Hello I'm new here,
I'm pre-T, been out for almost 7 years now and lately I've been educated more about the trans life. I don't really know much especially about going to a therapist that covers my insurance. I do want to look in to starting T because lately I've been really depressed and as I get older I am becoming more and more unhappy and uncomfortable about the body I am in. I've known that I was stuck in the wrong body since I was in kindergarten when I liked this one girl in class haha. To think I would remember now that I'm 20. But being Asian and having traditional family life style.. Although my aunts and uncles even my parents knew I acted like a boy, they would tell me I can't like girls that I'm a girl etc etc. When I was 14.. I had an incident and I came very depressed so i came out and cut my hair and dressed like a guy. My parents thought I was mentally phsyco and put me to therapy. Which did not help at all. As I grew older I became active in the LGB community. But stopped because I lost myself and etc.
What I'm trying to get to I guess.. Is I don't know what to do.. Where to go to if I want to start T. Or how insurance works with this. My mom now wants me to see a psychiatrist and my dad wants me to suck it up and be his daughter -.-. Will seeing a psychiatrist work? Educate me :(
Hi newbie person!
(You can go introduce yourself if you want.)
Therapy is sometimes covered by insurance. The thing is that you want a therapist who knows about trans issues. That would be a gender therapist. I don't think the letters behind the therapist's name matter a whole heck of a lot. I'd rather see a master's in social work (which is, in fact, who I see) who knows trans issues forwards and backwards (in fact the person I see is a transguy), than a psychiatrist who knows nothing about them (some do and most don't). But seeing one would be fine. They do tend to be more expensive than psychologists and psychiatrists and esp social workers.The difference is just the type of degree that the person has. So a psychiatrist would have a medical degree. In some countries you do have to see both. I am guessing by talking re: about coverage by health insurance that you are in the US.
A *decent* therapist of whatever kind should not try to change you out of being trans. I'd say almost nobody gets less transgender after therapy. I think it sounds like your parents are trying to change you from being trans. It isn't possible. It is not some kind of choice.
I think a gender therapist (called GT around here) can help you but more find out what you want to do and so on. They might also be able to help your parents come to terms with this. (If its possible.)
Here's a list of resources, including GTs off Laura's Playground, another forum. I think they have been checked thru to some extent. I don't know if there is a similar list here. You can even see people online or via Skype.
http://www.lauras-playground.com/tg_resources_laura.htm (http://www.lauras-playground.com/tg_resources_laura.htm)
HTH,
--Jay Jay
Thanks,
Well I'm from So Cali, My name is Dany and I do identify myself as male.
Back then when I went to therapy I felt as if they were trying to make me straight which is why I rebelled to talk to my therapist lol.
I would like to go to a gender therapist, but since my mom is looking into it I doubt that is the last thing on her mind lol. I was told that i could go to a Plan parenthood? and they do hormone therapy w/o a letter? Not sure if that sounds legit because i would like to do this the best way i could.
Hi Dany, :icon_wave:
Welcome to our little family. Over 7905 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. (https://www.susans.org/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fsmileys.on-my-web.com%2Frepository%2FAnimals%2Fferret-3.gif&hash=f49e2f86761323f2abd9c33941920389dbb3b10f)
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Quote from: Ms. OBrien on August 19, 2012, 07:25:30 PM
Hi Dany, :icon_wave:
Welcome to our little family. Over 7905 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. (https://www.susans.org/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fsmileys.on-my-web.com%2Frepository%2FAnimals%2Fferret-3.gif&hash=f49e2f86761323f2abd9c33941920389dbb3b10f)
And be sure to check out these links ( MUST READS ) (https://www.susans.org/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fsmileys.on-my-web.com%2Frepository%2FAnimals%2Fferret-8.gif&hash=d9498942f8bbb4bf3ad29af75944ea5e1135c6fa)
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Hi thank you for the welcoming :D
Yes i read the site terms already, and i'm still going over the terms and definition. :)
Thank you for the info, ill be sure to look at it.
Hey Dany, welcome to Susan's. I'm sure you'll be able to find help with all the information you need to begin your transition.
I can't help you with finding someone to diagnose you since I live in Canada, but I can say I don't think Planned Parenthood would be able to help you at all. Your best bet would be a LGBT or trans-specific group/doctor's office in your area, and make sure to do some Googling on whichever psychiatrist or gender therapist you end up seeing to try and make sure they have a history with trans people. Good luck!
Planned Parenthood is a great organization, but I think the services are cancer screening, birth control, and women's health care. They may do a little counseling, but I would guess they specialize in a short term variety-- see people, figure out the issue, send you on to someone else. GT is not usually really short term (by short term I mean 3-5 sessions). It's possible that someone there would be sensitive to trans issue (actually I'd guess the odds are higher than some other random group), but figuring out where to send you and so on, I'd guess they wouldn't be able to do this.
I think that perhaps your parents could see the point of sending you to someone who might be able to help you with these issues, even if they don't approve. Why would they spend money on someone you won't go to? I don't think there is any point at all in seeing a non-GT at this point.
It's possible to find someone who gets it, I have a friend with a degree in social work. She knew a lot about this when I told her. But the odds are against it.
--Jay Jay
Hey Dany,
I'm also from SoCal& found a therapist in Los Angeles who helped me with resources.
I'm not sure how old you are but despite your family's lack of support I suggest you pursue whatever it takes to enable you to life a happy and healthy life. I know it can be lonely without the support of family..I moved at age 17 myself, but you need to live for yourself.
I definitely understand how families can be so if you ever need to talk shoot me a message.
Welcome. :) While I don't know whether all offices do informed consent (which often means access to hormones without a minimum requirement for therapy) Planned Parenthood is actually a very good bet if you don't have another trans health resource around. Many Planned Parenthood clinics offer hormones as well as plumbing checkups, so if you can't think of anywhere else to go, try PP.
This page has a user-submitted recommendation for the Planned Parenthood in Santa Cruz, which was reportedly prescribing hormones via informed consent, at least in 2010: http://www.questioningtransphobia.com/?page_id=3517 (http://www.questioningtransphobia.com/?page_id=3517)
Thank you for all the resources and help, I told my mom to tell me the psychiatrist name first before she did anything so i could research if they are LGBT Friendly.