Questions for Transgender Community/Individuals

[wilsr88]

Hi! I was curious about a few things that I would love to get personal input on. Please answer however many you feel comfortable with (if any at all!). Thank you so much! 
1. In relation to you being transgender, have you ever had bad/negative experiences with physicians?
2. What is something you would like to see change in American society in the way of transgender rights within the next five years?
3. What problems do you encounter in everyday life?
4. Do you feel that your relationships (romantic or otherwise) are stronger because of your identity?
5. What are your goals for the next year?
6. What has being transgender taught you?
7. Anything else you would like to say about being trans!

[Jessica Merriman]

Is this a personal query or for a paper of some kind? Surveys require admin authorization.

[FTMax]

Hi wilsr88,

Most people tend to lead with an introduction for their first post. I'm a little hesitant to answer your questions without knowing anything about you and what you need this information for. It reads like you're gathering info for a paper of sorts. If that's the case, I'd encourage you to tell us about the project. If this is for your personal knowledge, tell us a little bit about you.

I'd be happy to answer your questions when I know more as to the 'why'.

[Devlyn]

Hi wilsr88, welcome to Susan's Place! Here's some helpful links to get you started. See you around the site!

Hugs, Devlyn

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[wilsr88]

Hello! I apologize that I didn't really give a reason as to why I was asking these questions, I can definitely see how that looks a little weird. I'm a female senior in high school currently writing a paper on issues in the transgender community, but I was also interested in gathering information for my own knowledge. I was hoping to get more personal input from those who have experience with the topic, and I felt that a forum might be a way to get several different viewpoints. Again, I am very sorry that I didn't introduce myself! Please let me know if there is anything else I can explain or do.

[suzifrommd]

Hi! I was curious about a few things that I would love to get personal input on. Please answer however many you feel comfortable with (if any at all!). Thank you so much! 
1. In relation to you being transgender, have you ever had bad/negative experiences with physicians?

Not negative, but weird. When I told my doctor I was trans, he didn't believe me and suggested I go see a therapist. I also once went into an urgent care facility for a UTI. I was pre-op and the doctor was annoyed that I hadn't told him I was trans. He then told me he was writing a play about trans people. Like I said, weird.

I've had horrible experiences with psychiatrists and psychiatrists, but that's not what you asked.

2. What is something you would like to see change in American society in the way of transgender rights within the next five years?

There is so much I'd like to see changed:
* Don't require doctor's letters to get our identity documents changed.
* Protections against discrimination everywhere.
* Protections for transgender prisoners.
* Bathroom rights coded into law.

3. What problems do you encounter in everyday life?

Personally, I'm pretty privileged. I am accepted in my job, my community and at my church. My biggest issue is dating. No one sees me as a full-fledged member of my gender, so it's been really hard to find people who are attracted to me romantically.

4. Do you feel that your relationships (romantic or otherwise) are stronger because of your identity?

My friendships, yes.

My romantic relationships have been non-existent since my transition, despite years of looking.

5. What are your goals for the next year?

1. Do more speaking and advocacy for trans people.
2. Find someone to date and share my life with.

6. What has being transgender taught you?

So much. I have a very deep understand now of the differences between men and women and where they come from.

7. Anything else you would like to say about being trans!

We are just like everyone else. We face all sorts of discrimination and lack of acceptance, in the job, in our neighborhoods, in our families, in our cultures, at our schools, and in public. People don't understand why we do what we do. We don't choose to be transgender. We are wired to be our gender, like everyone else. It isn't any easier for us to change our gender than it is for anyone and ignoring our gender can literally destroy us. If more people understood this, there would be a lot more tolerance.

Good luck with your paper. I hope this helps.

[Sammym]

1. In relation to you being transgender, have you ever had bad/negative experiences with physicians?

Only once, but that was due to a lack of skill and knowledge in the area. Everything has been fine since finding the right doctors.

2. What is something you would like to see change in American society in the way of transgender rights within the next five years?

Sorry, not American.

3. What problems do you encounter in everyday life?

The same as everybody else lol. Does being trans cause any additional problems? No, not really at this stage, being post transition.

4. Do you feel that your relationships (romantic or otherwise) are stronger because of your identity?

Absolutely!! Being authentic in myself really does allow for much deeper connections. Before transition, life was very much an act. It prevented much of what I enjoy today. And I think that other people could tell that there was something off. The only friends who remained through transition were the ones I was honest and authentic with, which wasn't many.

5. What are your goals for the next year?

Only a career change! I'm no longer afraid to go for what I want in life ☺.

