Getting Required Letters FAST

[cassie09]

Does anyone know how to get the required letters in less than 6 months?

I live in Ontario, Canada and have been mainly part-time although I pass 100% as female and have a feminine voice. The only reason I havent gone full-time is I got a very good job right out f college (i graduated at 22, i'm 24 now) and im 100% sure id be sacked if i went full-time despite HR rules.

I plan to go full-time and quit my job in August (thats when my budget will allow me to have saved $20,000 for SRS). I've considered having SRS in Thailand with Dr. Kunaporn but I would really much prefer to have it all done in Montreal.

Anyone have any suggestions. Thanks!

[Kristyn]

Does anyone know how to get the required letters in less than 6 months?

I live in Ontario, Canada and have been mainly part-time although I pass 100% as female and have a feminine voice. The only reason I havent gone full-time is I got a very good job right out f college (i graduated at 22, i'm 24 now) and im 100% sure id be sacked if i went full-time despite HR rules.

I plan to go full-time and quit my job in August (thats when my budget will allow me to have saved $20,000 for SRS). I've considered having SRS in Thailand with Dr. Kunaporn but I would really much prefer to have it all done in Montreal.

Anyone have any suggestions. Thanks!

Not exactly sure how you would go about getting your letters faster than usual, but I do know that srs is covered in Ontario by OHIP and all patients are sent to Montreal

[Flan]

if i remember CAMH rules right you need both name change and a year of FT before they consider surgery as an option.

[JessieMH]

Yeah, you can choose to wait however long it takes to get approved in ON and go to Montreal or spend your own money and go wherever you choose, personally I would rather use the money on cloths/bills/savings/whatever if you can get it for nothing

Sounds about right flanhusky, those are the rules in BC so I would assume they apply to ON as well.

[cassie09]

Yeah, you can choose to wait however long it takes to get approved in ON and go to Montreal or spend your own money and go wherever you choose, personally I would rather use the money on cloths/bills/savings/whatever if you can get it for nothing

Sounds about right flanhusky, those are the rules in BC so I would assume they apply to ON as well.

The issue, unfortunatley, is that I do not want to wait. CAMH, however, takes forever and will make me jump through hoops. Look at what happened with SaraR and how they scheduled her for April then changed it to September.

I cannot stand having a penis any longer

[Kristyn]

I plan to go full-time and quit my job in August (thats when my budget will allow me to have saved $20,000 for SRS). I've considered having SRS in Thailand with Dr. Kunaporn but I would really much prefer to have it all done in Montreal.

Also, don't quit your job--fight it!  Toronto specifically has protection for trans workers yet many people, employers in private business especially, don't realize this.  What we need are a few cases brought to light to straighten out some of the conservative thinking business people in this city

[cassie09]

Also, don't quit your job--fight it!  Toronto specifically has protection for trans workers yet many people, employers in private business especially, don't realize this.  What we need are a few cases brought to light to straighten out some of the conservative thinking business people in this city

I rather not be that person. I am happily living somewhat stealthily with a bf who knows about me and thats about it. Im not ashamed of who I am but at the same time I dont wanna be the poster child for transsexualism in Ontario.

[mmelny]

I rather not be that person. I am happily living somewhat stealthily with a bf who knows about me and thats about it. Im not ashamed of who I am but at the same time I dont wanna be the poster child for transsexualism in Ontario.

Hi Cassie,

You can't be the poster girl for Ontario... I am!!!!!   

I can totally understand your reluctance to do CAMH.  I have a very close friend going through that program right now, and I hear her stories, and it's not pleasant.   And she has been transitioned for 4 years, and they are still making her do a "formal" RLE year with their monitoring.  I was lucky enough, like you, to be able to afford (well, I'm in debt now), to be able to have a choice, and I was able to bypass the CAMH hypocrisy.

And just on a personal note, I NEVER thought I would stay at the same company with my transition, but I thought I'd just ride it along, and see what happened.  And sister, was I surprised!   The company that I've worked for for 11 years, endorsed and supported me, and it was a non-issue.   And this is in a very male-dominated, conservative industry and career field, located in a rather conservative outlying region of the GTA.  You may find the surprise too, it may be worth just testing the waters, then just to outright quit your job.  Being an unemployed trans person is just too common of a theme out there, I see it in my friends, at my support center, and it's no way to be.   

