GRS observations

[Kendra]

You got through it!  If you managed one you will get through them all. 

I think like a lot of things the fear is worse than the experience but I don't want to sugar-coat and say it's easy - it ain't.  I never did the saran-wrap thing or EMLA/Lidocaine on the south pole forest ahead of time.  Maybe I should have because the pain caused me to sweat so much I started bringing my own beach towel to those sessions unlike all the electrolysis on face and elsewhere. 

Electrologist probably thinks I am insane and I probably am... a couple times the pain was so ridiculous I started giggling uncontrollably.  Really did.  I can't explain it. 

[Megan.]

Electrologist probably thinks I am insane and I probably am... a couple times the pain was so ridiculous I started giggling uncontrollably.  Really did.  I can't explain it.

I can relate, I found myself chuckling through much of it and almost laughing at some points. There are stages in this whole transition process that verge on surreal, this is certainly one!

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[Megan.]

Additional word of warning...

During the electro session I had to hold my penis out of the way of the tech. It was all numbed up from the Emla and it appears from the subsequent bruising I had it in a firm grip! You have been warned [emoji23]

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[LizK]

... Liz, does this mean you've made a final choice on your surgery option?

Hi Megan great to hear you made it through your session and very bravely from what you describe. At least there is not the same volume as facial.

I wish I could say yes but the best I have at the moment is....I think so...I am at this stage, looking at a Vaginoplasty but some days the idea of dilation and the commitment that is involved scares me...not to the point that I won't go ahead but it still scares me.

Additional word of warning...

During the electro session I had to hold my penis out of the way of the tech. It was all numbed up from the Emla and it appears from the subsequent bruising I had it in a firm grip! You have been warned [emoji23]

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I didn't use any cream for laser but I understand the position you are talking about...I didn't giggle but I have been known to squeal a little when it really hurts but more often it just elicited a few high pitched ouches and few fairly guttural ones as well. I can only guess at how unpleasant genital electrolysis really is I do know that laser is certainly not much fun either. Thanks for the update


Liz

[Megan.]

A short while ago I had my most recent appointment at the CX GIC. This was to get my second signature and referral for GRS...

It went great, the consultant was very friendly and a student voice therapist was in the room also, just observing.

The consultant seemed very happy that I'd given everything lots of thought. I'm STILL undecided on full/cosmetic, so I continue to ponder that...

So I've been referred!... Onto the next waiting queue! [emoji4]

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[Colleen_definitely]

After a laser session downstairs I immediately went to a place that did electro under sedation. I have a pretty high pain tolerance but I couldn't handle that.

[Megan.]

I'm not aware of anywhere in the UK that will sedate, or certainly not nhs funded, but I'm glad you had that choice [emoji4]

After a laser session downstairs I immediately went to a place that did electro under sedation. I have a pretty high pain tolerance but I couldn't handle that.

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[Colleen_definitely]

My insurance didn't cover it either. I just got to experience the pain in the financial sense.

[HappyMoni]

I wish I could say yes but the best I have at the moment is....I think so...I am at this stage, looking at a Vaginoplasty but some days the idea of dilation and the commitment that is involved scares me...not to the point that I won't go ahead but it still scares me.

Liz

Hi Liz and Megan,
   I will add my two cents and my experience post surgery. I tend to think dilation isn't so bad. Yeah it is intense to start with and gets old cleaning the dilators but it becomes less frequent over time. I will offer as a consideration that getting the vagina offers a second place for sexual pleasure if that is important to you. In my case, the vagina is much more pleasurable than the clitoral area. I am very glad to have the two options. Just because you aren't gonna be with a guy, doesn't mean you can't get pleasure from that area. Something to think about I think because there is no guarantee of a sensitive clitoris. Hope you are doing well.
Moni

[Megan.]

Good points Moni, thank you.

I guess dilation has a bad reputation, and I'm sure it is bad at the start, but like you say, it can become very manageable over time.
There is a third option for pleasure too, but that's all I'll say.

