs!!!
Donica.

Quote from: Donica on November 02, 2018, 01:29:42 PM
Oh my dear God!!! I just got the news a few minutes ago. My name and gender change has been approved. I am soooo in tears right now. Case Status: Post Judgment. Name change: Granted. Gender change: Granted. Issuance of new birth certificate: Granted. I am so happy!!! I am now legally Miss Donica.

Also, I got an email from Dr. Kim this morning. I have been approved for FFS!!! Yay!!!! He said he would call me today to go over all the details.

I want to take a drive out to Venture today and get my certified copies of my court order but I don't want to be on the road and miss Dr. Kim's call. The tears are too heavy right now to drive anyway. I'll just chill today and let it all sink in. I will update again after I hear from Dr. Kim.

These are just the things I needed to hear right now. <<SQUEEEEEEEESPLOSION!!!!!>>

Big hugs!!!
Donica.

@Donica
Dear Donica:
Wow-Whee and Wowzers.....   this is fantastic news and so affirming for you ...  I bet that you are on cloud 9 and overcome with emotion....   long awaited events that not too long ago you could only dream about.... and they all came today!!!

Thank you for sharing and letting your followers celebrate with you.
Hugs and hugs,
Danielle

Quote from: Donica on November 02, 2018, 01:29:42 PM
Oh my dear God!!! I just got the news a few minutes ago. My name and gender change has been approved. I am soooo in tears right now. Case Status: Post Judgment. Name change: Granted. Gender change: Granted. Issuance of new birth certificate: Granted. I am so happy!!! I am now legally Miss Donica.

Also, I got an email from Dr. Kim this morning. I have been approved for FFS!!! Yay!!!! He said he would call me today to go over all the details.

I want to take a drive out to Venture today and get my certified copies of my court order but I don't want to be on the road and miss Dr. Kim's call. The tears are too heavy right now to drive anyway. I'll just chill today and let it all sink in. I will update again after I hear from Dr. Kim.

These are just the things I needed to hear right now. <<SQUEEEEEEEESPLOSION!!!!!>>

Big hugs!!!
Donica.

I'm glad I was on the forums to read this. Congratulations!!!!

Relax, deep breathes, inhale slowly and hold
... go it? ...
Ok now .....
.
.
.
.
.
!!!!SCREAM!!!!

Oh Gezzz! I don't know what to say now. I can't stop crying. The last time I was this happy was 14 months age when I started HRT. We wait so long for our dreams to come true that when they do, there is a flood of overwhelming emotions. This is going to take the weekend to sink in.

Thank you Danielle and Faith for you warm thoughts. I need to regain my composure before I can SCREAM!!!. I'm going to bang around the forum and read and post. This should slow the water works down a bit.

Hugs,
Donica.

And I thought all the wizzes and bangs were the fire works ( its bonfire night Nov 5th and some have started early) but I could hear some earlier and non to be seen so it must have been that trans Atlantic SCREAM I heard. Congrats dear,XXXX

Thank you Davina! Yes the fireworks are definitely happening on this side of the pond.

I couldn't wait. Oh geeezzz! There goes the water works again. I thought I had it under control.

(https://i.imgur.com/jiXLqFX.jpg)

I haven't heard from Dr. Kim yet. I'm guessing it will be Monday. Never the less, I will call his office Monday morning to let him know I will be in the building for my VFT appointment that day. I'm going to try and head out early Monday morning for the court house  to get my certified copies and get back in time for his call.

Hugs,
Donica.

Dang! I missed Dr. Kim's call yesterday. He called right at the end of the day and left a voice message. His office was already closed when he left his message so I was unable to call him back :(. He said he would be in surgery all day Monday so it will probably be Tuesday before I hear from him.

I'm okay with this because it's only been 5 weeks since my first FFS consultation and these things some times take longer than that. I am curious why he doesn't just make an appointment to discuss the details of my surgery?

Anyway, I sent him an email letting him know I got his message and will be looking forward to discussing the details with him next week.

Meanwhile, I will be off to the court house bright and early Monday morning to get my certified copies of my court order. The picture of the court order I posted is just an uncertified copy I received in the mail yesterday.

It's going to be another busy week. As our northern star sister has stated, "A busy girl is a happy girl".

Hugs,
Donica.

Wow-Whee!!! Congratulations on the name change! I have seen it over and over, getting legal recognition of who you are, is one of the biggest and very emotional steps. I am so happy for you!!!!

Emotions are a double edged sword, for years I was considered emotionally challenged and having difficulty showing and expressing emotions. Estrogen changed all this, now I can cry over the silliest things, often just my kid being or doing something cute. It does take quite some time to learn how to handle these new emotions, I am still very far away from this point. I still never want to go back and I enjoy hoeing these emotions... now I am tearing up a little.

Feeling happy during transition is an interesting topic. We all have such a long way to go, and there are many steps and gates to cross. The first six months after starting HRT have been all exciting and full of joy. After I went full time, with had accomplished a few hurdles and I knew the next steps where far away, so I had plateaued. What followed was a lot less joyful. Now with the prospect of surgery my mood hs really improved and I am getting really happy again.

I hope soon you will feel better again as well!

Good luck with all the name change paperwork. I hope you get to have a longer discussion with Dr. Kim...

Hugs,

Sarah

Thank you for the kind words Sarah. I agree my name and gender change is a very affirming and emotional step forward in my transition. I put it up there with FFS and voice therapy as the three most important steps in our lives. GCS and the rest is the icing on the cake.

The emotions I'm feeling are happy ones that I would have never experienced had it not been for HRT. Like you, it is going to take me a long time to learn to control them. The learning process is such a wonderful feeling isn't it?

I did not know you were feel a bit down as all of your post around the forum, and your personal thread, have always seemed so upbeat and cheerful. I do understand how things can seem so far away and sometimes disappointing and stalled as I have been there myself.

I am very happy to hear that your new prospects for surgery has put you back in a joyful mood again. We all need to do your best to keep a positive attitude through all the long periods, steps and hoops we all must jump through an just keep moving forward. All these things WILL happen.

Happy hugs Sarah!
Donica.

It has been a busy week. I made it to the court house early Monday morning to pickup my certified copies of my court order and while walking up to the entrance, A women walking out looked at me and said "That's pretty!" (Flower skirt and matching blouse with black ballet flats and full makeup). Squeee!

I made it back in time to stop at the SSA office to change my name and gender for SSA and Medicare. Then to my PCP to pickup my physicians declaration DMV form and pickup a prescription. I made it home with an hour to spare before my voice therapy session. The rest of the week was filled with changing name and gender at my bank, work and utilities etc.... I have to wait for my new SSA card before I can go the DMV next week.

I finally got my second consult via phone call from Dr. Kim for my FFS. I am so happy I was approved for everything I wanted. Forehead and brow ridge recontouring, hairline correction, brow lift, rhinoplasty, mandible and chin recontouring. I don't need a tracheal shave. I was not approved for a lip lift and reshaping because my upper lip length is at the limit (18mm) of a cis women. I asked Dr. Kim for his opinion and he feels it will definitely give me a more feminine look. I wanted it anyway so it will cost an extra $1500 to have it done. SQUEEEHAPPINESS!!!

Dr. Kim has scheduled a CAT scan for next week and will schedule a pre-op consultation in few weeks to finilize all the procedures and sign all the forms. I'm sure he will need a downpayment for the lip lift. He told me he should be able to get me in by January or February of 2019, or as early as this December if there is a cancelation.

Hugs,
Donica.

Wow! Donica CONGRATULATIONS!! on everything. Yes I have missed a lot as I haven't been online for long enough periods to keep up with people I'd like to. Just go on leaping past me as I drag my feet waiting on Kaiser here. Well okay I didn't turn in my letters to them yet because I haven't gotten them from the VA yet. That should happen next week.  I am glad you are being approved and will be getting FFS soon. EXCITING for sure for you.

Hugs,
  Laurie

Sorry it took so long to get back to you Laurie. It's been a little hectic around here the past few days. Thank you for your warm comments. You know the drill. Consistent phone calls and emails to the VA to get your letters. I believe I mentioned to you before that you will love Kaiser.

They are getting easier and easier to work with all the time. Trans care has been a learning curve for them in dealing with the high number folks seeking services. New facilities are opening everywhere in SoCal now, making it easier to handle the work load. The waiting period for FFS in SoCal in now only 2 to 3 months. I hear they are working on opening new facilities in NorCal too.

Hugs,
Donica.

Donica, I have just caught up on your thread and I am feeling elated on your recent successes.
You also give me food for thought when it comes to California changing your name on documents.  I too, as you know, live in California.  One question is about your birth certificate....we're you born in CA?  I was born in Washington and think I would need to go through them.

Hugs and smiles from another California girl

Quote from: Jessica on November 11, 2018, 11:35:17 AM
Donica, I have just caught up on your thread and I am feeling elated on your recent successes.
You also give me food for thought when it comes to California changing your name on documents.  I too, as you know, live in California.  One question is about your birth certificate....we're you born in CA?  I was born in Washington and think I would need to go through them.

Hugs and smiles from another California girl

Dear Jessica! Yes, I was born in North Hollywood, California. Your court order will include a order to amend your birth certificate. You will need your origional birth certificate to fill out the VS24 form properly. You may want to check but I believe you just need to mail your VS24 form and certified court order and a check to Washington's Vital Records department. Of course you will need to go to their website to find the fees associated with issuing an amended birth certificate. It helps to mail a photo copy of your original birth certificate with your paper work. This will aide in showing them the correct items you are changing.

Let me know how it goes Jessica!
Donica.

Some where on the forums I posted about volunteering the help out at this years Diversity Collective Ventura County Trans Day Of Remembrance ceremony. That day was last night. It was an emotional overload. There was not a dry eye in the house. I'm glad I was with good friends.

We chose to celebrate the lives of our fallen brothers and sisters rather than mourn their passing. It was a beautiful ceremony and I was proud to have been a part of it. It was be so nice if we never had to hold these ceremonies ever again.

A few of my close TAV and Kaiser support group brothers and sisters.
(https://i.imgur.com/C9GKMjE.jpg)

A candlelight vigil in celebration of their lives.
(https://i.imgur.com/uYq34TA.jpg)

Hugs,
Donica.

Thank you for posting about your TDoR commemoration event.  And thank you for volunteering!

I love your new avatar!

Thank you Kathy!

Just one more small emotional moment. I just got my news bank checks with my new name on them. One more step towards happiness.

Love,
Donica.

My close brothers and sisters and I have decided to participate in West Hollywood's TDOR commemoration event this evening. I understand there will be a march in honor of our fallen friends after the ceremony.

Hugs everyone,
Donica.

I managed to make it through last nights West Hollywood TDOR with minimal tears. I met a lot of wonderful people. The event got started late and a few people didn't get a chance to speak. One of my friend was understandably not feeling up for the march. She is only 11 days FFS post-op. So we ended the evening early. I just wanted to say, We have more friends than we know.

Hugs,
Donica.   

I would like to wish all of my fellow Susan's Place friends a Happy Thanksgiving!

<<<Happy Thanksgiving Everyone 2018>>> :icon_bunch:

Just one more small step. I have an appointment today for a CT Facial scan for FFS through Dr. David Kim. I was not expecting it to cost me $205 out of my own pocket but, I have it covered.

I had a nice Thanksgiving dinner yesterday. This is my 6th year at cooking holiday dinners by myself. I'm getting pretty good at it. I hope all the food doesn't hurt my CT Facial lol.

Hugs,
Donica.

Quote from: Donica on November 23, 2018, 12:13:03 PM
Just one more small step. I have an appointment today for a CT Facial scan for FFS through Dr. David Kim. I was not expecting it to cost me $205 out of my own pocket but, I have it covered.

I had a nice Thanksgiving dinner yesterday. This is my 6th year at cooking holiday dinners by myself. I'm getting pretty good at it. I hope all the food doesn't hurt my CT Facial lol.

Hugs,
Donica.

Donica... are you going to ask for your money back after they say, "you are a lovely lady already"...?  Your newest avatar proves that..🌸🌸🌸

Hugs and smiles from a California girl

Your so sweet Jessica. Thank you girl!!! Upon returning home from my CT facial scan today, I found my new drivers license waiting for me in my mailbox. I'm so surprised as it does look very feminine. Oh dear squeeeee!!!!

Quote from: Jessica on November 23, 2018, 12:43:58 PM
Donica... are you going to ask for your money back after they say, "you are a lovely lady already"...?  Your newest avatar proves that..[emoji254][emoji254][emoji254]

Hugs and smiles from a California girl

Sent from my XT1585 using Tapatalk

Quote from: Donica on November 23, 2018, 07:31:28 PM
Your so sweet Jessica. Thank you girl!!! Upon returning home from my CT facial scan today, I found my new drivers license waiting for me in my mailbox. I'm so surprised as it does look very feminine. Oh dear squeeeee!!!!
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So, not only your new license, but also a decent photo?  Wow!  That is squeee-worthy!

Quote from: Donica on November 23, 2018, 12:13:03 PM
Just one more small step. I have an appointment today for a CT Facial scan for FFS through Dr. David Kim. I was not expecting it to cost me $205 out of my own pocket but, I have it covered.

I had a nice Thanksgiving dinner yesterday. This is my 6th year at cooking holiday dinners by myself. I'm getting pretty good at it. I hope all the food doesn't hurt my CT Facial lol.

Hugs,
Donica.

@Donica
Dear Donica:
This is all good news.  Unless you are destitute, $205 is a small price to pay to get closer to your transition goals.
Also great news regarding your Thanksgiving cooking expertise andI hope that you had a wonderful Thanksgiving day.

Oh, by the way, what is the final status of how you and your property survived the fires in your area ???
... I trust that all is OK.

Thanks for sharing and keeping us all up to date on your thread.
Hugs,
Danielle

@Jessica (http://@jessica), @KathyLauren (http://@kathylauren), @Alasken Danielle (http://@alasken%20danielle)

My dear friends! Thank you for your kind words.

For sure Kathy! How often do we really like our DL pictures? How rare is that!

