Did therapy help deal with your feelings and cope with life or was it something you just did to
get your GRS?

I did it to confirm I wasnt insane then stopped after I got my HRT letter.....I'll go again when I have to start the 1 yr RLT to get my letter.

Quote from: Lori on October 16, 2007, 12:01:34 PM
I did it to confirm I wasnt insane then stopped after I got my HRT letter.....I'll go again when I have to start the 1 yr RLT to get my letter.

I did it in hopes I'd confirm I WAS insane, lol... and thus this whole GID thing was just a big delusion.

Yea... THAT worked out well for me, lol.

Anyways, therapy DID help me, but mostly in indirect ways. It's not so much that my therapist gave me great advice or anything, but talking to someone in person, and HAVING to verbalize my feelings helped clarify them for me. She also asked some good thought-provoking questions which helped me realize how I really felt. And even when we fought and argued, THAT really showed me how important certain things were to me, especially HRT.

Overall, I'm really really glad I did therapy - but it helped me more in ways I DIDN'T expect.

Like Lori, I stopped going many months ago, shortly after going fulltime. But I plan to get back into it soon to get my SRS letter(s), as my RLT is over half-done.

~Kate~

Amanda- i just started therapy, and i was very excited after my first day. But, it's early in my transition...VERY EARLY. What I like was how my therapist didn't make me feel weird, but rather comfortable even though I hardly presented as 'female looking' right now...long story.

I just took this psych test I guess they make everyone take, i dunno. It was called the MCMI test and it evaluated my over all emotional state...blah blah blah. My next appointment with my therapist is next Monday on the 22nd, and I guess the test results will be in, the cop's called, a major stand off with anti-TS / TG religious-outback neo-nazi law enforcement agencies will ensue here in Arizona!!! .... j/k  >  (i'm sorry, i really love this 'devil' smiley > > > > )

What Kate said is great advice as well, hell everyone here has great advice!!!

Good luck!!!

("outback neo-nazi law enforcement agencies"- thank you Hunter S. Thompson for the quote )

I didn't enjoy therapy really much.  All it was was some person who at first told me I was too young to transition, then who said I needed more time to sort out everything on the inside!  Blah blah blah

Either way you have to do it though sadly enough heh.

I'm here, alive, answering this thread, am I not?  That's how much therapy helped me.  Even now, nine months after my SRS, I still go to my therapy sessions.  I have this special bond with my therapist (she is the only one that truly KNOWS me *giggles*)  I enjoy our conversations very much even if they are only for one hour..

tink

I dont need to talk to a theripist to sort myself out... I just need to talk to someone...  my EX was probably the best out of everyone Ive ever dealt with....  My theripist is great but really, I see seeing her as a leagle necesity and otherwise a waste of monies better directed elsewhere. My first theripist was an extreem waste of cash and total waste *Shrugs*

Counseling was a very helpful for me, I still go from time to time even though I got my HRT letter 5 months ago. I didn't think I would like my councilor but It worked out just great.

Therapy helped me a ton in dealing with my issues (I have a lot).  I mostly received help in  my person to person communication skills and building my confidence and self-esteem.  Unfortunately before I moved to Purdue we never got to really go over my paranoia issues...

I am so glad I had somewhere to go before I knew I needed to go there. I would not of made it without that connection before my breakdowns.

Alice

QuoteAnyways, therapy DID help me, but mostly in indirect ways. It's not so much that my therapist gave me great advice or anything, but talking to someone in person, and HAVING to verbalize my feelings helped clarify them for me. She also asked some good thought-provoking questions which helped me realize how I really felt. And even when we fought and argued, THAT really showed me how important certain things were to me, especially HRT.

Overall, I'm really really glad I did therapy - but it helped me more in ways I DIDN'T expect.

May I second that, Kate?

I had two gender therapists.  The first helped me validate that I had GID and that my true self had always been female.  She asked direct questions and challenged me to be true to myself.  She wrote my HRT letter 90 days after I started therapy with her.  She moved away but we are still in-touch.

After I started HRT I saw another therapist to help me start my true life.  In this case it was the conversations that benefited me most.  I actually had another woman with whom I discussed everything in my life, hear myself say it, and get a thoughtful, constructive answer. 

I was lucky in that my health insurance reimbursed me 50% for anything I paid to licensed practitioners, like psychiatrists, psychologists, and therapists, otherwise it would have been far fewer sessions than I needed.

I have been full-time me for almost 4 years.  I finally like myself, at last, I like myself (Borrowed from Harry Chapin's "Sequel").

Wing Walker
Enjoying My Adventure

I didnt see the point of paying 80 dollars and hour just to hear what I already know. There is really only so much a therapist can do. I feel in my case this is a mental battle with myself and while a good therapist can help guide you, it was me in the end that had to go out and face life. And with places like Susans or other internet recourses I can ask all the silly questions and sort through a multitude of answers and ideas. It expands my database ten fold.....and it only costs what I pay for an internet connection at home.

