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Hey, may I ask what size binder you bought from GC2B?

I believe I bought a medium.

[a-tymoony-blog]

if you’re going to talk shit about people working certain professions you shouldn’t get to benefit from their work.

talk shit about cashiers? go to the self checkout or get out.

talk shit about fast food workers? make your own damn food at home.

talk shit about janitors + cleaning staff? live in filth.

talk shit about garbage collectors? drag your bags to the dump yourself.

talk shit about plumbers, electricians, + construction workers? fix your own damn house.

you shouldn’t be able to devalue the work that certain people do and degrade them for doing it while still benefiting from that work on a daily basis.

[a-tymoony-blog]

Choosing a top surgeon

So it’s often difficult to pick your surgeon for top surgery. It feels like so much rides on making the right decision - so it might be helpful to ask these questions when thinking about who you’d like to do your operation!

N.b: This is assuming the surgeons you’re considering are all legitimate and have experience with trans surgeries

- Where are they based? Can you get there and back easily? What if there’s a change of plan and the person you asked to drive you home can’t make it - what’s public transport like?

- Will you need to stay over night? Do you want to stay over night?

- What’s the hospitals policies on visitors and do they fit your needs?

- How ready is the surgeon to do revisions if you feel you want one?

- Does the surgeon use drains/a post op binder? Do you want drains/a post op binder?

- Is the hospital equipped for any religious needs you have?

- Does the surgeon usually have results that look optimal in your opinion? Some want very thin scars, some want them a certain shape etc - is your idea of a “good” result the same as the surgeons?

- Is the surgeon used to operating on your body type? So often I see bigger guys go to surgeons who get their best results on smaller guys - and they’re disappointed when the results aren’t what they hoped. Different surgeons are more adept with different body types - pick one who’s able to work with yours.

Use these questions to decide who to book a consultation with. Remember that booking a consultation does not commit you to that surgeon - and you can always have multiple consultations!

[a-tymoony-blog]

10 Tips to Reduce Intramuscular Testosterone Injection Pain

1. Find injection sites that work for you (“sweet spots”) and rotate them. The deltoid (arm), vastus lateralis (thigh), and ventrogluteal (hip/butt) muscles are acceptable sites for IM injections. The common dorsogluteal injection site is no longer recommended. (Doing T shots in your butt? Read this.)

2. Choose your gear wisely. Use a needle that is long enough to penetrate deep into the muscle. Use a larger gauge needle for drawing up, then switch to a smaller gauge needle to inject.

3. Shorten your cycle. If you’re injecting every 14 days, you might try moving to a 7 day cycle to see if injecting the smaller volume helps minimize pain.

4. Re-visit your injection technique. Air-lock or Z-track? Are you injecting straight in or does the trajectory of the needle shift during injection? Fast or slow? Small tweaks to your technique might provide big wins in reducing post-injection pain.

5. Warm up and relax. Have a hot shower or bath before your injection to warm up the injection site. While injecting, keep the muscle relaxed (and unflexed.)

6. Warm up your T. too! Hold the vial in a closed fist for a couple of minutes, run it under hot water or place it on a baseboard heater for a minute to warm the T. to room temperature or a little higher. Warm oil in a warm muscle will produce less pain than cold oil in a cold muscle!

7. After sterilizing the injection site with alcohol, let the skin dry. Penetrating the skin with the needle before the alcohol has evaporated can cause a stinging pain sensation.

8. Apply manual pressure to the injection site for 10 seconds before your injection. Be sure to maintain sterility!

9. After your injection, reduce pain and swelling by applying topical Arnica gel or cream, and then ice the injection site.

10. Some people swear by it, so massage the site after injection if you think it helps!

Excerpt from 10 Ways to Make Intramuscular Testosterone Injections Less Painful: A review of scientific studies sets the record straight on minimizing post-injection pain from IM injections.

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The facial hair, just wrapping up week 8 back on T

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I’m raising money to start my transition. If you don’t have any money please share. And if you do have money and need it more than I do please don’t donate. I hope we’ll be able to be ourselves one day. Thank you! 

