Transgender Teen Survival Guide

Asked by Anonymous

Lee says:

This question reminded me of this pamphlet I saw once (I used to have a lot of pamphlets). 

Anyway, I think you should tell them before they do the physical examination, so sometime when you’re both in the room sitting down. They’ll want to check your weight and blood pressure, and listen to your heart and lungs, and if they ask to start doing that, you should say you have something to bring up first, then come out. 

If you have a different legal name/birth name than your chosen name, you can introduce yourself with a variation on “By the way, I go by (chosen name), and I’d appreciate if you called me that instead of (legal name) which is my legal name used on official documents. I use (pronouns here), and I’m (trans identity here)”.

When you come out if you’ve already changed your name and stuff, you’ll want to say something like “I’m (x identity) and that means I was born as (X sex) and I have (socially/medically) transitioned by (coming out/hormones/surgery/etc), and I would appreciate if you used (pronouns) to refer to me.” This is not how you’d ever talk to someone you’re just meeting in general, but you want to have a smooth doctor’s visit, so you’re probably going to use some language that they’ll understand to make it easier on them but isn’t what you’d normally choose to say.

For folks who have time to order a card in advance: http://www.qcardproject.com/

• Medical Emergency Planning Tips for Transgender and Gender Non-Conforming People 
  

You should be prepared to answer awk/invasive questions about your body and medical history. They usually are 70% doing their job, and 30% curious because they likely don’t have much experience with trans people, at least judging from what I’ve personally encountered.

They’ll probably ask the usual doctor questions and some trans ones like..

• What is your AXAB? 
  
• They will use different terms but basically, they want to know what your genitals were like when you were born, and if you’re intersex.
• Have you started hormone replacement therapy, and if not, do you plan to do so in the future?
  
• Have you gotten gender confirmation surgery, and if not, do you plan to do so in the future?
  
• GRS is also known as sex reassignment surgery, gender reassignment surgery, genital reconstruction surgery, sex realignment surgery, or “The Trans Surgery, Y’know, The Trans One”
• Are you looking for any trans-specific resources, like endocrinologists, urologists or surgeons?
  
• Do you use protection if you have sex? (They may also ask if you’re in a relationship, or refer you to a clinic if you want to be tested for STDs and they don’t do it there)
  
• Do you menstruate regularly/is your period usually on time (if that is something your body does)
  
• Have you ever been pregnant?
  
• Do you experience depression or other mental illnesses, and have you experienced them in the past?
• Do you exercise or do physical activity regularly? 
  
• Have you experienced heart problems. blood clots, or any swelling, or high or low blood pressure or high blood sugar? (They may also want to test for something like this.)
  
• How much do you weigh, and what is your height?
• If you have any triggers related to your weight and don’t know you weight or don’t want to be informed, just tell them you’d rather face away from the scale and not be told your weight. 
• Have you had any medical problems or health issues in the past or any currently occurring?
  
• Are you up to date on your vaccinations?
  

These articles are about what to expect when going to a new doctor in general, and aren’t trans specific, but they may still be helpful.

• What to expect at your first doctor’s visit 
• Preparing for your first appointment 
• How to Maximize a Doctor Visit
• What Your Doctor Recommends When You Visit
• 10 Things Transgender Persons Should Discuss With Their Health Care Providers
  

Followers, anything to add?