hi. my name's thomas, i'm younger, and, well, i've wanted to be a girl for a while now, but have never actually talked about it.

basically, i've read some of the articles on this site, and garnered some info about passing, all the surgeries, therapies, etc, but it seems to be only for say, twenty year olds.. so i have a few main questions to ask:
-how expensive would everything be? a general total, please.
-does hrt work better/worse during puberty?
-how hard would transitioning be, as a younger person?

for future reference: i'm sorry but i can't provide any pictures of myself at the moment

You might want to check out TransYouth Family Allies. http://imatyfa.org/.

A lot of us feel that the younger you can start transition (and that process means different things to different people), the better. If you feel that hormone blockers are right for you, and if you start early enough, you can save money on transition-related expenses. For example, you might never need electrolysis to remove unwanted hair. You might not feel the need for facial surgery later because your face will not have had a chance to masculinize--or not much. But therapy can be extremely expensive, and genital surgery, as Sarah7 points out, is quite pricey.

Welcome to the site, by the way. I'm glad you're here.

There is a young girl on YouTube, username "DancersUnleashed", who appears to be someone who started transition (with parental consent and support) at about the age you are now. She has made several videos about her transition that might be helpful to someone in the same situation.  All indications are that transition is easier the younger you start.

best wishes on your journey

Quote from: etadup on June 21, 2011, 10:46:51 PM
hi. my name's thomas, i'm younger, and, well, i've wanted to be a girl for a while now, but have never actually talked about it.

basically, i've read some of the articles on this site, and garnered some info about passing, all the surgeries, therapies, etc, but it seems to be only for say, twenty year olds.. so i have a few main questions to ask:
-how expensive would everything be? a general total, please.
-does hrt work better/worse during puberty?
-how hard would transitioning be, as a younger person?

for future reference: i'm sorry but i can't provide any pictures of myself at the moment

I would think your body would be confused by estrogen conflicting with your testosterone, but your body could also come to the conclusion that your suppose to have Estrogen (I'm not a doctor, and to be honest, I didn't pay a whole lot of attention in health class lol)
I also would say it might be easier transitioning younger, but that's kind of circumstantial. It mostly depends on your parent's consent before transitioning. It sucks, but it's the law, unless your emancipated I think. If you're asking if socially, it's hard, it could be easy, or it could be hard. It depends on those around you (family, friends, school).
not sure if I helped much, but best I could do, sorry.

Quote from: etadup on June 21, 2011, 10:46:51 PM
hi. my name's thomas, i'm younger, and, well, i've wanted to be a girl for a while now, but have never actually talked about it.

basically, i've read some of the articles on this site, and garnered some info about passing, all the surgeries, therapies, etc, but it seems to be only for say, twenty year olds.. so i have a few main questions to ask:
-how expensive would everything be? a general total, please.
-does hrt work better/worse during puberty?
-how hard would transitioning be, as a younger person?

for future reference: i'm sorry but i can't provide any pictures of myself at the moment

Hi Thomas

Here's some of my answers to answer your questions. Every person is different tho so these answers may be different.

1. How expensive is would everything be?

Well that really depends. There are girls who spend as little as 10,000 to fully transition (non Ops, etc) and there are girls who spend 250,000 to transition (I am dead serious. I knew one person who did this...only to realize they did not feel comfortable as a woman).

I can break the costs down for you...and this is provided that you do have insurance and that your therapy and hrt will be covered (HRT is Hormone Replacement Therapy).

1. Co pay therapy sessions about 15 a visit for about 12-15 visits (depending on how many visits you and your therapists believe you will need). Without insurance i seen it as low as 50 dollars a session (one hour).
2. HRT (with insurance it is about 30 dollars to 45 dollars every 3 months). Without insurance you are looking at 50 dollars a month. (one hormone i dont agree with taking...if you take it, then your hrt without insurance can be 150 to 200 a momth)
3. FFS (Facial Feminization Surgery). This is all dependent on whether or not you need it. Some girls say they need it and some girls do not. It all depends on how HRT works on you. FFS can be 20,000 for a decent face job by a decent doctor. I did not have FFS so I "lucked out" with this expense.
4. Clothing. You will need to buy a new wardrobe. Shirts, skirts, slacks, jeans, shoes, everything. I spent 2,000 dollars last year total on my wardrobe which isn't too bad considering I started out from nothing and my clothes are from decent department stores. Stay away from walmart clothing. You can get way better quality clothing for the same price at Jc Penneys and Boscovs (sales). Plus Walmart clothing is pretty horrid both is quality and in fashion.
5. Makeup. I spend about 15 dollars a month on makeup. Some girls i have seen spends way too much on makeup but it is different for everyone.
6. Electrolysis or Laser. This is to remove your facial hair. Electrolysis is about 75 to 180 dollars an hour. Ive seen girls spend as little as 3,000 dollars on electro and as much as 14,000 on it. Laser is a little bit cheaper and laser is getting better and better for facial hair removal. I spent 990 dollars on 9 sessions. I havent shaved in two years.
7. SRS. Sexual Reassignment Surgery. If you want this, then you will be looking at 20,000 in the US, about 18,000 in Canada and anywhere from 10,000 to 18,000 US dollars in Thailand.
8. legal papers. This varies state by state. My state of Maryland, it cost me 100 dollars to change my name and SS card. I know a girl in Pennsylvania who spent over 400 dollars on it. Again, this is state by state.

2. Does HRT work better or worse during puberty.

if one took HRT right during their start of puberty it would be perfect. No facial changes, no voice changes. Google Kim Petras. She had HRT right when puberty kicked in.

3. How hard would transitioning be as a younger person?

This all depends on your resolve and fortitude. It can be a nightmarish pain in the butt or it can be one of the most beautiful experiences you had gone through.

