Susan's Place Transgender Resources

I'm obtaining both referral letters for "irreversible genital surgery" in the next two weeks, and then scheduling orchiectomy with Dr. Reed in Miami, hopefully during April.   Could any of the ladies here who previously had orchiectomy/SRS tell me if you noticed better changes in fat redistribution and/or breast growth following the surgery?  While my breast growth has been surprising (B cup) for starting HRT after age 50, I really haven't experienced any fat redistribution to my hips or buttocks. :(  Of course, I'm hoping the orchiectomy will allow even a reduced dosage of E to work much, much better.

Edit: 2/27 - Revised thread title from "orchiectomy" to "SRS"

Maybe I should ask this question in another form:

Did you experience more noticeable changes in your breasts, butt and overall body shape following SRS?

not really, but on the other hand I don't have much body fat to work with. it's been easier in other ways though

Yep, boobs and thighs mainly, lol.


stardust

Thank you, ladies. :)  I just find it difficult to believe a year of cyproterone and high doses of estradiol hasn't had more impact on my waist and hips.  I guess it's possible my T level is still higher than I'd prefer.  My spouse seemed surprised I'd rather have a shapely butt than my current B-cup boobs, but it's simpler and less expensive to have breast augmentation than it is to have liposuction and a Brazilian butt lift.  I'm seriously hoping orchiectomy will help make it better.  :)

I am 15 months post-orchie, and unfortunately I have not gotten the fat distribution.  I still have no butt and boy hips.  Any weight gain goes straight to the tummy.  :'(

However I am getting some growth on top.  Hoo Whoo.  8)

Thanks Janet, I was *so* hoping you'd reply here.   ;D

Sorry to hear about your lower body, but I'm very happy for your upper body. 

It alright, Cait.  At least my girlfriend likes my boy hips, even if I don't.

I can't wait!

I'll bet you can't, Jerica.  Please know that all my love and support will be with you over the next few weeks as you wait, and then blossom.  ;D  Then, a few months later, I seriously hope you post a reply here, and tell me how you're doing post-surgery and post-recovery.

Quote from: Caith on March 01, 2011, 10:19:19 AM
I'll bet you can't, Jerica.  Please know that all my love and support will be with you over the next few weeks as you wait, and then blossom.  ;D  Then, a few months later, I seriously hope you post a reply here, and tell me how you're doing post-surgery and post-recovery.

Thanks =) Keep an eye on my youtube and blog. There WILL be video updates =)

FYI, I received referral letter # 1 from my therapist this morning.  ;D
I see my psychiatrist next week to obtain letter # 2.

Quote from: Caith on March 03, 2011, 01:53:16 PM
FYI, I received referral letter # 1 from my therapist this morning.  ;D
I see my psychiatrist next week to obtain letter # 2.

Yay congratz!!!!!!!!

Jerica send me  the link

Quote from: Caith on March 03, 2011, 01:53:16 PM
FYI, I received referral letter # 1 from my therapist this morning.  ;D
I see my psychiatrist next week to obtain letter # 2.

I originally scheduled my psychiatrist appointment a week after my therapist's, just to allow time in the all-too-possible event my therapist wasn't able to provide a letter today.  Now that I have the first letter, I really wish I had scheduled the psych appointment for just one day later.

Dr. Reed's office called me late this afternoon.  He's quite the talker ::) to be honest.  We discussed everything he requires and available surgery dates.  Currently, I'm planning for the first week of April, Monday 4/4 or the second week on 4/11.  I suppose it goes without saying, but it's going to be difficult for me, waiting and working through the next few weeks. 

Quote from: Suigeniris on March 03, 2011, 07:16:56 PM
Jerica send me  the link

http://jericanation.com (http://jericanation.com)

Quote from: Caith on March 03, 2011, 07:31:50 PM
Dr. Reed's office called me late this afternoon.  He's quite the talker ::) to be honest.  We discussed everything he requires and available surgery dates.  Currently, I'm planning for the first week of April, Monday 4/4 or the second week on 4/11. 

I've been busy this weekend preparing for my psychiatrist's visit later this week.  I've printed several documents for her review because she's not experienced with GID surgery referrals.  But she's an M.D. and has known me for several years.  I recently consulted with her twice regarding my sincere desire for orchiectomy and she was entirely supportive.  She's welcome to consult with my therapist (a WPATH member and highly experienced) if she has any specific concerns or questions.  These are the items I'm providing to her:

• WPATH Standards of Care v6
• SoC Section 12 regarding surgery as a single page
• my therapist's referral letter from last week
• Dr. Marci Bowers' interpretation of the WPATH surgery letter requirements
• Dr. Reed's interpretation of the WPATH surgery letter requirements
• Dr. Reed's informed consent form for orchiectomy

After speaking with Dr. Reed for over thirty minutes Friday evening, I sent him an e-mail confirming all the details of our conversation.  His very short response seemed skeptical because I did not already have both surgery letters available.  While not his actual words, it was essentially "we can talk more after you supply two letters that satisfy me."  :( The terrible thing is I can't really fault him for this attitude.  :-\  I imagine he takes too many calls from too many people who are nowhere near ready to schedule surgery.  As both my therapist/Ph.D. and psychiatrist/M.D. already understand, I'm completely serious in my desires.

