seb's top surgery fund!

Hey, I'm Sebastian and I'm a 23 year old mixed Puerto Rican trans male. I love animals more than anything, and plan on working with them one day. I also like to play video games and am an artist.

 

I've known that I've been transgender for the majority of my life. When I was a little kid, I would cry because I wasn't "born a boy". I had soon learned that I didn't need to be "born a boy" in order to be a boy once I learned about the existence of trans people at a young age. I was closeted for many years, however, due to the nature of my familial environment, I felt extremely unsafe to come out as it was considered deeply sinful in my father's religion to be LGBT. I only felt able to tell my (more accepting) mother and brother when I was 18, once I was no longer legally required to visit my father.

 

Only later on, once I moved out in summer 2020 was I given the freedom to be able to pursue medically transitioning. I began hormone replacement treatment on 08/12/20, and have now been on testosterone via intramuscular injections for over a year and a half, and have felt much more like myself and much happier overall than ever before. I feel more like myself.

 

I had my top surgery consultation on February 10th, 2022 with Dr. Omar Beidas in Orlando, Florida for a double incision procedure [pictured]. While haggling with the difficult processes of attempting to obtain insurance coverage, I unfortunately realized that my insurance would not be willing to cover my procedure at all, as they specifically exclude any transgender surgeries. 

My surgery date is scheduled for May 12th, with the payment due May 5th. 

 

I was given a total quote of $8000, of which I have saved up about $3000 myself over the past couple years from retail jobs, art commissions, and Covid-19 stimulus checks. I am missing $5000 and some extra to help with recovery, though I will update my goal when I manage to save more myself, etc.

 

It's been difficult for me to save up effectively, as I struggle with mental health issues and while I have a job, it doesn't give me great hours or pay well. I have to put most of my small paychecks to pay bills, such as car insurance and medication. I have undiagnosed mystery issues with fatigue and hypersomnia, as well as being on the autism spectrum, all of these of which making it difficult to handle a full time job at this time.

 

Top surgery is a necessity for me because it's increasingly hard every day to wake up and cope with how much my chest makes it difficult to enjoy everyday life. Wearing chest binders is so physically constricting and makes it hard to breathe, and binding nearly every day for 4-5 years now is taking a toll on my body and mind. My dysphoria runs rampant even with a binder on, as they aren't super effective in flattening my chest due to my chest size. It's difficult to just live my life and effects my mental health daily.

 

Please help me afford this life-changing surgery. Thank you very much for your time, consideration, and sympathy.