Dylan’s Gender Affirming Surgery

Hello all! My name’s Dylan!

My goal with transitioning has always been to keep my journey private, and/or share my experience with the people closest to me whilst working my hardest to finance my own affirming surgeries. This has been an ongoing rollercoaster for years. Gender affirming surgeries are beyond expensive, with little to no support from Medicare and other health institutions, making self actualisation unattainable unless born into financial support. Aside from working full-time, which only covers the basic living expenses, there aren’t many financial avenues for medically transitioning.

The urgency for these lifesaving surgeries has become more and more pressing over the years and I have decided to take myself down the Go Fund Me road. It has been a difficult decision to make, making my transition known to others and no longer having the privacy or independence I planned on maintaining. But at the end of the day, I thought about what this has all been for: My self actualisation. This is for me, and finally being able to be the fullest, truest version of myself. Unfortunately something’s gotta give, right?

Those who know me best know how important it has been keeping my true experience as a trans woman private. I hardly discuss my identity with others and rarely even tell people I’m a trans woman. This invites a guessing game of “do others know or not?”, and for a long time I prepared myself for the resilience this journey takes. I knew what to expect and I’ve been through all the adversities that come along with this lived experience: verbal and physical violence, struggles on personal relationships and a toll on my mental health.

Whilst the concept of ‘passing’ may be ridiculous to some, the reality is that being able to live in peace and move through the world safely is extremely crucial. Regardless of that, for others to truly see me for me, as I was always meant to be, means taking these steps. At its worst, being clocked can be a life threatening and dangerous ordeal; at its best, it means most people not being able to really see me, connect with me, or know me for the woman I am. It means being othered, and in some way never belonging, always remaining on the fringes of society. I refuse for that to be my reality.

Now - in taking that power back and pushing through with pride - it’s time for me to acknowledge the urgency of these surgeries so I can thrive as I’d always planned to. Here is where I turn to you all, reaching out for help. I can’t move forward authentically in my life while there is eternal unease and disconnection in my body.

For those who don’t relate to or understand the trans experience, this venture may seem selfish or narcissistic. Some might question “She’s asking for money for surgeries?!”

Believe me, I so wanted to be that girl who hustled like no tomorrow and did it all myself. But following that mentality for years still didn’t get me far enough. Having exhausted all other avenues there comes a time when you reach out to others. These surgeries are life-saving and life-affirming.

So, I am extremely grateful for whatever you can donate; large or small. Every bit of help is received fully and with gratitude. And whilst I don’t expect my target goal to be fully reached or all of my surgeries to be crowdfunded, I’m just appreciative of help in any way.

We trans women, trans folk everywhere, fully encompass the diverse range of the human experience. We are everywhere, we are everything. There is a large community of us struggling, waiting for the day we blossom into ourselves and as we each, slowly, rise to our full potential, there will be nothing that can hold us back.