So Ive been moving pretty swiftly in my transition in the sense that the changes havent taken long. I practically swapped gender over night. However medically its been completely different.

I came "out" just after my 16th Birthday. I spoke to my GP not long after. I was sent from pillar to post, through CAMHS, private medical centres, various therapists and more. It took over a year to actually get CAMHS to listen, then they gave me a lovely doctor who understood and started contacting the right people BUT she was quite a new doctor and therefore didnt have the authority to actually instigate anything properly.

It then took another half a year for a CAMHS child physcologist to "check" I was actually trans. And then for him to write it up, and then for him to "check" again. I finally got accepted and referred to West London GIC. I was told to get my bloods done and everything.

West London have been insanely slow at replying. They havent told me anything, Ive only found out things by visiting my GP whose then gone and found random emails from WLGIC.

And now this morning theyve told me I'll have to wait at LEAST 13 MONTHS to get an appt. which wont be to go on Testosterone or start the surgical process, itll be to "check" if Im still trans (if im not bloody dead) and then will be a string of therapist sessions. I'm not being funny but I was told to wait until I was 18 to get stuff done and I'll probably be in my 20's by the time I get on T.

Not to mention that I live 4hrs away from London! AND I intend to be at university in EUROPE (excluding UK) next year!

Plus the letter the sent it in was absolutely atrocious. "You've been accepted BUT the waiting list is 13 Months" [something they could have mentioned before the referral!!!!!]

"We understand its a long time to wait, but if you need any support visit our website, we have coping methods"

"If you cant use the website or are having huge difficulty speak to your GP to refer you to a therapist to talk it over"

(it was written slightly more professional than that!)

From 16 to 20 is far too long and it doesnt guarantee ANYTHING. I honestly cant wait another 2+ years. Ive already done 2yrs of waiting and being pushed around. WT actual F!!
and I can grant you my mum's not gonna be happy either once she finds out.

I understand everyone has to wait but surely I'm not being completely unreasonable. Hoping that they'll turn around and tell me this is a joke and that April Fools is a few months late this year!


GRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR
Gentle (but VERY EXTREMELY ANGRY)

I'm guessing the CAMHS is a free public system? Presumably the alternate is more expensive... but is there any way you can utilise a different path to treatment?

So so sorry to hear that. Could you go private perhaps? Or asked to be referred to another gic? I've heard with others it's only around a 4 month wait as West London gic is especially backed up. I hope it gets better for you.

CAMHS & your GP really let you down - if only they'd known to refer you to the Tavistock when you first enquired at 16, things might have been different. But yes, the waiting times for GICs in the UK are ludicrous, and the waiting times have gone up everywhere over the past few years as increased trans visibility means that loads more people have come forward to seek help. But there are things you can do.

There are actually 7 GICs in England, and London has one of the longest waiting lists as it's the most famous one. You can see any one of them if you live in England (sadly, not if you live in Wales - they can only refer to Charing Cross). The Laurels (Exeter) has a current waiting time of about 7 months, and Daventry (Northamptonshire) have just written to their patients this week to say that their waiting time for a first appointment is about 4 months, which makes it the shortest waiting list in the country.

Here's a list of all of the clinics, with their approximate waiting times based on figures published last September (so they've probably gone up since then): Charing Cross, London (13 months); The Laurels, Exeter (7 months); Leeds (15 months); Newcastle (no figures provided); Daventry (4 months); Nottingham (6 months); Sheffield (10 months).

You're entitled to visit any English GIC if you live in England, so if you do and you want to be seen more quickly, get your GP to re-refer you to either Daventry or The Laurels and cancel your referral to Charing Cross. Just take your Charing Cross acceptance letter to your GP and ask them to re-refer you elsewhere.

Another alternative (if you can afford it) is to go to one of the private GICs in London, and you can do that from anywhere in the UK. Gendercare and Transhealth are both reputable clinics and they publish their fees on their websites, but they're between £200-300 for a first appointment, and less for follow-ups. However, their waiting times are also longer than they used to be (because yes, everyone's getting desperate with the NHS waiting times) but you'd still be seen within about 4 months. And they tend to move quite swiftly on the hormone front.

Thanks for all the replies. To be completely fair my GPs have been really good. They got the referrals to CAMHS really fast and once I was accepted to West London I was sent for my bloods straight away because they knew I'd need them.
Most of it lies with CAMHS (Ms Grace, this is the Childrens and Adolescents Mental Health Service, it comes under the NHS) as they initially turned me down, they sent me all over and then finally they let me in, and then they kept reviewing the same stuff over and over. It was the doctor at CAMHS who also decided I should wait until I was 18 because "it would be easier".

I have calmed down a lot and I emailed Leeds this morning. They were fast at replying (Thank goodness!!!) They didnt beat around the bush and told me that the current waiting list is now 3.5years as they've had a massive influx of new patients!!!  Words cannot describe!!! I now consider myself quite fortunate to only have to wait just over a year!
Leeds said that if the list went down they wouldnt mind transferring me but they have told me to stay with West London for the meantime. (only thing is I do live in Wales- so that might be a bit of an issue)

The ironic thing is that at the beginning I didnt want to rush into anything and wanted to go slow. Now its all going a little too slow :/

Ive had a look at private clinics (most seem to be in London which is a trek but oh well), despite being a loud, boisterous and sociable person I'm not always comfortable so getting a job isn't the easiest.

There's a reason why Leeds' waiting times are so long: the clinic receives 'block funding' which means they're allocated a pot of money each year and they have to fund their services from that set amount, irrespective of how many patients they have on their books... or how many new referrals they get. This means they don't have extra funds to hire new staff when they need extra resources, so the queue just gets longer & longer. I've heard good things about them from people who've managed to get in, but the truth is they're spread far too thinly. A lot of good people in the NHS are working hard to change the way clinics like these are funded, but it's going to take time.

Sadly, as you do live in Wales you'll need to stick with London as your best option on the NHS - at least, for now. But there are also plans afoot to either allow Welsh patients to use any English GIC they want, or (more importantly) to open a Welsh GIC. It's simply not acceptable for Wales to be the only British country with no provision for Gender Identity services, and the authorities are well aware of this & are working to fix it.

If find yourself able to get a job or to save up in the interim, there are quite a few guys who've had success with going to the private clinics in London for just one or two appointments, which was enough to get them a formal diagnosis & a private prescription for T. They then take their diagnosis & prescription to their NHS GP who can convert it to an NHS prescription, and the GP can (if they agree) take over their care until they get to see an NHS GIC.

Have you asked your GP whether they'd be willing to prescribe you T, based on clinical protocols & the diagnosis you got from CAMHS, to tide you over until you get to the GIC? It's called 'bridging endocrine treatment' but I don't know whether it's available from NHS Wales. There's no guarantee, but it might be worth asking.