6. What has being transgender taught you?

It's opened my eyes such that I see the world with a healthy lack of preconceptions. I take little for granted, and always stop to smell the roses. Transition has also made me so strong with very solid identity of self. I'm very emotionally mature and can cope with just about anything.

7. Anything else you would like to say about being trans!

Being trans, to me, just means that I had a harder time than everyone else to be myself. Its the label the world gives me. Otherwise I'm just a woman in my head, heart and soul. Just like any other.

[Tamika Olivia]

1. In relation to you being transgender, have you ever had bad/negative experiences with physicians?

Nah, I've had a few issues getting my GP to write scripts in a timely manner, but that's just him being a doctor, not anything to do with me being trans.

2. What is something you would like to see change in American society in the way of transgender rights within the next five years?

Employment discrimination is a biggie faced by the LGBT community, especially the T part of the equation. I'd like to see more anti-discrimination ordinances passed. And a reinterpretation of the 14th to include LGBT folks would be aces.


3. What problems do you encounter in everyday life?

Paranoia. I don't present publicly yet, so I don't face the worst of the harassment and bigotry. I'm still afraid I'll be outed to my employer before I get some more stringent employment protections.

4. Do you feel that your relationships (romantic or otherwise) are stronger because of your identity?

Compared to when I was in denial? Yeah, absolutely. Familial relations are getting stronger, although still strained since coming out, but my friendships are better than ever.

5. What are your goals for the next year?

HRT, Full Time, save for surgery, try not to die of malnutrition while playing Fallout 4 for 52 weeks straight.

6. What has being transgender taught you?

Being out and honest has taught me that life is paradoxically too short to deny yourself happiness and too long to remain unhappy. I spent so much time judging myself, censoring myself, and hiding myself. It's gone and I can't get it back, but I ain't gonna do it no more.

7. Anything else you would like to say about being trans!

Uh... insert a concise, meaningful, and witty comment into your paper. Attribute it to me.

[Qrachel]

Hi -

I'm quite experienced with soliciting info from the public, and wonder if you have thought through the potential issues that may arise in doing so (not trying to discourage you at all).  But following are somethings to potentially get out in front of before long:

• How are you handling confidentiality?
• Will the paper indicate the nature of the data source and those responding?
• Will the paper have any kind or similar review such as a peer review?
• Are you and your school aware and indemnified from potential fallout, blow back, etc. from the 'research' and submitting the paper?
• What kind of disclaimer, if any, will you attach to the paper if it is going to be reviewed by someone other than yourself and your instructor?
• Is there any foreseeable liability for the respondents?
• Will all the raw data collected be destroyed after the project is completed?
• Are you possibly bumping up against any HIPPA regulations?

Your floor of accountability/responsibility is likely to be pretty low here depending on how formal and wide your research becomes.  Further, your instructor should be included (oversight but not the actual effort itself necessarily) in the process of creating the survey, data collection, analysis, writing, and publication. 

Also, be sure to talk to the admins here for the site.

Good luck . . . sounds like an interesting project.

Rachel

P.S. I'm a junkie for stuff like this and hope it goes really well.   

[SashaGrace]

1. In relation to you being transgender, have you ever had bad/negative experiences with physicians?

No, none at all. All the physicians I've seen have been really professional about it. When I first told my GP she was great with me as usual.

2. What is something you would like to see change in American society in the way of transgender rights within the next five years?

Not being American, I have no idea, but certainly here in the UK I think there needs to be a massive education of trans and indeed human issues as we are all different and there are so many different categories people fit in nowadays. Right now in UK trending is a news story of a trans woman about my age who has been arrested and held in an all male prison because that was her birth gender. My birth cert. says female on it!!!

3. What problems do you encounter in everyday life?

None. Very few people pull me up on being trans. I have a feminine look, voice and mannerism so I get by like any other cis girl. I get more funny looks because I'm a lesbian. I know this because we did a little experiment; I walked down a high street holding my fiancee's hand and pushing our son in his pram, then did the same holding a guy friends hand and we watched the looks. Nobody cared when I was holding his hand! In fact, a lady looked at my son and was saying how much he looked like his Mummy & Daddy!! (I corrected her and she looked so shocked!) He does look like his Mummy & Daddy though, that'd be me and fiancee!

4. Do you feel that your relationships (romantic or otherwise) are stronger because of your identity?

I couldn't say, I've only ever had them since transitioning as I started young.

5. What are your goals for the next year?

New home, marriage, new car has been ordered... Same old everyday stuff really. Nothing special.