Hi Danielle! Not destitute but when living on a fixed income, I can use all the help I can get. I just qualified for MFA so maybe I can recover that CT Facial expense. If not, no big deal. It's money well spent.

The Woolsey Fire in SoCal is 100% contained. I'm thankful for our Simi Valley Fire Department for managing to stop all the fires in Simi before they got out of control. I am surprised that the major fires went around us. Unfortunately all the surrounding communities took the full brunt of the fires. Oak Park and Thousand Oaks, (mountains to our west), Westlake and Malibu, (mountains to our south), Calabasas and Chatsworth, (Mountains to our east), suffered devastating losses.

The Camp Fire in Paradise NorCal is now 95% contained and suffered much more lose than SoCal. 84 dead with thousands still missing, 14,000+ homes lost. It's horrible to see whole communities of homes burnt to the ground and the trees around the homes still standing.

The new threat we face are the floods and mud slides from rain because of the burned out vegetation in our mountains no longer holding the soil in place. Everyone is bracing for the rains heading our way later next week.

It's going to be another nasty winter, possibly worse than last year because of the much larger fires we've had this year. This whole mess is certainly getting old.

Along with the TDOR's and mass shootings we've recently gone through, it's hard to remain positive when so many bad things are happening around the world. Thank God for the good things that happen.

Fighting to stay positive always,
Donica.

@Donica

Quote from: Donica on November 24, 2018, 02:19:55 PM
Jessica[/member]]@Jessica (http://[member=54627), KathyLauren[/member]]@KathyLauren (http://[member=44165), @Alasken Danielle (http://@alasken%20danielle)

My dear friends! Thank you for your kind words.

For sure Kathy! How often do we really like our DL pictures? How rare is that!

Hi Danielle! Not destitute but when living on a fixed income, I can use all the help I can get. I just qualified for MFA so maybe I can recover that CT Facial expense. If not, no big deal. It's money well spent.

The Woolsey Fire in SoCal is 100% contained. I'm thankful for our Simi Valley Fire Department for managing to stop all the fires in Simi before they got out of control. I am surprised that the major fires went around us. Unfortunately all the surrounding communities took the full brunt of the fires. Oak Park and Thousand Oaks, (mountains to our west), Westlake and Malibu, (mountains to our south), Calabasas and Chatsworth, (Mountains to our east), suffered devastating losses.

The Camp Fire in Paradise NorCal is now 95% contained and suffered much more lose than SoCal. 84 dead with thousands still missing, 14,000+ homes lost. It's horrible to see whole communities of homes burnt to the ground and the trees around the homes still standing.

The new threat we face are the floods and mud slides from rain because of the burned out vegetation in our mountains no longer holding the soil in place. Everyone is bracing for the rains heading our way later next week.

It's going to be another nasty winter, possibly worse than last year because of the much larger fires we've had this year. This whole mess is certainly getting old.

Along with the TDOR's and mass shootings we've recently gone through, it's hard to remain positive when so many bad things are happening around the world. Thank God for the good things that happen.

Fighting to stay positive always,
Donica.

Thankfully the air here in the Bay Area has been scrubbed clean from the rain we just had.  It's a bit late though for many in California.  🤦‍♀️

Hugs from another California girl

And why wouldn't your photo on drivers licence look fem. Nice to see your safe from wild fires.

Just a tiny update. I have an appointment to get permanent eyeliner tattoos tomorrow afternoon. It's a bit spendy but for me, the worst thing about makeup is applying eyeliner. These old hands are just too shaky these days to do a good job. This will be the only tattoos I've ever gotten.

Hope everyone is doing well.
Donica.

Have fun, Donica! Is that the right word? Hope it's not too painful.

~Dee.

Thanks Dee! Thankfully they use a anesthetic. I'm thinking if I can do 2 hours of HNT with minimal squirming, I should be able to do this. The whole process takes 1 and a half hours. Half of that time is spent waiting for the anesthetic to take affect.

I just got permanent eyeliner yesterday. It wasn't as bad as I thought. It tickled more than it hurt. However, after the anesthetic wears off, you know you had something done to your eyes. This morning my eyelids are a bit swollen and painful to the tough.

What do you think?
(https://i.imgur.com/Hx4LUqS.jpg)

Geezzz! What is this infatuation with all the needle torture ???

Donica.

No cookies yet but I did have fun in my kitchen yesterday. I finally baked two loaves of Italian sausage cheese bread. I didn't have time to make the dough so I opted for pizza dough but the rest is real Italian sweet sausage, caramelized onions, garlic powder, parsley and mozzarella cheese. It turned out yummy! Maybe I'll do some cookies next week for @Alasken Danielle (http://@alasken%20danielle), @Jessica (http://@jessica), @KathyLauren (http://@kathylauren), @davina61 (http://@davina61), @Michelle_P (http://@michelle_p) and the rest of the gang. And I'll be sure to same some cookies for Stephanie so she can share with her BFF when she gets back in town.

(https://i.imgur.com/EPRatIu.jpg)

Hugs,
Donica.

Looks yummy, just done marzipan and icing on Christmas cake (cheated it was roll out!!)

Quote from: Donica on December 14, 2018, 08:34:24 AMI'll be sure to same some cookies for Stephanie so she can share with she BFF when she gets back in town.

Awww, thank you Donica. I fly home on Sunday so you'll need to rush those cookies to me. Chocolate chip, please.

Stephanie

Quote from: davina61 on December 14, 2018, 09:54:10 AM
Looks yummy, just done marzipan and icing on Christmas cake (cheated it was roll out!!)

That sound delish Davina!

Quote from: Steph2.0 on December 14, 2018, 12:37:27 PM
Awww, thank you Donica. I fly home on Sunday so you'll need to rush those cookies to me. Chocolate chip, please.

Stephanie

You got it Steph! Chocolate chip it is. I'm looking for the gooiest most delicious chocolate chip cookie recipe I can find. You know the ones that are soft and big.

Quote from: Donica on December 14, 2018, 02:14:30 PM
That sound delish Davina!

You got it Steph! Chocolate chip it is. I'm looking for the gooiest most delicious chocolate chip cookie recipe I can find. You know the ones that are soft and big.

Drooooool.

Here I sit like bird's in the wilderness with jury summons in hand[emoji1786]

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Quote from: Donica on December 18, 2018, 10:00:03 AM
Here I sit like bird's in the wilderness with jury summons in hand[emoji1786]

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Did it have the right name on it?

I hope it does not develop into an awkward situation.  Jury duty is actually a neat opportunity to see how the justice system really works.  It's not quite like television.  I usually recommend people not try to get out of it.

Quote from: Donica on December 18, 2018, 10:00:03 AM
Here I sit like bird's in the wilderness with jury summons in hand[emoji1786]

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@Donica
Dear Donica:
Jury duty, is just that, I think of it as our duty as citizens and upholders of legal justice that we do our duty to serve on any Jury that we can.  There are times and good reasons however that call for delays or rescheduling, or even dismissing one from Jury Duty.

As @KathyLauren mentioned,  regarding your jury summons,  in her previous comment....  "Did it have the right name on it?"   If not, perhaps make contact the court clerks previous to showing up to clarify the situation so it does not become awkward.

Please keep us tuned in to further developments.... thank you for sharing on your thread.
Hugs and more hugs,
Danielle

Quote from: Alaskan Danielle on December 18, 2018, 02:06:23 PM
@Donica
Dear Donica:
Jury duty, is just that, I think of it as our duty as citizens and upholders of legal justice that we do our duty to serve on any Jury that we can.  There are times and good reasons however that call for delays or rescheduling, or even dismissing one from Jury Duty.

As @KathyLauren mentioned,  regarding your jury summons,  in her previous comment....  "Did it have the right name on it?"   If not, perhaps make contact the court clerks previous to showing up to clarify the situation so it does not become awkward.

Please keep us tuned in to further developments.... thank you for sharing on your thread.
Hugs and more hugs,
Danielle

Yes thanks Danielle and Kathy! I've been selected for fury selection. I'm at the courthouse now having lunch. I contacted them a month ago about my name. They got it right [emoji1] I have to go back at 1:30 for the selection.

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Well, I couldn't convince them that I'm an old crazy lady so they put me in the box with 11 other jury members. Trial starts tomorrow morning.

Quote from: Donica on December 18, 2018, 09:22:44 PM
Well, I couldn't convince them that I'm an old crazy lady so they put me in the box with 11 other jury members. Trial starts tomorrow morning.

@Donica
Dear Donica:
Have "fun" with your Jury Duty.... I always found it interesting but some of the cases are so boring too.

I am not certain that you could find anyone on the forums that would testify that you are an "old crazy lady" ...
Hmmm, do you know anyone that might provide you that excuse to get out of your Jury Duty commitment.????   ;)

Hugs and well wishes,
Danielle

Sitting in the cafeteria for an early brunch. It looks like we may deliberate this afternoon.

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Verdict, not guilty! Now, back to my life. Update coming in the morning. I just got home and kicked off the heels and warming up to a glass of wine.

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I was so worried about serving on a jury panel as my new self that I forgot to talk about my weekend before. More on that in a bit. Yet again, my fears of serving as my new self was a big non-event. If fact, it was very affirming and educational. Not one miss-gender all week. Nothing but ma'am's and Ms., opening and holding doors and elevators for me. Everyone from my fellow jurors too all the court officials and cafeteria employees. <<<SQUEEE>>>

Now on to last weekend. I was quit busy having fun with my dear friend "A". We attended two Christmas parties together, one on Saturday, an annual Christmas party sponsored by my apartment community, with live music, dancing and a great potluck. The same band comes back each year and plays for free. I guess because we are sexy old ladies lol. I live in a retirement community and as you may know, we elderly ladies really know how to cook. The second Christmas pasty was on Sunday evening at the LA LGBT center sponsored by the Trans Lounge support community in Los Angeles. We all took part in decorating a Christmas tree (aka the queer tree), dancing, singing Christmas songs and a nice catered dinner. My friend and I had a great time seeing old friends and meeting great new friends.

My dear friend "A" and I.
(https://i.imgur.com/7U0slA3.jpg)

And singing along with the LA trans chorus group? I think I got that right?
(https://i.imgur.com/2mf3Zux.jpg)

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays
Donica.

P.S. @Steph 2.0, as you can see, I have a few pretty scarves too.

@Donica
Dear Donica:
Wow.... a very update for sure....  great photo of  you and "A"   ....
You had such wonderful experiences passing without any issues, gendered correctly, door and elevators held open for you....    LIFE IS GOOD !!!

Thank you for sharing.
Hugs,
Danielle

Merry Christmas Donica 🎄🎄🎄
Congratulations on such an affirming week!  It must make you feel wonderful that you obviously have gotten beyond the threshold of passing.  Eventually I hope to get there too.  I've only had one official ma'am and can hardly wait for the next, and the next, and the next!

Hugs and smiles from another California girl

Quote from: Donica on December 20, 2018, 08:40:20 AM
I was so worried about serving on a jury panel as my new self that I forgot to talk about my weekend before. More on that in a bit. Yet again, my fears of serving as my new self was a big non-event. If fact, it was very affirming and educational. Not one miss-gender all week. Nothing but ma'am's and Ms., opening and holding doors and elevators for me. Everyone from my fellow jurors too all the court officials and cafeteria employees. <<<SQUEEE>>>

Now on to last weekend. I was quit busy having fun with my dear friend "A". We attended two Christmas parties together, one on Saturday, an annual Christmas party sponsored by my apartment community, with live music, dancing and a great potluck. The same band comes back each year and plays for free. I guess because we are sexy old ladies lol. I live in a retirement community and as you may know, we elderly ladies really know how to cook. The second Christmas pasty was on Sunday evening at the LA LGBT center sponsored by the Trans Lounge support community in Los Angeles. We all took part in decorating a Christmas tree (aka the queer tree), dancing, singing Christmas songs and a nice catered dinner. My friend and I had a great time seeing old friends and meeting great new friends.

My dear friend "A" and I.
(https://i.imgur.com/7U0slA3.jpg)

And singing along with the LA trans chorus group? I think I got that right?
(https://i.imgur.com/2mf3Zux.jpg)

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays
Donica.

P.S. @Steph 2.0, as you can see, I have a few pretty scarves too.

Oh yes! I forgot to mention, I used the ladies room every day at the courthouse without issue. I was welcomed.

Quote from: Donica on December 20, 2018, 08:40:20 AM
I was so worried about serving on a jury panel as my new self that I forgot to talk about my weekend before. More on that in a bit. Yet again, my fears of serving as my new self was a big non-event. If fact, it was very affirming and educational. Not one miss-gender all week. Nothing but ma'am's and Ms., opening and holding doors and elevators for me. Everyone from my fellow jurors too all the court officials and cafeteria employees. <<<SQUEEE>>>.

P.S. @Steph 2.0, as you can see, I have a few pretty scarves too.

Squeee indeed, Donica! Congratulations on the flawlessly correct gendering. It's easy to see why from your picture, though. You've got nothing to worry about, girl!

Nice job with the scarves, too! There no reason we can't all be stylish, and you're rocking it!

Stephanie

Yay!  I am happy that you had such a good week.  Being treated right in officialdom (and it doesn't get more official than the courthouse) is excellent, and a couple of good parties with a friend top it off.  That is certainly SQUEEE-worthy!

@Alaskan Danielle (http://@alaskan%20danielle), @Jessica (http://@jessica), @Steph 2.0 (http://@steph%202.0), @KathyLauren (http://@kathylauren), @davina61 (http://@davina61)

Quote from: Alaskan Danielle on December 20, 2018, 09:11:59 AM
@Donica
Dear Donica:
Wow.... a very update for sure....  great photo of  you and "A"   ....
You had such wonderful experiences passing without any issues, gendered correctly, door and elevators held open for you....    LIFE IS GOOD !!!

Thank you for sharing.
Hugs,
Danielle

Yes indeed Danielle! Life IS good. Girl shopping with my dear friend "A" makes life even better.

