What do I say?

[~Jay~]

Ok to start off I'm new here I'm Jay so hi everyone, this weekend has been rather stressful for me as at long last I told a few of my friends how I feel and that I'd much rather be a man thankfully they are all surportive of me and two of them kind of had a hint about it anyway when I asked if it came as a bit of a shock to them and where like well no it does explain things.
But what I've been wondering about is what and how do I say to my dr about this?  I'm a very shy person and I've just come out to my friends about this, how long should I wait before I go and see and talk with my dr about it all?

Jay

[Zack]

Talk to your Dr when you feel comfortable enough to do so, don't leave it too late though, I waited years due to my shyness. Luckily I'm still at a young age though (20).

And as for what to say..I just basically went in and said 'Hey, can you refer me to a gender clinic please' sorted.
He may ask you a few questions, mine did anyway.

[Greg]

Hi Jay, welcome to Susan's. Nice to hear that your friends are supportive.

First off, what you say to your doctor will depend on how far along you are with your transition. So if your just starting off with all this and want to talk to a therapist then you could just ask your doc to put you in contact with someone who can talk with you about your gender issues.

You also need to take into consideration which country you live in. I only know about the UK system so if your somewhere else then another of the guys here will be able to help you out better than I can.

[~Jay~]

Thanks both for repling, I'm in the UK I've had trouble with being refurred for theapy in the past as I also suffer from depression I just tend to go round and not get in anywhere although I've never been open about talking about my gender and have always kept it locked up inside me until now where at long last I now feel I can let it out.

[Zack]

Thanks both for repling, I'm in the UK I've had trouble with being refurred for theapy in the past as I also suffer from depression I just tend to go round and not get in anywhere although I've never been open about talking about my gender and have always kept it locked up inside me until now where at long last I now feel I can let it out.

I know what you mean about feeling like you're getting nowhere. I'm in the UK as well. I asked for a therapist for depression years ago and got nowhere, and I asked for a mental health appt. about 2 months ago because I need that before being able to be transferred to a GIC, usually you're supposed to get this appt. 2 weeks after asking for it 
My Dr even admitted I may get lost in the system, I'm now going private later in the year because of this. But if this happens to you, just keep pestering them to get you transferred.

[Greg]

The best general advice I can give you is if you're going to transition on the NHS then you want to make them aware of you ASAP. Even if you don't feel ready now, by the time you get seen to you probably will be.
Post Merge: May 31, 2010, 05:39:14 PM
And if you're going private then I can give you info about that. You can probably tell I know very little about transition on the NHS

[Nathan.]

If I were you i'd go to the gp and get referred as soon as you can because transition is a long process on the NHS.

First thing the doctor will do is refer you to a therapist or something like that and then they will refer you to a GIC. I'm not sure how long it takes to see someone in a mental heath team as I was already seeing a guy for my depression and anxiety and I was seeing him privately as my dad sorted it out.

I'm really shy too but it has to be done.

[Jam]

Hi Jay

I went to see my GP first, he sent me to a Mental Health place, i got that appointment about 2 weeks after seeing the GP. I saw a woman there (she was real nice) just asked me questions about it such as how long i'd felt this way etc. She then sent me a letter saying she was transfering me to a GIC in Leeds it said on the letter it may take as long as 18 weeks for me to get an appointment. Thats as far as i am now. Go to your GP dont worry about it they are normally very professional. Some GP's haven't delt with it before so you might have to point them in the right direction. Just say 'I have Gender Identity disorder can you refer me to a mental health clinic so i can get assessed and sent to a Gender Identity Clinic' or something like that. I was told by the mental health nurse that they do the therapy sessions at the GIC.
Dont let shyness hold you back, i didnt and im on my way =]

[~Jay~]

Thanks for all the info about what to do I will be phoning up my Dr's tomorrow and seeing what days my Dr will be in, a friend of mine hopefully will be coming with me for surport when I get an appointment.