Consult in Scottsdale AZ

[Beth Andrea]

So I got here yesterday after a 3 hour uneventful flight. Got a rental car and my hotel accommodations, and located the surgery place and the Dr's office (they are not the same, btw LOL)

Consult is in an hour, and I'm still on Cloud 9! Just so excited! Where do I start...? The takeoff roll, the roar of the engines, the last burst of engine as the pilot slammed home the throttle, pickng up speed, more more...we should starting nosing off anytime now...more more speed...nose up! More speed, when's the mains lifting...more speeeee...and road noise is gone, feeling stomach floating as we climb...

And the flight! So pretty! We had a 515am takeoff, so the mountains and clouds were lit up so beautiful! A sunrise, but not in the sky, on the ground!  Saw Mt St Helens, big hole in the top of what was a very tall mountain...

The descent was a little freaky, engine speed would drop a bit and one could feel the plane (an Airbus A321) start dropping. A bit more reduction, more dropping...ground is still just as far away...no clouds over Phoenix, but now I can see individual cars on the freeway...are they really going 70mph?! We get lower and lower...pilot tells crew to get ready for landing...the plane tips right sharply and I feel a turn happening...hear the fuselage creaking (funny how sounds like that just JUMP out like that!)...turning...turning...I look forward, out the window, trying to see the runway....nope...nope...nope...plane levels off. I wouldn't have seen it anyway, chances are it was several miles ahead of where I was looking...descend, descend....we fly just over a freeway bridge, I think of the view the drivers have of us...

And we land. Next thing is terminal docking, seat belts off, cattle calls as we stand waiting for the door to open...

Wow. I'm here finally, after 5 1/2 months of waiting. Not much of a wait though, it went super quick because I kept busy with work and processing new coping methods for depression. (Tip: instead of focusing on what one used to be able to do before depression, look for what one CAN still do; this is your new "normal", and live that normal, not what was in the past). The last two weeks before today were a blur!

And now it's only 5 1/2 months until SRS (barring any issues that might be brought up in an hour)...imagine then! Will the last two weeks (Halloween until The Day) be the same? I'm shaking with excitement, and today's not even the surgery LOL!

Scottsdale...it is a beautiful city, very...pristine, for lack of a better word. Haven't been any graffiti, no litter, no "will work for food" people. Transit is free here. Traffic is well ordered, and civil. Lights are predictable, and streets are wide and well marked.

I want to live here someday. I'm sure I'll get used to the 95°F-105°F temps they have here, even in May.

Everyone has called me "ma'am", even the guy at the drive thru. (I don't "pass" BTW, they're being very considerate.) These are beautiful people!

Of course, I'm sure not everyone is like this here...but those who aren't, still seem to have a "live and let live" casualness about them.

This is the first vacation-like travel I've done, ever in my life. I am no longer self-conscious about "gotta put on my man-face" and hope others don't notice that I'm play-acting. I am myself, in a new city and with a happy future just ahead.

Time to get ready to go see the Doc...

[Mariah]

Yes, they are in two different spots. The surgery center is over by the near by hospital. Also they have to buzz you into his actual office. The door when you open it is locked. Hugs and good luck.
Mariah

[Dena]

WOW, I am about 30 miles away from you on the west end of town.

[Devlyn]

Big hug! I'm really happy for you, Beth! 

Hugs, Devlyn

[Mariah]

Good luck Beth. Your appointment reminds me I need to post on my experience which I will make a thread on later today. Hugs
Mariah

[Beth Andrea]

A note for new travelers (like myself)...

Even though I got a package deal (air/car/hotel) and thought everything was paid for (except gas and food), the car rental put a "hold" of $125 on my checking account (for insurance, iirc...I'm under the impression they will release that when I turn the car back in with a full tank and no new dents), and my hotel put a $5 hold for "incidentals." The hotel people tell me that most hotels will put a $150 hold, but they don't.

Just so one can plan financially for all expenses.

[kittenpower]

Welcome to the valley of the sun!  Your Doctor is awesome BTW

[Mariah]

I was impressed with the rest of the staff so far as well.
Mariah

Welcome to the valley of the sun!  Your Doctor is awesome BTW

[Dena]

Funny thing is when I started medical treatment I lived in Arizona and had to move to California because there was nothing here. I did a little snooping on another web site and found all the services I would have needed are available in my home town.

[Beth Andrea]

WOOT! My surgery is ON for November!

*does happy dance*

Doc is happy with how well hair removal is, that happiness may be over soon!

*swings hips*

Hmm...can I be any happier?! We'll find out in late November!!

Thanks everyone for helping me get to this point! You know who you are! Yes, you over there, too!

[Beth Andrea]

Incidentally, I heard Piper (the phone person) tell a caller that Dr M does "partial" vaginoplasties. I asked what that was, she said it was the same as the full vaginoplasty but without the "vaginal vault."

It is quite a bit less expensive, faster healing and less post-op maintenance.

I'm sure some here would like to know the option is out there.

[Devlyn]

Well, yay! Good info too.

Hugs, Devlyn

[Beth Andrea]

So here I am, day 3 of my mini-vacation/consult and I'd like to share another observation, this one about the intense loyalty to one's SRS surgeon and team Ive seen here and elsewhere...

I haven't even had SRS yet, and I'm already starting to feel it.

It is because after all the emotional turmoil, the research (if any), the savings, the travel, the anxieties...once one gets The Surgery one feels an intense sense of gratitude, similar to any event which has a mortal risk and one gets out of it alive and (relatively) unscathed.

The first analogy I thought of is how combat vets really advocate for their weapon(s)....its the one they trained with, "cut their teeth on", slept with, took care of, and survived with. One cannot argue with them which is the "best" weapon to fight with...they owe their life to THEIR rifle/pisto/knife, whatever was most instrumental in their fighting experience. (I am not a combat vet, my time was late Cold War)

Emotional loyalty.

Second example is marriage...you spend so much time with your partner, getting to know them intimately, their mind, body, soul...at no time can one ever admit that s/he isn't a "10" or the best darn cook or the best in bed (the last one is best done in private)....even if the marriage ends (if mutually agreeable), there is a strong reluctance to look at those times as anything but the happiest times.

All these are of course, if the outcome or events were favorable. If a vet experiences traumatic loss due to a jammed weapon, s/he's more likely to have a lifelong hate of that particular type of weapon. Likewise the anger found among SRS patients with less than ideal (or expected) outcomes.

Only a few can put aside their emotions, no matter how valid and understandable they are, and see things in a larger perspective: it's all about playing the odds...sometimes we win, sometimes we lose.

But the Game...the Game goes on.

Hmm...what was I talking about...?

Oh yeah. Perspective. Keeping things in perspective. Everyone has their own journey, their own history, their own experiences.

Keep your eyes open, we might learn something.

Time to pack for the flight home.