Whether you are transgender, transsexual, genderqueer, non-gendered, or you fall anywhere else within the spectrum of gender diversity, or perhaps you are currently questioning your gender, your health is of upmost importance, but finding individuals who are experienced or understanding is often somewhat of a daunting task.
Perhaps one of the best resources in Montana for individuals of gender diversity is MontanaTDOR, who have taken the initiative to work with healthcare professionals, mental healthcare providers, lgbt organizations, and many other business professionals throughout the state of Montana and beyond in an initiative to provide a better tomorrow for those of gender diversity.
Looking for a doctor, a therapist, a hair removal specialist, etc?
MontanaTDOR
currently has a trans-friendly resource guide for the State of Montana, which can be found here.
Looking for resources on how to legally change your name in Montana?
MontanaTDOR currently has a trans-friendly guide which explains the name change process and provides you with the tools you need for a successful name change, which can be found here.
If you have questions about the guide, or about additional resources, etc., please feel free to contact MontanaTDOR at (406)848-1220 or by email at info@montanatdor.org
Looking for Resources outside of Montana?
MontanaTDOR works with professionals across the nation to provide better trans care for all. If you are looking for resources outside of Montana, please do not hesitate to contact them at any time.
Trans Resources at the Center
Missoula has an active and supportive communitty for persons who identify as a gender other than that assigned to them from their sex at birth. Many persons fit this broad category which ranges from those who are transsexual to those who like to cross-dress at home or out in the world. Transgender after all means to "trans" or go across the gender lines which society has defined.
The Montana Gender Alliance, a program of MontanaTDOR, runs a bi-weekly support and discussion group in Missoula for individuals of gender diversity, their families and allies. MGA also provides groups in Helena, and soon in Bozeman.
If you would be interested in additional information, or if you are interested in joining the group, please email Bree.Sutherland@gaymontana.org or call MontanaTDOR at (406)848-1220 and ask for Bree.
Print versions of the MontanaTDOR Transgender Resource Guide are also available at no cost at the Center, along with a host of other trans-positive resources throughout Missoula and Western Montana.
Medication Resources & Assistance
Often, medications are difficult for individuals of gender diversity to access, and as many insurance companies more often than not do not cover many of the costs associated with transition, including but not limited to medication.
For this reason, we want to provide you with the knowledge and knowhow to get your medications for a reasonable price.
As of current, the most reasonable pharmacy we have found in our research is Stroheckers Compounding Pharmacy based out of Portland, Oregon. They compound most of their own medications including testosterone, estrogen and progesterone injectables, oral estrogens and progesterones, troches, etc. and transfer the savings on to their customers.
Visit them at http://www.stroheckersrx.com/ or give them a call 1-503-222-4822
A Brief Introduction to the
Transgender Experience
Approximately 3-5% of the population have had significant feelings of discomfort about their gender identity (gender dysphoria), crossdress or are transsexual. Yup, that is one heck of a lot of people, the Guess clothing company knows, check their multi-million dollar ads and you'll find gender blending on every glossy page.
So who is this highly visible yet unrecognized population? Here is a quick guide to some of the types of folks who live within the spectrum of transgendered experience.
To identify as transgendered (tg) in the broadest sense is to have significant feelings and expressions of the gender characteristics and roles normally assigned by society to persons with the genitals which don't match your own.
Transvestites (tv), and crossdressers (cd), fit in here, they like to wear the clothing of and sometimes present in public as if they were members of the opposite sex. For the majority of crossdressing males this is often a stay at home activity. Females can publicly wear the clothing of males without great risk of physical or social harm. An average male does not, at least in Montana, show up at work in anything too pink, lacy or “soft.” Oh, and most all men who crossdress, off the runway anyway, are by preference heterosexual. Drag Queens by preference are gay enjoying the fun of the other side of the clothing store and stage performances.
A transsexual (ts) identifies completely as the gender opposite of their birth assignment and desire to live on the other side permanently. This is true for born females who wish to be men (female to male or ftm), and males who want reassignment to become female (male to female or mtf). A transsexual wants not to just “pass” as the other gender, but to be and live full time as the other gender. This process of moving from one gender to another is called transition and the ultimate goal for most is sexual reassignment surgery (srs).
Srs for both directions, ftm and mtf, involves a process that may take 3-4 years or longer. It begins with counseling by a therapist familiar with gender issues. This counselor and a second therapist, usually a clinical psychologist, are the “gatekeepers” to the real beginning of physical changes. Trained counselors, physicians, and surgeons who work in this field are guided by the World Professional Association for Transgender Health (WPATH) The Standards of Care are internationally accepted and used by all reputable clinics and practitioners.
If it is mutually agreed between client and therapists that Gender Reassignment is likely appropriate, the Transperson begins their first physical change, hormone replacement therapy (hrt).
After beginning hormones, at least one year must be spent in a Real Life Test (rlt) where the T lives full time in their new gender. This offers the Transperson the opportunity to see if they can live successfully in their new gender identity. The rlt is a major step involving legal name changes, adjustments in work, family, and social life, as well as a myriad of internal learnings.
After completing the rlt, and on approval of the treating therapists, the T can then pursue Gender Reassignment Surgery (grs). These surgeries permanently alter the bodies primary (genital) and secondary (breast, face, torso) sexual characteristics. There are several clinics in the U.S. and abroad that specialize in these surgeries. For a list of these facilities, as well as reports of personal experiences, please check the site maintained by Dr. Anne Lawrence, MD of Seattle at the Transsexual Women's Resource Pages . While these resources are primarily for mtf surgical centers, many of them also include ftm reassignment. For resources for ftm surgeries, please consult FTM Information Network or Hudson's Guide.
