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Dorit's GRS

Started by Dorit, December 10, 2018, 08:06:58 AM

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Dorit

I will be having what my surgeon, Dr. Sherman Leis, calls a "modified vaginoplasty" in Philadelphia on Friday, December 14.    Other surgeons call this procedure a "partial vaginoplasty" or a "zero depth" vaginoplasty.   To be correct in the use of terminology, it is not a "cosmetic vaginoplasty!"

I am happy to share my experience with others in the hope of being a help in the same way that so many that have done this before me have helped me.   So please feel free to ask questions.

I have awesome  support, my SO will accompany me, and two daughters and a brother will be visiting me while in Philadelphia, and even another forum member.

Outside of three days hospitalization, I will be staying in the recovery apartment of the clinic of Dr. Leis for almost three weeks.  This is to be sure I am healed enough to take the long and exhausting trip back home to Israel.

I so much appreciate this forum and other like it.   Being able to read about the real experiences of others on this journey of transition over time and distance has ben a real gift to me.   Thank you! :)
  •  

Devlyn

#1
Congratulations! I seriously considered the cosmetic vagina option. Or as some surgeons call it, a vulvoplasty. In the end, I chose an orchiectomy, also known as the Nutzoff procedure.






Edit: corrected typo.
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Linde

Quote from: Devlyn on December 10, 2018, 08:32:49 AM
Congratulations! I seriously considered the cosmetic vagina option. Or as some surgeons call it, a vulvoplasty. In the end, I chose an orchiectomy, also known as the Nutzoff procedure.






Edit: corrected typo.
I am very much debating this, too.  I will see an Urologist in the very near future, and see hat comes from that as an outcome.
02/22/2019 bi-lateral orchiectomy






  •  

Dorit

Here is a recent relevant study of transgender women and satisfaction of those that chose a vulvoplasty over a full vaginoplasty.

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/29706578

  •  

Linde

Quote from: Dorit on December 10, 2018, 12:02:11 PM
Here is a recent relevant study of transgender women and satisfaction of those that chose a vulvoplasty over a full vaginoplasty.

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/29706578
Thanks Dorit!

This sounds pretty reassuring!
02/22/2019 bi-lateral orchiectomy






  •  

Dorit

I am on my fourth day post op. I believe that the worst of the recovery is past. My surgeon says that I am healing well and that my previous excessive drainage has stopped. I am surrounded by loving family. Last night my wife, brother, daughter and boyfriend came into my room with a bottle of champagne! I am so grateful for the love and acceptance I am receiving!
  •  

Devlyn

  •  

Kendra

Dorit, congratulations!!  Great news all around, sounds like you have an awesome family.  And best wishes for your continued recovery.
Assigned male at birth 1963.  Decided I wanted to be a girl in 1971.  Laser 2014-16, electrolysis 2015-17, HRT 7/2017, GCS 1/2018, VFS 3/2018, FFS 5/2018, Labiaplasty & BA 7/2018. 
  •  

Linde

Quote from: Dorit on December 17, 2018, 06:53:34 AM
I am on my fourth day post op. I believe that the worst of the recovery is past. My surgeon says that I am healing well and that my previous excessive drainage has stopped. I am surrounded by loving family. Last night my wife, brother, daughter and boyfriend came into my room with a bottle of champagne! I am so grateful for the love and acceptance I am receiving!
Congratulations!  And it is wonderful to have such a great family!
02/22/2019 bi-lateral orchiectomy






  •  

Denise

Quote from: Dorit on December 17, 2018, 06:53:34 AM
... Last night my wife, brother, daughter and boyfriend came into my room with a bottle of champagne! I am so grateful for the love and acceptance I am receiving!

That's some support network you have!!  Congratulations. 
1st Person out: 16-Oct-2015
Restarted Spironolactone 26-Aug-2016
Restarted Estradiol Valerate: 02-Nov-2016
Full time: 02-Mar-2017
Breast Augmentation (Schechter): 31-Oct-2017
FFS (Walton in Chicago): 25-Sep-2018
Vaginoplasty (Schechter): 13-Dec-2018









A haiku in honor of my grandmother who loved them.
The Voices are Gone
Living Life to the Fullest
I am just Denise
  •  

LizK

Quote from: Dorit on December 17, 2018, 06:53:34 AM
I am on my fourth day post op. I believe that the worst of the recovery is past. My surgeon says that I am healing well and that my previous excessive drainage has stopped. I am surrounded by loving family. Last night my wife, brother, daughter and boyfriend came into my room with a bottle of champagne! I am so grateful for the love and acceptance I am receiving!


Brilliant news...congrats I hope your recovery is uneventful. Wish you all the joy of it[emoji3]

Liz


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk
Transition Begun 25 September 2015
HRT since 17 May 2016,
Fulltime from 8 March 2017,
GCS 4 December 2018
Voice Surgery 01 February 2019
  •  

Dorit

I am now one week post op.   My major discomfort issues are probably unique to me; itchy skin rash from laying in bed for a week accompanied by heat flashes and perspiration, probably due to hormonal changes, plus a flowering of canker sores from the abrasion of the oxygen tube during surgery.    The first makes it hard to sleep, the second hard to eat!

