I now have an appointment with a therapist. It is for August 29th at 11 am. She said it would be an hour and a half session. We chatted by email some and she said the way it sounds I may only need one appointment before HRT. I am very excited and cant wait! It sounds a long way off but I know the time will go by very quickly. Is this treatment schedule typical? I know everyone is different and was wondering what type of therapy others have been required to attend. I look forward to my appointment and meeting the doctor. She said if she has a cancellation it may be sooner.

Due to my sessions were 1 hour sessions I believe it was on my third session that I got the letter for HRT. Often the first visit is a lot of intake and get to know you stuff so they can get an idea of your situation and what brings you in. I would imagine you will accomplish more considering your first one is an hour and half long. it varies for everyone as to the number of sessions need before they receive their HRT letters. Hugs
Mariah

I wish mine were 1.5 hours....   I get 45 minutes

As Mariah said, the first visit is more of a get-to-know-you kind of session.  Some of the time is also spent on business matters (such as payment, privacy laws, scheduling, expectations, etc).  So I wouldn't expect too much to happen at the first session.

1.5 hours is a long time though.  Mine are 1 hour.  Maybe you'll want to bring a water bottle if you think you might be talking for most of the time   (which is usually the case in my own therapy sessions).

I had three 45 min sessions with the last one just going through all the HRT informed consent information.  So your schedule is not atypical. 


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I didn't have therapy before HRT. I did meet with the prescribing doctor for what was essentially a behavioral interview and information session, and she prescribed at the following visit after my lab results were back. I imagine if I had come in with a referral from a therapist, she may have cut the interview section out.

I don't believe that there is any such thing as typical... there are so many different "criteria" for each doctor to sign off on anything... could be 10 min, but could be 3 years. It's all subjective and then the doctor has to agree with the therapists etc... it's all in what they feel comfortable with.

The first time does tend to be a "Getting to know you" session, sort of one sided. But you said you emailed some beforehand. So some to a lot of the background stuff may be covered. Plus you are likely filling out a ton of papers answering all sorts of questions.

As far as HRT goes..... I am speaking somewhat out of my arse not having a lot of hard facts, just some observational/anecdotal data. There seems to be 2 sorts of TG therapists, the "Rubber Stampers" (my term) and the ones that want to be reasonably sure you know enough not to making a big mistake. After having been to the Maryland State Senate hearings on the TG Rights bill that eventually passed, there are those that likely should never have been given the go-ahead that the opposition trotted out. The Rubber-Stampers just want to make sure you are basically OK and will give you the CYA letter.

Full-Disclosure, I don't believe in GateKeepers, and the reality side of me knows all too well the Need for a CYA letter. It's a game to keep the lawyers away. What isn't a game is not being totally honest with a therapist and saying or doing what is necessary to get what you want.

So..... Your therapist just may have heard enough of the right stuff to feel comfortable providing the letter. The office visit a mere formality and tie up some loose ends.

Quote from: JoanneB on July 20, 2016, 08:03:47 PM
The first time does tend to be a "Getting to know you" session, sort of one sided. But you said you emailed some beforehand. So some to a lot of the background stuff may be covered. Plus you are likely filling out a ton of papers answering all sorts of questions.

As far as HRT goes..... I am speaking somewhat out of my arse not having a lot of hard facts, just some observational/anecdotal data. There seems to be 2 sorts of TG therapists, the "Rubber Stampers" (my term) and the ones that want to be reasonably sure you know enough not to making a big mistake. After having been to the Maryland State Senate hearings on the TG Rights bill that eventually passed, there are those that likely should never have been given the go-ahead that the opposition trotted out. The Rubber-Stampers just want to make sure you are basically OK and will give you the CYA letter.

Full-Disclosure, I don't believe in GateKeepers, and the reality side of me knows all too well the Need for a CYA letter. It's a game to keep the lawyers away. What isn't a game is not being totally honest with a therapist and saying or doing what is necessary to get what you want.

So..... Your therapist just may have heard enough of the right stuff to feel comfortable providing the letter. The office visit a mere formality and tie up some loose ends.

It depends where you are in the world as well, because different countries and states have different rules. In CA, they only required informed consent for me to get the go ahead on HRT. That did involve 3 appointments and some bloodwork and written questionnaires, but it required 0 therapy appointments. I don't recommend people circumvent therapy like I did, I just didn't want to make therapy about getting letters. I think I missed out because I was afraid of dealing with a gatekeeper who would evaluate whether I was trans enough, more than the excuse I gave myself and others to avoid it.


     Hugs,
- Katie
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The therapist had a cancellation and my appointment is now Monday at 4pm. Big difference between over a month away and two days away! I am excited about going and sharing everything about myself with her. I plan to start at the very beginning when I was 9 years old and take her on a trip through my life. I feel relaxed and hopeful. I am sure that I will not say anything that she has not heard before. I am comfortable with this because I am confident in my decision to start the process of transitioning. In some ways I have already. I think it will be fun, and in some ways a relief to tell my story. To me this is my time. My kids are grown, my wife completely accepts and is supportive. I will be retiring in a couple years so that works too. Thanks for the advice and support that some of you have offered. It helps to make my confidence grow. I will let you know how it goes on Monday.

Quote from: Brenda3156 on July 23, 2016, 11:51:55 AM
The therapist had a cancellation and my appointment is now Monday at 4pm. Big difference between over a month away and two days away! I am excited about going and sharing everything about myself with her. I plan to start at the very beginning when I was 9 years old and take her on a trip through my life. I feel relaxed and hopeful. I am sure that I will not say anything that she has not heard before. I am comfortable with this because I am confident in my decision to start the process of transitioning. In some ways I have already. I think it will be fun, and in some ways a relief to tell my story. To me this is my time. My kids are grown, my wife completely accepts and is supportive. I will be retiring in a couple years so that works too. Thanks for the advice and support that some of you have offered. It helps to make my confidence grow. I will let you know how it goes on Monday.

Good luck.

Great attitude - yes it's your time, it's your life, they're there to listen to the subject you know best about - you. So just enjoy it.

I had my therapy appointment today. I just opened up to her and told her the way things have been through my life and then spent some time on my current situation. She said that I have had gender dysphoria since I was 9 years old and it has continued through my life. I explained to her that even though I have been successful in life that I still wasn't really happy. She recommended low dose HRT. She is preparing a referral letter to a doctor she recommends and I will make an appointment with him to start HRT. I was there about 45 minutes. The letter will be ready for me to pick up on Saturday, then I will take the next step and see the doctor. It was a lot better experience than I anticipated.

I'm glad it went well for you. You're taking a good first step on this long journey.

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