I do things differently anyhow....like I said I'm a pickle. It would seem to me that many cannot wait until they go fulltime. I can.....due to financial reasons wich will not be cleared up until next August. I am going to wait until I cannot pass in boy mode anymore, and when society says..hey you are a girl....then I'd better start doing as the girls do. Until then, I choose the path of --- I am not a bold in your face accept me for who I am type of person and even though I look like a man you have to treat me like a woman!!--- I am totally way too sensitive to be bashed upon, sneered to, and laughed at. When I HAVE to go fulltime, then its time for me and I will go back to therapy. If that day never comes, then I will curse the gods and exit gracefully.

Those that are young or those that pass fairly easy and soon probably should be in therapy to help with coming out at work and stuff. Their timetable is a quick one and they dont have much time to sit and think about everything with all the chaos in their lives. My appearence and timetable dictates I wait and stew in my HRT juices for a while....so again spending money on a therapist is really not necessary atm.

In the end, you know deep inside if you need it or not. I sought it out when I felt I needed it for me.

I was in total meltdown and needed an objective person to talk to, so I gave therapy a try on my wife's prodding.  It saved my life.  I was depressed, had my suicide letter written and was researching on the internet the various ways to exit this life.

These days it is helping me cope with marriage issues and my starting HRT.  I promised my wife I wouldn't begin hormones until next year.  Now that the new year is close I have chosen to begin HRT on my birthday in March - a symbolic rebirth.

Therapy is not for everyone but I needed the help.

Maya

You will get out of therapy as much as you are willing to put into it.

Quote from: Tink on October 16, 2007, 07:44:28 PM
I'm here, alive, answering this thread, am I not?  That's how much therapy helped me.  Even now, nine months after my SRS, I still go to my therapy sessions.  I have this special bond with my therapist (she is the only one that truly KNOWS me *giggles*)  I enjoy our conversations very much even if they are only for one hour..

tink

I feel the same way about my therapist.  I love seeing her.  She's amazing at what she does.  Transgendered patients have been her speciality for 15 years, and she's just an utter delight to talk to.

If only I didn't have to pay for it out of my pocket.

Quote from: maybe_amanda on October 16, 2007, 11:41:59 AM
Did therapy help deal with your feelings and cope with life or was it something you just did to
get your GRS?

I've never actually had any therapy. What does it mean? I went to a U.K NHS London Gender Clinic for just over 6 years and spoke to a few psychiatrists but I wouldn't call it therapy. It was mostly arguements and it wasn't a nice experience. They didn't have any treatment program and were reluctant to talk about patients needs and were quite agressive. The experience was very negative and whatever you talked about or needed they woudn't ever listen.

I've had to work through everything on my own and organise by own treatment program and get on the internet to find the right people to do the right surgery. There may be more support in the U.S but here you have to rely on your self more...

Quote
I've never actually had any therapy. What does it mean? I went to a U.K NHS London Gender Clinic for just over 6 years and spoke to a few psychiatrists but I wouldn't call it therapy. It was mostly arguements and it wasn't a nice experience. They didn't have any treatment program and were reluctant to talk about patients needs and were quite agressive. The experience was very negative and whatever you talked about or needed they woudn't ever listen.

I've had to work through everything on my own and organise by own treatment program and get on the internet to find the right people to do the right surgery. There may be more support in the U.S but here you have to rely on your self more...

That's strange.  From what I've always understood, the U.S is atrocious about caring for people with gender issues compared to the UK and Europe in general.  That's pretty common knowledge, isn't it?  Perhaps back then it was just horrid no matter where you went in the world.  True specialists in the field as far as therapists are concerned didn't start really popping up until about 15 years ago - at least not in any significant numbers.

How much did therapy help?

Very much.  Couldnt have managed without my counselor.  The pain was too great and wasnt trained to accept the things I couldnt change.

I worked with a therapist for about three years, she specialized in transgender issues. It helped me a lot to sort through everything. I haven't been in therapy for years now, but still sorting 

Z

Quote from: Blair on October 18, 2007, 04:23:10 AM

Quote
I've never actually had any therapy. What does it mean? I went to a U.K NHS London Gender Clinic for just over 6 years and spoke to a few psychiatrists but I wouldn't call it therapy. It was mostly arguements and it wasn't a nice experience. They didn't have any treatment program and were reluctant to talk about patients needs and were quite agressive. The experience was very negative and whatever you talked about or needed they woudn't ever listen.

I've had to work through everything on my own and organise by own treatment program and get on the internet to find the right people to do the right surgery. There may be more support in the U.S but here you have to rely on your self more...

That's strange.  From what I've always understood, the U.S is atrocious about caring for people with gender issues compared to the UK and Europe in general.  That's pretty common knowledge, isn't it?  Perhaps back then it was just horrid no matter where you went in the world.  True specialists in the field as far as therapists are concerned didn't start really popping up until about 15 years ago - at least not in any significant numbers.

Whatever you've heard about the U.K....you've heard wrong.....check the suicide rate if you get tme....the U.K has an appalling record for gender dysphoria: http://www.petitiononline.com/nhsgidsp/petition.html
I'm one of many who have been screwed around by the system....

I cannot speak for the rest of Europe.....but from what I've heard Germany and Holland are very good..