To orchi or not to orchi

[Sojourn]

Strap in, I'm long-winded. Actual questions are highlighted. I have a few questions for the community. Hopefully, the right people find this. First a little background info... I've had one consultation with Dr. Garcia to discuss GCS. Overall, I liked him. He seems personable and competent. The only reasons I'm hesitant to go with him are (1) he described two possible vaginoplasty methods which would result in about 5" of depth at most, (2) I can't find many results photos, and (3) he can't promise any self-lubrication. It's possible he misestimated the depth because I was wearing yoga pants that day and used tape for the bits. It may have "shrunk" and appeared smaller. The only photos I've seen of his work were on his phone, on ->-bleeped-<- (which was terrifying because it was still swollen), and one gracious friend (which looked amazing actually). I didn't actually ask about lubrication, but a friend asked during her consultation. We discussed getting an orchiectomy during the consult as well... After leaving I was pretty dismayed mostly due to the depth issue. So, I emailed the Suporn clinic. I knew Dr. Suporn was known for working miracles in teenie weenie situations, but I wanted to know if it'd be okay to get the orchi with Dr. Garcia now. The recommendation I got from him was I should NOT GET AN ORCHI, I should NOT take anti-androgens, and I should moisturize and stretch my genitals daily. I'm still deciding if I want to get the orchi. I feel like the positives outway the negative. It's also possible that Suporn was mistaken. After all, he only saw a couple photos I sent via email. Or, that could be his go-to recommendation to make his job easier. Now my questions are:
What are your thoughts?
For anyone who went to Suporn and doesn't mind sharing privately, what were your measurements?
Did you have an orchi prior?
Lastly, I currently work as a valet. There are some stations where I can sit during my shift and my boss is reasonable, but there's a lot of walking normally. I know YMMV, but how long will I probably have to take off before returning to work after the orchi?

[Doreen]

Strap in, I'm long-winded. Actual questions are highlighted. I have a few questions for the community. Hopefully, the right people find this. First a little background info... I've had one consultation with Dr. Garcia to discuss GCS. Overall, I liked him. He seems personable and competent. The only reasons I'm hesitant to go with him are (1) he described two possible vaginoplasty methods which would result in about 5" of depth at most, (2) I can't find many results photos, and (3) he can't promise any self-lubrication. It's possible he misestimated the depth because I was wearing yoga pants that day and used tape for the bits. It may have "shrunk" and appeared smaller. The only photos I've seen of his work were on his phone, on ->-bleeped-<- (which was terrifying because it was still swollen), and one gracious friend (which looked amazing actually). I didn't actually ask about lubrication, but a friend asked during her consultation. We discussed getting an orchiectomy during the consult as well... After leaving I was pretty dismayed mostly due to the depth issue. So, I emailed the Suporn clinic. I knew Dr. Suporn was known for working miracles in teenie weenie situations, but I wanted to know if it'd be okay to get the orchi with Dr. Garcia now. The recommendation I got from him was I should NOT GET AN ORCHI, I should NOT take anti-androgens, and I should moisturize and stretch my genitals daily. I'm still deciding if I want to get the orchi. I feel like the positives outway the negative. It's also possible that Suporn was mistaken. After all, he only saw a couple photos I sent via email. Or, that could be his go-to recommendation to make his job easier. Now my questions are:
What are your thoughts?
For anyone who went to Suporn and doesn't mind sharing privately, what were your measurements?
Did you have an orchi prior?
Lastly, I currently work as a valet. There are some stations where I can sit during my shift and my boss is reasonable, but there's a lot of walking normally. I know YMMV, but how long will I probably have to take off before returning to work after the orchi?

If depth is a huge concern there are surgeons that can use colon resegmentation or pelvic wall skin or infant tissue or MANY options.  I find it.. troubling.. them telling you not to take anti androgens, but I guess I understand the rationale. 

Also keep in mind steady dilation can increase your depth over time too... there are always options.  If you had to, you could have post surgery revision. 

Just throwing some more cards on the table.   There are options.

