Jump to content
Please note: We are a SUPPORT SITE, NOT a sex, dating or pick-up site, nor are we a Fetish Site! ×
  • Welcome to the TransPulse Forums!

    We offer a safe, inclusive community for transgender and gender non-conforming folks, as well as their loved ones, to find support and information.  Join today!

     

    Note, Admirers are not welcomed here.

Pressure Mounts To Curtail Intersex Surgery


Guest Kenna Dixon

Recommended Posts

  • Forum Moderator

I'm glad that awareness seems to be picking up. Such surgeries seem like flipping a coin and hoping it comes up right, when you consider that gender isn't even determined down there.

 

Lots of love,

Timber Wolf?

Link to comment
  • Admin

I have IS friends, and seem to have only the ones who are unhappy with what happened to them as children.  Needless to say they are strong advocates for not doing surgery until the child themselves can take part in the decision and has had time to find which of three directions to go.  One direction they strongly advocate is the direction of staying IS, and being accepted as they are.  I for one am glad they want that option. 

Link to comment
  • 5 years later...
On 7/25/2017 at 11:13 AM, VickySGV said:

I have IS friends, and seem to have only the ones who are unhappy with what happened to them as children.  Needless to say they are strong advocates for not doing surgery until the child themselves can take part in the decision and has had time to find which of three directions to go.  One direction they strongly advocate is the direction of staying IS, and being accepted as they are.  I for one am glad they want that option. 

Offering a different perspective, I was left just the way I was born and obviously not complete in the men's department. Raised as a boy and grew up looking more like a girl including breasts and curves. 

I have suffered that decision now for almost 60 years and a simple surgery at birth could have fixed it. 

Even offering further testing and surgery starting in my teens would have been appreciated, I was just left hiding myself in bathroom stalls my entire life. Living as a very feminine looking male, but feeling like a woman. 

Even now it took about a year of complaining to my doctor before he would even investigate it further. I only recently confirmed I have a uterus and fallopian tubes. 

Link to comment
  • Admin

@Birdie The 50's and 60's were still under the tyranny of the Nurture is superior to Nature crowd of physicians, and much of the current information we have, as well as diagnostic tools was incomplete on the complexities of Intersex development of children.  Strides are being made and they affect all T & I people.  I could not be made into "my fathers son".  I have three genetic anomalies that affected my body in much more subtle ways, we know now because of human genome mapping.

Link to comment
  • 1 year later...

It is here that my frustration comes into play. 

The hold that the early 20th century view on things (which was an evolved Americanized version of Pax-Britannia mode of thinking) has kept the medical community in a self assured environment of trying to dispel anything unusual into something "rational".  

 

From the auspice of defining hermaphroditism from a visual diagnosis to the modern DSD and intersex approach, we're (as previously stated) evolving in this arena. Were not at a final point of "this is it" situation, nor do I think we ever will when it comes to such. 

 

The frustration comes in many different layers and approaches. 

From my personal experience of lost medical records, to the public outcry of "only two sexes" ideal is what is driving this. 

 

How can we be objectively diagnosed and work (not treated) with our bodies to allow the natural state to occur.  

 

The modern approach (1950's onward) of interventionist surgery has led to where nature of the persona is still being overridden by societal templates of he vs. she. 

Does a child "know" they are a boy or girl, or are they being pressured by family norms and social pressures to go this way or that? 

 

The current state of affairs for the LGBTQ+ and other folk is much like the 1960's Civil Rights Movement was; an uprising and burning down of older social norms long accepted even by "non raciest" folk who simply had no other perspective other than what was given. It lead from "burn baby burn" to "learn baby learn" back again and back again- again several times. 

 

Now the LGBTQ+ and other said folk are breaking out of a template long established. The surgeries are part of the monster created. 

 

Link to comment
  • Admin
Just now, Petra Marjorie said:

Does a child "know" they are a boy or girl, or are they being pressured by family norms and social pressures to go this way or that? 