Megan. X

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[Laurie]

  Hi Megan,

  Just thought I'd drop in and see how you were doing. Congrats on the southern session for fur eradication. Of course I have not experienced the joy of same on the southern quarter. I've heard it isn't as bad as the facial bee stings (of which I had a 2 hour session today) And reading here I saw some say it was no fun at all. Nothing to laugh at though if apparently hit some of you folk's funny bones 
  I may need to consider have some exposure to the area idea. I have just enrolled in the Kaiser Permanente HMO in order to avail myself to their transgender program for services I do not have access through the Veteran's Administration. What I have done is opened the door to those services should I decide I need them.
  I have a problem with opening door that I do not know what is on the other side. I have a tendency to walk through them to find out. That first scarey door was going to the court and applying for my name change. I thought I could still change my mind then however when I received mail from them it turned out to be a done deal and just look where that door led to. I am Laurie now and more and more name and gender changes are occurring all the time. Birth certificate, driver's licence and passport and others all done.
  Now I've opened this door and am about to step through... Who knows what it may lead me to? Not I.

Hugs,
  Laurie
 

[LizK]

After a laser session downstairs I immediately went to a place that did electro under sedation. I have a pretty high pain tolerance but I couldn't handle that.

Collen your a girl after my own heart. I am kind of lucky in that I have no choice about the Electrolysis as ther4e just isn't a practitioner who will do genital electrolysis here in Adelaide. Having said that if there had been I don't know how I would have coped...Having the opportunity to do it under sedation would work for me as well.

Hi Liz and Megan,
   I will add my two cents and my experience post surgery. I tend to think dilation isn't so bad. Yeah it is intense to start with and gets old cleaning the dilators but it becomes less frequent over time. I will offer as a consideration that getting the vagina offers a second place for sexual pleasure if that is important to you. In my case, the vagina is much more pleasurable than the clitoral area. I am very glad to have the two options. Just because you aren't gonna be with a guy, doesn't mean you can't get pleasure from that area. Something to think about I think because there is no guarantee of a sensitive clitoris. Hope you are doing well.
Moni

Its funny you should say that Moni when I spoke to my surgeon he said the chances are very high you will have sensation on your clitoris and he went onto say that I would still be able to gain pleasure vaginally due to the position of the prostate  If in the worse case scenario the nerves to the clitoris were damaged you would still be able to obtain sexual pleasure from your vagina. So I have to then think about GCS in terms of sexual pleasure which is something I have not really given a great deal of thought too...I have considered GCS from many different angles in quest to make a decision but I have to be honest, sexual pleasure has only been a small part in the whole equation. I guess because I was trying to decide if I was having surgery or not. As the time ticks on I understand I will need to make that final decision at some point. I need to consider sexual pleasure as part of my decision as to which surgery to have.


You make a good point and worth spending some time considering.

@Laurie You have to start somewhere and you have done that much...now you get to choose what you want. 


Take care

Liz

[Megan.]

I've been doing alot of reflecting over the last 24/48 hrs after my first electro session and my subsequent GRS referral...

I've decided that while from a purely practical standpoint a cosmetic GRS would meet my primary requirements, I want and am prepared to commit to a full depth GRS. This is based on my needs and wants from any intimate relationship and my own emotional identity; and these are both very personal and individual things.

That will mean the long and unpleasant slog of genital hair removal, pushing surgery back about 12 months to next Autumn/Winter. I will move this as fast as possible, but with follicle cycle times, there are practical limits.

In making this choice I've had to reset my own expectations on when I might 'finish' my medical transition, and that's been hard after what has already been more than three years at this point. I've had to ask myself if I have the mental strength to keep on the road, and I think I do [emoji5].

This choice also extends the period over which I have to continue my urethral dilation, though that is now a simple 10-minute task every other day, with very little discomfort or fuss.

This thread will be pretty quiet for a while without much else to cover, but I'll update on my electro progress and add any points of note.

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[HappyMoni]

Megan,
   I'm glad to hear you made a decision. Being undecided can be very unsettling. There are no guarantees, but I think you will be happy that you put forth the effort to get what you want. At some point, you get done with transition. I think it best to be able to look back and be happy with what you did and not second guess the rest of your life. Good luck!
Moni

[Megan.]

