Orchiectomy or wait???

[FrancisAnn]

I found a new electrolysis lady & the first thing she said was "woman get those testicles cut off & get on some better hormones". I think she is right & I want to proceeed. However I want to ask how would this affect my later GRS or would it have no affect at all. I so hope for a reasonable depth vagina one day to hopefully live a normal life as a woman & enjoy having satsifying sex with men. I'm a hetrosexual woman & love to be with men.

I've been on HRT for a year & a half. Little t things have shrunk some but are still there, yuck. To me they are just something extra on my body. They no longer mean anything. I wish I were scheduled for a complete GRS to finally have a normal woman's body however it reality it may be another 6 months or a year. I have little penis that also means nothing other than it's use to make a nice depth vagina I so hope.

So GF's should I have the little things removed or should I try & wait for my GRS??

I love being a woman & always have. It's always seemed strange to have any of these things between my legs.

Thanks to all that reply.     

[Shannon14]

I think it would only be beneficial if you had something like 5 years before you could get your GCS, or if you won't be able to get it ever.
With your expected time frame, I'd wait.

[Lady_Oracle]

That's not a long wait at all. I'd say wait it out since you want as much material to work with when you do finally have the surgery.

[Obfuskatie]

A) Don't perform a major surgery on your body because anyone tells you to.  Do it when you are ready, and fully informed.

B) Time frame between surgeries is important as well.  You need a significant amount of time between major surgeries for the tissues to heal.  If you get an orchiectomy now, you have to stop E two weeks prior, spiro 2 days prior, and resume E two weeks after.  Your body may need at least 6 months to a year to recover before a surgeon will want to operate on it again.

C) In the time between Orchiectomy, your scrotal sack will shrink drastically.  This is problematic because you need it for your labia minora and majora (depending on the surgeon's technique).  While you can get skin grafts, they won't have as high a density of nerve bundles in them.

D) I'd say you can go for it and get the Orchiectomy only if you plan on getting the intestinal graft procedure for your SRS with a doctor like Trask.

E) Once you do have SRS or an Orchiectomy, there will probably be an accelerated feminization period for a little while, but to my knowledge it isn't an easily measurable thing, nor is it drastic.

F) Orchiectomies aren't cheap, neither is SRS.  Money-wise, I'd rather save up and get a ferrari for my vagina than buy two separate procedures.

Hope that helps!  And good luck with whatever you decide, as it's your body - your decision.

   mwa, 
- Katie

[FrancisAnn]

A) Don't perform a major surgery on your body because anyone tells you to.  Do it when you are ready, and fully informed.

B) Time frame between surgeries is important as well.  You need a significant amount of time between major surgeries for the tissues to heal.  If you get an orchiectomy now, you have to stop E two weeks prior, spiro 2 days prior, and resume E two weeks after.  Your body may need at least 6 months to a year to recover before a surgeon will want to operate on it again.

C) In the time between Orchiectomy, your scrotal sack will shrink drastically.  This is problematic because you need it for your labia minora and majora (depending on the surgeon's technique).  While you can get skin grafts, they won't have as high a density of nerve bundles in them.

D) I'd say you can go for it and get the Orchiectomy only if you plan on getting the intestinal graft procedure for your SRS with a doctor like Trask.

E) Once you do have SRS or an Orchiectomy, there will probably be an accelerated feminization period for a little while, but to my knowledge it isn't an easily measurable thing, nor is it drastic.

F) Orchiectomies aren't cheap, neither is SRS.  Money-wise, I'd rather save up and get a ferrari for my vagina than buy two separate procedures.

Hope that helps!  And good luck with whatever you decide, as it's your body - your decision.

   mwa, 
- Katie
[/quote  Thank you so much for this detail information. I'm hopeful for a nornal penile inversion GRS so I guess this is not a good idea at all. I want to take care of myself & my body as smart as I can. I'm hopeful for a long happy life as a nice complete woman Perhaps I need to just concentrate on my GRS as soon as I possibly can.

[treeLB]

If you are going to have SRS within the next couple  years I think you should wait. I have had an orcheictomy and will be having srs in a couple months - not sure yet how much the orcheictomy is going to affect the srs procedure but know that it will have some affect on it.

[LizMarie]

I agree. I would not recommend an orchi to anyone unless they could not have GCS (for medical reasons, I know one such woman), or if their expected GCS timeline is so far out that it's 5+ year away.

Also, here in the US, unless you can get insurance coverage, you will spend several thousand dollars on an orchi that could go towards your GCS. How far does the cost of an orchi set your GCS back? That's another valid question to ask.

[FrancisAnn]

Thanks to everyone. I need to just concentrate on my GRS without any added problems. So it's more spiro but it does not seem to bother me & my little things are slowly shrinking away. From my last blood test my t count was almost nothing anyway so that is nice.  Good luck to us all for a nice pleasant complete life.

[Jill F]

I had an orchi done last July by Dr. Gary Alter where the incision was placed strategically considering future SRS.   Dr. Alter also performs SRS and had very little concern about shrinkage.  (I have an average amount of material to work with.)  The trick is to stretch things out in the hot shower every day to keep atrophy at bay.

