Is having Therapy really needed?

[Jordan]

not everyone passes well

[Audrey]

I definetly think so.  (Although I still can't spell).  It really helped me to have someone who knew the ropes and had been through it all before with others.  And location is really no excuse.  I live in MT and my therapist is in FL!! (Dr. Bushong)  Yeah it would be nice to have a face to face, but the phone conveys info just as well.  This was one of my only options as most people don't even know what GID is!  He has really helped me to avoid the many pitfalls and misinformation out there.  Basically I'd have to say that therapy is essential whatever the cost.

Also I haven't been to the UK but I have to say that I live in one of the most behind the times states that there is, and have never been hassled once in the last two years.  I imagine that other states can't be that bad. Well  maybe.  I also think that how people treat you has a lot to do with how you interact with them.  When I first came out of the closet i got read all the time, but usually laughed it off or made a joke about it, rather than getting offended or angry.  That really seemed to put people at ease and even though they figured it out they still seemed comfortable.

[Sarah]

It's a shame this stuff about the NHS.
Iv'e heard such good things about it in other areas.
I had an apendendectomy surgery many years ago, and it cost about 60 thousand dollars.
Luckily I was covered by my parrents  insurance at the time, and it was completely paid for.
But later I got into a skateboarding accident after I left home, and the hospital charged me a thousand dollars to clean some road rash and give me an IV of saline.
I am still paying that off.
I guess sorry they are so lousy with Trans stuff, but it could be worse.
If I had my appendex rupture now, I would have to declare bankrupcy.
I would never be able to pay that off. Not with College loans as well.
I'd leave school with like 100 thousand dollars in debt due to combined medical and school debt.

-So at least you don't have to pay insurance/or be screwed.
The NHS may suck in some areas, but it's better than our system, that's for darn sure.
-Sarah

[cindybc]

Hi Audrey,
Yes, personality and attitude and a little self effacing humor does play a big roll in whether people out there will accept you even in a little town, I came out in the town I lived in pop 16000 and I also had to go out of town to get therapy. I lived and worked as Cindy for 7 years in that town and never had a problem with any of the town folk, if anything they were really nice people.

Cindy

[SophieG]

Does anyone have experience with Dr. Carl Bushong of Transgendercare? I talked with him twice and am not sure if he's the one for me, but at the same time he intimates that he can help in some really useful ways. If you know him, could you please give me your opinion?
Thanks,
Sophie

[Jacqueline]

Does anyone have experience with Dr. Carl Bushong of Transgendercare? I talked with him twice and am not sure if he's the one for me, but at the same time he intimates that he can help in some really useful ways. If you know him, could you please give me your opinion?
Thanks,
Sophie

Sophie,

I am sorry no one responded to you right away. I suspect you could post your question as an individual topic. I was catching up on some time I was not here and found you hand joined and posted. I would suggest you use the the subcategory of therapy that is under the transition category.

Welcome to the site.

We have a lot of members so someone is bound to be able to address your question.

A Cautionary Note:
This is a public forum so please [remember when posting that The Internet Never Forgets, and the various web crawlers and archival sites out may retain information that you post.

We cannot ensure that any information you share on the site will be protected from public view and/or copying or reproduction. This warning is also listed in the Terms of Service listed below.

Do not share anything on Susan's that you do not want to be public information.


I also want to share some links with you. They include helpful information and the rules that govern the site. It is important for your enjoyment of the site to take a moment to go through them

Things that you should read

Site Terms of Service & Rules to Live By	Standard Terms & Definitions	Post Ranks (including when you can upload an avatar)
Reputation rules	News posting & quoting guidelines	Photo, avatars, & signature images policy

Once again, welcome to Susan's. Look around, ask questions and join in.

With warmth,

Jacqui

[elkie-t]

The way it goes now in us, I'd rather (personally) not deal with any psychiatric and not have my name in the system. But I'm well balanced person with steel nerves and no mental/emotional problems. My Gender dysphoria is not a problem that needs any treatment.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[coldHeart]

Therapy in the UK is a joke at best, I've had one person try to talk me out of transitioning telling me " your a good looking guy why! Would you want to be a girl " I was WHAT THE <Not Permitted> yes it might be free compared to are American friends but her get want her pays for.😠

[warmbody28]

I think its needed. we have patients post GRS who still seem to have depression and don't know why. I honestly think everyone needs a little therapy at one point or another throughout their lives. Gives you a outside perspective

[Dan]

I think it is advisable at least at the stage of when one recognises for the first time that one is trans. Being trans is a huge obstacle course and to have somebody assist with sorting out a few of the issue that can crop up can be enormously helpful.

Having read about some people de-transitioning after having gone through hormone therapy and in some instances surgery, it just cements my argument that a good gender therapist is important at least in the beginning to make sure that the issues are really purely gender related and that transition is the only way forward. There are many options out there and these need to be explored with an independent but experienced gender therapist.

I did see one for two sessions just to have such an independent person to hear my story for the first time, and be the devil's advocate.  They agreed that I am the most sane and emotionally stable person they have come across and that my gender dysphoria is not a mental illness that requires anything other than what I choose i.e. hormones, top surgery. I didn't need their letter of support to obtain hormones since my doc operates on Informed Consent model, but I'm likely to need the therapist's letter for my top surgery.

Is a therapist really needed? No. But they can be very useful.

[Charlie Nicki]

This is a tough process. Realizing who you are, making the right decision for yourself, potentially losing things along the way, worrying about the future. For me therapy is a necessity, I would be lost without it.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Kylo]

So far the only point of therapy for me has been so I can get diagnosed and signed up for hormones.