6. What has being transgender taught you?

That nature makes mistakes!

7. Anything else you would like to say about being trans!

Don't be scared of it, people being trans has been happening for years, it's nothing new and as humans we have the right to do so these days and it's widely accepted. I don't hide my trans status but I identify as a woman first and trans second if that makes sense. I'm no different to any other cis girl, like my fiancee for example.

HTH xx

[SilverWing]

1. No, but then again I never went to a physician.
2. Let us serve in the military, and make it easier for us to get insurance to cover transition!
3. A few of my friends continually spam me about it. I put up with it though, but I really hate it. Of course, it did make me appreciate it all the more when a friend today told me she kept thinking I was a girl, and felt like I should be one . Other than that, my main problem is trying to hide my clothes from my parents.
4. No.
5. Get to college and start going full time!
6. It really doesn't matter what other people say, because people will be stupid and they aren't you.
7. It's making my new debit card shake with fear (and I haven't even got it yet).

Sorry about no quotes, I did this from my phone.

Good luck with your survey!

[kaleb234]

First, I live in Canada and am FtM so I don't know if my answers are relevant to you, but:

1. In relation to you being transgender, have you ever had bad/negative experiences with physicians?
>>No, I've only had positive experiences with physicians, though I've only seen physicians who specialize in trans health care.

2. What is something you would like to see change in American society in the way of transgender rights within the next five years?
>>Honestly, I'm unfamiliar with all of the trans issues in America. In Canada, I would like to see an improvement in trans health care. The waiting list to even be seen by CAMH is ridiculously long and if you want to access the OHIP coverage for surgery, you need to go through CAMH.

3. What problems do you encounter in everyday life?
>>Currently, the only problem I encounter in everyday life is self hatred and feelings of inadequacy. Before I moved to the city I'm currently living in, however, my everyday problem was dealing with people who were unhappy with my being transgender.

4. Do you feel that your relationships (romantic or otherwise) are stronger because of your identity?
>>Most people I associate with are unaware that I'm trans, but I'm definitely more satisfied with both my romantic and non-romantic relationships since I've been identifying as a man. Pre-transition I was never comfortable with friendships (they always felt weird), so I isolated myself for the most part.

5. What are your goals for the next year?
>>Pass all my classes lol. In all seriousness- I'm on a long waiting list to be seen by CAMH, in the hopes that they'll give me the go-ahead to get OHIP funded bottom surgery. I'm hoping that will happen soon, though I doubt that will happen in the next year. I believe the waiting list to even be seen is 2 years long.

6. What has being transgender taught you?
>>Resilience in the face of adversity. It was unlucky that I was born this way, but I need to accept it and continue on. It's a challenge, but it's definitely made me stronger. I do try to remember that there are people who are far more unfortunate than I am, so really I should consider myself lucky (though I struggle with that concept).

7. Anything else you would like to say about being trans!

[wilsr88]

I would like to say a huge thank you to everyone who took the time to reply to this post. I really feel that this info will help me to be more informed as I write about both the struggles and strengths in the trans community. suzifrommd, Sammym, Tamika Olivia, SashaGrace, SilverWing, and kaleb234, thank you for your thoughtful responses. It really means a lot. Also, Qrachel, thank you for bringing up those questions, I will absolutely take them into consideration as I move forward. Again, thank you all so much for your helpful answers!  I wish you all the best!!

[FTMax]

1. In relation to you being transgender, have you ever had bad/negative experiences with physicians?
- I have not, but I'm also lucky enough to have an LGBTQ clinic very close by who specializes in helping trans patients. They handle all my primary care and HRT, and thus far have only made referrals to trans-friendly professionals.

2. What is something you would like to see change in American society in the way of transgender rights within the next five years?
- Universal health care coverage, or at a minimum the removal of trans exclusions from all health plans.

3. What problems do you encounter in everyday life?
- None. I pass 100% of the time and I live in a very progressive city.

4. Do you feel that your relationships (romantic or otherwise) are stronger because of your identity?
- No more so or less so than before. I cut out anyone that wasn't 100% supportive of my decision to transition so all the relationships left are with people who at least understand and agree with my transition.

5. What are your goals for the next year?
- Get a new job and/or go back to school. Have or at least have scheduled the first two phases of my bottom surgery.

6. What has being transgender taught you?
- People are more accepting than I thought they would be. The existing system in the United States IMO is not as bad as I was led to believe. I'm a lot mentally and emotionally stronger than I thought I was.