Tnx Moni [emoji846].

It's funny how before I was only capable of making decisions based on logic, but I'm now able to make the leap and step beyond those arguments, to ones based on my emotional response. Of all the changes I've been through in the last few years, this is perhaps the biggest and most profound for me. X

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[HappyMoni]

Tnx Moni [emoji846].

It's funny how before I was only capable of making decisions based on logic, but I'm now able to make the leap and step beyond those arguments, to ones based on my emotional response. Of all the changes I've been through in the last few years, this is perhaps the biggest and most profound for me. X

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Who wants a life based totally on logic? Then again, emotions can kick you butt sometimes. They have me running around this week like a hamster on a hamster wheel. Glad for all your progress. Most of my body adjustments are now done. I am finding there is still a good bit of work to do relaxing as Moni with other people. Do you think this will ever end?
Moni

[Megan.]

Who wants a life based totally on logic? Then again, emotions can kick you butt sometimes. They have me running around this week like a hamster on a hamster wheel. Glad for all your progress. Most of my body adjustments are now done. I am finding there is still a good bit of work to do relaxing as Moni with other people. Do you think this will ever end?
Moni

It won't end, and I don't mean that in a negative way.
Life presents us with a landscape of opportunities for us to develop and grow. Some of these are hard to endure, others are pure pleasure, but they are all relevant and help us grow in depth and understanding.
I went to a wedding recently, there was a particular group of women having a wonderful time, but I didn't quite feel ready to join in the fun. Neither was I keen on chatting with the men, so I found myself in a bit of limbo. I think in time I'll be with those women laughing and bonding, but I'm not there yet, and that's all part of the journey [emoji4]

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[HappyMoni]

Megan,
   I have taken my transition in little steps like climbing the ladder to the high dive. I took my time, enjoyed the view on each step, but now it is time to dive into the pool. Sorry terrible analogy! I think, after this boob surgery, it is time to say it is the end of my transition and the beginning of living life post transition. It is a mental shift. It is finding the confidence to know that you belong in that group of ladies at that wedding. It is still a process, but I think it comes more from a place of "I deserve to be here as a woman" rather than, "I am trying to fit in as a woman." Does that make sense and slap me if I have commandeered your thread. Sorry, we were talking your GCS! lol
Moni

[Rachel]

Megan, I am glad you were able to resolve the type of GCS you need. Time will fly by quicker than you think.

I had 6 sessions of genital hair clearing. Where I went they used a spinal needle to deliver the numbing agent. It was 4 or 5  minutes of intense pain but then I was numb for the remainder of the session.  I was incredibly happy when the Pac was done administering the last needle on the 6th session. I have no hair in my vagina.

It has been 1.5 years since I had GCS and on August 6th I go back there for the same numbing treatment for a 4 hour face electrolysis treatment. My desire to get the hair off my face exceeds my dislike of the needle pain. I have over 250 hours of facial electrolysis without medical numbing. I think going there and getting a full face treatment monthly will kill the follicles once and for all.

Restrict caffeine usage the day of the electrolysis. I try to think good thoughts. If there is a TV close by concentrate on the program during the treatment. Smiling can reduce the effects of the pain, emotional and physical.

[Megan.]

Megan,
   I have taken my transition in little steps like climbing the ladder to the high dive. I took my time, enjoyed the view on each step, but now it is time to dive into the pool. Sorry terrible analogy! I think, after this boob surgery, it is time to say it is the end of my transition and the beginning of living life post transition. It is a mental shift. It is finding the confidence to know that you belong in that group of ladies at that wedding. It is still a process, but I think it comes more from a place of "I deserve to be here as a woman" rather than, "I am trying to fit in as a woman." Does that make sense and slap me if I have commandeered your thread. Sorry, we were talking your GCS! lol
Moni

Moni, these are important things to discuss, GRS on its own without considering its impact on the larger picture is just another medical procedure. Get diving in girl, the water looks very tempting, I'm sure I won't be far behind! X

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