Quote from: Steph2.0 on December 20, 2018, 10:36:41 AM
Squeee indeed, Donica! Congratulations on the flawlessly correct gendering. It's easy to see why from your picture, though. You've got nothing to worry about, girl!

Nice job with the scarves, too! There no reason we can't all be stylish, and you're rocking it!

Stephanie

I know right! <<<ACCESORIZE>>>. Thanks Steph!

Quote from: KathyLauren on December 20, 2018, 06:29:15 PM
Yay!  I am happy that you had such a good week.  Being treated right in officialdom (and it doesn't get more official than the courthouse) is excellent, and a couple of good parties with a friend top it off.  That is certainly SQUEEE-worthy!

I'm glad I didn't op out Kathy. It was a great confidence booster for me. Being me in public is becoming more natural every day.

Quote from: Jessica on December 20, 2018, 09:17:28 AM
Merry Christmas Donica 🎄🎄🎄
Congratulations on such an affirming week!  It must make you feel wonderful that you obviously have gotten beyond the threshold of passing.  Eventually I hope to get there too.  I've only had one official ma'am and can hardly wait for the next, and the next, and the next!

From one California girl to another California girl, Thank you so much Jessica. We are all heading in the right direction girl. Merry Christmas to you both!

Davina! My Italian sausage bread was very delish. The second loaf turned out even better because I put more mozzarella in it. Yum nomm  nomm nomm!

Merry Christmas and big hugs!
Donica.

Yahuh! Can I get a amen?

Just kidding. I didn't actually bake these gooey soft wonderful oatmeal raisin cookies. They are leftovers from the surrounding businesses. I believe I've mentioned that I live in a retirement community and every Friday the merchants here are very kind to us. God bless them.
(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20181222/1c82dcc6252a46cac4fd403850cb90cb.jpg)

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It's Christmas! I wanted to share my new Christmas tree with all of you. I bought a small 2ft tree when I first moved into my apartment 6 years ago after the divorce. This year I wanted to throw out all of those old memories and buy a new tree that will represent my new life in transition. The ex took all the old decorations which is fine because this in a new beginning. No room for old memories. At least not the bad ones.

So last week, my dear friend "A" and I did some Christmas shopping together. I saw this new tree and I just had to have it. It is bare at the moment. All to more represent a new beginning. I plan to put some thought into each decoration I purchase as each one will represent every new milestone in my transition journey. My journey actually began mid last year so I have some Christmas decoration shopping to do to catch up.

First up will be an angel for the top of my new tree as I seem to have an angel in heaven watching over me and many new friends to stand with me.
(https://i.imgur.com/SPL3GwH.jpg)

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays everyone!!!

@Donica
My Dear Donica:
I am curious, were you able to make some Cinnamon Rolls... hopefully my recipe that I shared on my "Hunted Prey" worked well for you.

I love the picture of your new Christmas Tree... smaller can be better especially in an apartment, and it is so much fun to find appropriate decorations that you will be happy with.  Thank you for sharing.

I trust that you are finding the joy and happiness that you deserve so I am giving you my expression of the holiday season that we are now in:
wishing you a very MERRY CHRISTMAS and a prosperous and Happy NEW YEAR  in 2019

Hugs and as always, Well Wishes
Danielle

Quote from: Alaskan Danielle on December 25, 2018, 01:37:43 PM
@Donica
My Dear Donica:
I am curious, were you able to make some Cinnamon Rolls... hopefully my recipe that I shared on my "Hunted Prey" worked well for you.

I love the picture of your new Christmas Tree... smaller can be better especially in an apartment, and it is so much fun to find appropriate decorations that you will be happy with.  Thank you for sharing.

I trust that you are finding the joy and happiness that you deserve so I am giving you my expression of the holiday season that we are now in:
wishing you a very MERRY CHRISTMAS and a prosperous and Happy NEW YEAR  in 2019

Hugs and as always, Well Wishes
Danielle

@Alaskan Danielle (http://@alaskan%20danielle)
I did copy and paste your cinnamon roll recipe into my recipe folder. Thank you so must. I have been sooo sick with a cold for the past two days that I'm just eating canned chicken noodle soup. I did make a breakfast burrito this morning. Perhaps some canned beef stew tonight.

I'm going to try to do some shopping tomorrow if I feel better. I'll keep you posted when I get back on my feet.

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year Danielle!
Donica.

(https://i.imgur.com/2TA1T75.jpg)

2019 promises to be filled with surgeries and recoveries. I am so looking forward to completing these task before the end of 2019. I am so happy to have so many dear friends hear at Susan's to help me through the coming year.

Bless you all! See you next year!
Love,
Donica.

@Donica
Dear Donica:
I will be eagerly following your progress and planned transition events this coming year.
You are very correct about having our friends here on the Forums to help us through our life events.  It is so very nice to share our thoughts with other like-minded friends that understand what we are experiencing... and at the same time we can offer our encouragement and help to others in need.

Wishing you a very HAPPY NEW YEAR in 2019...:eusa_dance:

Thank you for keeping us all up to date with your thread.

Hugs and well wishes,
Danielle

Quote from: Donica on December 31, 2018, 12:04:22 PM
(https://i.imgur.com/2TA1T75.jpg)

2019 promises to be filled with surgeries and recoveries. I am so looking forward to completing these task before the end of 2019. I am so happy to have so many dear friends hear at Susan's to help me through the coming year.

Bless you all! See you next year!
Love,
Donica.

Happy New Year Donica!

Welcome to the "Class of 2019" when it comes to surgeries. Seems like we are both looking forward to this big step in our journey.

I wish you all the best and strength during 2019.

Hugs,

Sarah

Have a Wonderfully Happy New Year Donica!

Hugs and smiles from another California girl

Happy new year, may it go trouble free. XXXXXX

Happy New Year, Donica! To me it seems like you burst into our world here just recently, and much like Danielle, you bring lightness and smiles to us all. I hope 2019 makes you smile as you do us.

Stephanie

Donica,


Happy new year to you and yours!

I look forward to your posts.

Blessings,


Chrissy

Happy New Year, Donica!

Thank you all for the new year wishes. I am so blessed to have so many wonderful friends here at Susan's. I hope we all have a wonderful 2019 and that all of our dreams come true!

Love,
Donica.

Nothing much to update about me other than I'm still here and well. I will be taking my dear friend "A" to the hospital for her FFS surgery next Friday morning early. She asked me if I would accompany her through per-op visits with her surgeon Dr. Kim and her anesthesiologist. I've been under the knife a few times and the pre-ops were surprisingly similar. I will be helping her through her recovery.

I want to give a shout out to Susan L. for all the hard work she did to get Susan's back online. I understand she had to do a complete rebuild and reload of all the data that makes this happen.

Kudos Susan!
Big hugs girl and thank you!!!
Donica.

Seems like all of the usual (hooligan) crowd is back here! Good to see all of you again.

Nothing to update? Does this mean "normal?" Isn't this what we all hope for? So congratulations for normal.

You are a great friend to your friend "A". It is always nice to have someone trusted in such situations. Waking up to a familiar face after surgery must be such a great feeling. My first ever surgery will be in April...

Good luck to your friend and to you!

Hugs,

Sarah

Quote from: Donica on January 15, 2019, 03:14:33 PM
Nothing much to update about me other than I'm still here and well. I will be taking my dear friend "A" to the hospital for her FFS surgery next Friday morning early. She asked me if I would accompany her through per-op visits with her surgeon Dr. Kim and her anesthesiologist. I've been under the knife a few times and the pre-ops were surprisingly similar. I will be helping her through her recovery.

I want to give a shout out to Susan L. for all the hard work she did to get Susan's back online. I understand she had to do a complete rebuild and reload of all the data that makes this happen.

Kudos Susan!
Big hugs girl and thank you!!!
Donica.

Very cool Donica that you have taken the effort to provide a narrative for other Transgender Sisters.  It is so important that others see what can be even if they have health issues.
Also wanted to say I appreciate you respecting my privacy on the earlier posts. 
However, we can say now that I am indeed the infamous "A". 

Quote from: AvaNovum on January 22, 2019, 10:48:43 PM
Very cool Donica that you have taken the effort to provide a narrative for other Transgender Sisters.  It is so important that others see what can be even if they have health issues.
Also wanted to say I appreciate you respecting my privacy on the earlier posts. 
However, we can say now that I am indeed the infamous "A". 

And a very sweet "A" you are my dear Ava! I'll have to update our picture from last years Christmas party.

Hugs sweetie!

Quote from: sarah1972 on January 15, 2019, 04:40:14 PM
Seems like all of the usual (hooligan) crowd is back here! Good to see all of you again.

Nothing to update? Does this mean "normal?" Isn't this what we all hope for? So congratulations for normal.

You are a great friend to your friend "A". It is always nice to have someone trusted in such situations. Waking up to a familiar face after surgery must be such a great feeling. My first ever surgery will be in April...

Good luck to your friend and to you!

Hugs,

Sarah

@sarah1972     
@Donica     
@AvaNovum   
@KathyLauren   
@ChrissyRyan   
@Steph2.0   
@davina61   
@Jessica

Dear Sarah:
ahhhh.... so that is what we all are ...  "...the usual (hooligan) crowd..."
.... that sounds about right!!!   
So very sorry dear @AvaNovum if you got sucked into this group of hooligan ladies, but I want to assure you that our hearts are all in a good place, we definitely care for each other and we are all everyone elses biggest fans and supporters. ...

.... So anyway AvaNovum, wishing you a warm welcome to the site and to the best group of friends you could have here on the Susan's Place Forums... there are certainly many, many others here on the Forums that I could mention but my post would be prohibitively long if I did.

Hugs and best wishes to all of my hooligan friends.... wishing you all well.  [emoji173]
Danielle

A note for all that are planning to change their name and gender, or even just your name change.

It appears that I have fallen down the rabbit hole into a mess of dropped and still bouncing balls as our dear sister @Stevi has experienced with SSA, Medicare and Kaiser, failing to properly update their records.

As Stevi has informed us in her thread, it is not enough to expect SSA to complete their process of properly updating their records. With all my legal documents in hand, I filed my name and gender change with SSA back in October of last year. Their records reflect all the correct changes and I received a new card. However, they failed to update their MASTER RECORD so that Medicare could follow up with their record change process.

I finally contacted Medicare to see what their holdup was only to learn that SSA had dropped the ball. Two calls to SSA later, I finally got them to update their MASTER RECORD. Great! Medicare then followed up with their records changes and sent me my new Medicare card 7 days later. Again, Great! Upon receiving my new MC card, I contacted Kaiser Member Services and requested updates and a new card.

After a month, I started sending emails and calls to Kaiser Member Services. They too had dropped the ball and didn't follow up. Member services just kept telling me they had to wait for a updated file from Medicare? And now, another month later, (Today), I called Medicare to find out why this updated file has not been sent to Kaiser? They told me it is Kasier's responsibility to contact Medicare??? Ok, my head is spinning now!

During my call with Medicare this morning, I learned that my gender marker had not been properly update by SSA. So, back to SSA with a call to their main office, They found their gender marker mistake in their master records but were unable to correct it from their end? They told me it had to be corrected at the local office that I originally filed my legal documents with. The SSA representative was very apologetic and helpful (which is saying alot since they are not being payed right now) and went out of her way to forward a request to my local SSA office to update my gender marker in their master record and forward the correction to Medicare. They already have my correct gender marker in their records, just not in the master record.

Realizing it was not all Kaiser's fault for the holdup, I called member services again this morning and informed them of the mistake by SSA. Member services then informed me that they had been contacted by Medicare and actually had all my new information, just the wrong marker, and asked her supervisor if it was possible for them to just update my medical records and send me a new card. Her supervisor then sent the request to the main Kaiser office.

Because my Kaiser health care plan goes through Medicare, I may still have to wait for another around of updates. The member services representative told me to give it two more weeks for Kaiser to ok the update and if I haven't received a new med card yet, to start calling and emailing again!!!

So, bottom line, don't expect them to do their job complete and correctly for one reason or another. Their personnel may not even know the proper procedures. You will have to do their job for them. You will need to be diligent and patient with them. They really are trying to do the right thing.

Hugs!

I have heard of issues regarding SSA's "master record" before. 

As an IT professional, this burns me up.  There is no excuse for a system that does not automatically propagate changes to the master record.  Failure of the software to do so is a design flaw.  Knowing that the software is flawed, failing to train front-line people to automatically propagate all changes up to the master record is an administrative failure.  Inexcusable!

It is unreasonable to ask clients to instruct SSA employees in the proper use of their database, but that's what it comes down to.  [/rant]

Quote from: Alaskan Danielle on January 23, 2019, 12:16:45 PM

@sarah1972     
@Donica     
@AvaNovum   
@KathyLauren   
@ChrissyRyan   
@Steph2.0   
@davina61   
@Jessica

Dear Sarah:
ahhhh.... so that is what we all are ...  "...the usual (hooligan) crowd..."
.... that sounds about right!!!   
So very sorry dear @AvaNovum if you got sucked into this group of hooligan ladies, but I want to assure you that our hearts are all in a good place, we definitely care for each other and we are all everyone elses biggest fans and supporters. ...

.... So anyway AvaNovum, wishing you a warm welcome to the site and to the best group of friends you could have here on the Susan's Place Forums... there are certainly many, many others here on the Forums that I could mention but my post would be prohibitively long if I did.

Hugs and best wishes to all of my hooligan friends.... wishing you all well.  [emoji173]
Danielle

Thank you Danielle and Sarah! Yes, we are quite the fun bunch of ladies. Fun loving Hooligans indeed.

Yes! Sorry it took me so long to get back to you Sarah. I often get sidetracked don't ya know! Normal? Hummm! Well, ok. I'll go with that. Aside from a few legal document hiccups, I am doing well. I have been following your thread and I am glad to see you two are doing well too and enjoying lots of fun with Kiddo.

It is getting down to the wire with Ava's surgery coming up very fast. I think I'm more nervous about it than she is. We did some shopping last night and I bought the cutest pair of suede ankle boots. But the late nights are over for the next couple of days as they want her at the hospital very early and I want to make sure I get her there on time.

