(Sorry if this topic has been posted somewhere before)

Just want to ask the post-op or post-T FTM for an idea of how long they waited for T and surgery from the date of their first GIC appointment.

I waited 10 months from GP referral to get my first GIC consultation; I've had 2 sessions with the therapist or whatever she actually is (I'm not entirely sure except that she has to ascertain if I'm "really" trans through questioning sessions) so now it's one year since GP referral and 3 months since GIC session number one and my therapist says she will "put me on the list" for consultation with the specialist doctors or whatever comes next, but warns me it will be "a long time" before anything happens.

So I am wondering just how long a time that was for any of you, before you got T or surgery if you went for those options? She wouldn't specify or suggest how long it would be before I can get T for example.

You could have a look at this thread:
https://www.susans.org/forums/index.php/topic,197023.msg1753642.html#msg1753642

There are additionally different centers with different waiting times, so you could look up the waiting times and maybe go to another one...


*hugs*

Not that it matters,but out of curiosity how old are you?
I'm pre everything and have first appointment soon. One of the things I dread is the waiting time.
I'm hoping because am 36 and been living this way for so long that that'll count for something, hence why am wondering your age..

Thanks for the info, Laura

Quote from: j.d79 on January 03, 2016, 10:06:01 AM
Not that it matters,but out of curiosity how old are you?
I'm pre everything and have first appointment soon. One of the things I dread is the waiting time.
I'm hoping because am 36 and been living this way for so long that that'll count for something, hence why am wondering your age..

I heard age does not factor in to how quickly they process us. I'm 36. Although frequently treated like a teen by strangers because I look more like one more than not, my therapist was surprised by my appearance and the fact my SO who was with me also looks very young too even though he's only a couple of years younger than me. She was wondering if we would cope together... lol, we've been together a very long time and coping well enough. I don't think the age is going to make much of a difference to the wait though... she seemed to be telling me to steel myself for a long while.

Although in that thread linked by Laura_7 a few people said there was a wait of around 5 months from 1st GIC contact to hormones. I hope that's still the case. I expect to wait much longer to get on a surgeon's waiting list but it would be nice to feel some 'progress' sooner.

The reason I ask is that I heard GIC referrals in UK were up something like 400% last year, and whether that might push back the waiting time for hormones for new referrals.

my experience is different because i'm in canada. i started therapy when i was about 18, general intake was all it was. it was about a year (two sessions, 6 months apart) before they decided i was good to go for hormones. however, they wouldn't approve me until i came out to people. this was back when "real life experience" for 2 years was a requirement. i kinda just "waited out" that requirement because they ended up changing it. so from there, i came out to people and then had a follow up appointment to tell them what i knew about hormones, etc. before they approved me. they approved me right on the spot when i was done that appointment. it took me awhile to find a doctor who wanted to give me my shots, so i waited an extra like 4 months before i got my actual first shot. i didn't even wait a year between my hormones and surgery. they told me i could just tell them whenever i wanted surgery, i decided to wait at least 6 months to see what hormones did for me. i had surgery two months before my one year mark on hormones. others, they wait longer. because i went through them for hormones and surgery, it was much faster for me because i wasn't on a "waiting list." my surgery was covered by the government which was also nice.

all in all, i had my top surgery a month before i was 24 and i started hormones a month after my 23rd birthday (so i got hormones + surgery when i was 23)

Where I lived at the time, there were wait times, and maybe that is a matter of the state. There were no psychologists working with transgenders, and the only one who would take my case was a pediatric psychologist. Even though he sent me out of state for the official psych eval. , he didn't use the recommended wait time. I was only in therapy for maybe a month before he gave the ok on T, and less than six months from then til my mastectomy. From the time I walked into the office of the psychologist to the time I had T, mastectomy, OVH and phalloplasty was less than two years.

