QuoteThis topic can be a very divisive issue as many who can't afford the surgery convince themselves they don't need it when in reality they do. Years ago, there wasn't much trans awareness and women who presented as female fairly well "passed" without it.
Doug Ousterhout who is the pioneer in FFS and my surgeon but also almost a friend has told me a few stories about patients who come for help. He said he is getting a lot of women who are post-op and have lived years in the role who are coming in for FFS because they no longer "pass." People nowadays are trans-aware and can easily see through the make-up. In cities where there are a lot of trans women, even "100%" passable women like me will get clocked.
The harsh reality is that most mid or late transitioners need FFS.
Strong opinions for sure, and you are welcome to have them, but here is another POV:
I live in a city with tons of trans-people of every stripe. Some post-op, some pre-op, some non-op, m2f's, f2m's, IS, she-males, etc, etc. Now whereas the majority opinion of the women here seems to be that FFS makes them "unclockable," I and lots of women I know feel the exact opposite here. A woman that looks "too perfect" is ripe for closer examination, whereas a middle-aged woman with a few "facial quirks" doesn't get a second glance if they behave normally, and dress their age.
Plus, what we have noticed is that there are lots of women out there that are utterly convinced that we do not "read them" either, because they think they look so good. But, what you have to remember, is that just because a woman or a group of women does not confront you, or berate you when she "reads you," does not mean that she or they do not know. Many times, after a woman has "passed thru" our area, we all look at each other and go, do you think? It doesn't go much further than that usually, unless she was a jerk.
On the flip side, we have been surprised many times by women that we found out later on had transitioned. Most of the women in that category tend to be either naturally beautiful and young, or plain and even on the frumpier side. What you have to remember is that not many women without a husband or rich boyfriend have the time and/or $$$ to go and have a ton of facial surgery, and to recover from it.
At the very least, if you are a middle-aged woman or older, and you have a re-constructed face, even if you do not get "read" as trans, it will be fairly obvious to most other women that you had facial surgery, which in some quarters isn't going to win you any friends either. But, that is again your choice.
I think the last point I want to address is your comment about "needing" FFS. Who is to say who needs what? Since this FFS thing is a personal decision, than wouldn't that mean you only need it if you feel you need it for yourself? If someone else doesn't need it for themself, than I would think that would indicate that they in fact don't need it. If you meant to say that people need FFS to "pass," than I would say that they are better off not passing.
Because, IMO, if you need to work to "pass," than you do not, in fact pass. And if you do pass, than are not whatever it is you are trying to "pass" as. You are just pretending to be something that you are not, and eventually, women are going to notice this fact.
If no one ever told you, women are great at keeping our own house.
