Hello! My name is Jade and during a major surgery undertaken overseas in the USA (I’m from Australia) I experienced a life-threatening and very serious complication. Unfortunately I am allergic to general anaesthetic and had a reaction late into my procedure which caused extreme hyperthermia and muscle loss due to prolonged contractions.

Typically I have all my medical expenses in order, but this surgery already had completely run me dry of money. After intubation, 5 days of ICU, and IV fluid replacement & appropriate medications, my additional medical bills are around $30,000 USD ($42500 AUD). Coupled with rescheduling flights and rebooking the remaining surgeries, I have set a target for $50,000 AUD. I am seeking mutual aid in order to help me cover these costs as I will not be able to pay them off anytime soon on my relatively low single income.

More info from my related post on threads: I think for many trans women, the excitement of something like facial feminisation surgery far outweighs the risk. These feelings are of course valid, but should never be brushed off & I wanna talk about why.

Last night while having my own facial feminisation procedure done by Dr. Mardirossian and his team, I had an extremely rare complication. Malignant Hyperthermia affects about 1 in 100,000 general anaesthesia patients and it just so happened that I was affected.

This is a genetic condition causing severe allergic reaction to general anaesthesia, ultimately resulting in muscle contractions of an extreme intensity. Left untreated, it is 100% fatal. Had I gone to a less knowledgeable surgeon, or a country with lesser regulations on their surgical industry, there’s a very real possibility I would not have survived. I can’t realistically say I didn’t consider those options as at some point the quotes prices just seemed unattainable.

Be excited for your gender affirming care. Be over the moon with anticipation for life changing treatment. But please, please remember that no amount of money is worth dying for. Please remember that when you are planning your surgeries, and don’t pick a surgeon or destination just because it’s cheaper. Your life is so important and so fragile, and anything could happen. Even if it’s rare, it could be you, and I certainly didn’t expect it to be me.

Thanks for your help and ongoing support, I am ever grateful to each and every one of you!