 

Back when the World Professional Association of Transgender Health (WPATH) affirmed its Standards Of Care V.7 (we are now on V8) I was present at its convention as a guest with another organization for Trans Health.  One of the keynote papers leading up to the SOC7 was by Dr. Walter Bocter on the subject of gender and personal identity recognition by children.  Parental and societal (including religion) as well as their own recognition of their genitalia did play some in the child's recognition of their identity , but there we other unique factors as well, with the child's personal sense of health, and other actual health issues being involved as well in dealing with IDENTITY which was becoming concrete to the child individually by age 3 to 3.5, and a solid personal identity by age 4 years old.  This was true for Cis and Trans children and was unique from sexual attraction preferences which took hold in the 2nd and third Tanner Stages of sexual development.  I do not remember if the presentation touched on IS / DSD subjects, but would not be surprised one bit if DSD children also followed the same pattern of developing a personal identity, which may or may not be a binary one.  Children with supportive parents and medical teams really fall all over the personal identity spectrum (Bell Curve) even with binary genitalia and my few contacts with DSD children  show this to be true. 

Link to comment
  • 4 months later...

I’m wondering if anyone else here has male genitalia with ambiguous female genitalia.  Mine is real prominent.  My doctor with the knowledge of being born with an undescended that had to be surgically dropped, parents waited until the age of 10, I started puberty at the age of 20, having negative side effects with testosterone, prescribed me 6mg of estradiol, and like the most magical miracle my mind and body finally felt stable equilibrium for the first time in my life.  Still feels weird at times.  I’ve decided that it would be better for me to have vaginoplasty, because I feel like I would be more comfortable than what I am experiencing now, because in order to function and walk properly I have to wear a support that I had to invent from a few I got from Amazon.  
 

Whenever I have to remove my support, because of the physical position of my male genitalia it’s like a bad weight that causes extreme discomfort and back pain.  But, the way I know that this is the case, because whenever I have the support on, all of my physical pain symptoms disappear.

 

Does anyone relate or have any similar experience and is there any way to get my doctor and insurance company to approve of having at least a zero depth vaginoplasty without a long waiting period?

Link to comment
Just now, Julianne said:

male genitalia with ambiguous female genitalia

I can relate; I was born with an undescended condition which might had been ovaries. While growing up at an early age I didn't know I was operated on until I woke up from the hospital's anesthesia. I've been sowed up. Feels like I've been turned from inside, but out or down. I tried to ask for my surgical medical records to find out what was done to me, but the treating doctors that I had back then, won't let me see my records. I have a surgical scar. I think there are other factors involved to be the cause of my back pain. Anyway, I'll checkout the information you asked about. 

Link to comment

Update: Hi Julianne, I received an email reply regarding insurance company and vaginoplasty, I would recommend you do online research in your state, to find the providers that is right for you. Good luck.

 

 

Link to comment

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
  • Who's Online   2 Members, 0 Anonymous, 74 Guests (See full list)

    • MariChelan
    • VickySGV
  • Recently Browsing   0 members

    • No registered users viewing this page.
  • Forum Statistics

    • Total Topics
      82.8k
    • Total Posts
      791.5k
  • Member Statistics

    • Total Members
      9,424
    • Most Online
      8,356

    mejc
    Newest Member
    mejc
    Joined
  • Today's Birthdays

    1. April Marie
      April Marie
    2. daniela...
      daniela...
      (60 years old)
    3. Emily May
      Emily May
    4. Felixr
      Felixr
      (21 years old)
    5. isaiah37
      isaiah37
      (43 years old)
  • Posts

