Due to have SRS with Phil Thomas, and a bit scared

[emoxon]

I'm due to have my SRS on the 29th, by Phil Thomas in Brighton UK. 'm getting my surgery on the NHS, and would be interested to hear from other women in the UK who have either had surgery with Thomas, or elsewhere on the NHS (I understand Bellringer does the same technique as Thomas). I must say all my reports of Thomas from people in the UK are good, an that he is consistent, which is reassuring, but still I don't think I can ever know enough.

As I said in another post I'm really nervous and scared about the surgery. I worried something will go wrong, or it won't feel right etc etc. I guess most of this is normal and reading other posts here helps, but still I'm pretty afraid.
the main things that scare me can pretty much be summed up as follows:
1. How much it will hurt, I am a total whimp with pain.
2. Having to have needles, drips etc in me, as I have a massive phobia of needles and particulalry anything around my wrists.
3. Getting home, me and gf (who is coming with me) plan to get a lift with her parents. But since they don't know I trans we're going to tell them I'm having emergency gynocological surgery. I had planned to get the train home, but this seems to be out from waht the nurse told me.
4. How long it will be before I'm mobile/not bleeding. As I said in another post, I have a very active social life and I'm really worried about missing out on events. I know this sounds stupid but being with my friends and at folk music events is really important to me, and it really upsets me that I'm going to miss several of them, even if it is for a good reason.
5. My weight. I'm 14 stone 11 pounds at the last count, and 5'11''. When I saw Mr Thomas in the spring I was 16 stone and he said I should get down to 14 stone if possible. According to my BMI I'm still very overweight, but looking at myself in the mirror I'm not out of proportion and none of my friends would say I am overweight. I'm quite musclely and fit (I can walk 25 miles in a day easily) and I have had a lot of problems with eating disorders, so lossing more weight really isn't easy. What I am most worried about though is whether this target of 14 stone was a suggestion or a deal breaker and whether my weight is going to disrupt my surgery?

Anyway look forward your replies.
Emma

[lilacwoman]

I had my surgery in London Bridge Hospital on banks of Thames across from St Pauls with lots of lovely nurses and staff.   
if Thomas has seen you for the pre-op assessmnet he must be Ok with your weight but I know others who have been told to get down to 14stone or else no surgery.   the big worry is leg thrombosis or compartment syndrome if the op takes longer than normal due to lots of fat getting in the way of the scalpel.  you'll have the airpump leggings on but they still have to worry about the thrombosis.
it hurts!  you have to have the needle and one of the awful cannulars in back of hand and possibly an epidural but you will probably wake up to find a selfservice morphine pump thing attached to the cannular in back of hand. 
an hour before surgery they came and gave me three injections of relaxant so I was a happy sleepy zombie when they wheeled me into theater. you'll have an electric bed but sitting up may be painful for a while .
you'll have a day or two of fasting and bowel emptying so won't feel like eating so take some fruit gums or pastilles to suck to get your taste buds working again and drip feed a bit of sugar into your system.
I came home on train and due to a landslip trackside the journey took extra two hours but I survived.
get a doughnut pillow to sit on as the perineum is very swelled up and you'll feel to be sitting on a golf ball for some weeks.
I was out shopping by bus after a couple of weeks without problems.
be prepared for night sweats like you've never had before.   may be reaction to the op/anaesthetic/bowel prep but OMG I woke up several times absolutely soaking.  take several cotton nighties

[emoxon]

I saw Phil Thomas back in March and he said 'it would be good if you could be 14stone', which seemed at the time to suggest it was optional. Needless to say I have been loosing weight ever since, but at the same time dealing with worsening bulimia and anerexia. As I say I'm around 14 11 now and still loosing weight, but I am really quite musclely. My legs in particular are really muscly because I do long distance walking, cycling and am an ex rower, and I can't help feeling this throws my BMI off. Sure I have some fat, mostly on my hips and bum and inner thigh, but I am not obviously over weight. I think the pro-op assessment is done over the phone next week, so I guess I find out more then. I'm just really terrified as it seems the only thing worse than having surgery at this point, is not having surgery.

[Buggy-pie]

Hi,

I had Thomas.

Opped on Monday PM, up and about (albeit weakly) Tues.  Not running about obviously but to tea room and corridors etc.

I didnt see any needles.  Walked to surgery, lied on the bed and the general bustle of the people saying hi and starting their prep work i kinda got dragged along by the process.  I remember being told i'll feel a scratch but that was it.  A couple of hours later awoke in recovery.

Got wheeled back to the ward, ordered food as i coudlnt eat all morning, fell asleep, food arived, ate some, and in and out of sleep for next lot of hours.  About 10pm i text a friend to say i was alive etc.

i was home the following Monday, walked down town to get panties and lube, walked dog round the nearby square.  No major output of exercise but enough to be doing something.

About 2 weeks on once home (week 3?) i went to a funeral and then wake.

I think how you cope and what you do to cope is up to you within the confines of your body.  If i felt eeky at any point then i would have listened.

Its fine saying one has a busy social life but its worth suspending it for 4 weeks or so so that you have the rest of your life to play.  I have had bronchitus before and that scuppered things, its part of life, listen to the bod, its gonna be with you a long time!

Nat

[Kirsty]

Surgery, and aftercare, at Brighton was all done in a very professional manner. I am, was , very much a wimp but am still alive.I`ve suffered more with epilation, even with aneasthetic. The pulling out of the drains was a bit eye-watering, but it was over in 5 seconds. The staff were very friendly and helpful and came when one rang, unlike the national health version or so I`ve been told. I had more pain after the operation with constipation than any thing else. In general the operation and aftercare was nothing like as horrendous as I thought it might be. There was very little pain and I stopped the paracetamol as soon as I left hospital.
Kirsty