I will give updates on her progress but I will let Ava share the details of her journey.

That's all I got for now.
Hugs everyone!
Donica.

Quote from: KathyLauren on January 23, 2019, 01:50:29 PM
I have heard of issues regarding SSA's "master record" before. 

As an IT professional, this burns me up.  There is no excuse for a system that does not automatically propagate changes to the master record.  Failure of the software to do so is a design flaw.  Knowing that the software is flawed, failing to train front-line people to automatically propagate all changes up to the master record is an administrative failure.  Inexcusable!

It is unreasonable to ask clients to instruct SSA employees in the proper use of their database, but that's what it comes down to.  [/rant]

Hi Kathy! Yes it is quite frustrating at times. I most certainly would not have a job if I dropped ANY details as they do. Perhaps the lack of serious consequences creates the half hearted complacency we all see in what should otherwise be taken much more seriously. Some of the representatives and operators are better informed than others.

In my case, it's a matter of contacting the well informed representative who will complete and follow up with the updates so we can avoid the repeated stress and lost time. What's the old saying? Third time's the charm?

We'll see. Keeping my fingers crossed, my phone charged and my email contacts well updated. Pressure valve opened and [/rant]

 Hi Donica,

  You have had such a hassle to get you SSA, medicare, and Kaiser name changes all done correctly that I almost 9not quite just almost) feel sorry for you. My changes went so easy for me I was genuinely surprised. The hardest part for me was the 2+ hour wait to talk to a SSA agent. When I did she was very nice and very thorough. She remembered all of the things she needed to do and it did take a fair amount of time but in the end everything got done as it should. I got my SSA card and then my new medicare card without me having to do anything else.
  Kaiser was just as easy. But that might be because I signed up with them after getting the other things done. I submitted the forms with my updated name and gender. From there they found my previous membership with them from when I was still working and those changes were made and I got my new Kaiser card with the correct name on it.
  I have expressed to Michelle several times now that I cannot believe how little problems I have had along the way with all aspects of my transition. It's almost bee ask and you shall receive. There have been a few nuisance things but not much. The big one was losing my daughter and grand children because of my decision to transition. I still get thoughts that maybe I'm wrong or the cost is too high. I still don't know the answers.

Fingers crossed it all goes through OK, this hooligan has made a coffee walnut cake .proof!!!(https://i.imgur.com/PbGS8mM.jpg) one of the lads was leaving (known him for 4 1/2 years) looks like it was edible.

Quote from: Laurie on January 23, 2019, 10:09:30 PM
Hi Donica,

  You have had such a hassle to get you SSA, medicare, and Kaiser name changes all done correctly that I almost 9not quite just almost) feel sorry for you. My changes went so easy for me I was genuinely surprised. The hardest part for me was the 2+ hour wait to talk to a SSA agent. When I did she was very nice and very thorough. She remembered all of the things she needed to do and it did take a fair amount of time but in the end everything got done as it should. I got my SSA card and then my new medicare card without me having to do anything else.
  Kaiser was just as easy. But that might be because I signed up with them after getting the other things done. I submitted the forms with my updated name and gender. From there they found my previous membership with them from when I was still working and those changes were made and I got my new Kaiser card with the correct name on it.
  I have expressed to Michelle several times now that I cannot believe how little problems I have had along the way with all aspects of my transition. It's almost bee ask and you shall receive. There have been a few nuisance things but not much. The big one was losing my daughter and grand children because of my decision to transition. I still get thoughts that maybe I'm wrong or the cost is too high. I still don't know the answers.

Hi Laurie! Surprisingly I only had to wait around 10 minutes to see the SSA agent. It took him much longer to change their records. That part he got right, including my gender. He just didn't follow through and update the master record and that's where this whole mess started. I too got my new SSA card with in 10 days of my visit.

Most people don't know SSA has two sets of records and both of these records have to match. SSA's own records are not public. Their master records are public but they are only available to Medicare, DMV and financial institutions. I can only guess the reasoning for two records is for security. Unfortunately this continues to create problems.

I'll give it two more weeks and then I will start a new round of emails, phone calls and another visit in person with my local SSA agents. One thing I don't understand is why couldn't the agent at the main SSA office make the changes?

Oh yes Davina! I would say your coffee walnut cake was a success. I mentioned in Danielle's thread that your cake looked delish.

Quote from: Donica on January 24, 2019, 03:10:01 PM
Hi Laurie! Surprisingly I only had to wait around 10 minutes to see the SSA agent. It took him much longer to change their records. That part he got right, including my gender. He just didn't follow through and update the master record and that's where this whole mess started. I too got my new SSA card with in 10 days of my visit.

Most people don't know SSA has two sets of records and both of these records have to match. SSA's own records are not public. Their master records are public but they are only available to Medicare, DMV and financial institutions. I can only guess the reasoning for two records is for security. Unfortunately this continues to create problems.

I'll give it two more weeks and then I will start a new round of emails, phone calls and another visit in person with my local SSA agents. One thing I don't understand is why couldn't the agent at the main SSA office make the changes?

Oh yes Davina! I would say your coffee walnut cake was a success. I mentioned in Danielle's thread that your cake looked delish.

You have me wondering now. My name and gender change in December 2017 was effortless, but how could I know what's in the "master record"? When Florida DMV did my driver license update a week later they got it right, and I was told that SSC had to be done first. But DMV wanted their own gender change letter, so it's unknown if they looked at that data from the feds.

Any idea how I could check without having to go to an office?

Stephanie

Quote from: Steph2.0 on January 24, 2019, 03:52:41 PM
You have me wondering now. My name and gender change in December 2017 was effortless, but how could I know what's in the "master record"? When Florida DMV did my driver license update a week later they got it right, and I was told that SSC had to be done first. But DMV wanted their own gender change letter, so it's unknown if they looked at that data from the feds.

Any idea how I could check without having to go to an office?

Stephanie

You are correct Stephanie. The DMV still uses a separate form for the gender marker. In California, the DMV does not require a court order to change you name. They only require a new SSA card. They do require a court order for your gender change.

Yes, the order for changing everything is, SSA, Medicare (if applicable and should be automatic) and the DMV, and then everything else. I may have missed a step in between SSA and DMV. I'll have to check my notes again.

I found out by making phone calls to Medicare and SSA's main office. I gave up on trying to login to their websites because (I assume) when I changed my name they deleted my login info? I can't even reregister right now for some reason. Still unclear about that.

Hi everyone! Just a heads up update. Ava just went in for surgery. She should be done between 5:00pm and 7:00pm. It's lonely in the waiting room. I guess I'll read Stephenie Robinson's book and head for the cafeteria. I'll post updates later.

 Hi Donica,

  I hope Ava goes well and w/o any issues. Waiting and wonder what's happening isn't a lot of fun. Best wishes for her.

Hugs,
  Laurie

Hi everyone! Ave flew through surgery with flying colors. She was in for 8 hours. She looks good. We are documenting with pictures. Ava may start her own FFS thread when she feels up to it. She's feeling a little better than last night but as we all know, it's going to be a couple days before she feels up for anything. More updates soon.

Quote from: Donica on January 26, 2019, 01:38:39 PM
Hi everyone! Ave flew through surgery with flying colors. She was in for 8 hours. She looks good. We are documenting with pictures. Ava may start her own FFS thread when she feels up to it. She's feeling a little better than last night but as we all know, it's going to be a couple days before she feels up for anything. More updates soon.

@Donica
Dear Donica:
This is wonderful news.... we have all been rooting for your friend Ava.   
WOW...  8 HOURS!!!   She now needs her rest for sure.

Yes, for sure encourage @Ava to start her own personal thread...
...  very helpful to have one place to share her transition events.

Thank you for keep us all updated...
I will be eagerly looking for more updates as they are posted by you or by Ava.

Hugs to both of you....
Danielle

Well, I beleive it was Tia that warned us to keep a supply of tissues handy. Yesterday was day 3 post-op for Ava's FFS. She said she was feeling better so we decided to watch The Danish Girl last night. Yes indeed we needed the tissues. Thank you for the heads up Tia! We both cried at key points and at the end of the movie. I am still in tears as I write about it this morning. I highly recommend this movie. It was one of the most heart felt movies I've ever seen.

Today day 4 post-op for Ava. Although she is feeling better, she is feeling the nasty side affects of having to stop HRT. She will get to restart HRT this Friday. Yay!!! She'll make it.

I've been a little busy the past few days. Susan's has gone viral again meaning I have alot of catching up to do. More updates coming soon.

Hugs my dear friends!

More sad news on the name and gender change front. All the promises from phone calls two weeks ago did not happen.

So, I gathered up all my court documents and headed back to the local SSA office in person for a second time. The clerk said, "I'm so sorry you had to go through all this. I just filed your gender update in a batch file that will run over night and will be fixed by morning. I will personally give you a call tomorrow when the update is complete."
[emoji19] This was the very same thing they told me the first time I filed 4 months ago.

I'm so tired of this, writing about it and I'm sure it's getting old for you all to hear about it. In stead of writing about this not happen, I will update everyone when they finally come through for me.

Sent from my XT1585 using Tapatalk

VENT!! it's ok to VENT VENT VENT ... I do :) (just not always on here)

Quote from: Donica on February 04, 2019, 04:53:08 PM
More sad news on the name and gender change front. All the promises from phone calls two weeks ago did not happen.

So, I gathered up all my court documents and headed back to the local SSA office in person for a second time. The clerk said, "I'm so sorry you had to go through all this. I just filed your gender update in a batch file that will run over night and will be fixed by morning. I will personally give you a call tomorrow when the update is complete."
[emoji19] This was the very same thing they told me the first time I filed 4 months ago.

I'm so tired of this, writing about it and I'm sure it's getting old for you all to hear about it. In stead of writing about this not happen, I will update everyone when they finally come through for me.

Sent from my XT1585 using Tapatalk

Arrrrrg!

Quote from: Donica on February 04, 2019, 04:53:08 PM
More sad news on the name and gender change front. All the promises from phone calls two weeks ago did not happen.

So, I gathered up all my court documents and headed back to the local SSA office in person for a second time. The clerk said, "I'm so sorry you had to go through all this. I just filed your gender update in a batch file that will run over night and will be fixed by morning. I will personally give you a call tomorrow when the update is complete."
[emoji19] This was the very same thing they told me the first time I filed 4 months ago.

I'm so tired of this, writing about it and I'm sure it's getting old for you all to hear about it. In stead of writing about this not happen, I will update everyone when they finally come through for me.

Sent from my XT1585 using Tapatalk

@Donica
Dear Donica:
I agree with the reply comment from @Jessica ... "Arrrrg!"   
Please, please, please... continue posting and writing about your trials and tribulations, it not only allows others to experience the name and gender change process with you... good or bad... but it also allows you to write it out and share it with others that are rooting for your success.  Please allow your followers to "follow" along with you and we can all be frustrated together when things are not going well, and when things finally go right, we can all rejoice and be happy together!

PLEASE CONTINUE SHARING WITH ALL OF US.... your followers want to follow.
Hugs and well wishes,
Danielle

Took me ages due to not understanding the legal language and my solicitor having not done one before (he misread it as well) . Think some one needs a slap or pointy  toe boot up there backside, will keep my fingers crossed .

I have good news! I finally got my new medical card. Squeeeeyay!!! The clerk from yesterday did call this morning as promised but they are still working on the gender change [emoji53]. She said she would call me back when the updates go through. At least I have my new card and no more missgendering at Kaiser. Yay!

Sent from my XT1585 using Tapatalk

Quote from: Donica on February 05, 2019, 07:28:38 PM
I have good news! I finally got my new medical card. Squeeeeyay!!! The clerk from yesterday did call this morning as promised but they are still working on the gender change [emoji53]. She said she would call me back when the updates go through. At least I have my new card and no more missgendering at Kaiser. Yay!

Sent from my XT1585 using Tapatalk

YaySqueeeeee!

Yay!!! More good news! The SSA clerk called again today to inform me that the updates went through. I called Medicare and they confirmed the updates and said it may take up to 7 days for Medicare to complete their updates.

It took going back to SSA in person before anyone would do anything. The worst should be over. I just want to check with member services to be sure Kaiser has the correct gender.

Yippee ki-yay!!!

Sent from my XT1585 using Tapatalk

Quote from: Donica on February 06, 2019, 04:59:16 PM
Yay!!! More good news! The SSA clerk called again today to inform me that the updates went through. I called Medicare and they confirmed the updates and said it may take up to 7 days for Medicare to complete their updates.

It took going back to SSA in person before anyone would do anything. The worst should be over. I just want to check with member services to be sure Kaiser has the correct gender.

Yippee ki-yay!!!

Sent from my XT1585 using Tapatalk

@Donica
Dear Donica:
Yes indeed..... Yippee ki-yay!!!

It is always amazing to me regarding all the red-tape, phone calls, letters, emails, filling out forms, required documents, procedures, fees, and amount of time that it takes to get stuff like this done... particularly with the government agencies.

I am glad to see that you are making some headway and should have things all in order soon.   Hopefully when you check with Medicare that the updates will all be properly done.

Thank you for sharing ....  this all can be an exercise in frustration!!
Hugs,
Danielle

  YAY! Donica! Finally. I am happy for you girl. Now you can continue to clear up your name change check list. I like to think I am done with mine. That is why I didn't make one. Yes, yes there are still a lot I could see about changing still. Oh bother.

Hugs,

   Laurie

Quote from: Laurie on February 06, 2019, 06:50:45 PM
  YAY! Donica! Finally. I am happy for you girl. Now you can continue to clear up your name change check list. I like to think I am done with mine. That is why I didn't make one. Yes, yes there are still a lot I could see about changing still. Oh bother.

Hugs,

   Laurie

Oh yes Laurie! Just when you think you've covered all the bases, dotted all the i's crossed all the t's, something always jump's up and bites you in the rear lol.