    • kurogami777
      So many parallels in mine and @KathyLauren and @MirandaB's stories.    I think late 30's counts as "later in life" lol.   I didn't just ignore signs, I repressed them and shoved them into a deep recess in my mind. I grew up in a very religious and conservative household, and knew deep down that these feelings and thoughts would be punished. I went through my typical teenager rebellious phase which allowed me to experiment with lots of things, like nail painting, long hair, that kind of thing, but even then I kept some things tightly under wraps. I really wanted to experiment with makeup, but could never push myself to actually take the leap into that.   For a very long time, I didn't even know that trans people existed, so it never crossed my mind that I could be one. It wasn't until I was in college that I was exposed, and even then I never thought I could be trans myself.   After a lot of years of battling depression, fighting what I thought was body dysmorphia, and engaging with unhealthy "hobbies" I finally had my "huh, wait a sec" moment. I remember it distinctly. I was at the grocery store with my partner and saw a woman walking by and my first thought was "I wish I looked like that". This definitely wasn't the first time I had thought that, and realizing that in that moment was powerful, and I knew I couldn't ignore or repress it anymore.   This kicked off several months of deep research, and deep introspection. I, being the person I am, took the scientific approach and tried to disprove this to myself. I tried really hard to find something that I could point to and say "this is why I'm not trans" but only found myself relating to other trans people's experiences, and eventually learned what gender dysphoria was. I showed all the signs: always playing as women in games, complaining that men's fashion was terrible and women had so many more and better options, feeling very uncomfortable with my own body hair, specifically in the "men's only" areas like my chest and stomach, really hating my body but never fully understanding what about it I hated, the list goes on and on.   I never had the experience or vocabulary to accurately describe what it was I was feeling, and after my months of panicked research, I finally had the words. The moment I finally looked at myself in the mirror and accepted the truth of who I was everything fell into place in my mind, and I felt a peace I had never felt in my life before. I was lucky enough to have a week alone in the house, so I took that opportunity to do one final experiment and try out some cheap clothes and cheap makeup and a super cheap wig, but it was enough. I told myself that if I put myself together and I was even remotely uncomfortable with it, then that was it, I wasn't trans, and I can move on with my life, but once I saw the finished product, despite the terrible fashion sense, and completely awful job at doing makeup, I saw myself for the first time in my entire life and I saw myself smiling like I never have before.    So, TLDR, I figured it out by finally facing my feelings, learning about myself and what these feelings meant, and then experimenting. The scientific method, I guess lol. Observation (I have these feelings), question (does that mean I'm trans?), hypothesis (I might be trans), experiment (try on being a woman), analysis (I feal right for the first time), conclusion (I am trans). 
    • Willow
      How did I figure it out?  Well, I like to wear women’s things and make believe.  That was exciting and that started as a teen.  I also wished I had breasts.  But I thought I grew out of that.  I did all the manly things.  But as I got older I got upset and angry rather easily.  My wife said I needed to see some one but I refused.  I eventually did ask my doctor for antidepressants  and he gave me a three page questioner before agreeing.  But they only helped so much and not more.  Finally, I gave in and went to see a therapist.  After several sessions he said “you are transgender and have been all your life”. We argued about that several times but he proved it to me beyond any further doubt and I am finally happy.
    • MirandaB
      I have some overlap with what @KathyLauren said. Like ignoring the clues, and eventually meeting some trans women living their normal lives.    Also, as I got older it seemed harder to keep it bottled up. Instead of occasional lurking, joined an internet forum to research a makeover/dressing session. And somehow I felt more trans than many of the posters (at least in how they wrote about their lives). Like when the question is asked 'if you could wake up a woman...' my reaction was always yes, although with the 'can I change back' caveat.    Had some family events scheduled for the fall of 2020, planned to come out as something after those events were done. But then covid came along first, and had me worried about the time I had left.   Started playing with gender swap filters (that had improved since the time I tried them in some previous year) since there were no opportunities for any private time with everyone home all the time. Just seeing a somewhat plausible version of 'me' outside cracked the egg.   One of the things I've landed on to tell people in a shorter version is that if you spend your whole life coming up with reasons why you're not trans, you're probably trans. Cis folks don't go to sleep each night hoping to miraculously somehow wake up a different gender.       