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Why do you even care about trans women? You're not even one of them.

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If this isn’t me idk what is 😂😂

butches and trans dudes should all just … be friends….. we’re all in this together yall

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I love my dad so much..that man over here making me wanna cry.

[a-tymoony-blog]

Dysphoria Tips Masterpost

Emery, Lee, and Charlie say:

Hey, everyone! Dysphoria is a real pain in the butt to deal with, and we know it can be difficult to find ways to lessen it or distract yourself from it. You don’t need to have dysphoria to be transgender, but many trans people do have dysphoria. And, gender dysphoria (for those who have it) sucks. 

Since we get a lot of asks from people who are looking for tips to help manage their dysphoria, we thought we would make a masterpost to help everyone out. So, this is some added advice from the mods on coping with it! The key is distraction, and trying to remember that it will get better one day. Here we go!

General Tips

Making a music playlist of your favorite songs! 

You can also explore new music on YouTube, or check out some CDs from your local library.

We had a whole assortment of recommendations a while ago for music that helps people when they feel dysphoric because they can sing along. You could try to sing along to music, or lip synch if that makes you feel better, or just listen to your fav songs!

Cleaning or tidying and/or doing laundry; doing something to make your environment/surroundings better can also give you a sense of accomplishment.

Name and pronoun affirmations 

You can make yourself some cards with your name and pronouns on them and carry them with you, or doodle in a notebook or make virtual edits and/or ask supportive friends and family to verbally participate in these affirmations

Wearing clothes that you feel good in (shoes, hats, dresses, sweaters, accessories etc.)

Taking up a hobby that you find enjoyable (skateboarding, making bracelets, writing, learning a new language, playing an instrument, joining a tabletop gaming club, etc.)

Watching YouTube videos (let’s-plays are Emery’s fav, and Lee likes music videos)

Dyeing your hair and/or getting a haircut (this can make you feel like a million bucks). 

Info on getting short hair is here for transmasc people!

Transfemme people could try buying some cute hairclips or headbands from CVS or another store, which are small enough to easily hide if you’re in the closet.

Check out our dysphoria tag! You’ll see other suggestions on things to do, and Qs from other people who are dysphoric. Remember, you aren’t alone.

Journal about how you feel. 

You could have one journal for negative things, because it feels good to get them out, and another journal for positivity and notes to yourself. Or you could write everything all in one place, it’s up to you. 

You could also post on a private sideblog, or type in notes on your phone if you don’t have access to a physical journal

Practice some grounding/calming/meditation techniques.

Soothing grounding exercise 

Physical grounding exercise

Mental grounding exercise

Grounding techniques 

It’s a good idea to do something that makes you feel extra valid as your gender, like packing, binding, tucking, and wearing breast forms.

Maybe trans feminine individuals could put on makeup, or clear nail polish, or use flower-scented body wash when they shower. We have info on tucking here.

Trans masculine people could put on a button up, or masculine-coded clothing, or make a beard with makeup. We have info on binding without a binder here, and packing without a packer here.

Practicing Self-care, ex. taking a bath with a bath bomb (if that doesn’t induce dysphoria) to wind down.  Maybe having tea and going to bed early?

You feel like sh*t: interactive self care

Talking to and getting in touch with other trans friends/people you may know, who will understand what you’re going through and are willing to support you is important!

If you don’t have a GSA at your school, PFLAG meetings in a nearby town, or any other local LGBT support groups, online community can be helpful too.

Take a walk and/or exercise a bit!! Even if you’re unable to do that because of disabilities, get some fresh air and new scenery if you can.

Find little things to appreciate about your body, or try not to think about it at all. Remember, this is about what helps you best, and it’s different for everyone.

Spend time with a pet, if you have one!

Try to work on planning your transition. Have a goal, and plan how you’ll get there.