Thank you everyone for your encouraging support. It really helps a lot!!! [emoji7]

Sent from my XT1585 using Tapatalk

Yay... Congratulations Donica... That is good news!

Quote from: Donica on February 06, 2019, 04:59:16 PM
Yay!!! More good news! The SSA clerk called again today to inform me that the updates went through. I called Medicare and they confirmed the updates and said it may take up to 7 days for Medicare to complete their updates.

It took going back to SSA in person before anyone would do anything. The worst should be over. I just want to check with member services to be sure Kaiser has the correct gender.

Yippee ki-yay!!!

Sent from my XT1585 using Tapatalk

Success! I called Medicare yesterday and they confirmed my name and gender update was complete. I then called Kaiser member services and they updated my medical record as we spoke on the phone. I confirmed this by logging into mykaiser. Yay! For some reason the representative could not update the gender marker on the phone but said it should be done by this Friday.

So, one more phone call on Friday and this nightmare should be over. <<<SQUEEE!!!>>> No more missgendering from my own medical group. I declare This chapter of She Shed closed.

Now I just need the phone call for my FFS date. It's looking like April now? March if there is a cancellation. Keeping my fingers crossed.

Again, thanks for all of the positive support everyone!
You have truly been a big help!

Quote from: Donica on February 14, 2019, 10:11:07 AM
Success! I called Medicare yesterday and they confirmed my name and gender update was complete. I then called Kaiser member services and they updated my medical record as we spoke on the phone. I confirmed this by logging into mykaiser. Yay! For some reason the representative could not update the gender marker on the phone but said it should be done by this Friday.

So, one more phone call on Friday and this nightmare should be over. <<<SQUEEE!!!>>> No more missgendering from my own medical group. I declare This chapter of She Shed closed.

Now I just need the phone call for my FFS date. It's looking like April now? March if there is a cancellation. Keeping my fingers crossed.

Again, thanks for all of the positive support everyone!
You have truly been a big help!

Congratulations Donica!

That's great news, went to hospital today and I am on the system as (new!) me so know how you feel. XXXXXX

My dear friend @AvaNovum FFS recovery is going very well. She has returned to work so It's time for me to pack-up and head back home. The house is quiet as I'm sure Ava's home is now quiet too. Well, not exactly. She has her companion Marble Cat that is probably getting into trouble as I type lol. Here is a link to Ava's FFS thread.
https://www.susans.org/forums/index.php/topic,244347.msg2221782.html#msg2221782

As a thank you for staying with her during her FFS recovery, Ava insisted on taking me out to a late lunch in Burbank. Guess who we ran into.
(https://i.imgur.com/X5fuooV.jpg)

It is one of the last remaining original Bob's Big Boy's. Everything, including the food, is as I remember it was in my youth. And to top off the rest of the day, we stopped at the Nordstrom's Rack in Burbank for some girl shopping. We had a wonderful time.

Oh, and Ava does not have a fire place in her home so we will get together at my home and take our Toastie Toes pictures for @Alaskan Danielle collection ;D Coming soon.

Edit: BTW! No makeup on either of us and no one misgendered us all day. <<<SQUEEEE>>>

Hugs!

Quote from: Donica on February 19, 2019, 08:40:04 AM
My dear friend @AvaNovum FFS recovery is going very well. She has returned to work so It's time for me to pack-up and head back home. The house is quiet as I'm sure Ava's home is now quiet too. Well, not exactly. She has her companion Marble Cat that is probably getting into trouble as I type lol. Here is a link to Ava's FFS thread.
https://www.susans.org/forums/index.php/topic,244347.msg2221782.html#msg2221782

As a thank you for staying with her during her FFS recovery, Ava insisted on taking me out to a late lunch in Burbank. Guess who we ran into.
(https://i.imgur.com/X5fuooV.jpg)

It is one of the last remaining original Bob's Big Boy's. Everything, including the food, is as I remember it was in my youth. And to top off the rest of the day, we stopped at the Nordstrom's Rack in Burbank for some girl shopping. We had a wonderful time.

Oh, and Ava does not have a fire place in her home so we will get together at my home and take our Toastie Toes pictures for @Alaskan Danielle collection ;D Coming soon.

Hugs!

Donica, you and Ava look the picture of happiness.  You were such a good friend to be with her while she recovered.
I'll be looking for the "toasty toes" pic in the new chapter of @Alaskan Danielle thread.

Hugs and smiles from another California girl

Quote from: Donica on February 19, 2019, 08:40:04 AMHere is a link to Ava's FFS thread.
https://www.susans.org/forums/index.php/topic,244347.msg2221782.html#msg2221782

That was a perfect segue, Donica. I suspect not everyone can see it, but in Tapatalk your quote referenced a link to Ava's thread, and immediately under it was a picture of the stitch thread that had been in her mouth. I thought it was a clever pun.

Congratulations to Ava, and good on you for being such a kind friend to her.

Stephanie

Thank you ladies! Yes @Steph2.0. Ava does have a fun way about her :D

I just got some concerning lab results this morning. My Endo increased my E dose a month ago and because my dose is getting up to the high end, she requested I get another lad test this week (yesterday). The results are already in and my E level went from 160 pg/ml last month to 86 pg/ml yesterday?

I'm thinking this has to be a mistake? Maybe it should read 186 pg/ml? I take my meds twice a day (in the morning and then the evening). A friend suggested I should take my meds after my lad test. So for the first time I did. Could this be the reason for the big difference? I wish I could contact the lab and have them double check my results.

I see my Endo next week. I have many questions.

@Donica
Dear Donica:
Contacting the lab will get you nowhere fast....   my first phone call would be to your doctors office to talk to the nurse or PA...
...perhaps your doctor will want to order a new test BEFORE your appointment next week...  that is what I am thinking!!!

Good luck to you... I will be looking for your update about this matter.
Hugs and well wishes,
Danielle

Quote from: Donica on February 19, 2019, 01:52:32 PM
I just got some concerning lab results this morning. My Endo increased my E dose a month ago and because my dose is getting up to the high end, she requested I get another lad test this week (yesterday). The results are already in and my E level went from 160 pg/ml last month to 86 pg/ml yesterday?

I'm thinking this has to be a mistake? Maybe it should read 186 pg/ml? I take my meds twice a day (in the morning and then the evening). A friend suggested I should take my meds after my lad test. So for the first time I did. Could this be the reason for the big difference? I wish I could contact the lab and have them double check my results.

I see my Endo next week. I have many questions.

@Alaskan Danielle
Thank you Danielle. My appointment next week is with a new Endo. I will have to call her office and reschedule a lab test. My old Endo (which is who scheduled my last lab test) left Kaiser for a private practice.

For the times... they are a-changing.

The reduction in your blood E level may be due to getting the blood drawn before taking your dose instead of after.  It is important to be consistent, and the change in routine may be responsible for the change in results.

More than a year ago, my doctor was concerned that my E level was getting too high, so she reduced my dosage.  I was not happy with the results emotionally and physically: my body was telling me that the earlier level was right.  My doctor put my dosage back to where it had been, and then deduced that I wasn't getting my blood drawn at a consistent time in my patch cycle.  Getting it drawn at the end of a cycle produced consistent results, and levels that made the doctor happy and felt right to me.

Quote from: KathyLauren on February 20, 2019, 06:46:53 AM
The reduction in your blood E level may be due to getting the blood drawn before taking your dose instead of after.  It is important to be consistent, and the change in routine may be responsible for the change in results.

More than a year ago, my doctor was concerned that my E level was getting too high, so she reduced my dosage.  I was not happy with the results emotionally and physically: my body was telling me that the earlier level was right.  My doctor put my dosage back to where it had been, and then deduced that I wasn't getting my blood drawn at a consistent time in my patch cycle.  Getting it drawn at the end of a cycle produced consistent results, and levels that made the doctor happy and felt right to me.

@KathyLauren
Thank you Kathy. I tend to believe that is the case. I will talk with my new Endo first but I think I will continue to do lab test pre-dose. With this end of a cycle E levels, my Endo should be happy.

Before my last dose increase I was having a few hot flashes, mostly at night. With the latest increase, I have not had any hot flashes. I do notice that I feel better overall.

Question? Some of my friends dissolve their E tablets under their tongue. I just take them like any other pill. Is there an advantage to dissolving them under the tongue?

@Donica

Quote from: Donica on February 20, 2019, 09:37:22 AM
@KathyLauren
Thank you Kathy. I tend to believe that is the case. I will talk with my new Endo first but I think I will continue to do lab test pre-dose. With this end of a cycle E levels, my Endo should be happy.

Before my last dose increase I was having a few hot flashes, mostly at night. With the latest increase, I have not had any hot flashes. I do notice that I feel better overall.

Question? Some of my friends dissolve their E tablets under their tongue. I just take them like any other pill. Is there an advantage to dissolving them under the tongue?

From what I understand is when you dissolve the pill under your tongue in has a better absorption into your blood stream.  It also allows it to bypass the stomach and liver, which degrades it and can cause other issues.

Hugs and smiles from another California girl

Quote from: Donica on February 20, 2019, 09:37:22 AM.... Question? Some of my friends dissolve their E tablets under their tongue. I just take them like any other pill. Is there an advantage to dissolving them under the tongue?

Make sure that they are formulated for Sublingual or Buccal use.

@Jessica
Thank you Jess! That is good to know. I will start dissolving them until I go with self injections. My previous Endo wanted me to start injections.

Thank you Faith! I will have to check if they are Sublingual or Buccal. I take the same thing that my friend @AvaNovum takes but still I would only be guessing.

I just found this:
Estrace (estradiol) is not recommended to be taken sublingually (i.e. under the tongue) as it is not intended for that route of administration. Estrace, and the associated generic products, are not manufactured as sublingual tablets and are not designed to dissolve quickly and uniformly under the tongue. This could result in inconsistent dosing and local irritation.

By Dr. Brian Staiger Pharm.D
Medical Content Reviewed By PharmacistAnswers Staff
On Jan 08, 2018

Quote from: Donica on February 20, 2019, 11:09:11 AM
@Jessica
Thank you Jess! That is good to know. I will start dissolving them until I go with self injections. My previous Endo wanted me to start injections.

Thank you Faith! I will have to check if they are Sublingual or Buccal. I take the same thing that my friend @AvaNovum takes but still I would only be guessing.

I just found this:
Estrace (estradiol) is not recommended to be taken sublingually (i.e. under the tongue) as it is not intended for that route of administration. Estrace, and the associated generic products, are not manufactured as sublingual tablets and are not designed to dissolve quickly and uniformly under the tongue. This could result in inconsistent dosing and local irritation.

By Dr. Brian Staiger Pharm.D
Medical Content Reviewed By PharmacistAnswers Staff
On Jan 08, 2018

I tried that for a while, but the high amount, and the speed it was absorbed, caused such mood swings that I stopped. I'm fairly certain that some of the meltdowns I wrote about on my own thread were caused by that.

I switched to intramuscular injections of estradiol valerate about three months ago, and despite hating needles, I won't go back.

If you haven't seen it yet, I highly recommend reading through Dr. Will Powers' PowerPoint presentation on TG healthcare, especially starting around page 30, where he gets into the differences between oral, and injectable or dermal estradiol. I was experiencing the same thing as about 1/4 of his patients while using the oral. Things are better now with the injectable. YMMV.

https://drive.google.com/drive/mobile/folders/0B5GqH5rA-mckQmx6NE15SXN4Y0E?usp=drive_open (https://drive.google.com/drive/mobile/folders/0B5GqH5rA-mckQmx6NE15SXN4Y0E?usp=drive_open)


Stephanie

Quote from: Donica on February 20, 2019, 11:09:11 AM...I just found this:
Estrace (estradiol) is not recommended to be taken sublingually (i.e. under the tongue) as it is not intended for that route of administration. Estrace, and the associated generic products, are not manufactured as sublingual tablets and are not designed to dissolve quickly and uniformly under the tongue. This could result in inconsistent dosing and local irritation. ...

not worth getting a new prescription if you're switching to injections soon. Keep swallowing until you do switch. don't try dissolving when the pill isn't designed for it.

Quote from: Steph2.0 on February 20, 2019, 11:39:48 AM
I tried that for a while, but the high amount, and the speed it was absorbed, caused such mood swings that I stopped. I'm fairly certain that some of the meltdowns I wrote about on my own thread were caused by that.

I switched to intramuscular injections of estradiol valerate about three months ago, and despite hating needles, I won't go back.

If you haven't seen it yet, I highly recommend reading through Dr. Will Powers' PowerPoint presentation on TG healthcare, especially starting around page 30, where he gets into the differences between oral, and injectable or dermal estradiol. I was experiencing the same thing as about 1/4 of his patients while using the oral. Things are better now with the injectable. YMMV.

https://drive.google.com/drive/mobile/folders/0B5GqH5rA-mckQmx6NE15SXN4Y0E?usp=drive_open (https://drive.google.com/drive/mobile/folders/0B5GqH5rA-mckQmx6NE15SXN4Y0E?usp=drive_open)


Stephanie

Thank you Stephanie. Cassandra gave me the link to Dr. Powers presentation a few months ago when you both wrote about it in your threads. I found it to be very interesting reading. I downloaded a copy of it for future reference.

I would have gone with injections months ago but I would have to inject myself in the south (as my previous Endo pointed out). I've heard Kaiser has recently closed down the injection lab here so I would be on my own.

Quote from: Donica on February 20, 2019, 12:36:53 PMI would have gone with injections months ago but I would have to inject myself in the south (as my previous Endo pointed out). I've heard Kaiser has recently closed down the injection lab here so I would be on my own.

I was instructed to inject into a major muscle, so so upper arm, thigh, and buttox are recommended. Thigh is easiest if you're doing it yourself. Luckily so far I've been able to get others to do the deed in either my arm or thigh.

My doc told me all I have to do is stop by the office and a nurse will take care of it. I've done that a few times with no issues other than waiting a bit for one to be available, but most of the time Cassie is happy to stab me.

It goes something like, "On the count of three: One...TWO!"

So far I've been able to avoid the "euphemism," but Cassie keeps threatening...

