New and need advice - Transguy from UK

[JamJames]

Heya,

I'm James and i've recently come out to my family and friends as a transguy. It's something i've only really come to terms with for about a year, however i've always known, deep down, that I wasn't female. I've always dressed male and have used a binder for about a year. I've been referring to myself as male and using male pronouns for about 6 months. I'm 25

Anyways, I live in the UK and looking for advice on what to do next. I'm really quite clueless and over whelmed by everything and dont know where to start. Ive looked over the net on what to do but it's confusing.

What do I need to do to start transitioning? I've been told I need to make an appointment with someone trained in trans stuffs and then after that I need two specialists to agree that I am trans before I can start HRT. How long is it before I can start T? How long before surgury? Do I need to change my name and title before I can even start T?

Hope you can help me, I really need to start things moving.

James

[Janet_Girl]

Hi James,

Welcome to our little family. Over 3500 strong. That would be one heck of a family reunion.

Feel free to post your successes/failures, Hopes/dreams.  Ask questions and seek answers. Give and receive advice.

But remember we are family here, your family now. And it is always nice to have another brother.

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Blessed Be.
Janet

[Tay]

Hey James,

Firstly welcome to the forum and congrats on coming out to your parents.

The first thing you need to do is to decide if you want to take the NHS or the Private route for your transition (although some people try to mix them a bit to get the best of both worlds).

I myself am an NHS boy. If you go through the NHS you will need to make an appointment with your GP and ask them to refer you to the nearest gender clinic. You might have to push them to get them to do it because very few GPs have any experience of transfolk. From there you'll get a letter inviting you to an initial consultation at the clinic for an assessment... or you will get a letter requesting that you attend a mental health clinic for an assessment there before you are referred on to the gender specialists.

Either way, at your first appointment everything will pretty much be explained. Time-wise, everything depends on your area and the clinic you go to but it is definitely slower than if you pay and go privately for treatment. Expect anything up to and beyond a year before hormones come into play and anything up to two years before surgery.

Some of the other UK guys might know more about private treatment but Dr Richard Curtis in London is pretty popular and a transman himself.

Hope that helps,

Tay

[Al James]

Hi James.

To get things rolling you need to see your GP. I went to see mine a few months ago and am now waiting for an appointment to come through to see a psychiatrist. They've told me it will be in the new year some time so thats all i can help you with at the moment. There have been a few previous posts about what happens in the UK tho; these are a group of great guys and very helpful

[Jay]

Tay got it all in one. Pretty much just book an appointment with your GP and get them to refer you and then you are away!

Jay

[Bel979]

First you will need to see you GP then they will refer you to a mental clinic, just to make sure your not crazy, stupid I know. Then depending on how that goes you will be refered to see a gender specialist, which took me just over a year to get my first one. Thats all I can offer at the moment because that is where I am. Very long and frustrating. Good luck.

[HarryP]

Hey James  Yeah, I haven't got anything really to offer other than what the other guys said, but thought I'd say hi seeing as I'm from the UK too  I'm also waiting for an appointment on the NHS - takes a while!...

[GDTripp]

Welcome to the forums! If you need advice, try scrolling through the many, MANY posts. Plenty of help there.

[Arch]

After reading these replies, I'm feeling lucky that I got hormones and surgery within a year of coming out...but then, I paid for everything out of pocket. And denied/repressed/waited twenty years before I did anything. So maybe the NHS route isn't so bad.

Welcome, James. I hope you like the site; most of us don't bite.

Uh, unless you're INTO that sort of thing.

[Lachlann]

After reading these replies, I'm feeling lucky that I got hormones and surgery within a year of coming out...but then, I paid for everything out of pocket. And denied/repressed/waited twenty years before I did anything. So maybe the NHS route isn't so bad.

Welcome, James. I hope you like the site; most of us don't bite.

Uh, unless you're INTO that sort of thing.

Yeah it just depends on your situation.

In Ontario, therapy via psychiatrist is covered by our healthcare plan. I have to wait two months to get in, but it's not so bad compared to some other waits. Hormones and surgery aren't covered unless it's Zucker, which is like a 2-3 year wait it seems. I wouldn't want to go to him anyway, so paying isn't so bad. Therapy is really expensive, I'd rather have that covered and save up for surgeries. If it weren't for OHIP I wouldn't have anything.

[Arch]

Therapy is really expensive, I'd rather have that covered and save up for surgeries.

Boy, you're not kidding. I must have spent at least fifteen thou on therapy so far...enough to pay for hysto or two top surgeries or a good portion of bottom surgery.

Of course, I have a lot of issues...

[notyouraverageguy]

Welcome james!