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will the nhs pay for facial feminisation surgery to help depression

Started by hazel1996, August 05, 2015, 06:10:52 AM

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hazel1996

hi everyone,

i'm mtf transgender
All I really want is for my face to look female. currently when I look in the mirror all I see is an ugly man who isn't me and this is making me depressed. I have considered taking my life before as it is upsetting up so much. I am wondering if anyone knows if the nhs will pay for facial feminisation surgery to cure depression as I know they do offer cosmetic surgery for depression in rare cases but would they pay for my whole face.

Thanks
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kira21 ♡♡♡

There is a long answer but the short answer is,  yes but you  would ha e more chance of winning g the lottery and getting it done yourself.

Laura_7

Well you might contact the mermaids, its a group specifically for transgender youth:
mermaidsuk.org.uk
"We offer information, support, friendship and shared experiences."

They can be contacted via mail or phone...
you could ask there for more information and support.

And you might ask a counselor to support you...

and if you feel like it please reach out, call one of the helplines...
or use the chat, you might chat with an international helpline, internet adresses are given...
https://www.susans.org/forums/index.php/topic,112672.0.html

Many transgender people are bothered by mirrors.
You might avoid them.

Are you on hrt ? Over time your look should change.

There is also a lot that can be done without surgery...
trimming the eyebrows in a feminine style, carefully from below so they give a lifted arch... or having them trimmed...
growing out nice bangs or using extensions to cover the forehead...
https://www.susans.org/forums/index.php/topic,192386.msg1723167.html#msg1723167

having well groomed eyebrows, and a nice hairstyle, maybe with bangs over the forehead, can help...

it can even be fun trying things out... just avoid looking at the mirror too much... maybe using a small mirror, where only parts are shown...

beauty is also in the eye of the beholder... if we look at ourselves with a benign eye we see a lot of things we can be happy with...

and remember this is all a process, it might take time but many people have reached their goals...


hugs


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StartingOver

Sorry honey, the answer's a resounding no, absolutely not a chance, regardless of suicidal thoughts etc.

Antidepressants are far cheaper...

Their thinking?  Well, they may have a medical obligation to help you feminize your body through hormones and perhaps SRS, but they don't have any obligation to make you pretty or guarantee that you'll like what you see in the mirror.

You'll have to start saving like the rest of us unfortunately ???
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FTMDiaries

With all due respect to the previous poster, the answer is actually 'not yet automatically'.

Facial Feminisation Surgery IS available on the NHS, but whether you can have it depends on what your local CCG is willing to fund. I presume you're in England; NHS England automatically funds certain treatments such as HRT, SRS, facial hair removal etc. because it calls these 'core procedures', i.e. they're essential in the treatment of Gender Dysphoria. But it doesn't automatically fund other procedures because it doesn't consider them essential, including facial feminisation surgery. So it is available, but your doctor has to apply for 'exceptional funding' in order to get it for you. And naturally, the NHS likes to be careful with their cash so there's a very good chance they'll say 'no'. Your best bet is to get as much expert support behind you (i.e. as many doctors from different disciplines as possible) to back up your case, and then push your CCG as hard as you can.

So you can apply via your GIC for thyroid chondroplasty/tracheal shave; rhinoplasty; facial bone reduction; and blepharoplasty/facelift. But as these are not 'core procedures' your CCG will judge them like any other application for cosmetic procedures and will (or will not) fund them accordingly. If you've heard of cases where they pay for cosmetic procedures to ease depression, it might help your case to bring them up. I daresay you'd need a formal diagnosis of depression in order to go down this route.

It's not all bad news though: up until relatively recently the NHS didn't routinely pay for facial hair removal. But after a lot of pushing from GICs it has now that's been declared a 'core procedure' so they have to pay for it. It's taking a while for that policy to trickle down to patients, but it is happening. And those same GICs are now pushing to do the same thing with Facial Feminisation Surgery, i.e to have it funded as a 'core procedure' so that it is automatically offered & funded. They know how important this is for women whose faces have been damaged by testosterone, so they're pushing hard for it. But the NHS is a massive bureaucracy, so it'll take some time before this is approved. Give it a couple of years, and you may well find that it starts to become routine.

Please don't be despondent. You can start saving up to have some of it done privately, and in whilst you're doing that the NHS may well start automatically funding the procedures you want done anyway. As StartingOver said, antidepressants would be a good idea (your GIC would want any depression to be under control anyway, so you may as well get started). As Laura said, HRT can help a little by changing the fat distribution in your face to soften its edges, and there may be some grooming you can try that might minimise what you're seeing. If you're not yet with a GIC, why not get on the waiting list so you can get the ball rolling?





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