Alex's Top Surgery
Donation protected
Howdy!!
This is a sensitive topic for me, but here we go. My name is Alex and I am a 19 years old Transgender Man (also known as Female-To-Male, FTM, or Trans guy). That means I was born female physically, but I have always identified as and am-- a male. I have started on my journey of transitioning on August 31, 2018, with my first testosterone shot, but it is a LOOONG road. My next step in my transition is to get top surgery, but for now, let's talk about gender dysphoria...
What is Gender Dysphoria?
Gender Dysphoria (also referred to as dysphoria) is defined as "a distressing state arising from the conflict between a person's gender identity and the sex the person has or was identified as having at birth," according to the Webster Dictionary. There are many ways to alleviate dysphoria. For example, some trans guys wear more masculine clothing, get a more masculine haircut, start testosterone, get top surgery, wear a binder (flattening breast tissue to create a male-appearing chest using a variety of methods), get bottom surgery, and most importantly acknowledge that change will come with time. Although there are many ways to ease dysphoria, that feeling will never go away because I will never be a Cis Male (male assigned male at birth). I am hoping to reduce my constant dysphoria, specifically in my chest, by getting top surgery.
Why do I want Top Surgery?
Although testosterone is a HUGE step in my transition, I would like to take another HUGE step and get top surgery. Binding has played an important role in my transition. So much so that it has affected my health at times. The two golden rules of binding are: Don't wear your binder for more than 8 hours and Don't wear your binder to sleep. I have broken both of those rules countless amounts of times. Those rules are put into place because binding can cause back pain, breathing issues, and skin irritation. Currently, in my college dorm, I do not feel comfortable taking off my binder to sleep because I have a roommate. My chest dysphoria is so bad that I'm willing to risk having back and breathing problems over obeying the rules of binding. Another reason why I would like top surgery is that last year, once again in the college dorms, I had a suitemate who would always walk around the dorm shirtless. I know it doesn't seem like a big deal to most people to see a guy walking around shirtless, but to me, I know it's not something I can do right now and honestly, it makes me very dysphoric and miserable. The benefits of me getting top surgery would be: I never have to bind again, my breathing and back problems would decrease, I'll be a lot happier, I won't be insecure about my chest, I'll have less dysphoria, I'll be more comfortable around people, I can walk around shirtless, and flaunt my battle scars.
What can YOU do to help?
(That's where this GoFundMe comes in handy) Top Surgery is upwards of a whopping $10,000 and me being a full-time student does not help. Luckily, having two jobs does help, but with both of them being minimum wage jobs and one of them paying less than the other, it does not help as much as it should. Luckily, my incredible and crazy supportive mom is helping me pay for a GOOD chunk of it, yet it is still a small fortune. I would really appreciate any donations of any amount to help me achieve a flat chest and null my chest dysphoria.
Thank you for all the support and love of my friends and family. I love all of you! My transition is a crazy wild rollercoaster and I'm thankful for everyone who is here for the ride!
The Breakdown of the Approximate Cost of Top Surgery:
Consultation Fee: $75
Therapy Sessions (5 sessions required to get surgery): $20 per session
Anesthesia: $3,200
Surgery: $6,700
Total: $10,075
This is a sensitive topic for me, but here we go. My name is Alex and I am a 19 years old Transgender Man (also known as Female-To-Male, FTM, or Trans guy). That means I was born female physically, but I have always identified as and am-- a male. I have started on my journey of transitioning on August 31, 2018, with my first testosterone shot, but it is a LOOONG road. My next step in my transition is to get top surgery, but for now, let's talk about gender dysphoria...
What is Gender Dysphoria?
Gender Dysphoria (also referred to as dysphoria) is defined as "a distressing state arising from the conflict between a person's gender identity and the sex the person has or was identified as having at birth," according to the Webster Dictionary. There are many ways to alleviate dysphoria. For example, some trans guys wear more masculine clothing, get a more masculine haircut, start testosterone, get top surgery, wear a binder (flattening breast tissue to create a male-appearing chest using a variety of methods), get bottom surgery, and most importantly acknowledge that change will come with time. Although there are many ways to ease dysphoria, that feeling will never go away because I will never be a Cis Male (male assigned male at birth). I am hoping to reduce my constant dysphoria, specifically in my chest, by getting top surgery.
Why do I want Top Surgery?
Although testosterone is a HUGE step in my transition, I would like to take another HUGE step and get top surgery. Binding has played an important role in my transition. So much so that it has affected my health at times. The two golden rules of binding are: Don't wear your binder for more than 8 hours and Don't wear your binder to sleep. I have broken both of those rules countless amounts of times. Those rules are put into place because binding can cause back pain, breathing issues, and skin irritation. Currently, in my college dorm, I do not feel comfortable taking off my binder to sleep because I have a roommate. My chest dysphoria is so bad that I'm willing to risk having back and breathing problems over obeying the rules of binding. Another reason why I would like top surgery is that last year, once again in the college dorms, I had a suitemate who would always walk around the dorm shirtless. I know it doesn't seem like a big deal to most people to see a guy walking around shirtless, but to me, I know it's not something I can do right now and honestly, it makes me very dysphoric and miserable. The benefits of me getting top surgery would be: I never have to bind again, my breathing and back problems would decrease, I'll be a lot happier, I won't be insecure about my chest, I'll have less dysphoria, I'll be more comfortable around people, I can walk around shirtless, and flaunt my battle scars.
What can YOU do to help?
(That's where this GoFundMe comes in handy) Top Surgery is upwards of a whopping $10,000 and me being a full-time student does not help. Luckily, having two jobs does help, but with both of them being minimum wage jobs and one of them paying less than the other, it does not help as much as it should. Luckily, my incredible and crazy supportive mom is helping me pay for a GOOD chunk of it, yet it is still a small fortune. I would really appreciate any donations of any amount to help me achieve a flat chest and null my chest dysphoria.
Thank you for all the support and love of my friends and family. I love all of you! My transition is a crazy wild rollercoaster and I'm thankful for everyone who is here for the ride!
The Breakdown of the Approximate Cost of Top Surgery:
Consultation Fee: $75
Therapy Sessions (5 sessions required to get surgery): $20 per session
Anesthesia: $3,200
Surgery: $6,700
Total: $10,075
Organizer
Alex Turner
Organizer
San Diego, CA