I was disappointed with my psychiatrist/M.D. this afternoon.  She asked if delivering the second letter by the end of next week was okay.  >:( Umm, I was kinda hoping she could have already composed it, and started reviewing it with my psychotherapist/Ph.D. over the telephone.   Unfortunately, she also didn't have the release form I snail-mailed to her two weeks ago.   Well, I get an EKG next week, and that's a lot later than I'd expect, as well.  Why is it when it's something the patient wants, it takes forever.  But when it's something a doctor wants, it happens "stat"?  Sheesh.  :P

Better HRT results following SRS? Absolutely!!!!  I had SRS about a year and a half ago, and I've experienced SIGNIFICANT breast growth, and SIGNIFICANT changes in the contour of my butt, definitely fuller and rounder.

There were virtually no gains from HRT prior to SRS, and even though breast development has been significant, there still is insufficient development to fill out a bra.  There are no guarantees with this, and YMMV. Post-op, some change their HRT protocol, some do not, another factor to consider.

I've also experienced an undesirable gain in weight, with most fat settling in my midsection.

Quote from: atheris on March 15, 2011, 01:14:05 PM
Better HRT results following SRS? Absolutely!!!!  I had SRS about a year and a half ago, and I've experienced SIGNIFICANT breast growth, and SIGNIFICANT changes in the contour of my butt, definitely fuller and rounder.

There were virtually no gains from HRT prior to SRS, and even though breast development has been significant, there still is insufficient development to fill out a bra.  There are no guarantees with this, and YMMV. Post-op, some change their HRT protocol, some do not, another factor to consider.

I've also experienced an undesirable gain in weight, with most fat settling in my midsection.

Thank you so much for sharing your experience! 

I experienced weight gain during my first year of HRT, and I'm fighting it now with lots of walking each week, as well as cutting back on how much and how often I eat.  I'm really, really hoping for my butt to get better.   Two years of HRT has given me a B-cup, and I'm also really hoping for better results there following orchiectomy.

Quote from: Caith on March 10, 2011, 04:31:53 PM
I was disappointed with my psychiatrist/M.D. this afternoon.  She asked if delivering the second letter by the end of next week was okay.  >:( Umm, I was kinda hoping she could have already composed it, and started reviewing it with my psychotherapist/Ph.D. over the telephone.   Unfortunately, she also didn't have the release form I snail-mailed to her two weeks ago.   Well, I get an EKG next week, and that's a lot later than I'd expect, as well.  Why is it when it's something the patient wants, it takes forever.  But when it's something a doctor wants, it happens "stat"?  Sheesh.  :P

So, I had my EKG on Wednesday, and I told them what to expect before they started recording it.  I have an inverted T-segment, and have been this way for twenty-plus years with no heart problems, ever.  The good news is, I'm down 20 pounds since last November.  The bad news is, I have to take a nuclear medicine / cardiac stress test next week.  At least it will still be valid when I need a colonoscopy in a few years, and I won't have to go through this all over again.

I'm extremely disappointed :( in my psychiatrist/MD/shrink this week.  I left her three separate voice mail messages and she hasn't responded to any of them.  She also hasn't provided my second referral letter as she committed to me, last Thursday during our session.  So I e-mailed my therapist and asked her to line up one of her regular associates to write my second letter.  Fortunately, we discussed this during therapy yesterday, and we were both kind of expecting this to become a necessity.  Still, it doesn't lessen the fact that I'm very, very disappointed and definitely won't be visiting this psychiatrist again in the future.

I'm curious about this, too...

  I've read allot of anecdotal evidence of increased feminization after GRS (or orchie) but nothing solid... I'm just going to think out loud here...

  I've been on HRT for about 5.5 years.. It's my understanding that antiandrogens initially stop your body from absorbing T but the effect is later amplified as the testes atrophy; after awhile they stop producing T.... right? Does anyone know more about this? My guess is that if the testes are made non-functional by HRT then there really shouldn't be any differences after GRS.

  Then again, if E acts as a T suppressor then maybe, after GRS, there might be more bioavailable E after GRS because there's a certain amount that would have been used to suppress the T.

  Heh.... where's a biochemist when you need one?  ;D

The issue with anti-androgens is they don't necessarily suppress the adrenal glands' production of testosterone, nor do they halt the aromatization mechanism that converts T (however little of it still exists) into the more powerful di-hydro-testosterone (DHT), responsible for male pattern baldness, prostate enlargement, and a host of other ugly effects.  This is why so many people on HRT take 5AR-inhibiting drugs like Proscar or Propecia (finasteride) or Avodart (dutasteride) in addition to their anti-androgens.