[josie76]

I am also kinda shocked by the surgeon saying not to take anti-androgen medications. As far as the orchi,

In general for the stitches I was sore for a couple of days. I did not use any ice at first. I had some swelling by the second day that an ice pack helped with. My only complication is my body is really irritated with the self dissolving thread used by my urologist to stitch me closed. I've had a different kind of stitch used before that did not irritate my body but this kind does. The thread itself seems to have caused me about a week of local swelling and I have needed to keep a gauze pad on there because of the weeping around the stitches. I've read some doctors use glue strips instead and people don't have that issue.

Any urologist can do an orchi. Many are willing to do it for trans patients but often only after a year on hrt.

Because I had a history of issues, my urologist was willing and able to write it up in a way that my insurance covered it and did not even need to say anything about transgender anything.

[Devlyn]

I wasn't pursuing GRS but I asked my orchi surgeon (Dr Oates)  his position in 2017 on orchiectomy and later vaginoplasty. He said no problem. I think the older methods resulted in heavier and wider scars. My scar is just another wrinkle on my scrotum skin at this point.

Bottom line, it's your surgeons call. They know who is a good candidate for their techniques.

Hugs, Devlyn

[Sojourn]

Just to add, it's possible that Dr. Suporn thought I was ready to schedule my GRS surgery now, which would explain why he said to not take AA's. In reality,  it's going to be at least another 2 years before I'll be able to afford it out-of-pocket. I'm going back to school right now, but I'm thinking I'll probably go back to my old career for a year or two after I finish my undergrad next year. Then I'll be able to afford the rest of my electrolysis, GRS, FFS, and vocal surgery (if I decide to get it). (The job did pay well. I just didn't enjoy it.) Also, after reviewing the photos I sent to Dr. Suporn, I realized my scrotum looked a lot smaller than it actually is. I stretched it out, and measured it to be about 8" front to back and 8" left to right. During my follow-up with Garcia tomorrow I'll ask him to reassess... He didn't actually measure the scrotum during our initial appointment. He only measured the penile skin and "eyeballed" the scrotum, which, again, looked small at the time. If his estimate changes, I'll know that Suporn was probably mistaken as well and my genitals are deceptive. 

[Devlyn]

Just to add, it's possible that Dr. Suporn thought I was ready to schedule my GRS surgery now, which would explain why he said to not take AA's. In reality,  it's going to be at least another 2 years before I'll be able to afford it out-of-pocket. I'm going back to school right now, but I'm thinking I'll probably go back to my old career for a year or two after I finish my undergrad next year. Then I'll be able to afford the rest of my electrolysis, GRS, FFS, and vocal surgery (if I decide to get it). (The job did pay well. I just didn't enjoy it.) Also, after reviewing the photos I sent to Dr. Suporn, I realized my scrotum looked a lot smaller than it actually is. I stretched it out, and measured it to be about 8" front to back and 8" left to right. During my follow-up with Garcia tomorrow I'll ask him to reassess... He didn't actually measure the scrotum during our initial appointment. He only measured the penile skin and "eyeballed" the scrotum, which, again, looked small at the time. If his estimate changes, I'll know that Suporn was probably mistaken as well and my genitals are deceptive. 

Mine lie like a rug! 

[Sojourn]

After my follow-up with Garcia, I think I'm probably going to have him do both procedures... He remeasured everything, and I feel comfortable with him doing it. He's honest and I value his opinion. He said I should have about 5.5" to 6" of depth and pumping or stretching the scrotal skin should help. I also asked about self-lubrication and what he said made sense. There's really no way to create lubrication aside from the urethral mucosa which he uses for the labia minora. Suporn's promises of depth and lubrication seem pretty empty considering there's really only so much material to work with and there's no way he can magically create mucosa skin. Also, more depth can be created with regular dilation. Having to use lube isn't the end of the world either. I'll just have to communicate with my future partner. That's the best way to have satisfying sex anyway. Hopefully, I'll be finished with all this by this time next year.

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