#I joined reddit specifically for the top surgery subreddit

[glompcat]

Made a consult appointment with the top surgeon I met with in 2022 and did not like.

I'm seeing him on Jan 2nd (such a short turn around! I made the appointment today!), here's hoping last time he was just having an off day and he comes across better this time

[honeybeeofficial]

Hey, Ezra! It's Rose from the ue olde YWP nano group. So I've recently decided to get top surgery to alleviate my dysphoria, but I don't know where to start. What were the first steps you took to get the care you needed?

Hi Rose!! How are you?

I think one of the first things I did was just join the r/topsurgery subreddit and start reading through posts and comments on there to work on desensitizing myself to the medical anxiety/squeamishness I’d been feeling. (This is totally not an issue for everyone but before I started looking, I couldn’t read about the details of the procedure or recovery without tons of anxiety and revulsion even though it was definitely something I wanted, and reading other people’s accounts and (cautiously) looking at recovery pictures helped.) This can also help you get a sense of what type of results are possible, and what type of results you personally want.

At around the same time, I started researching top surgeons in my area. You can look for recommendations on reddit, or google “gender affirming surgery [state]” or any combination of relevant terms. You’re looking for plastic surgeons, ideally ones with top surgery explicitly mentioned on their practice’s website.

As you find some surgeons near you, check for reviews and results online– lots of people post about their experience with specific surgeons on reddit and on transbucket.com. (You have to make an account for transbucket.)

Once I found a couple of surgeons I felt I’d be happy with, I called around to their offices to schedule consultations. I just said “Hi, I want to schedule a consultation for top surgery/mastectomy with [surgeon]?” and the receptionists took it from there! God bless our troops (kind receptionists who know what to do when nervous dweebs call them)

At some point, you will likely need a support letter from a therapist or psychiatrist. If you already have a therapist, start talking with them about your goals and bring up the need for a letter! If you don’t, look into either starting to see a therapist or services that will help you get your letter. Most insurances require the letter in order to preapprove the procedure, and my surgeon required that I get the letter –> preapproval before they would schedule me for a surgery date.

I can say plenty more about my experience but I don’t want to overwhelm you haha 😅 but please feel free to ask questions!! I am more than happy to talk about it (and am no longer squeamish about it! no question too TMI)