I'm hoping after my testicles are gone, things will get better.  I'm not actually expecting it, but I'm hoping.  It very much appears to be an individual thing, related to individual metabolism and biochemistry.

Quote from: Caith on March 18, 2011, 04:14:46 PM
I'm extremely disappointed :( in my psychiatrist/MD/shrink this week.  I left her three separate voice mail messages and she hasn't responded to any of them.  She also hasn't provided my second referral letter as she committed to me, last Thursday during our session.  So I e-mailed my therapist and asked her to line up one of her regular associates to write my second letter.  Fortunately, we discussed this during therapy yesterday, and we were both kind of expecting this to become a necessity.  Still, it doesn't lessen the fact that I'm very, very disappointed and definitely won't be visiting this psychiatrist again in the future.

So, I just received a phone call from my psychiatrist at 10:30 this morning, apologizing. Unfortunately, she tried blaming it all on her secretary and their phone system. I know she's personally techno-phobic, so the blame lies squarely on her for not checking her voice mail messages daily and responding to them in a timely manner. The end result is, she's expecting to prepare the letter and fax it to my therapist for review today.

Seeing as I have a cardiac stress test scheduled for Wednesday, if I receive the letter Tuesday, I should be able to overnight the whole damned package of two letters, an EKG, and a cardiac stress test review to Dr. Reed before the end of this week. Of course, that's only if they review the stress test results in a timely manner, and at this point I'm seriously not expecting that.

I had my cardiac stress test this morning, and my dilly-dallying shrink called while I was being tested to say my letter was finally available for pick-up today.  After grabbing a quick bite to eat and visiting my GP's office to pick up blood test results, I went by the shrink's office.  The letter was actually waiting for me at the receptionist's desk.  It's only three business days and five calendar days later than originally promised.  I won't be going back to this shrink for ANYTHING in the future.  Now, I just need to get everything down to Dr. Reed with a bank check for half his surgery fee, and I should be able to schedule a date for my orchiectomy.

Yay, it sounds like it's finally coming together for you! Here's hoping that Dr. Reed isn't too busy.

Thanks, Hannah!! ;D  He was certainly busy when I called just before 3:00 pm Wednesday afternoon.  His office manager Anne answered the phone and told me they were about to begin a surgery.  I called to confirm everything I was sending to them today, to be absolutely certain I wasn't missing anything they required.  We spent no more than five minutes talking, but she told me exactly what I needed to know.  My Fed Ex Envelope with both referral letters, a cashier's check, and blood test results should arrive in their Miami office Thursday morning, at which time Anne should call me back to schedule a date for orchiectomy.

I'm just hoping there's still a slot available during the first two weeks in April.  Orchiectomy requires an hour (or less) for the procedure, but scheduling it really depends on how many SRS/GCS surgeries he has scheduled the same day, especially if they include other cosmetic procedures.  Also, I have to be there for a consult the day before and stick around for two to three days afterward for follow-up visits.

/me crosses fingers (and legs!)

Finally, Dr. Reed's office has received everything they need.  ;D  ;D  ;D  I e-mailed them Sunday to insure they weren't experiencing any delays due to my psychiatrist not responding to their calls.  Dr. Reed responded Monday afternoon to say the cardiologist's office had never sent the EKG and stress test results.  I jumped on the cardiologist's office and they faxed those to Dr. Reed, but they neglected to include the necessary statement explicitly clearing me for surgery.  I called the cardiologist's office back Tuesday morning, and that statement was finally provided.  So now, I'm just waiting for Dr. Reed to return to his office this weekend.  The last week of every month, he's out either lecturing, speaking, or learning something new.  Surprisingly, he's probably fewer than 200 miles away from me, right now.

Have I mentioned how stressful it's been, just trying to get everything they need delivered to them?  If I hadn't kept my eye on everything, it would be at least one or two more weeks before we actually scheduled surgery.

Wednesday, June 8th.  >:(  They could have seen me April 18, but the other person who lives here :eusa_wall: has a scheduling problem with that week.  I can't describe her as wife, spouse, or SO because she hasn't been any of those things to me in many, many years. :(  To sum things up: I'm extremely disappointed, pissed off, and a jumble of other emotions at this moment.  I really don't want to buy or consume more cyproterone/Androcur.  At least I have enough left, that I can still take it every other day until then.

I'm so sorry that you couldn't make April work. At least you have a date now! That is so awesome for you. Of course I wish it was me but my time will come.

Thanks, Hannah.  It's terrible to receive such a let-down, early on a Monday morning is even worse.  It required most of the day before I finally got over it.  At least it's a solidly confirmed date, now.  Nothing short of death is going to change that, now.