Stephanie

I had my phone appointment with my new Endo yesterday. She seems very sweet and informative! I expressed my concern about my last lad results (E level being so low). When I last tested, it had been 17 hours since my last dose. So of course my E levels will be that low. I am happy and I'm right where I should be. I will meet her in person in three months.

On another note, I sent another email to my FFS surgeon asking for an update on my place in line for my surgery. He had no new news yet except to say "Soon" UGH! The waiting is the worst!

It's looking like My GCS won't happen before the end of the year. I won't be eligible until June. And then there's the HNT in the Netherlands and of course the waiting list. So I'm considering having an orchiectomy and getting off spiro and switching over to E injections. The jury is still out on though.

Decisions decisions, waiting and waiting, patience and patience, ugh! ::)

@Donica
Dear Donica:
That is good news about your new Endo... it certainly is nice when they take the time to discuss your concerns and show themselves as friendly.  and not give you the "bum's rush".   
I imagine that you are looking forward to finally meeting her for the first time unless you already have previously.

I "hate"  it when people will only say "soon" without any other time qualifiers....   
For some, soon could mean later today and for others soon could be next year.   
I agree with your reaction: "UGH"

Yes indeed, transitioning, HRT, surgery plans, etc.... 
...all of those things require serious educated decisions and also take immense PATIENCE for sure.

Thanks for sharing your thoughts ... please continue to keep us all tuned in.
HUGS, and best wishes...
Danielle

Quote from: Donica on February 26, 2019, 01:08:18 PM
I had my phone appointment with my new Endo yesterday. She seems very sweet and informative! I expressed my concern about my last lad results (E level being so low). When I last tested, it had been 17 hours since my last dose. So of course my E levels will be that low. I am happy and I'm right where I should be. I will meet her in person in three months.

On another note, I sent another email to my FFS surgeon asking for an update on my place in line for my surgery. He had no new news yet except to say "Soon" UGH! The waiting is the worst!

It's looking like My GCS won't happen before the end of the year. I won't be eligible until June. And then there's the HNT in the Netherlands and of course the waiting list. So I'm considering having an orchiectomy and getting off spiro and switching over to E injections. The jury is still out on though.

Decisions decisions, waiting and waiting, patience and patience, ugh! ::)

I just got a disappointing call from Dr. Kim's office. They won't be able to get me in for my FFS surgery until this fall, what ever that means. So I'm going to change gears and request an orchiectomy while I'm waiting for my FFS. I couldn't be more disappointed right now.

Sent from my XT1585 using Tapatalk

Quote from: Donica on March 11, 2019, 09:10:49 PM
I just got a disappointing call from Dr. Kim's office. They won't be able to get me in for my FFS surgery until this fall, what ever that means. So I'm going to change gears and request an orchiectomy while I'm waiting for my FFS. I couldn't be more disappointed right now.

Sent from my XT1585 using Tapatalk

@Donica
Dear Donica:
......... Shucky Darn... that is too bad for sure, but you are making the best of a bad situation by scheduling your Orchi instead.

I wish you well in getting both of your surgeries scheduled as soon as you can get a firm date.

Please keep your thread updated as you are doing...   I am rooting for you.!!!!!
Hugs,
Danielle

Hi Donica - So sorry to read of your set back about the FFS but try to look forward to the orchie.  The recovery time is days not weeks and it does make a difference.  I am limited in my surgical options but I am 100% happy that I had the orchie 2 years ago. 

It's not a be all to end all but I am very glad I did it.  In my mind it is GCS 'lite' because #1 bye bye testosterone and
#2 it allowed me to change my birth certificate to female.  FFS will come eventually for you but for now focus on the next step.

Quote from: Donica on March 11, 2019, 09:10:49 PM
I just got a disappointing call from Dr. Kim's office. They won't be able to get me in for my FFS surgery until this fall, what ever that means. So I'm going to change gears and request an orchiectomy while I'm waiting for my FFS. I couldn't be more disappointed right now.

Donica, I sympathize with disappointment, I know it well. No words really do anything to lessen it. Keep this in mind, We are in March ... fall is near the end of September. It's really not that far off when looking at the whole picture of becoming ourselves.

Yeah, I know, it doesn't help. You can't blame a girl for trying ... can you?  :)

hugs
Faith

@Alaskan Danielle, @KimOct, @Faith

Thank you for the Encouragement Danielle, Kim and Faith. I got a reply back from Trans Care about the requirements for an orchiectomy. It seems I can't catch a break yet this year.

I qualify for all but one of the requirements for an orchiectomy. I was not aware that I had to be full time for more than 12 months.

My one year RLE isn't until June/July of this year. I also understand there will be a waiting list as well, leaving me at a loss for what to do next. Just an added note, by the time all this is supposed to happen, I will be 2 years HRT and eligible for a BA.

As I stated previously, Dr. Kim will not be scheduling me for FFS until sometime in the fall of this year. This could potentially cause an overlap in surgeries, most certainly leaving little time between surgeries for recovery.

I understand these are the rules but it doesn't make much sense for a women my age to have to jump through so many hoops. After all, I've already been waiting for 50+ years for this. I will be meeting with my therapist tomorrow to discuss further options.

Kim! If I may ask? and if you feel comfortable? As you stated in your post, why are you limited in surgical options? I ask because I am an elder lady with health issues and would like to keep a log of limitations for transitional surgeries, be they health, financial or other related issues.

I have great news!!! I just got my FFS surgery date with Dr. David Kim. June 20th 2019. <<<SQUEEEEYAY>>>. I am feeling TRANSTASTIC!!!

I haven't got all the details yet but I'm pretty sure it will be in West LA, the same hospital and surgeon that my very dear friend @AvaNovum had for her FFS. As soon as she is feeling better, we will celibrate :icon_geekdance:

P.S. Obviously I will be putting my orchiectomy on the back burner. I may just wait till my GCS hopfully early next year. Yay!!!

Big warm hugs!!!

Quote from: Donica on March 15, 2019, 10:56:40 AM
I have great news!!! I just got my FFS surgery date with Dr. David Kim. June 20th 2019. <<<SQUEEEEYAY>>>. I am feeling TRANSTASTIC!!!

I haven't got all the details yet but I'm pretty sure it will be in West LA, the same hospital and surgeon that my very dear friend @AvaNovum had for her FFS. As soon as she is feeling better, we will celibrate :icon_geekdance:

Big warm hugs!!!

YAY! You're getting your face fixed!!  .. oh wait, that didn't come out right.
.
.
.
.
YAY! you're getting unnecessary touch-ups to make yourself feel better just like lots of women do.

:)

Quote from: Faith on March 15, 2019, 11:03:15 AM
YAY! You're getting your face fixed!!  .. oh wait, that didn't come out right.
.
.
.
.
YAY! you're getting unnecessary touch-ups to make yourself feel better just like lots of women do.

:)

Haha! No, you were right the first time Faith. I'm getting my face fixed. I'm going to be as pretty as Ava and the rest of you girls. Yay!!!

Quote from: Donica on March 15, 2019, 11:11:57 AM
Haha! No, you were right the first time Faith. I'm getting my face fixed. I'm going to be as pretty as Ava and the rest of you girls. Yay!!!

When I can wake up in the morning, look in the mirror and think, "I don't need to do anything" ... THAT's when I'll consider myself one of the pretty girls.

Quote from: Faith on March 15, 2019, 11:23:44 AM
When I can wake up in the morning, look in the mirror and think, "I don't need to do anything" ... THAT's when I'll consider myself one of the pretty girls.

Nonsense!!! You already are one of the pretty girls dear! Anything else you do will be icing on the cake! We all see it. You also have a big heart too.

Congratulations, Donica!

Quote from: Faith on March 15, 2019, 11:23:44 AM
When I can wake up in the morning, look in the mirror and think, "I don't need to do anything" ... THAT's when I'll consider myself one of the pretty girls.

Pshaw, I say! Careful or I'll say it again! You're already part of the pretty parade.

Now me... well, I have a nice personality.

Stephanie

SQUEEEful congratulations, Donica!! And very coincidental. It's within a week of when I get more work done at the bump and dent shop. We're gonna knock 'em dead when we're done!

Stephanie

Quote from: Donica on March 15, 2019, 11:34:02 AM
Nonsense!!! You already are one of the pretty girls dear! Anything else you do will be icing on the cake! We all see it. You also have a big heart too.

Awwwww  :icon_redface: :icon_redface:

Hi everyone. Sorry it took so long to post this update. My dear friend @AvaNovum and I enjoyed the Trans Day of Visibility together in down town Hollywood at the Los Angeles LGBT Center Trans Lounge for lunch and a movie sponsored by the Trans Lounge.

We had pizza for lunch and the movie "In The Turn" was great. It's a documentary that takes place back in 2014 about a 10-year-old transgender girl from Canada who finds acceptance and empowerment in the company of a queer roller derby collective. There was many sad and happy tears shared by all.

All you can eat pizza yum num num! It was a little hot that day. We were both wearing cute breezy little sundresses. The first above knee of the year for me. Hay! Grandma can still rock a mini dress.
(https://i.imgur.com/G243y4Q.jpg)

They have a airconditioned theatrical theater for plays and movies. Must hold 200+ people.
(https://i.imgur.com/tX6bFdg.jpg)

I learned to hold my dress down when the wind refuses to cooperate. Lots of other events coming up by the week. I'm getting to be a busy girl. Loving life. Counting the days till my FFS surgery.

Hugs!!!

What a wonderful weekend. Saturday Ava and I went to our local nail spa a well deserved pampering. I wanted a lavender color but I ended up with the next best thing. The nail color looks a bit different in the bottle ::).

Spring is here in the southlands. Sunday Ava and I spent the day with our good friends "D" and "K" at the Santa Paula airport for breakfast at the 128 café and another open house day in their hanger answering questions for the visiting folks. It was 87 degrees F with today expected to be even hotter.

Stephanie would love to meet "D" and "K" as they are fellow trans aircraft builders. "D" took Ave up for a ride in their beautiful home built J3 Cub. I posted a picture of it a while back. "D" is quite the builder. The J3 is their third build.

Ava and I took a picture of our toastie toes for Alaskan Danielle collection. We each got hand painted flowers complete with a cute little red CZ gem in the middle of the flowers. If you look close, you can see the detail of the flowers. Really cute.

                  (https://i.imgur.com/OiekAq2.jpg)

Oops! My bad! It is known as the Santa Paula Flight 126 Café!!! Nevertheless, it always seems that these out of the way cafe's always have the best food :D And that's the truth friends.

Quote from: Donica on April 08, 2019, 09:29:20 AMStephanie would love to meet "D" and "K" as they are fellow trans aircraft builders. "D" took Ave up for a ride in their beautiful home built J3 Cub. I posted a picture of it a while back. "D" is quite the builder. The J3 is their third build.

Now that would be cool! Feel free to send 'em to my website http://lonepalmaero.com (http://lonepalmaero.com).

QuoteAva and I took a picture of our toastie toes for Alaskan Danielle collection. We each got hand painted flowers complete with a cute little red CZ gem in the middle of the flowers. If you look close, you can see the detail of the flowers. Really cute.

(https://i.imgur.com/OiekAq2.jpg)

I'm claiming origination (with my sweetie) of the idea of the crossed legs in toasty toes pictures. But you've done us one better with the matching toenails, so good on ya!

Stephanie

Thanks Stephanie. I will forward your website to "D". Nice Hawk Sport build!!! Her is a picture of "D" and "K's" J3. I'll take more pictures next time. I want a picture of Ava sitting in the cockpit. It's a tight squeeze getting into the back seat.

                           (https://i.imgur.com/TIv07sR.jpg)

My anxiety level has been a little high the past two weeks. There is a woman in my building moving to the other side of town. We were friends before I came out. But now, her and my next door neighbor (the Ms. Gossip Queen central which nobody pays any attention to anyway, and best friends with the woman moving away) are very negative and unwilling to except me for who I am.

My X friend just leaves the common room every time I walk in. This was just a minor issue for me, but now that she is moving, I can't stop thinking why? I know there could be 100 reasons why but I can't stop thinking it is because of me. I certainly don't want to be the reason for anyone to uproot and move away.

Like everyone else, I always tend to think the worst. Even though the X friend and gossip queen are the only two negative people in the building, I can't stop thinking how this could be a reason for management to claim I am a disruption to the community.

I'm thinking there could be a thousand legal loopholes and unfortunately, if it came to their word against mine, the trans community suffers. I know I have legal rights. Still the though of being a burden to someone I once called a friend hurts.

I don't know the real reason why the woman is moving away and I suppose I may hear the real reason through the grapevine. I can't trust the gossip queen for anything because she is very vindictive and manipulative and would probable tell me it's my fault anyway. 

Quote from: Donica on April 12, 2019, 12:15:46 PM
My X friend just leaves the common room every time I walk in. This was just a minor issue for me, but now that she is moving, I can't stop thinking why? I know there could be 100 reasons why but I can't stop thinking it is because of me. I certainly don't want to be the reason for anyone to uproot and move away.

We tend to think the worst, but she might be moving for reasons that have nothing to do with you.  Even if it is because of you, it is probably because she can't handle your awesomeness!

If you are worried that it might cause your landlord to try to get rid of you, you should learn exacly what your legal rights are.  I know there are some places where you have none, but hopefully you live in a place with some legal protection in place.  Make sure you know what it is.

You are right Kathy! I can't worry about it either way. I have much more important things to worry about. Management has always been very friendly and accepting of me. More so after coming out to them. They have actually warned me about these two troublemakers when I first moved in years ago. These two have always been difficult for the community to get along with.

California has very good protection laws for everyone, including renters and the LGBT community. We even have affordable LGBT only senior housing throughout the state. But as I mentioned earlier, a good crooked good lawyer can find loopholes in our legal system.

I guess it's just that nagging feeling in the back of my mind that something may be in the wind.

Women's intuition? Hypersensitive HRT?