The only person in the lot who had any experience with transgenders was the surgeon who did my mastectomy, Really nice guy. I guess you could say I was everyone's guinea pig. To their credit, they all did a good job surgically. In some ways, I think I would have been better off going a bit slower, but when you are starting to transition, you want it done yesterday. My only regret was not staying in therapy. I stopped that as soon as I started T. I seriously doubt an experienced psychologist would have allowed that, but the way I look at it, the experience they gained from me opened the door for others.

sam1234

I know you're probably only looking for UK input, but figured I'd share for anyone who stumbles across this looking for a US perspective. Caveat, I live in a very progressive city with a lot of healthcare options around, I have insurance coverage with no trans exclusions, and I had piles of money saved specifically to use for transitioning.

- Summer 2014, came out and socially transitioned
- October 2014, started seeing a therapist and didn't get along, fired her
- 27 November 2014, 1st clinic appointment to start HRT w/ bloodwork
- 5 December 2014, started HRT
- End of December 2014, started seeing new therapist for top surgery referrals
- February 2015, top surgery consult
- March 2015, name and gender marker legally changed and updated on all documents
- 21 April 2015, top surgery
- December 2015, got referrals for bottom surgery
- 24 February 2016, bottom surgery consult
- Summer 2016, bottom surgery? Hopefully?

A lot depends on which GIC you're with. Some drag their heels ridiculously, but others (such as Daventry and The Laurels) tend to move things along much more quickly.

I had my first GIC appointment (at The Laurels) about 8 months after my GP referral, and only after a lot of chasing. I then had three sessions with the therapist, who then referred me to the GIC's doctor for hormones & surgery.

I saw the doctor about 3 months later, and he agreed to put me on hormones immediately - but what that actually means is that he agreed to write to my GP asking him to prescribe hormones (the GIC doesn't prescribe anything directly). So all-in-all it took about another 2 months for the letter to arrive at my GP, my GP to write the prescription, and a nurse to administer my first shot of Nebido.

The GIC doctor arranged to see me again 3 months after my first appointment with him, to discuss top surgery. At that appointment, he agreed to write to Mr Yelland referring me for top surgery, which I had a couple of months later (Yelland's waiting list has since increased, as have the lists of all the surgeons - he currently has a waiting list of about 7 months from receiving the GIC's referral).

As for bottom surgery? I've seen Mr Christopher for a first referral in December 2014 but I've been delaying things because frankly I'm terrified of having an 11-hour operation and having my left arm mutilated, no matter how important the cause. I'm seeing him again later this month to plan the first stage of phalloplasty, which will probably happen in the Spring or early Summer.

Quote from: T.K.G.W. on January 03, 2016, 11:11:15 AM
I heard age does not factor in to how quickly they process us.

Nonsense. It doesn't affect your position in the queue, but it can have an enormous impact on the number of appointments you need before they agree to refer you for hormones & surgery. Younger transitioners often find that they have to have more appointments (with huge waits between them, naturally) before anyone will agree to anything irreversible; whereas we oldies can often sail through with just the bare minimum number of sessions.

I forgot about the youngest transitioners and the problems they can have with the system assessing them.

I'm at The Laurels as well. My therapist sessions are about 1 month apart and I was told I'd be put forward for the Dr. after the last one (my 2nd). But they did warn me to be in for a long wait. I guess referrals are up a lot from the last couple of years. I just found it a bit strange how she wouldn't even give me a guess or a ballpark estimate of the wait time for anything. Just refused to give me any indication at all.

Great! Well, if you're with The Laurels and the therapist is seeing you about a month apart, then I doubt you'll have to wait a ridiculously long time for the doctor. There are no guarantees, but you usually get to see them within 3-6 months of your 3rd therapist session. In all honesty, the biggest wait at The Laurels is for your first therapist appointment, but once that's happened everything else tends to move much more quickly. She can't guarantee how long you'll have to wait for the doctor because they've got a huge caseload at the moment, but if it helps you to know this my two most recent doctor appointments were 6 months apart and they were only that far apart because he didn't need to see me for anything specific in the interim.

