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Hello! Thank you for reading this. My name is Julian Camera. I am a 27-year-old trans guy who is entering one of the most exciting chapters of my life. After living for over 15 years with body parts that I have always wished were not there, I am finally getting top surgery! This surgery will help me to feel more aligned with my gender and more comfortable in my own body. My surgery date is set for October 1st, 2019 with a surgeon in California who specializes in transgender surgeries.
A little background:
I first came out as transgender in May of 2018. Two years prior to that, I came to acknowledge the idea that living my life and identifying as a female who was lesbian was not my truth and it scared me to imagine waiting till I was 50 years old to finally accept that. I went back and forth for some time but one memory stuck with me that I could not ignore:
I was about seven/eight years old when I was first able to comprehend that in coming years I would go through female puberty and my body would begin to look more feminine. My solution to this was simple: “get them chopped off!” Considering it was 1999 and the idea of a transgender child was completely unheard of/accepted in my world, the response I got from those I told was laughter. I was left feeling that what I had just said was totally unheard of and that it was not an option for me.
As I grew older, I felt like I was always waiting to grow into this other body. The longer it was that it didn’t happen, the more lost I felt myself becoming. I don’t know if I assumed that one day it would just magically happen. All I knew was that the way I was feeling on the inside was not matching up with how I was looking. I couldn’t take it anymore and I realized that the only thing that made sense to me was that I was transgender.
Once I put aside my fears and began to prepare for my transition, there were two things that I wanted to make happen immediately: change my name and get top surgery. I felt that it would be hard for me to transition with those things still in place. I found a surgeon in California who specialized in transgender surgeries and took my insurance. I knew he was the surgeon for me. The first time that I attempted to schedule my top surgery, my previous insurer denied coverage. Transgender health care was not in my plan. I pushed off my surgery for almost two years and now, according to Colorado law, transgender health care, including medically necessary surgery, must be covered. So fast-forward to today and here I am again, with that same idea I had as a young kid, but instead this time, I am making my childhood dreams a reality. On May 31st, I legally changed my name to Julian Alessandro Camera. I’m living my truth proudly as a trans man, and I’m doing what I need to do to feel free.
As exciting as this is for me, I can’t do it alone. Although my top surgery is covered by insurance, it still is a costly procedure (compared to other countries, like Denmark, where top surgery is 100% covered!). Between that and being out of work for at least 2-3 weeks, I’m going to need some help. Any help and support makes a world of difference to me. As a trans person, friends, family, and community are everything and I am very lucky to be surrounded by a strong, united community. Not everyone gets that. So thank you for any kind of support, whether that’s a donation or just being there as a friend. Any support of trans folks is a win in my book.
In solidarity,
Julian
A little background:
I first came out as transgender in May of 2018. Two years prior to that, I came to acknowledge the idea that living my life and identifying as a female who was lesbian was not my truth and it scared me to imagine waiting till I was 50 years old to finally accept that. I went back and forth for some time but one memory stuck with me that I could not ignore:
I was about seven/eight years old when I was first able to comprehend that in coming years I would go through female puberty and my body would begin to look more feminine. My solution to this was simple: “get them chopped off!” Considering it was 1999 and the idea of a transgender child was completely unheard of/accepted in my world, the response I got from those I told was laughter. I was left feeling that what I had just said was totally unheard of and that it was not an option for me.
As I grew older, I felt like I was always waiting to grow into this other body. The longer it was that it didn’t happen, the more lost I felt myself becoming. I don’t know if I assumed that one day it would just magically happen. All I knew was that the way I was feeling on the inside was not matching up with how I was looking. I couldn’t take it anymore and I realized that the only thing that made sense to me was that I was transgender.
Once I put aside my fears and began to prepare for my transition, there were two things that I wanted to make happen immediately: change my name and get top surgery. I felt that it would be hard for me to transition with those things still in place. I found a surgeon in California who specialized in transgender surgeries and took my insurance. I knew he was the surgeon for me. The first time that I attempted to schedule my top surgery, my previous insurer denied coverage. Transgender health care was not in my plan. I pushed off my surgery for almost two years and now, according to Colorado law, transgender health care, including medically necessary surgery, must be covered. So fast-forward to today and here I am again, with that same idea I had as a young kid, but instead this time, I am making my childhood dreams a reality. On May 31st, I legally changed my name to Julian Alessandro Camera. I’m living my truth proudly as a trans man, and I’m doing what I need to do to feel free.
As exciting as this is for me, I can’t do it alone. Although my top surgery is covered by insurance, it still is a costly procedure (compared to other countries, like Denmark, where top surgery is 100% covered!). Between that and being out of work for at least 2-3 weeks, I’m going to need some help. Any help and support makes a world of difference to me. As a trans person, friends, family, and community are everything and I am very lucky to be surrounded by a strong, united community. Not everyone gets that. So thank you for any kind of support, whether that’s a donation or just being there as a friend. Any support of trans folks is a win in my book.
In solidarity,
Julian