To your first question, you should probably do the 6 months anyway with a therapist, just to be "legit".  But even the Thai surgeons are requiring 12 months now, so I'm not sure what you would do with a 6 month letter.  You might be able to get your therapist to write it out for longer, if they knew that you were living "partially" full time for a much longer period of time.  Or at least document that, and perhaps that would be acceptable by a surgeon's office.. there is some flexibility to interpretation for these things.

Best wishes! Good Luck,
Melan

[rejennyrated]

I rather not be that person. I am happily living somewhat stealthily with a bf who knows about me and thats about it. Im not ashamed of who I am but at the same time I dont wanna be the poster child for transsexualism in Ontario.

I do hate to disappoint you.

I am from the UK and even I know of 4 Ontario girls, at various stages of development who have a better claim to that title than you.

We all do it when we start. We look around at where we are and imagine that just because we haven't seen anyone else they don't exist, so we keep very quiet and try to keep our heads down. Fact is they do exist, and they are all keeping their heads down because they don't know that anyone else exists either.

It is theoretically possible to do what you want to do. I know of one or two across the ages (including me) who have managed it. But it's not really recommended practice. To do it, you need to either get incredibly lucky, as I did, or have a LOT of money. There are always ways around restrictions when you have really big money. (and I do mean hundreds of thousands...)

But to be honest, whilst everything I have heard about CAMH suggests to me that it's not a good place to go, I also know from my 4 friends that there are several other psychiatrists who will treat gender patients in Ontario. So I would suggest you have a bit of a rethink and find one of them and work with him or her, rather than wasting energy trying to buck the system entirely.

Good Luck anyway

[lpfix2009]

Unfortunately, If you want the surgery paid by OHIP in Ontario you YOU NEED to go through CAMH.

However, if you want just the letters and willing to pay the entire $18,400 or which ever surgeon you choose, Sherbourne Health Center and many private therapists will get you the letters.

I personally have went through CAMH without much fuss. From my original visit in 2005 to now, I certainly have changed and they saw the huge improvement.

[gothique11]

I think the one main obstacle you'll mostly run into is fitting the requirement of FT / RLE for a full year, which includes work. Most surgeons will require the fill-fulfillment and 2 letters.

Also, if you did get them and get surgery, say, in Aug and quit your job -- then what? Are you going to live FT? Are you gonna find a job? What are you going to do? Can you use your current job as a reference towards a new job (name issues, gender issues... it can get confusing when an employer asks about a Mary Jane working there, but the company lists you John Henry. Of course, you'll need your ID and sin card changed. Also, for your schooling, that may have to have your name and info changed if you need proof of your degree to your next employer. Things can get complicated pretty fast...

As much as you want the surgery now (I understand how frustrating it is), you're gonna have to take that plunge into FT and having a therapist, psychologist, and/or a psychiatrist there to document you're living FB.


Post Merge: April 21, 2010, 07:08:11 AM
Also consider that after SRS, you're not going to be going to work right away. I would at least have enough money for 2 months worth of rent, bills, and food. It depends afterword how fast you find a job, too, so it could be needing for 3 months.

[lpfix2009]

Hi Cassie,

You can't be the poster girl for Ontario... I am!!!!!   

I can totally understand your reluctance to do CAMH.  I have a very close friend going through that program right now, and I hear her stories, and it's not pleasant.   And she has been transitioned for 4 years, and they are still making her do a "formal" RLE year with their monitoring.  I was lucky enough, like you, to be able to afford (well, I'm in debt now), to be able to have a choice, and I was able to bypass the CAMH hypocrisy.

And just on a personal note, I NEVER thought I would stay at the same company with my transition, but I thought I'd just ride it along, and see what happened.  And sister, was I surprised!   The company that I've worked for for 11 years, endorsed and supported me, and it was a non-issue.   And this is in a very male-dominated, conservative industry and career field, located in a rather conservative outlying region of the GTA.  You may find the surprise too, it may be worth just testing the waters, then just to outright quit your job.  Being an unemployed trans person is just too common of a theme out there, I see it in my friends, at my support center, and it's no way to be.   

To your first question, you should probably do the 6 months anyway with a therapist, just to be "legit".  But even the Thai surgeons are requiring 12 months now, so I'm not sure what you would do with a 6 month letter.  You might be able to get your therapist to write it out for longer, if they knew that you were living "partially" full time for a much longer period of time.  Or at least document that, and perhaps that would be acceptable by a surgeon's office.. there is some flexibility to interpretation for these things.

Best wishes! Good Luck,
Melan

CAMH is not that bad, I actually finished their programmed and am approved for surgery! Like really, there not that bad.