Hope that helps!

Hi! First of all, you have all of my congratulations for taking (or beginning to take) such a decision so early. As many others have said, transition whilst young is the best,
physically. Actually, except for the male sexual organs, if you could start at about 12 years old, you would look pretty much exactly as you would have if you had
always had ovaries. On the other hand, if you started when you were 20-25, you could still look pretty close to that, but your body would retain some pretty obviously
male characteristics that cannot disappear at all (wide shoulders, higher height, narrow hips, voice...) and others that would require a big effort to fix (Adam's apple,
male face, facial hair, etc.) Finally, starting after that will leave you with even more, harder to undo, unfortunate changes. Also, the younger you start,
the easier it is, socially.

Also note that if HRT is initiated DURING puberty, there have been many stories (though no real study, so doctors might not believe you) of some male characteristics
regressing and some female ones to appear. For example, a member here who started at 17 reported her hip bones getting a bit wider and her nose bridge shrinking.

So basically, every day you are off HRT is a day when your body strays farther and farther from what you want it to. Believe me, I am only 20, and I cannot express in
words how much I wish I had started sooner. Also, do not believe it's "before 18", then nothing matters. Puberty "continues" until you are 21~25, and on top of that,
testosterone causes ongoing "damage" (well, it's not really damage objectively speaking, but...) to your body all through your life, making your bones heavier and
more male-looking every year and slowly making you bald.

Plus, if you really are a girl inside, your inappropriate body is likely to destroy your mood gradually over the years. This may or may not bring you to a suicidal
depression, drugs, etc. but is almost certain to bring you great sadness.

Purely physically-wise, there is no reason to delay HRT.

However, many reasons may (will, actually) bring people around you (parents, therapists, doctors) to try to put the process on hold until you are an adult:

-They will want to make sure you do not make a bad decision (whilst most transsexuals have no change of mind regarding this after their puberty begins, there is still
a possibility that it was a phase or something else).
-They will think it is not urgent (it is very hard to make people understand how pressing this matter is).
-They will want you to be psychologically ready (as transition is hard to get through - you need to be accepted and many other things - many doctors will require you to
be 110% functional and problem-free, mentalities. Of course, doctors vary. This, whilst justified (there have been cases of people having a depression or
de-transitioning from not being able to deal with the ordeal), is extremely frustrating. Yeah, I have been trying to transition for about two years...)

Now, for money. Depending on where you live, costs vary:

-Hellish Lands (ex.: United States): Everything must be paid for, unless you are one of the few privileged to have good very good insurance, in which case HRT only is
covered. Transition can then cost more than 100 000 $.
-Not-too-bad Lands (ex.: Québec, Canada): Sex reassignment surgery is free. Doctors charge no fees for consultations. Hormones cost 80% of their basic price
(can be free if you are extremely poor). The rest, however, must be paid for (therapy, hair removal, FFS, Adam's apple reduction, speech therapy, etc.)
Transition can then cost 10 000 - 50 000 $, depending on your needs.
-Dream Lands (ex.: Finland): Everything deemed "necessary to achieve a female appearance", sometimes even including breast augmentation, is free. Therapy is free,
and hair removal too.

Better places in terms of costs, however, have a drawback: in places where transition is partly or entirely paid by the state, you will have to fight a lot and for a long
time to have your prescriptions, etc. because the government wants to avoid unnecessary costs, whilst in places like the US, it is basically the chaos and since you're
the one who pays, the only thing that can keep you back is a doctor's opinion, and you can simply change doctors if you want to.

In any case, the first step into transition is definitely telling your parents and/or a therapist. I hope your parents are understanding.

Wish I had started during/before puberty. I knew, but doing so at that time was unheard of. Now are much better times than then. (awkward sentence? yeah...)

The first thing you need to do is start talking to people - your parents, school counsellors, anyone who will listen! You need to talk to people so you can sort out in your own mind what you need to do and the more people you talk to and the longer you have been talking, the easier it will be to start down this road if you need/want to. People need to know what you are thinking and feeling.

When starting young, transition is basically free. You can start developing your 'true self' with clothing and presentation. (This all counts toward "real life test" later on.)

Counselling is available to youth in many areas through public clinics or the school system or subsidized through various agencies.

From the physical perspective, the earlier you start the better. Your body will respond better and if you get on blockers, you will essentially have a female puberty. That will save you time, money, and aggravation later.

(When I was 14 I KNEW where I had to go. Although it was a long time ago and there wasn't much medical help until I turned 18, living at least par of my teens as a girl and getting on hormones as soon as I turned 18 really helped. Nobody questioned my direction and I had a lot of support. Thanks to HRT and starting young, transition was a snap.)

The other posters have given you good advice.

If there was only one thing I could impress on you it would be the importance of doing this young.
Every one of us who waited and put it off wish that we had started the ball rolling sooner.
The younger you start the better results will be.
The feelings you are having now are not going to go away and over time they become stronger. Eventually if you stay male there will come a point when it is transition or die. That is a horrible place to be. I know from personaly experiance and I would never wish it on any one.

Tell an adult. Tell them and keep telling them. Do not back off. Stand your ground. If you can transition now you will be much better off in the long run.

(definatly google Kim Petras, she is a perfect example of how kind transition can be too a young trans woman)

I totally agree with cynthia. While I started transitioning at 24, and that is a lot sooner than a lot of people start, I still have a bit of testosterone damage. The facial and body hair, the widows peaks, and other bodily changes are not easily reversed. Sure I started sooner than most of us seem to, but even in the early/mid 20s it's far more difficult to transition than if I was early/mid teens (10 or so years younger).

So yes, persist. Don't stop. They'll get the message eventually. Transition may not be cheap, but it could very well save you from self destructing later.