The therapist's opinion is actually the most crucial one to get if you want to move forward, as it is your therapist that determines whether you meet the diagnostic criteria for Gender Dysphoria and the doctor will then go by her recommendation. It seems she already believes you do meet the criteria (as she's told you she'll refer you) so I find that extremely encouraging. The doctor will go by your therapist's recommendation and will mostly just check that there aren't any medical reasons why you shouldn't go on hormones or have surgery. You've probably been asked to provide some blood test results for that doctor's appointment, and if everything looks fine you're likely to be approved straight away. They'll ask you to sign a consent form; you can either do that there & then or you can take it away and come back for another appointment. Top tip: if you want to sign it straight away, do some research beforehand into the two main types of T that The Laurels prescribes (Tostran & Nebido); decide which one you'd like to try; and tell the doctor that you've already looked into the side-effects and are ready to give your consent straight away.

The Laurels is super-supportive when it comes to surgery and hormones; their Clinical Director (who sets the tone for the whole clinic) understands how important it is that we get the treatment we need as quickly as possible, so he pushes hard to make sure it's available. Right now you're at the worst stage where you're sitting around waiting for everyone else to pull their finger out; but if you just hang in there for a couple more months, everything will start to get better very soon. You're in good hands.

Feel free to PM me if you'd like more info.

Thanks for the info. They've not arranged for me to have blood tests yet, soon I guess. I assume those will be done at my local GP rather than in The Laurels. I haven't been given a lot of info directly from them yet, just sessions with the therapist to ask questions about my symptoms & circumstances.

I do wonder if Nebido / Tostran are the same cost if they are prescribed medications (even though the shots are done by the GP/nurse). That's gonna be a concern for me if one of them is more expensive. My therapist has said the doctor would talk to me about that so I haven't had a chance to ask anyone about the specifics of that so far.

Quote from: T.K.G.W. on January 06, 2016, 02:56:22 PM
They've not arranged for me to have blood tests yet, soon I guess. I assume those will be done at my local GP rather than in The Laurels.

You'll need to have a range of blood tests performed by your local GP before you see the GIC doctor, and you'll need to have the results printed out so you can take them with you. That's a top tip, by the way: always get your GP to print out any test results so that you can take them with you to the GIC, rather than relying on your GP to send them in due course - as it generally takes about a month for results to reach the clinic through their usual channels.

When you're referred to their doctor, they're likely to write to you with a list of tests that need to be performed, but if they haven't feel free to let me know and I'll happily send you the details. It's vital that you have these results available at your first appointment if you want to move forward quickly, otherwise they'll ask you to come back in another 3-6 months before they'll prescribe T. I arrange for my blood tests to take place about a month before I go to the GIC, so that there's plenty of time for the results to come back & be printed out.

Quote from: T.K.G.W. on January 06, 2016, 02:56:22 PM
I do wonder if Nebido / Tostran are the same cost if they are prescribed medications (even though the shots are done by the GP/nurse).

Nebido and Tostran are ordinary prescription medications like any other, so the usual NHS charge of £8.20 per item applies for either. If you're not on the NHS, then you're looking at some pricey medication. I've not asked how much Tostran costs, but I do know that each vial of Nebido costs approximately £80 if bought privately. Obviously Tostran is something you apply yourself so you just get it prescribed by your GP & pick it up from the pharmacist; but as you say Nebido does have to be administered by a nurse. It also has to be prescribed by your GP first; some surgeries will simply order it in behind-the-scenes and keep it there for you (and if you're lucky, you might avoid the prescription charge), but most will do it like any other prescription, i.e. you have to see your GP to ask for the prescription; they write it out; and you then take your prescription to a pharmacist to be filled. You then take your Nebido with you when you go for your nurse appointment.

If you're worried about the costs, you might want to consider an NHS Pre-Payment Certificate. You can apply for one online or at any branch of Boots, and it costs £29.10 for 3 months or £104 for 12 months. That covers the cost of everything you're prescribed during that period (including testosterone), so you won't need to pay anything when you pick up your prescriptions. As a guide, most guys use one vial of Nebido every 10-12 weeks (so that's £8.20 every 3 months or so); and most guys on Tostran go through about one canister a month (so that's £8.20 every month).

Thanks so much for the info. Good news to hear the T isn't some kind of specialist meds and I can get it for regular prescription cost as I'm on the NHS.

If you have the info on the list of tests, I'd be grateful. Can't have too much info on this stuff I figure.