The therapy itself is fairly useless to me as the therapists don't offer much in the way of advice or feedback. If talking is supposed to help me understand where I'm at - well I already know where I'm at, that's why I took the step of getting referred to a GIC. I still don't know why they want me to have more sessions of it. I have a practical brain - I see a problem, I think carefully about it for two years, weigh the risks/benefits to myself, look at the feasibility in my situation, acknowledge things may change along the way, but otherwise I decided to undertake it. Nearly a year on hormones and everything is fine, much better in fact. At this point it feels like they are looking for something in my case to delay surgery, or looking for something that isn't there.

I'm happy enough to talk to them; I can talk to anyone about anything. It just doesn't have great benefits for me to do so with the therapists. Maybe it would if they actually gave more feedback, I don't know. It feels like a one-way conversation or interrogation, mostly. 

[WolfNightV4X1]

In my case, I didn't have a choice. I don't have the money for therapy. The way I got on hormones was through informed consent, which was a HUGE weight off my shoulders. The drawback though is I didn't see some professional to talk about my feelings or why I have these urges, maybe talking with someone could help me determine if I needed to or not. To this day since I'm on hormones, nothing has changed. I feel much better, and I generally feel like I'm going places, and my motivation boosted significantly...the only "regret" or sadness I have is that no matter what people in my family will not condone what I'm doing, other then that nothing about transitioning for me has been at all negative in the slightest.



I don't know what therapy is like but I have mixed reviews on it. The only therapy I've gotten was employee assistance program benefits which covered three free sessions, I saw a counselor, but not to talk about transition. It was mainly because of my fear and worry that my social anxiety and issues were causing me to do poorly in work and school, I was also curious in knowing if I could be diagnosed with anxiety, or even aspergers. I didnt find much help in that, she said I didnt seem like I had those issues, but I know that isn't quite true because I do have issues serious enough to cause those issues at all. All we really did was talk and she gave me some papers, advice, coping strategies and all that. It did work a little...but nothing specific to what I wanted, it seemed pointless after three sessions. Granted, she was only a counselor. I should probably see a psychiatrist next time.



That's just my experience, if you can get therapy easily I say go for it! It doesn't hurt to try

[rmaddy]

The fact that you are asking whether therapy is needed seems to be proof that you desire outside input.  The only remaining question, therefore, is what sort of input would benefit you most.   These are the types of support I have received, ranked from most to least valuable:

1.  Support from family and friends (and non-support from this cohort has also been the most damaging)
2.  Professional counseling
3.  Friendship with other TG people
4.  TG support groups
5.  Susan's Place and other online contacts

I should hasten to say that I love (and financially support) SP, and that I would not like to have to do without it.  Its strength arises from the 24/7 activity and the sheer numbers of people/stories available.  Nevertheless, there really is no substitute for either face to face conversations or ongoing relationships. 

What I have gained from counseling owes to the total confidentiality of the arrangement and the professional expertise of my counselors.  In session, there is no reason to or benefit from saying anything other than the unmitigated truth of my experience.  Things that I filter or soften before saying here, to friends or even to my spouse are laid out on the table.  It takes time for sufficient trust to develop, but once you get there, the opportunities to learn about yourself are without parallel.

I really can't recommend it highly enough, and if you persist here, you will find this advice peppered all over the pages of Susan's. 

I wish you the best in your journey.

[Nora Kayte]

No. Overrated


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Rowena_Ellenweorc]

I think it can be helpful OR a hindrance... The hindrance is mostly if you get a bad therapist (which believe me, I've had my fair share of in dealing with anxiety).

IF you know you are transgender, exactly where you fall on the transgender spectrum, and what your goals are, then I don't think a therapist is completely necessary, HOWEVER that said, if you are planning to transition, you need to look at not only doctor requirements/government requirements for transition, but also your insurance requirements (if in the US or other places that make you have insurance/pay for healthcare).  For example, I believe my insurance, which has (For now) an AMAZING trans healthcare plan, requires a therapist to diagnose you with gender dysphoria and a certain amount of therapy before especially the surgeries.  I don't remember the exact requirements for the hormone therapies though.

Now, if you are uncertain about anything, I feel like finding a good therapist is in your best interest.  Sure you can post in forums like this, look at videos online, talk to other people who are transgender.  But your therapist will get to know you, follow your journey, and guide you through figuring things out. Like, I started out with my therapist not knowing where I am on the gender spectrum, other than not strictly female and very masculine.  I still am discovering on my own a lot about myself, but as I have spent the past couple months in therapy, I've come to a deeper understanding of what transgender means for me, how to cope, deal with my anxiety that isn't even always about gender, how to accept myself and all it entails.  And we're starting to pave the way into where we go from here.  My journey is still far from over, but I've come a long way.  And I owe a lot of it to my therapist

[AlphaGirl]

It's quite simple, some people don't have Gender Dysphoria, so why should they Transition !
Psyciatrists & Clinical Psychologists are a great asset in the persons gender confirmation process, just like Endocrinologists & Surgeons.
At the end of the Day, Gender Dysphoria is a medical issue, which makes it completely different from Gender Fluiditity, Non Binery, Transgender Spectrum.

[stephaniec]

Ive been through a lot of therapy doesn't bother me

[davina61]

Not for me, had a phone session to get private HRT but that's it. Still I am a laid back person and I know what I want/need. Then of course I have my online therapist (susans)

[Megan.]

My therapist was the first person I came out to,  and forms a valuable part of my support network,  that also includes a local Trans* support group and ofc Susan's.
I'm a strong proponent of good therapy,  and I talk about things with them that I would not discuss in any other circle.

Sent from my MI 5s using Tapatalk