Transgender Teen Survival Guide

Asked by Anonymous

Lee says:

I don’t think it would put your top surgery in jeopardy from a purely surgical perspective. It might make things a little harder for the surgeon because extensive or deep scarring could impact blood flow and sensation, and scar tissue is harder to work with, but it should still be possible- as long as all the scars are healed and not fresh.

So if it is extensive deep scarring you should discuss it with your top surgeon when you have your consultation to get their assessment- we aren’t medical professionals, so it’s best to consult with them about your particular situation, and I can’t guarantee that surgeons won’t turn you down.

But even if it’s medically possible to get top surgery, you may find that self-harm will delay your surgery anyway because you usually need a letter from a therapist/mental health professional saying you’re mentally stable and capable enough to get surgery. So if you’re self-harming, they will want you to wait to get surgery until you’re not doing risky self-injurious things so it’s best to try to wean yourself off from self-harming.

I’m saying this from personal experience as someone who had my top surgery letter delayed as a result of my mental health. One thing that helped me not self-harm on my chest was picturing how it would look after top surgery- I wouldn’t want to have those reminders on my new chest post-op, so that might be motivation to help you stop.

If you are still self-harming, you should try to stop doing so, both for your general health and to ensure a smooth top surgery process. Here is a post with suicide hotlines and mental health services, and I encourage you to reach out if you need help.

Self-harm stuff:

• Work on stopping self-harming actions. When you feel like hurting yourself, try these things: Draw on your body where you want to hurt yourself, rub ice on your body where you want to hurt yourself, do the same thing you want to do to yourself to an object (if you want to cut yourself, cut paper up), do one of the above distracting activities, scream into a pillow (it sounds silly but it can really help), take a cold bath or shower, snap rubber bands on your wrist (harm reduction), or listen to loud music
• Also, to prevent self harming in the first place: Unfollow blogs on tumblr that post about self harm, throw away any “tools” that you use to hurt yourself, hang out in public places like libraries (it’s harder to hurt yourself in public than when you’re alone), follow “recovery” blogs on tumblr, or work on a skin care routine (put energy into helping your body instead of hurting it).
• Pros and cons of crisis behavior (Worksheet)
• Self-Injury Recovery
• Reducing self-harm
• Self-harm coping tips and distractions
• How to Recovery from Self-Injury
• Steps to self-harm recovery
• Alternatives to self-harm and distraction techniques
• Understanding self injury
• More alternatives to self harm
• Safety Plan
• Self-Injury Support: 1-800-DONT CUT (1-800-366-8288) (www.selfinjury.com)
• CalmHarm (app)