My Journey to Gender-Affirming Surgery

Hi, everyone! My name is Cassandra, and I’m reaching out to ask for your support as I take a major step in my journey: bottom surgery. This is a deeply personal and life-changing procedure that will bring me closer to living as my authentic self.

After many, many years of dreaming, I finally feel like my surgery is a possibility. However, a recent setback has made things more challenging. I lost my full-time job and now rely solely on my part-time job. While I can continue my health insurance through COBRA, the cost is nearly $1,000 per month—an overwhelming expense on top of all the other surgery-related costs.

I’ve applied for financial assistance through a trans surgery fund and will be attempting to host a fundraiser—candy, anyone? But I won’t know the outcome of these efforts until closer to my anticipated surgery date. Unfortunately, the political climate has me worried, and rather than my planned surgery date of July or August, I’m trying to get it done as soon as possible, most likely April or May.

While the cost of getting surgery is high including hospital stay, travel, accommodations, etc., I decided to set the goal at $23,000, because that’s the cost of the surgery itself. To outline a few milestones though, I need $3,500 to schedule a surgery date and $9,200 will be my portion after insurance covers 60%. Regardless of how much I can raise here, any amount would be very much appreciated.

This surgery means the world to me—it’s not just about aligning my body with who I am but about finally being able to live fully and confidently. Your generosity, whether through donations or sharing this campaign, will make a profound difference in helping me achieve this dream.

Thank you for being part of my journey and for supporting me in this life-affirming step.