Ava and I had a wonderful day visiting Santa Barbara Ca. yesterday. It was still a bit chilly and foggy because we got there early so we could have breakfast at the original Sambo's restaurant. What a great place. Old fashioned, good food and great service.

Santa Barbara is always a great place to visit. It's beautiful, refreshing and always very peaceful. After breakfast, we enjoyed a walk along the waterfront, bike path, beach and the Stearns Wharf pier. There is a lot of cute little shops on the pier, and all around the city as well.

Ava and I had a little fun with the Moby Dick restaurant located on the pier. It's a great place with good food.
                                      (https://i.imgur.com/8W2pRMv.jpg)

OH NO! AVA IS STUCK!!!
                                     (https://i.imgur.com/qXZEowY.jpg)

OH NO! NOW DONICA IS STUCK!!!
                                    (https://i.imgur.com/ROiocq6.jpg)

Oh what to do ;D

They have a compass rose on the pier that could use a little of Stephanie's professional TLC. What do you think Steph? Will it live?
                                      (https://i.imgur.com/oggj34v.jpg)

We thought this was an appropriate selfie. It's located on the waterfront about a block north of the pier. This is the Herbert Bayer chromatic gate that was given to the City Of Santa Barbara in memory of Herbert Bayer.
                                      (https://i.imgur.com/0F3QZSb.jpg)
Wow! Who are those cute ladies?

I have many more pictures of the city and the shops on the pier. Too many to post here.

A fun day!!!
                                       

Santa Barbara is such a nice place to relax.  You two have fun!

Hugs and smiles from another California girl

It's too bad we could meet you there Jess. I know it would be a drive for you. It takes less than an hour from my place but another 5 to 6 hours to your place.

We will to see you in September.

Update 05/06/2019

I had a wonderful day yesterday at the Santa Paula airport monthly open house with good friends. Breakfast at the Flight 126 café and then off to the hanger to greet spectators roaming the airport. We were surprised at the big turnout of folks asking questions and checking out all the hangers, especially considering it was Cinco de Mayo.

I got a little stick time in my friends Super Cub. It was wonderful to spread my wings again after so many years stuck on the ground. I have newfound admiration for Super Cub's as they require a little more rudder finesse than Cessna's and Cherokee's. I was a bit rusty but I got most of it back by the end of the flight. I'm afraid I'm hooked again and am planning my comeback to aviation.

My friend/owner/builder of this beautiful Super Cub showing me the ropes before our flight. Clear prop!!!
                 (https://i.imgur.com/6fVyA8P.jpg)         (https://i.imgur.com/pST3YEU.jpg)

I'm sure some of you may recognize this cutie. Yes the Cub is cute too ;D Muahahahahah! My plan has worked. I've gotten Ava interested in seeking a pilots license. Oh the fun we are going to have!!! I love it when a plan comes together ;)
                                    (https://i.imgur.com/JrDCaEn.jpg)

A birds eye view of SZP. A straight out departure and heading for the SoCal Coastline in Ventura. This picture is actually dropping back into the pattern after our flight.
                                    (https://i.imgur.com/yD8l1p3.jpg)

The SoCal Ventura coastline and then heading north for a little rudder practice. It took a bit but I got the hang of it again. This aircraft flies so sweet it almost flies it's self.
                   (https://i.imgur.com/LbOn37k.jpg)     (https://i.imgur.com/BwQl2ra.jpg)

A wonderful day indeed. It helped take my mind off my upcoming FFS surgery just a little over a month from now. My excitement is soring and I'm beginning to get a little antsy. My pre-op appointment is June 14th, less than a week before S day. Just hoping to get everything done that needs to be done before surgery. UGH!

I'm planning to start an FFS thread after my pre-op app. I'll probably just call it "Donica's FFS Journey". I hope you all join me.
                                    (https://i.imgur.com/jZdBBI6.jpg)

@Donica
Dear Donica:
Thank you for posting your wonderful update and also the beautiful pictures of the scenery...
   ....and also the beautiful pictures of you and Ava.

Oh, and yes, you have every right to be excited about your upcoming FFS pre-appointment on June 14.
All of your followers are excited for you.

Thank you for sharing,
Hugs,
Danielle

Wonderful post Donica  :)

Two thumbs up from here

Cynthia -

Quote from: Alaskan Danielle on May 06, 2019, 03:12:46 PM
@Donica
Dear Donica:
Thank you for posting your wonderful update and also the beautiful pictures of the scenery...
   ....and also the beautiful pictures of you and Ava.

Oh, and yes, you have every right to be excited about your upcoming FFS pre-appointment on June 14.
All of your followers are excited for you.

Thank you for sharing,
Hugs,
Danielle

Thank you Danielle! I'm certainly beginning to get that warm anxious feeling inside as S day approaches.

Great pics, Donica!  The Cub looks like a lot of fun to fly.

YAY Donica! Getting back in the seat and getting Ava excited too, just like me and Cassie! Here we were on Saturday, having fun like you did, powered by our favorite fuel.

(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20190506/406d3a5d0bd32138f6113eccca24b026.jpg)

@steph2.0
Dear Stephanie.... 
....also,  a beautiful picture of 2 very pretty ladies...

Thank you for sharing.
Hugs,
Danielle

Quote from: steph2.0 on May 06, 2019, 03:46:51 PM
YAY Donica! Getting back in the seat and getting Ava excited too, just like me and Cassie! Here we were on Saturday, having fun like you did, powered by our favorite fuel.

(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20190506/406d3a5d0bd32138f6113eccca24b026.jpg)

Quote from: steph2.0 on May 06, 2019, 03:46:51 PM
YAY Donica! Getting back in the seat and getting Ava excited too, just like me and Cassie! Here we were on Saturday, having fun like you did, powered by our favorite fuel.

(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20190506/406d3a5d0bd32138f6113eccca24b026.jpg)

SQUEEELICOUS!!!! Never fly with an empty cup of joe :D

This plane had a serious problem that we'll be sure to address when we finish our next plane: no cup holders!


Stephanie

Quote from: steph2.0 on May 06, 2019, 04:30:51 PM
This plane had a serious problem that we'll be sure to address when we finish our next plane: no cup holders!


Stephanie

Oh yes for sure. It should be standard equipment. Who's dumb idea was it to leave out the cup holders anyway?

Cup holders don't work to well when you're inverted. I guess you need a gimbal cup  holder to keep the contents in.

Quote from: Dena on May 06, 2019, 09:33:54 PM
Cup holders don't work to well when you're inverted. I guess you need a gimbal cup  holder to keep the contents in.

Just do a barrel roll. It's a 1g positive maneuver all the way round. Bob Hoover used to pour a cup of iced tea while rolling a Shrike Commander. Look it up on YouTube. He was amazing.

The Dash 80/707 needed positive Gravity to function correctly however that didn't prevent it from being barrel rolled. I also heard about a Lear jet with a wine glass on the center console while being inverted.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AaA7kPfC5Hk

Quote from: Dena on May 06, 2019, 11:31:49 PM
The Dash 80/707 needed positive Gravity to function correctly however that didn't prevent it from being barrel rolled. I also heard about a Lear jet with a wine glass on the center console while being inverted.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AaA7kPfC5Hk

I read Tex Johnston's book. The boss called him into his office and yelled, "What the Hell did you think you were doing?" He answered, "Selling airplanes!"


Stephanie

Quote from: steph2.0 on May 06, 2019, 10:38:06 PM
Just do a barrel roll. It's a 1g positive maneuver all the way round. Bob Hoover used to pour a cup of iced tea while rolling a Shrike Commander. Look it up on YouTube. He was amazing.

Yup! I used to watch Bob Hoover do that very maneuver in his Shrike Commander when the Simi Valley airport was still open. He would even do that with both engines feathered. He called it energy management. He flew in every one of our airshows.

Clay Lacy used to land his purple "Omni" P-51 Mustang on that tiny airport (2300ft runway?) before the crowds showed up. Then he would take off and put on a great performance during the show. All were 1g positive maneuvers.

Quote from: Dena on May 06, 2019, 11:31:49 PM
The Dash 80/707 needed positive Gravity to function correctly however that didn't prevent it from being barrel rolled. I also heard about a Lear jet with a wine glass on the center console while being inverted.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AaA7kPfC5Hk

My father saw this live.....

Quote from: Donica on May 07, 2019, 06:07:21 PM
Yup! I used to watch Bob Hoover do that very maneuver in his Shrike Commander when the Simi Valley airport was still open. He would even do that with both engines feathered. He called it energy management. He flew in every one of our airshows.

I remember watching Bob Hoover's energy management demo.  He feathered both engines and shut them off.  Then he proceeded to do a loop upwind, a turn, a barrel roll downwind, turn final, land, taxi to the ramp and park in his assigned parking spot, all without restarting the engines.

Yup and all without power. I've watched Bob do 8 point rolls in the same feathered configuration. He always had enough energy left to taxi back, right in front of show center. We used to see him at the Reno air races every year. He started every unlimited race as far back as I can remember.

Yay!!! I got my name and gender changed on my airmen's certificate this morning. It was painless. I had a lovely 30 minute chat with the FAA folks at the VNY FSDO. They even helped with my lost logbook.

I need to visit CMA where I did my flight training to see about recovering all my endorsements. The originals were lost in a fire. The hard part will be convincing an FAA certified physician that I'm healthy. They don't like very many blips in the medical records, at least not back then.

So that should be the last item I needed to change. I think I've covered all the name and gender change bases :-\

Quote from: Donica on May 09, 2019, 01:53:54 PM
Yup and all without power. I've watched Bob do 8 point rolls in the same feathered configuration. He always had enough energy left to taxi back, right in front of show center. We used to see him at the Reno air races every year. He started every unlimited race as far back as I can remember.

Yay!!! I got my name and gender changed on my airmen's certificate this morning. It was painless. I had a lovely 30 minute chat with the FAA folks at the VNY FSDO. They even helped with my lost logbook.

I need to visit CMA where I did my flight training to see about recovering all my endorsements. The originals were lost in a fire. The hard part will be convincing an FAA certified physician that I'm healthy. They don't like very many blips in the medical records, at least not back then.

So that should be the last item I needed to change. I think I've covered all the name and gender change bases :-\

Be careful about the medical, hon. Gender dysphoria is a disqualifying condition. It's why I'm flying as a sport pilot with my drivers license as my medical. http://transgenderpilots.org (http://transgenderpilots.org)


Stephanie

Quote from: steph2.0 on May 09, 2019, 02:18:21 PM
Be careful about the medical, hon. Gender dysphoria is a disqualifying condition. It's why I'm flying as a sport pilot with my drivers license as my medical. http://transgenderpilots.org (http://transgenderpilots.org)


Stephanie

Thanks Stephanie! That's good to know. Yes we both have a mutual friend that flies under the very same umbrella. I'm sure I couldn't pass the physical any more so the sport umbrella it is. That's ok because there are lots of production aircraft that fall under the light aircraft rule. I'm a taildragger now so I won't miss flying my favorite Piper Archer.

Steph! The link you provided didn't work? I'll see if I can google it. Here's an interesting link I just found. It's old (2016) https://abcnews.go.com/US/faa-makes-easier-transgender-pilots-certified/story?id=36616113

Well, 30 days and counting till F day. It's getting close and I'm starting to feel a bit more anxious. My pre-op appointment with the Kaiser facial team is the 14th of June, which leaves less than a week to get everything done before surgery.

I did my lab work yesterday for my visit with my Endo next week. They already came in and the results are all good. (E = 192 pg/ml and T = 9 ng/dl.)

My pilots licenses name and gender change is come along gracefully. I have my temp certificate in hand and my PPL card will be here some time in September. It could be here sooner. Yes the FAA is (believe it or not) faster and much easier to deal with than the rest of our government.

That's all for now. I'll start my FFS thread some time after my pre-op visit.

Hugs!

@Donica
Dear Donica:
A wonderful update, thank you for keeping me and the rest of you followers tuned into what is happening in your life.
WOW....  one month from "F" day!!!   I will be counting down with you and as always I wish you success.
I am glad to see that you Endo blood tests came out good.   .... 
....And another WOW, you got your pilots license name and gender change all in order. 

Yes indeed, I will be looking for your FFS thread when you get it going, meanwhile I am always checking in on this current "Donica's he Shethread of yours!!!

HUGS and best wishes as always,
Danielle

Quote from: Alaskan Danielle on May 21, 2019, 01:54:23 PM
@Donica
Dear Donica:
A wonderful update, thank you for keeping me and the rest of you followers tuned into what is happening in your life.
WOW....  one month from "F" day!!!   I will be counting down with you and as always I wish you success.
I am glad to see that you Endo blood tests came out good.   .... 
....And another WOW, you got your pilots license name and gender change all in order. 

Yes indeed, I will be looking for your FFS thread when you get it going, meanwhile I am always checking in on this current "Donica's he Shethread of yours!!!

HUGS and best wishes as always,
Danielle

Hummm! It's not like you to miss type that much Danielle. You must have been in a hurry. I know what you meant ;D I was thinking of calling my FFS thread "Donica's New She-sher She Shed"? Ok maybe not ;) lol

Thank you Dear! Hugs!

Quote from: Donica on May 21, 2019, 04:34:49 PM
Hummm! It's not like you to miss type that much Danielle. You must have been in a hurry. I know what you meant ;D I was thinking of calling my FFS thread "Donica's New She-sher She Shed"? Ok maybe not ;) lol

Thank you Dear! Hugs!

@Donica
Dear Donica:
So sorry I screwed up my comment post with so many typos... 
I will try to do better next time and only post when I am not in a hurry.
I guess that I have too many irons in the fire lately. ... it's time for me to slow down.
Hugs,
Danielle

Hummm... Like the new format, but what happened to my current pages? Everything from May 2019 to present is missing?

Help!
Hugs!
Donica

Quote from: Donica on January 04, 2024, 09:29:11 AMHummm... Like the new format, but what happened to my current pages? Everything from May 2019 to present is missing?

