Hey there! I'm Lena, a woman, a daughter, a skater, a social worker, a geek, horror movie fan, and many other things. When I was born, I wasn't any of those things. I believe there's many destinies we unlock as we grow and learn about ourselves, our communities, and the world around us. I'm here today to tell you a little bit about one of my journeys as a transgender woman so close to achieving my medical transition.

What Exactly am I Doing?

Top and bottom surgery, scheduled November 12, 2024, at the Crane Center in Austin, Texas.

This has been a long time coming and I have all the letters of recommendation, 8 years of Hormone Replacement Therapy, necessary pre-op requisites. This includes one pre-op appointment, and three follow up check ins with the Crane Center.

Why do I need this surgery?

I medically transitioned very slowly and thought long and hard about all the changes I needed to be my authentic self and that journey included legal transition, a name change, living as myself authentically, and HRT. The next step for me is Top and Bottom Surgery.

I think anyone, transgender or not, has to explore their gender identity in some ways. Any woman has to ask herself at some point, what is womanhood to me, how will I express my experience, and what does it mean to me. Well, I just had a little longer of a road to get to that question. I started really exploring that journey in 2016. As I was retiring from a college athletic career I finally had the space to explore my identity and seek a safe setting to do so. And now I get to take the step to gender affirming care!

Why Now?

I now finally have access to a health insurance plan that puts this goal within reach, though there's still significant financial cost. The Crane Center is in network, I've worked this past year at achieving all of the necessary prerequisites and I now have a final confirmation of my surgical date as well as my pre-op and post-op appointments. I've put this fundraiser together to help me get across the finish line.

As for why am I doing top and bottom surgery at the same time? Surprisingly my surgeon highly recommended it! Paying for Anesthesia once, recovery time just once, time off work just once, and all in the same year. Both medically and financially this just made more sense than setting up two different procedures!

Why the Fundraising?

Well, it's expensive, even with insurance. I love my work but without insurance and assistance from loved ones this would be completely impossible for me. And even with it things will be tight.

Cost breakdown:

There's a lot of moving parts here but I am fortunate enough to have been able to access a health insurance plan that will cover everything once I reach 4500 paid out of pocket for the year. I won't receive final billing until after the procedure but I expect to use at least $1500 of contributed funds for the medical costs. $500 after that point for unexpected medical costs and miscellaneous recovery home recovery needs (post surgical bras, ace bandages, ice packs, etc)

If I don't reach that goal I'm strong and brave and have a good community and I'll figure something out but any lil amount helps!

Thank you so much!

Whether or not you choose to contribute, thank you for reading a little piece of my story <3