Hi! I know GCS is a hot topic on here, so I wanna thank you for taking the time to read this and responding in advance!

I have a couple questions about Marci Bowers procedure!

1. How necessary is it get electrolysis down there? I live in Arizona, so I'm not sure who would even be willing to do that.

2. What insurance companies does she work with? Her website just says most, which isn't very specific. The insurance I'm most likely to get soon is Aetna, and I don't know how that would work, since I've heard she's out of network with them.

3. Advice on bottom surgery in general? Raising money, what your experience was if you went to Bowers, what you wish someone had told you? I value any and all input!

Thank you again!

Have you looked into Meltzer and Ley?


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Just in case you didn't know, Marci Bowers wait list is really long. 3 or 4 years I believe.

Yes, I called their office last year and they said it is a full 4 year waitlist.

Best thing I ever did was go to Thailand for this.

I've given it a lot of thought, and Bowers is my first choice surgeon. I love her results, and though I mean disrespect to those who have gone to Meltzer and Ley, I don't believe I would be happy with their results, nor do I like the idea of a two stage procedure.

I've talked it over with multiple friends, trans and cis, as well as my gender therapist. Speaking over my options with my gender therapist, she told me she leans on Bowers, who she's had personal interaction with, unlike Meltzer and Ley, who have never spoken with her in her many years of practice, despite living in the same state. That really pushed Metlzer out of my mind as an option.

As for the wait, I'm indifferent. I'm a busy college student, so waiting will help me save up and figure out insurance, etc. I waited 2 years for hormones because of unaccepting parents. I think the wait is more than worth it, and the last thing that should persuade me away from going with Bowers.

I to am planning on having Marci Bowers perform my GCS surgery. I got added to the wait list 2 months ago. I'm still in my first year of HRT. By the time my name comes up I know I'll be ready. Be sure  to get added to the cancellation list. My surgery date they gave me is in 2022. I feel like it will be a lot sooner than that though. I hope so anyway. Good luck in whoever you choose.

If you don't want to wait for Bowers keep in mind that Dr. Sherman Leis trained Bowers. I went through him and his results where excellent. I just figured I would mention this since four years is a very long time to wait.

Quote from: NatalieRene on January 08, 2019, 11:49:33 PM
If you don't want to wait for Bowers keep in mind that Dr. Sherman Leis trained Bowers...

Maybe in advancements of her techniques or something but not initially. Stanley Biber, who is credited with doing 5000 sex change surgeries did. She took over his practice in Colorado after he retired.

One of Biber's boasts was of the high percentage of his patients that were orgasmic after surgery. I've talked to a couple of Biber gals that were happy with their results and I myself had surgery with Biber 42 years ago in 1977. To offer my opinion, he knew what he was doing even back then, his work has withstood the test of time and I've put it to good use and if Marci Bowers took what she learned from him as a starting point and made it better, it's got to be good and why people are willing to wait four years.

Quote from: male2me on January 07, 2019, 07:18:26 PM
1. How necessary is it get electrolysis down there? I live in Arizona, so I'm not sure who would even be willing to do that.

Don't know about Dr. Bowers need for electrolysis but if you're in the Phoenix metro area, check out Senza Pelo Med Spa because they do that from what I've been told. People even come from out of state to go there. If that would have been a requirement when I had my surgery, I would have probably just ended it. I do not have hair in my vagina or weird places either. Check out the YouTube channel for Dr. Sidhbh Gallagher. Her clinic/group doesn't require genital electrolysis. There's even a video on that titled Why We No Longer Require Hair Removal and a lot of informative MTF and FTM videos on her channel. I would have posted links but am not sure I'm allowed?

Quote2. What insurance companies does she work with? Her website just says most, which isn't very specific. The insurance I'm most likely to get soon is Aetna, and I don't know how that would work, since I've heard she's out of network with them.

I think that most of the surgeons that do work with insurance still want their money up front? I may be wrong about that?

Quote3. Advice on bottom surgery in general?...

Make damn sure this is something you really need and can't live without and don't underestimate how much time you will spend dilating, the impact it will have on your daily routine and how your life needs to be planned around it especially during the most important first year. This seems to come as a shock to some people that didn't give it enough thought. When I started back to work after my surgery, I was dilating 4x per day and when they say for 20 minutes, that doesn't mean start timing until you've reached depth and doesn't include prep and cleanup time. The first six weeks, I was supposed to be doing it 5x per day.

I was lucky, I worked 5 minutes from home and had an hour lunch and could just manage to squeeze in a mid-day dilation one-handed eating a sandwich while horizontal to go along with the dilation before work, after work and then again before I went to bed to get it done four times a day. It gets old and boring pretty quickly, really cramps your style if you have an active social life and isn't something most would call a pleasurable or fun experience. It can even be uncomfortable or hurt like heck.

Usually somewhere around a year you can go down to once a day and even less frequently over time but it's still a hassle. Surgery is a big step but aftercare is a huge commitment. Plan on dilating until forever.

PIV intercourse does count as a dilation and I got away with only dilating occasionally during most of the 12-year marriage with my husband as we had a fairly active sex life but it had been 8 years after I had surgery before I even met him. I'm not currently sleeping with anyone at the moment and even after 42 years, I still dilate every 7 to 21 days with the biggest size dilator to maintain readiness for PIV sex (that I've got my fingers crossed is going to happen any day now!). Sex that hurts kind of takes the fun right out of it and not dilating often enough is what makes it hurt for me and guys that are bigger than you can accommodate are going to hurt regardless but the first year of healing is different and if you screw up then, it can be a problem the rest of your life or require complicated revisions to fix.

just got off the phone with the receptionist a Bower's office:

see number:  (650) 570-2270

Info . I got. (not sure if it varies by state as I am in California)


IN NETWORK MARCI BOWERS


SIGNA
united health care
Anthem blue cross blue shield - their PTO plans



Ask those insurance companies - make sure they cover a particular billing code/ procedure code - cat code

for vagino plasty - 55970


and covers diagnosis - F64.0

Make sure that procedure code is covered

Thank you to the last two posts for your information! Super super helpful!

Quote from: NatalieRene on January 08, 2019, 11:49:33 PM
If you don't want to wait for Bowers keep in mind that Dr. Sherman Leis trained Bowers. I went through him and his results where excellent. I just figured I would mention this since four years is a very long time to wait.

There are a few others trained by Marci Bowers: Keelee MacPhee being one of them. She has been doing over 200 surgeries so far and her minimum wait time was 4 months. I am sure there are more. One of the reasons why I chose her was the short wait time. I can let you know in April how it goes...

Hugs, Sarah

And yes, dilation is a huge commitment. I was told I need to do 3 x 50 minutes per day. Between prep and cleanup this will be about 4 hours per day for the first year. Second year will be once daily. I was also clearly warned that not doing it will ruin the entire surgery.

Hi! I had my surgery around four months ago with Bowers and would highly recommend her. To answer your questions.
1/ No you don't need electrolysis it is recommend but is not a requirement to have the surgery.
2/ Yes she does take Aetna, make sure your plan does cover the surgery and insurance approval takes months and a lot of hoops to jump through.
3/I guess my best advice for the surgery is to stay in shape they have a strict weight limit. Be prepared not to be able to move around much and to be prepared to be out of work for at least 6 weeks and save for it. I've also seen other people mentioning the wait list my suggestion is get on the cancellation list, you still have to wait but it's not a four year wait. I had my surgery about a year and a half on the list. And I guess my final advice would be not to get so much rapped up in surgery planning it will come and go very quickly and be over and the next thing you know months will have passed.