Help!
Hugs!
Donica

It's all covered here, Donica:

https://www.susans.org/index.php/topic,246809.0.html

Hugs, Devlyn

How wonderful to see the world of 5 years ago come to life again.  Painful for some I'm sure, but really illuminating for others!  You are working your fingers to the bone!  Thanks to all of you at Susan's!

Happy New Year! May all our dreams come true in 2024!

Anyone else having issues logging into Imgur? I keep being asked to "Please fill out a captcha." but I don't see any place to enter the captcha. I've read that others are having similar issues.

@Donica , I stay logged in forever so I can go straight to my page. I haven't had any issues.

Hugs,

Allie

Hey Donica.  Just checking in to make it easier to follow your thread.  :)

So, just finished a video conference with a vascular surgeon about my ongoing peripheral artery issues in my leg. Basically, the doctor told me, unless the pain is such that you can't get to the bathroom, or your toes are turning black, they don't want to do anything. Risk vs gain, as I am told.

I get it. No sense taking the risk if my leg isn't about to fall off. At least the pain is not near as bad as it was 10 years ago when they did an angioplasty.

Thanks for the Imgur advice @Allie Jayne. That will help once I figure out how to log back in. @REM.1126, thanks for following my thread. Hugs! 

It's been a month or two sense I've visited the She Shed. Things sure get dusty fast. It looks like somebody had a New Years Eve party here. (Sounds of Donica throwing bottles and cans in the trash, running the vacuum cleaner).

That's it for now. More to come once I get the She Shed cleaned up and more presentable for guest :D

Hug!
Donica

Hey! I'm comfortable in your She Shed! Don't worry about some cushions out of place, and that laundry you need to put away, so long as the old pizza boxes are gone, it's all good!

It sucks about your leg artery, and I wonder if it is really a medical decision to do nothing yet, or a financial decision by your insurance company! We shouldn't have to live in pain so shareholders can profit. I guess that was partly why you had so much trouble with fluid after your GRS?

Anyway, don't worry about your SheShed, just change the background like we do on Zoom!

Hugs,

Allie

Throw up some new drapes and a Mexican blanket on the sofa,it will be fine. Nice to see the shed open

Quote from: Allie Jayne on January 08, 2024, 04:21:09 PMHey! I'm comfortable in your She Shed! Don't worry about some cushions out of place, and that laundry you need to put away, so long as the old pizza boxes are gone, it's all good!

It sucks about your leg artery, and I wonder if it is really a medical decision to do nothing yet, or a financial decision by your insurance company! We shouldn't have to live in pain so shareholders can profit. I guess that was partly why you had so much trouble with fluid after your GRS?

Anyway, don't worry about your SheShed, just change the background like we do on Zoom!

Hugs,

Allie

Ah yes! Cleaning all done, and background changed. Nothing like a little elbow grease to get the blood moving again lol.

To be honest, I think most of the problem with my leg is due to edema, which I believe may have been the result of long-term use of Spironolactone as a T-Blocker. 4 days ago, I doubled my Lasix dose because my leg began to swell again. The swelling is finally beginning to subside. Out with one diuretic, only to start a different one. ugh! At least, I'm told, Lasix is less harmful than spiro.

A quick note to those following in our footsteps, it's up to you and your doctors, but if you are taking spironolactone as a T-blocker, you may want to consider switching to something less harmful. I was warned by a number of medical professionals about its bad side effects from long-term use. Do your research. Talk your doctors. Ask what your options are.

Hugs!
Donica

@Donica
Dear Donica:
I am so very glad that you made it back to Susan's Place after our 1st of the year big CRASH.
... I am also happy to see that your "She Shed" Blog thread has survived.

All of us here on the Forum are scrambling to pick up the pieces and find what we can to get
our Blogs, threads and other postings recovered and put together once again.

The staff has been working overtime plus more overtime to put our site back to a familiar and
good operating condition. 
There are a lot of loose ends that will take a lot more time to fix up, but we are getting there...
... when we are finally done I am thinking that with the addition of some improvements that we
are incorporating that the site will be better than ever.

I will be following your Blog once again now that you were able to get it back up on the Forum.
Please continue to keep your updates coming... the rest of your followers and I will be eagerly
looking for you future postings.

Many HUGS,
Danielle

Just a little update about my post-op life adventures. For the most part, all has been going well. I've been pretty lucky so far, rarely a miss gender, with the exception of a fail every so often on the phone. To be honest, I'm pretty sure most people know I'm trans, but don't care, and are just interested in interacting as they would with anybody else. I've found most folks to be sensible and polite, and many that may not realize I'm trans. I've had my share of gentlemen holding doors open for me, and my share of those oblivious to others around. Being treated as just another human being is a wonderful thing.

I try not to get so hung up on the occasional encounters with the misguided souls, but sometimes these encounters seem to cut deeper than others. I never acknowledge their sarcasms with any more than a smile and go on my way. Not sure why this one has stuck with me so long. About 3 months ago, I was on my way back from the mailbox. There was a young couple admiring what appeared to be a new vehicle they had just purchased, when the male replied loudly in my direction, "Wow! Look at that!", and the female replying loudly, also in my direction, "Ugley!".

I ignored their comments and continued on to my apartment. I'm not sure why this one has stuck with me this long, after all, the couple could have been referring to something else entirely, but at the risk of jumping to my own conclusions, I have to ask, what kind of people would loudly direct such an ugly comment across the street at an elderly person in a retirement community. Anyway, I'm sure I'm overreacting.

People come in all sizes and shapes, and it certainly has been an interesting journey meeting them as the person I am proud to be.

Hugs!
Donica

Quote from: Donica on January 10, 2024, 05:27:17 PMJust a little update about my post-op life adventures. For the most part, all has been going well. I've been pretty lucky so far, rarely a miss gender, with the exception of a fail every so often on the phone. To be honest, I'm pretty sure most people know I'm trans, but don't care, and are just interested in interacting as they would with anybody else. I've found most folks to be sensible and polite, and many that may not realize I'm trans. I've had my share of gentlemen holding doors open for me, and my share of those oblivious to others around. Being treated as just another human being is a wonderful thing.

I try not to get so hung up on the occasional encounters with the misguided souls, but sometimes these encounters seem to cut deeper than others. I never acknowledge their sarcasms with any more than a smile and go on my way. Not sure why this one has stuck with me so long. About 3 months ago, I was on my way back from the mailbox. There was a young couple admiring what appeared to be a new vehicle they had just purchased, when the male replied loudly in my direction, "Wow! Look at that!", and the female replying loudly, also in my direction, "Ugley!".

I ignored their comments and continued on to my apartment. I'm not sure why this one has stuck with me this long, after all, the couple could have been referring to something else entirely, but at the risk of jumping to my own conclusions, I have to ask, what kind of people would loudly direct such an ugly comment across the street at an elderly person in a retirement community. Anyway, I'm sure I'm overreacting.

People come in all sizes and shapes, and it certainly has been an interesting journey meeting them as the person I am proud to be.

Hugs!
Donica

Donica, they clearly demonstrated they had issues, not you! They probably put themselves deep in debt to be seen with a new car as a compensation for their own self doubts. I have a policy never to worry about anything said to me by anyone I don't know and respect. Feel pity for them.

Hugs,

Allie

Quote from: Donica on January 10, 2024, 05:27:17 PMI try not to get so hung up on the occasional encounters with the misguided souls, but sometimes these encounters seem to cut deeper than others. I never acknowledge their sarcasms with any more than a smile and go on my way. Not sure why this one has stuck with me so long. About 3 months ago, I was on my way back from the mailbox. There was a young couple admiring what appeared to be a new vehicle they had just purchased, when the male replied loudly in my direction, "Wow! Look at that!", and the female replying loudly, also in my direction, "Ugley!".

I ignored their comments and continued on to my apartment. I'm not sure why this one has stuck with me this long, after all, the couple could have been referring to something else entirely, but at the risk of jumping to my own conclusions, I have to ask, what kind of people would loudly direct such an ugly comment across the street at an elderly person in a retirement community. Anyway, I'm sure I'm overreacting.

Hugs!
Donica

Donica, just assume they were commenting on the reflection they saw of themselves on the window of their car.

I used to jump to the conclusion that any laugh, giggle, or inaudible comment was something negative directed at me. That's easy to do, especially when I was just starting my journey and was very insecure. Eventually I realized that most people go about their day never really paying attention to those around them, and the odds of any unkind comment actually being aimed at me were exceptionally low. Don't let others live in your mind rent free, especially people you don't know -- they may soil the carpet and steal your drapes!

Just be yourself. If others can't handle it, it's their problem.

Love always -- Jessica Rose

It's just sad.  Folks that try to pull any joy and comfort from others.  To what end?  Platitudes aside, you can choose how to let their prioritized behaviors bother you. 

I finally figured out what was wrong with my Imgur account. The culprit was MS Edge browser. MS Edge has a problem displaying most captcha request. Everything works just fine in Google Chrome.
(https://i.imgur.com/DWnzIO1.jpg)

Not much going on in my life at the moment, except for the usual nasty health issues. Not much of an update other than to let Y'all know I'm still here.

I have posted here before about the trials and tribulations of the apartment building I live in with having so many issues with the hot water boiler failing, and the power going out all the time. So much so I recently invested in a portable power station, and a portable solar panel for backup power. Lucky for me they restored our hot water before I invested in a tankless water heater, small enough to fit under the sink.

So far, the windy season the past few months has been mild enough not to disrupt the city power supply. Still, it's nice to have the peace of mind that I will be able to keep in touch with the outside world in the event of another power outage.

Aside from all the trials and tribulations mentioned above, I am happy with how my post-operative life has been going thus far. I'm finally beginning to feel better all the time and am looking forward to putting the bad health issues behind me so I can enjoy the rest of my life.

P.S. Anybody getting married and in need of a bridesmaid, or perhaps a maid of honor? I have experience! Always a bridesmaid but never a bride lol.

Hugs!
Donica

Quote from: Donica on January 08, 2024, 01:49:24 PMSo, just finished a video conference with a vascular surgeon about my ongoing peripheral artery issues in my leg. Basically, the doctor told me, unless the pain is such that you can't get to the bathroom, or your toes are turning black, they don't want to do anything. Risk vs gain, as I am told.

I get it. No sense taking the risk if my leg isn't about to fall off. At least the pain is not near as bad as it was 10 years ago when they did an angioplasty.

Hug!
Donica

My cardiologist preformed a venous ablation on my right leg some years ago.  Strangely enough, the associated varicosities didn't stay gone.  For me its a pretty constant deep hurt rather than an agonizing pain.  So is it Arterial or Venous?  I wonder if that matters?

Do they have any idea what causes this?

I know that blood sugar affects inflammation in the circulatory system.  Have you tried restricting carbs?

Well,  lets drop it on the table.

I'm in stage 3 renal failure.  A combination of 45 years of hypertension and...wait for it.  You guessed it.  INFLAMATION.  Inflammation caused by elevated glucose.  Priamrily insulin intolerance.  Genetic factors play.   

According to my high dollar nutrtitionist, brought in by my nephrologist, carbs are the culprit.  Keeping it simple ?'cause I'm a simpleton?, glucose causes inflammation.  Carbs, Protiens, and Fats are converted to glucose to be used variously by the body.  The only discriminator is how fast they are converted (Glycemic Index).  Carbs quickly, protiens follow, with fats being the slowest to convert.  In an insulin intolerent sort like me, glucose tumbles around and has no where to go, can't be used.  Kidneys try to filter it out, exacerbating inflammation which closes off the tubules and causes scar tissue formation in response, never to recover.  In the kidneys, where these are blocked by scar tissue, the resultant degradation in filtration capacity hieghtens other blood chemistry contents and components.  Results?  Reduced GFR. 

GFR is the filtration efficiency measurement.  Dr. says, once lost to scarring, tubules do not repair.  They'll be idle for ever.

So how do you treat it?  Lower carb and caloric density of intake.  Increase water to at least an ounce per kilo of body weight spread over the day.  Result?  In four years I've stalled the GFR degredation.

Thank you for your replies @D'Amalie and @REM.1126.

The issue with my leg is from an ongoing peripheral artery disease, due to high LDL cholesterol. It seems I was the only offspring of 3, to inherit my father's (and his whole family) cardiovascular/peripheral artery disease.

@D'Amalie, I'm sorry to hear of your struggle with stage 3 renal failure. My daughter has struggled with total renal failure for most of her life. She is a kidney transplant recipient. Sadly, her transplant failed as well, so, she has been living with dialysis for most of her life.

These things sure make a mess of life, but we do the best we can. Did you know Halle Barry has suffered from total renal failure from an early age? One day, (pharma greed permitting) they will come up with a simple pill that will end all these diseases.

Hugs!
Donica

Wow! Going back and reading this blog from the beginning, I realize just how bad my spelling and grammar was. Not that it's much better today, but it shows how little proofreading I did back then. Hard to believe I was a professional coder. The syntax must be correct, or it doesn't work. My OCD is killing me lol. Oh Well, it shows growth.

Donica

Good afternoon SP family! The rain has left the area for about a week now. We're finally beginning to dry out. They've always said, California may one day slide off into the Pacific Ocean, but honestly, I think the cause will be from mudslides, rather than the infamous San Andreas fault. Yet another series of storms heading this way next weekend. UGH!

A month ago, my doctor prescribed Spiriva to help control my COPD. I'm feeling soooo much better. All I need now is for my vascular surgeon to fix my leg, and I'll be back shopping with my girlfriends again. Mommy wants a new pair of shoes... and a cute dress to go with them :D. That's all for now. Hope you all are having a wonderful Super Bowl weekend. It's all about the dip ;).

Hugs!
Donica

@Donica
Dear Donica:
  I am saddened to read of your medical condition but it is good that your doctor
  prescribed a medication that is helping you feel better. 
  I am very happy to read that the medications are working.

  Yes, I have been reading about the rain and downpours in your area... that much rain, so fast...
...as you mentioned, can cause mudslides and other issues such as flash floods, etc.

  I am wishing you well in getting your new shoes and a new cute dress.   
  Obviously I will be looking for pictures when that happens.  :)

HUGS and more HUGS,
Danielle