For me it was the right thing, because my feminization wasn't happening as quickly as I wanted.  My T was up, I didn't want to take more E and I didn't want to have to take spiro until SRS (and I still have no idea when or where that's going to happen) due to my suspicion that my internal organs weren't going to like that very much.  I also had plenty of room on the credit card and the means to pay it off.

Well, out they came.   I was put under and I woke up feeling like I got kicked square in the nuts.  Within a week, I felt such a wonderful sense of inner peace and calm, and found myself smiling a lot for no good reason.  Since then, I've gained almost a full cup size, smoother skin, a more ample derriere and my hair got thicker.  I have not been sir'd publically since then, even without makeup.  I take less E now, and I no longer take dutasteride nor finasteride.  My liver and kidneys thank me for that.

I'm not saying that an orchi is for everyone, but for me it was a slam dunk.

[FrancisAnn]

That is nice to see. Good for you GF. I wish I knew the right steps to take. It would be so nice to have more peace & calm within myself. That was part of my reason to consider this step. Still not sure what to do, ?

[suzifrommd]

Have the bottom you want, not the one that's quick. You'll be the one who has to live with it.

[FrancisAnn]

Have the bottom you want, not the one that's quick. You'll be the one who has to live with it.

Suzi, Thank you. I'm just going to stay with spiro & patches. My t is very very low from my last blood test. I'll try to find the best surgeon & proceed to schedule my GRS. That will be such a nice day. Take care GF. I hope life is going well for you.

[victoria n]

   Since when are electrologists experts on TG and TS.  Where is their training.
should electrologists push people into surgery or transitioning ?
of course not
they should stick to their job and not push stuff on transgenders.
Transgenders should take their own consul with the assistance of professionals.

When elecrologists or even professionals push transitioning  or surgery it becomes a problem
who knows best  ?

[translora]

I've done a fair amount of research on orchiectomy because I hope to have one someday. A couple of things I keep reading:

1. Some SRS surgeons won't touch you if you've had one. Others don't care. Still others don't mind as long as either they did the orchi themselves, or know that it was done in such a way that they can work with it. My impression is that, if you hope to have SRS one day, it's best to establish a relationship with that surgeon BEFORE getting an orchi. If you don't, you could find your options limited later. If you can't establish such a relationship, and you feel that you really still need to go ahead with it, make sure that your orchi surgeon knows what your later hopes/plans are, and has expertise with transwomen and the special needs of someone who may undergo SRS one day. They are out there, but they are the minority. (Orchi is far more common as a treatment for testicular cancer, and things like the location of incisions don't matter at all in those instances.)

2. It's not a guarantee that your scrotal sack will shrink after orchi. YMMV, and some post-orchi transwomen say that shrinkage is a total myth. As reported above, if you do start to see shrinkage, stretching can make a world of difference.

3. Orchi is MUCH CHEAPER than SRS -- in some cases one tenth the cost or even less. Money is always a big factor in transition, but your orchi is unlikely to be your largest expense, or even close to it. You may very well spend more on electrolysis. And the cost is offset, at least partially, by a reduction in what you will spend on hormones. Do the math, and you may find that it pays for itself.

4. The vast majority of girls who have had one report that the benefits to orchiectomy are immediate, permanent and wonderful. Your hormone regimen can change immediately, and the feminizing effects grow. But there's really no turning back. It is a minor surgery, but not to be done lightly.

I'm not really trying to sway you. Just trying to summarize what I keep reading.

The most important thing, like all aspect of transition, is to consult with the experts before you do anything. Make a long-term plan, with the help of the professionals, and then implement it. Understand the risks and benefits thoroughly, and don't make decisions without knowing all of the potential benefits as well as the potential consequences.

Good luck!

Lora

[katrinaw]

Aha... Interesting, from what I have read in all the comments I would probably wait... Or discuss with who you want SRS done with...

However I am liking the idea for myself, as I am not convinced yet on whether to go SRS, it would be an option if I became the centre of male attraction. Have thought about it before as a means of dropping Spiro and gaining benefits all around...

Hmmmm thanks girls certainly seems a better prospect for me 

L Katy

[Eveline]

I know most people have advised you to wait, since you plan on having GCS within a year or so. Their cautionary words are appropriate and practical.

However, if having the danglies is really bothering you, and you have the budget for it, and you get the surgery done by someone who knows how to do it right for GCS, then you could also decide to do what makes you feel best.

I did, and for me it was a huge dysphoria relief. It also allowed me to stop taking spiro, which I hated due to dizziness and the diuretic effect. Just a minority viewpoint in case it's helpful...

[Christine Eryn]

When I started HRT years ago, my doctor wanted to take me across the border to Mexico and get them "chopped off." It probably would have helped in the short term, but ultimately GRS is my goal and I had no timeframe as to when that would have happened, or will happen in the near future.

[Muffinheart]

When I started HRT years ago, my doctor wanted to take me across the border to Mexico and get them "chopped off." It probably would have helped in the short term, but ultimately GRS is my goal and I had no timeframe as to when that would have happened, or will happen in the near future.

LoL @ "them"

I affectiontionally referred to "them" as my tumor