I had my catheter removed, I was a bit afraid after reading accounts of painful urination that went on for weeks.   No pain whatsoever.    Better yet, I had a deep emotional experience of joy and validation as I can now pee as a woman!!

I would like to clarify about my modified vaginoplasty, as my surgeon Dr. Leis refers to it.   It was not zero depth.   We had discussed in pre-op the options and my needs, and he said he could give me a shallow vagina of an inch or so.   This is what I chose.   No dilation is required, and obviously penetrative sex is not really possible, but for me personally it added a dimension of reality to my GRS.   

I am very happy with my choice of surgeon.   Because I am in the recovery apartment of his clinic, I am examined by him daily, sometimes even twice.   I believe this kind of daily attention from the surgeon is rare in the US.   It certainly adds to my sense of well-being.
  •  

Linde

Dorit
This sounds really  great! 
The cancer source are probably herpes simplex, a very opportunistic virus which all of us got as a present from our birth mother during our birth.
I hope your healing will be nice and easy, without any complications!  And you go home with this wonderful, brand new vulva!
You got exactly the surgery I hope to get one of these days!
02/22/2019 bi-lateral orchiectomy






  •  

Dena

If the canker sores are caused by a virus, there are topical medication that will knock them out in 2-3 days. They are by prescription so if you need them, ask your doctor for them and you sores will be quickly cleared up. As for laying in bed, I spent 6 days on my back and sides so I ran out of places I could lay comfortably. Being allowed on my feet was the first time that I could allow the rest of my body to recover from being in bed so long. Yes your experiencing menopause with hot flashes. It will pass quickly enough when the doctor allows you to resume your hormones. It's uncomfortable enough but at least your air-conditioning is working or the room temperatures are cool.
Rebirth Date 1982 - PMs are welcome - Use [email]dena@susans.org[/email] or Discord if your unable to PM - Skype is available - My Transition
If you are helped by this site, consider leaving a tip in the jar at the bottom of the page or become a subscriber
  •  

LizK

Hi Dorit

Sounds like you are well on you way to recovery. I glad the removal of the catheter went well. It took me a few days for sensation to properly return but you sound like you have had a great result. Peeing is so very different

You sound pretty happy with everything so far and that is great...thanks for the update

Liz
Transition Begun 25 September 2015
HRT since 17 May 2016,
Fulltime from 8 March 2017,
GCS 4 December 2018
Voice Surgery 01 February 2019
  •  

Denise

Dorit,

Sounds like all is going well.  Congratulations.

I hope by now, Christmas day, the side effects (sores) have cleared up. And that you're up and about as before. Although moving slowly and not as long.

Your sister
Denise

Sent from my LG-H910 using Tapatalk

1st Person out: 16-Oct-2015
Restarted Spironolactone 26-Aug-2016
Restarted Estradiol Valerate: 02-Nov-2016
Full time: 02-Mar-2017
Breast Augmentation (Schechter): 31-Oct-2017
FFS (Walton in Chicago): 25-Sep-2018
Vaginoplasty (Schechter): 13-Dec-2018









A haiku in honor of my grandmother who loved them.
The Voices are Gone
Living Life to the Fullest
I am just Denise
  •  

Dorit

I am now 11 days post op.   Thank you all for your kind words of encouragement.   My mouth sores have run their coarse, usually a week to ten days.  It is a weakness particular to me, I get them from any small injury or abrasion to my mouth.   My rash has mostly cleared up, I have a cortisone cream that helps the itching.

So I am feeling stronger day by day, but still quite a bit of swelling and a small amount of regular bleeding.   This is really an intense experience of on one hand dealing with the physical discomfort and pain, and on the other hand experiencing a deep emotional joy and gratefulness.   

For me personally it is worth it!   I am very happy!
  •  

JudiBlueEyes

I'm so happy to hear you're feeling better.  Stronger every day!
But now old friends they're acting strange
They shake their heads, they say I've changed
Well something's lost, but something's gained
In living every day.
  •  

Dorit

Minor complications.   My surgeon has been keeping an eye on some skin around the top of my vagina that was getting dark.   Sure enough, it was dead skin and yesterday he decide to cut it away. Smelled bad!  He said this is not an uncommon occurrence, and that new skin will grow back.   I share this in wanting to paint a realistic picture of my healing.   Some things go wrong.

I also want to share the deep personal and emotional healing this has been for me.   In spite of the pain and discomfort of my body, I am experiencing a release of joy and delight in myself that I never thought possible.   I giggle a lot!
  •  

Linde

Quote from: Dorit on December 26, 2018, 09:34:15 AM.

I also want to share the deep personal and emotional healing this has been for me.   In spite of the pain and discomfort of my body, I am experiencing a release of joy and delight in myself that I never thought possible.   I giggle a lot!
I think that this is what it is all about!  Having arrived finally!
I do not have any dysphoria about my genitals, they are just there for one function only, letting water!  And to imaging that this would work as well being a real woman with real female genitalia is a very exciting thought.
After these were "stolen" from me shortly after birth, it is for me like finally getting me original body back.

I envy you so much for being there already, while, at the same time, I feel very happy for you!
02/22/2019 bi-lateral orchiectomy






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