[Elissa-FinallyAChick]

So I have been on HRT for 25 months now. Supervised HRT, not self-medding.

In the beginning I was on Androcur and oral Estradiol. 

Now for the last 5 months I have been on transdermally administered Estradiol ( patches ) . The dose I get is 50 microgram / 24 hours. Which is a low dose. 
But a transition dose for me it turns out to be.

Blood results are good :

77 pg/ml Estradiol 
22 ng/dl Total testosterone 
1 ng/dl Free testosterone 

Female ranges. 

I leave the old patch on while applying a new one. My doctor doesn’t mind. It helps with hormonal fluctuations in between replacement of patches.

So what this thread is actually about :

Transition surgeries.

I have paid for my breast augmentation already. It has been scheduled.

Now I’m looking into GRS. I have come to realise that GRS is a necessity for my mental health. I have been realising this more and more in the past year. I hate my penis and could never come to accept it as a part of my body. It causes me mental distress : during sex , during showers, when I’m putting on my clothes,... The penis causes me anxiety. I want it to be flat and smooth down there. 
I have come to realise that I don’t want to have to dilate for the rest of my life. It’s merely the mental relief of no longer having a bulge and no longer having a penis down there that I’m looking for. As well as prefering how a vagina would look on my body than how a penis looks. 
I hate erections. They have always caused me mental pain. 
I would feel relieved if my genitalia were reassigned cosmetically, like they always should have looked from the start. 

I have been thinking about going for minimal-depth GRS. I would get to have a sensitive clitoris ( I know the risk of loss of sensation and could live with that ) and normal labias. The cavity is not all that important to me.
I’m not a lesbian. I’m a straight trans woman. However, I am of the opinion that the right man will love me for me and will work with what I have.
There are enough women out there who can’t have vaginal intercourse. There are 101 things to work around that. 
Anal is still an option, I could still receive cunnilingus, there is 2 inches of minimal depth in the cosmetic version, so he could finger me as well.
The dysphoria that erections cause me when I’m aroused, would no longer be a problem.
I wouldn’t have to suffer the look of a bulge down there and would no longer have to tuck. I wouldn’t have to dilate. There would be no risk for a vaginal fistula. The recovery would be a lot quicker. There would be more tissue to work with to create the vulva, as there wouldn’t have to be used a portion for the vaginal lining. 

An orchiectomy could not alleviate my dysphoria. The thing would still be there and it needs to go. 
A full-vaginoplasty would likely heal over because I don’t have the will to dilate for the rest of my life. 
I find the vulva very important, not the vaginal cavity. The vulva is what I am after. The cavity would be a bonus.

I am very pleased with the changes that HRT brought me. Despite having started at age 19, 3 months before I turned 20, I still have seen widening of my hip bones, not just fat deposits. I started passing around the 7 month mark and won’t need FFS. I got away with minimal electrolysis as I barely had any facial hair to start with. Speech therapy wasn’t necessary as I already had a very feminine voice from my own. 
My length has not been a problem since I am only 5 feet 6. Thin arms. 
My feet are a bit larger but not terribly so. 
I have seen good breast growth ( full B-cups ) but I’m still going to get a breast augmentation because I want more cleavage and I would love to correct the assymetry. I also love how implants can round the breast shape.

For my breast augmentation I have decided to get it done here in Belgium with 
wellnesskliniek and have luckily already been able to pay for it.

For my gender reassignment surgery or my bottom surgery I’m leaning towards doctor R.K Mishra. 

www.mycosmeticsurgery.in 

Doctor Mishra has great credentials. Has worked with US surgeons in Texas. Asks extensive therapy letters which I find a great thing because I have no problem with being evaluated by therapists as I kind of fit the narrative and am a very open person. I love talking about my feelings and thoughts. I’m very honest as well. 

So doctor Mishra charges 152000 Indian Rupees, VAT included.
I calculated that with airfare, hotel stay, hospital bills, surgeons fee, anaesthesia fee, medication and necessary hygiene stuff ( iso-betadine, dilators - because the opening of the urethrae needs to be dilated for the first 6 months even with cosmetic GRS -  , sanitary napkins, percocet ) , tourist visa , hair removal on the perineum for a smooth vulva, therapist letters and personal expenses the GRS in India would cost me 7100$ USD. 

Which is still much cheaper than in the Westearn world. He works from the SIPS Superspeciality Hospital so I would be operated on in a safe environment with experienced staff. 
Doctor Mishra has a lot of photos from his work on his website which I also liked. I checked his credentials that he earned over the years.

I am going alone to India to have the operation done. I am planning to go around March 2020. For my 24th birthday. I’m turning 22 next month so still have a bit of time to save up. 

Does anyone have any experiences with going overseas for gender reassignment surgery? 
Bottom surgery for MtFs more specifically. Penile inversion vaginoplasty without scrotal skin graft and without depth. I am going for a cosmetic version of the GRS. 

I would love to hear about your experiences with getting GRS overseas. 

How many MtFs here are like me, on a budget for their surgeries?

Thanks,
Elissa

[Katie]

To be honest hun, there aren`t many transitioned and active TS girls on here anymore, and fewer waiting for SRS, in fact I think it`s just you and I that fit that criteria at the moment, unless there Is more and they`re all shy! LOL

for me, Being in the U.K, I`m waiting for the NHS to come through with my GIC appointment, I`v already been on HRT for over 2 years and living full time for over a year, all legal docs name and title changed and completely socially transitioned too. here if I manage to pass the gatekeepers assesment, and having already lived fulltime for over a year and been HRT, I`m Hoping they`ll just fast track me to the surgical waiting list since I`v met all their criteria and jumped through all their hoops that I can already.

I`ll look forwards to following your journey here, I always like back-up plans, so if the NHS lets me down, I may have to fund my own SRS as well, so you`ll have to let me know how you get on! xx