    • KathyLauren
      There were all kinds of clues all my life, but I ignored them because I couldn't possibly be trans, or so I thought.  After all, trans people were weird, and so rare that one would never encounter one in real life.  (Right?)  That's how I thought most of my life.   But one day, ten years ago, I attended a public lecture by an astrophysicist who happened to be transgender.  The lecture was interesting.  What was more interesting was the comments from the crowd afterwards.  I paid attention to them.  Everyone was talking about her presentation.  No one was talking about her.   That opened my eyes.  Maybe trans people weren't so weird after all: here was one in a nerdy occupation, giving a public talk to fellow nerds.  The experience gave me "permission" to investigate.  I joined a trans forum, introduced myself and asked questions.  Within a few weeks, I had my answer: Yes, dummy, you are trans!   The clues all my life?  I can remember at age seven wishing I could wear a dress.  All my life, in my daydreams, I was always a girl.  I always had the feeling that I was acting in a play where I was the only one who had not read the script.  I learned to behave like a boy by watching carefully how other boys behaved and trying to copy their behaviour, because none of it came naturally to me.  When I was 17 or 18, my parents gave me an electric shaver for my birthday.  I remember being surprised and dismayed, because it had never occurred to me that I would grow facial hair.   I could go on, but those should give the general idea.
    • Jake
      I get my first binder tomorrow. So excited. I got it from spectrum outfitters. 
    • Jake
      I'm bipolar so yes. You just have to remember that you've survived it before so you can survive it again. Not easy though when you're are in the deep throughs of it.
    • Jake
      Just curious. Especially for those of you in your later years (shall we say) What led you to the conclusion you were trans? 
    • VickySGV
      I have no idea what you are referring to here!!  This??  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black_Dog_(Led_Zeppelin_song)
    • Carolyn Marie
      Yes, it does sound like a very good book, a very touching and timely story.  But I don't think I'll read it.  It is painful enough to live in the now, and face some of the evils that this administration has wrought.  I'm not much interested in reading about the same sort of thing happening to imaginary characters living in the 1940's.   Carolyn Marie
    • Abigail Genevieve
    • VickySGV
      The treatment of Trans people who very much existed in the pre - WWII years did not really improve with the end of the war.  I have not read this book, but have read and studied others about the people involved.  The story is sobering and even saddening, but one that needs to be told.  Our fears are historic, but so is our dream to simply be people among people doing people things in life including love.
    • KathyLauren
      Yes, my first thought was, "That means that..."  But like you, I'll try to concentrate on the positive.
    • Timi
      This looks like a good book!   https://www.latimes.com/entertainment-arts/books/story/2025-04-29/lilac-people-book-review-milo-todd    
    • Willow
      Good morning    It is our 53rd anniversary today.  There have been good times and bad, love and hate but we worked things out and here we are 53 years later and still together.  There have been a few times I thought we were done.  Once I was ready to call it, once she was and one time I was even making contingency plains certain it was on the horizon but all that is in the past now.   We are even going shopping today to see if we can find nice outfits to celebrate our anniversary.  Ok it’s a far cry from going on a cruise or a trip somewhere but I don’t think she could handle that even if we could afford it.  She has really aged in the past year.  And honestly, so have I. In her case it is physically with some short term memory loss.  In my case it is strictly memory loss.  Sometimes I really have to think about things that just came snap snap snap to me before.  I do things to exercise my mind but they aren’t always helping.  I know it does no good to say “I told you… “ to my wife.  If she doesn’t remember right then and there it never happened.     So to all you younger coffee drinkers, stay healthy, stay happy and stay active as long as you can.  Couch potatoing is bad.  TV is ok in limitation but nothing beats going for a bicycle ride or walking, jogging or running if you can.  I am not and never was an athlete.  In fact a medical DNA test showed that I was in the lower 25% on that, som-armed to other men and boys.  Yet another confirming thing that points to my being transgender.  I used my brain instead.   but this is getting long and becoming dribble so I’ll stop.  Just stay active mentally and physically.            
    • jchem66
  • Upcoming Events

Contact TransPulse

TransPulse can be contacted in the following ways:

Email: Click Here.

To report an error on this page.

Legal

Your use of this site is subject to the following rules and policies, whether you have read them or not.

Terms of Use
Privacy Policy
DMCA Policy
Community Rules

Hosting

Upstream hosting for TransPulse provided by QnEZ.

Sponsorship

Special consideration for TransPulse is kindly provided by The Breast Form Store.
×
×
  • Create New...