Trans in TN! Help Me Complete My Medical Transition

Hi! My name is Calaghan! I’m a 37 year old trans man born and raised in Chattanooga, Tennessee. These past few years of transitioning in my hometown have been the very best years of my life. My sober and queer communities have given me things I couldn’t find on my own: agency, safety, and joy.

These haven’t been easy years. Choosing myself has meant leaving behind my family of origin. It has required difficult financial decisions, and humility. But in early 2024, it felt like a lot of the work - and joy - was paying off. I reached a place where I felt ready to proceed with the final stages of my transition: bottom surgery! I began slowly planning this enormous event.

Then the election happened, and it changed the calculus on everything. Before, I was planning a difficult thing in hospitable soil. The day after the election, I remember thinking how different it was to consider recovery from surgery in a place that seems actively hostile.

It’s unclear what impact the new president will have on access to gender affirming care, including surgeries, over the next little bit. People like me, who depend on Affordable Care Act policies for our transitional care, have been losing sleep. And even if access to care remains stable, many of us are forced to consider the possibility that we’ll soon have to uproot the lives we’ve been building, and attempt to start again in more hospitable locations, where our networks, knowledge, and resources may be limited.

For these reasons, in consultation with my friends, community, and surgical team, I am planning to begin the series of bottom surgeries as early as possible, in May of 2025. With good luck, we should be able to complete everything by March of 2026.

While the bulk of the surgery is covered by my current insurance plan, there are (2) two specific out of pocket costs that remain barriers to accessing the care for me.

The first is electrolysis. I must complete hair removal of the surgical site prior to phase 1 in May. This means up-front, out of pocket payments to the electrologist, as well as gas to neighboring cities; all while taking unpaid days of leave from work.

The second is rent during the months of recovery. For approximately 2 months after Phase 1, and 1 month after Phase 2, I can expect to have limited or no working capacity; and no paid leave during my total down times. I live paycheck to paycheck now, and at no point in sobriety have I ever earned enough to save up for an eventuality like this.

Thats why I’ve set up this GoFundMe. If both of these costs can be met, the barriers to access are removed, and I can (joyfully! Hopefully!) complete these surgeries before any ACA changes can be made. Ideally, my trans siblings and I will never have to leave Chattanooga; but if that day comes, I hope I can at least have myself in a body that is correct, healed, and ready to move forward.

For transparency, I’ve written a breakdown of how collected donations would be spent:

3200$: 16 sessions of electrology, at 200$ a piece

3600$: 3 months rent at 1200$ each, for May-June 2025, and September 2025

6800$ total

Any amount you can donate would be a blessing, and appreciated more than you can know! Whether you can donate or not, I hope you will share this story with your community. Thank you so much ~ with love, Calaghan