Hi everyone  I have my first appointment for the gatekeeping process next week at St Cadoc's hospital in Newport South Wales. The purpose of this topic is just to ask a few questions:

- What sort of questions do they ask, do I have to prove that I am a transgender person?
- Does appearance effect the outcome / impression at all? I would hope not as I am planning to go as I normally look which is quite androgynous.
- What would increase my chances of success, mentioning my Childhood issues with gender dysphoira etc?
- How long does it usually last?
- What reasons would there be to decline the gatekeeping?
- If it is declined to receive NHS funds for the treatment, from my understanding they still refer you to a gender clinic for tests etc right?

I am quite nervous  but I am 100% certain in myself, so if anyone could answer the questions I listed I would appreciate it 

I live in the United States but the best way to overcome gate keeping is with the truth. A lie is hard to maintain and if detected will set your transition back. Once a doctor gets to know me, they know they can expect the truth from me when I say something and it saves much time and trouble making the doctor believe me.

I would say you should appear however you feel comfortable. You will be plenty uncomfortable as it is and there is no point to adding additional discomfort to the mix.

Some of the questions you might be asked are cover in "the transition channel" . These were the subjects that were covered in my therapy group 33 years ago and they are just as true today as they were then.

Above all, relax as much as possible. The doctors are there to guide you through the process and not to stop you. There are people who the transition might not be right for but they are small in number and I don't think you will have trouble as long as you are honest.

Thanks for the advice, I wasn't planning on lying, and this made me feel more relaxed about it, thanks

Cadoc is before the gic right? Mine went like this....

'No I don't really need to ask you any questions to refer you for gender care, if you tell me you have gender issues, you have gender issues. This step is pointless,  I wish they would stop referring to local psych, they don't need to.'

I doubt it will be very involved. They will see you once and sign you off with high probability. This step has been removed from recommended practice for a reason; it's pointless. 

Do yourself a favour and ask for Northampton or Nottingham instead of charring cross as the wait times are lower. A lot lower. Northampton is the lowest in the country I think.

Grab a copy of the interim guidance on gender care and familiarise yourself with it.

For the first gic visit,  how it will be and what they will expect you to prove is dependent on the person you see and the general approach of the gic.

I don't wouldn't expect them to be interested in getting to know you.  They will be interested in ticking boxes.  You will probably only see them for a total of 3 hours or less over a year, so they wouldn't have time to get to know you.

They will want to see,  if you have it, name change proof,  change of document proof, pay slips with name change proof, yes, they will judge you on your presentation but that doesnt mean andro ppl won't be treated (though they often report having a slower process with more visits).

They will ask you to talk through your history,  ask you about general physical and mental health. They will ask you what you want from them in terms of surgery and hormones. They will be looking for consistency with that over the coming visits and in how you felt previously.

I was referred to psych before GIC and the psychologist referred me to the GIC immediately, but still asked me to come to a follow up meeting during which i got a sort of scare tactics talk where they seemed to try to 'test' how sure i was. If i'd known that i'd already been referred i wouldn't have shown up to that meeting. I feel like they weren't clear that I had already decided on my gender identity and wanted to transition. it seemed like i was meant to be there to talk over if not when. Maybe make it clear what you think the meeting is about at the start so they can let you know if they've got different ideas.

Yello! I live in North Wales and unfortunately my GP referred me to a local psychiatrist who was fairly inept in the field of trans care and the very concept of ->-bleeped-<-, as the GP said I had to be diagnosed by a shrink before I could be referred to a GIC, which I've been told now is completely false, so I have an appointment with my GP this Friday to see if I can sort this out :/

Also, NHS Wales only refers patients to Charring Cross for some obscure reason, so unfurtunately it's there or sneaking your way onto NHS England :/

Hope this helps ^_^