The process for learning about life does not stop after surgery as each transperson finds their unique place in life. Some choose to blend in and find a life where their “other life” is hidden. Others choose to stay involved in the transsexual community working for social justice and for mutual support.
What the Research Says
An increasing body of research indicates that there are neurological differences in a transsexual personas brain which may explain why they just don't feel like their genitally assigned body matches who they are.
Transsexuals live with the highest level of gender dysphoria, which takes its toll in depression, guilt, shame, and anxiety. More than 50% of T’s attempt suicide, sometimes by placing themselves in harms way by choosing to participate in high risk activities.
It has been estimated that approximately 30% to 50% of persons who identify as Transsexual do not live past the age of 30, mostly because of suicide. In story after story in conversations with transsexuals you hear of the choice many make between coming out and beginning transition or suicide.
The desire for gender change is strong, it is permanent and no amount of therapy of any known type has yet proven effective in eliminating the transsexual identity.
Attempts to change a transsexual to be “normal” can be and have been lethal for some. For the true transsexual the only known helpful process is outlined by the Benjamin Standards: hormone therapy, corrective surgery, and life coaching through the transition into a gender that is congruent both inside and outside.
One of the most difficult struggles for a T or any other transgendered person is dealing with their family and social group. Many people do not come out of their closets, literally sometimes, until middle age or until after they are married and with children. It is very important that a t person seek assistance with their situation for themselves and their family.
There are now both local and international resources for all transgendered persons, their spouses, children and parents. Locally, MontanaTDOR serves the trans and gender variant communities throughout Montana with its trans-inclusive programming, resources, and trainings as well as its chapters of the Montana Gender Alliance.
All About The Surgeries
During SRS the body is surgically altered to simulate the genitals of the gender of choice. The process is a significantly more satisfactory in both appearance and function for MTF patients than for FTM patients.
The following includes excerpts from a book by Melanie Anne Phillips, Everything You Always Wanted to Know About Transsexuals:
“Contrary to popular belief, the penis is not amputated during SRS. Rather, the internal penile tissue is mostly removed, but the outer skin is left attached, inverted and inserted into the body inside out as the new vagina.
Here is how it happens. Once the patient has been prepped, sedated, wheeled into the operating room and anesthetized, the doctor slits the skin of the penis lengthwise from the head or glans down to the base on the underside. The skin is then peeled away from around the penis, but since the slit only opened the penis, the base of the skin is still attached.
The penile skin is then turned inside out, much like one might turn a sock inside out. When this is done, the slit is stitched back together, creating an inverted penis, which will ultimately form the new vagina.
Before this occurs, a rather miraculous, yet simple procedure is performed. Earlier, when the internal penile tissue was removed, a small stub of tissue was left behind, still attached. This is erectile tissue, which becomes stiff when stimulated, and also carries sexual sensation.
A tiny slit, perhaps a half-inch in length, is made in the new, inverted penis near the base where it is still attached. The stub of erectile tissue is pushed through the slit, forming the equivalent of a clitoris, and providing the opportunity for complete orgasm and sexual satisfaction after surgery. In addition, a second tiny slit is made below the one for the clitoris. The urinary tube is rerouted to this second slit to create a typical female urinary opening.
Once this procedure has been accomplished, the skin and muscles of the lower abdomen are lifted up with surgical instruments, providing a gap near the pelvic bone. The inverted penis is pushed into the gap, still attached at the base, so that it hinges down and into the proper location for a vagina.
To allow for proper vaginal contractions later, some of the abdominal muscles are repositioned around the new vagina so that they can squeeze in on it, both by conscious control and also automatically during orgasm. The primary vaginoplasty surgery takes between 3-5 hours.
The new vagina is filled with surgical gauze to maintain shape, and then anchored in place with a thin surgical wire which enters the abdomen from the outside, runs under the pelvic bone, through the new vagina, back up around the pelvic bone and out the abdomen again. Once the vagina has healed in place, which takes approximately seven days, the wire is removed by the surgeon, who simply slips it out.”
After this initial procedure to form the vagina, create a clitoris, and rearrange the urinary tract, there are weeks of recovery and a dilation routine to enlarge the neo-vagina to its final dimensions. A second procedure is often then performed to create the additional labia tissue.
The surgical procedures for FTM’s often starts with a chest reconstruction surgery, the removal of almost all breast tissue, reduction and relocation of the aureole and nipple to more reasonably resemble a male chest. The results of these procedures can be amazingly acceptable and they are the most common surgical correction sought by most FTMs.
The surgeries to create an aesthetically appealing and functional penis are still a long way from perfected. There are procedures to use extensive skin grafting from arm and leg skin to create a penis, which can hold the urethra, but alas there have been no successes at creating erectile tissue. For many the appearance of these neo-penises is often not worth the longer surgery time, 10-12 hours, and the costs which are often 2 times greater than those for MTF patients. Many FTM persons experience an enlargement of their clitoral tissue once they are on the male hormone regime. With another surgical technique, called a clitoral release, the clitoris can expand even further forming an aesthetically appealing although small penis looking organ.
To view current information on many aspects of MTF transsexual surgery, hormone therapy, and view results from various surgeons, click here go to Dr. Anne Lawerence's Web site. To get current information about FTM surgeries, hormone therapy, and view surgical results, click here to go to the Female to Male Resource Network Page
Online Resources
Information coming soon. Wish to submit online resources for this page? Please email Bree at bree.sutherland@gaymontana.org for more information.