Gather information about legally changing your name where you live when you turn 18 or the age of legal adulthood, read up on the effects of hormones, look at different surgery techniques and surgeons and prices, etc. We have info on some of the above in our transfeminine and transmasculine resource pages.

Start saving money now, even if it’s only a few dollars a month, or a few coins. When you turn 18, you’ll be informed and ready to start your transition, even if it involves saving money for a few years after to be able to afford it if your insurance doesn’t cover it fully. It’s possible, and you can do it! 

Watch other people’s transition videos, and read their transition blogs. Again, this may help or make it worse, but you will be better prepared.

Go to your local public library and read a book, if you can! That might distract you, and it can be either fun or educational or both. 

You can also see if they have any programs/events coming up, or see if they have any museum/zoo passes you could check out.

Listen to music, wear comfy clothes, curl up with a blanket, and chill out. Be cozy!

Have a countdown until you’re 18 (you could use an app or write it in a calendar) or a countdown until you’re able to get a new shirt, or whatever you’re looking forward to. Countdowns can be motivating.

Get organized! Clean things, sort through your things, make lists of what you need to do, color code, or whatever you want. It’ll help take your mind off things, and you’ll be helping yourself later.

Make your own Activity list of things you can do to help with dysphoria or distract yourself. Try to include as many healthy options as you can!

Include 3 things minimum that you know you’ll be able to do, like putting on affirming underwear or going on a walk for example, but make sure it’s three things specifically that you can do. 

Include 3 goals you will have to work harder to do, like maybe exercising or filling out a DBT or CBT worksheet.

Tips For When Dysphoria Makes You Want To Self-Harm

Holding an ice cube in your hand

Writing in a journal (it can be extremely therapeutic)

Listening to music

Playing a video game (a puzzle game or fighting game might be particularly helpful since they require a lot of concentration)

Going for a walk (exercise can produce feel-good endorphins in your brain)

Watching a funny youtube video or doing tongue-twisters (laughter also produces endorphins)

Taking a hot shower (they’re particularly great for relieving tension)

Practicing breathing techniques (inhale for 8 seconds, hold for 4 seconds, exhale for 8 seconds and Belly breathing)

Drinking tea (something like chamomile, mint, or peppermint is best)

Coloring (I personally really like ones that feature Disney characters!)

You can google “Coloring pages” and just print some out! I (Lee) like mandalas

Reach out to a friend or family member; they can distract you, and it’s harder to do anything when you’re in the company of others.

We have more info on coping when you want to self-harm here.

YouTube Videos That Talk About Dysphoria

FTM ~ what is dysphoria (uppercaseCHASE1, white transman YouTuber)

NON-BINARY DYSPHORIA?? (OutOfThisBinary, a channel run by several nonbinary YouTubers)

HOW I MANAGED DYSPHORIA (Kat Blaque, black trans woman YouTuber)

QAC 26 - Gender Dsyphoria: It’s Complicated. (a rant) (QueerAsCat, black afab nonbinary YouTuber)

DRAW MY LIFE (princessjoules, Vietnamese trans woman YouTuber) Tw: mentions of transphobia and abuse

Articles and Posts About How To Deal With Dysphoria

Dysphoria when you have to sleep

Dysphoria when you have to go swimming

Dysphoria that prevents you from leaving the house/doing activities of daily living

Disablity-friendly dysphoria tips

A coping tip

Body neutrality

Dysphoria while at camp

Motivating yourself to socialize

Calming down when you can’t correct people who deadname you

Overcoming invalidation

Staying clean when you have dysphoria about showering

Shower dysphoria

WikiHow to cope with gender dysphoria

9 strategies for dealing with body dysphoria

25 Things I Do To Make My Body Dysphoria Feel Smaller and Quieter

More on coping with dysphoria

Dealing with dysphoria

A post with suggestions for coping with dysphoria

5 Ways to Support a Trans Person Experiencing Body Dysphoria (everydayfeminism.com) Tw: mentions of alcohol abuse and suicidal ideation

20 Small Things To Do When Gender Dysphoria Gets You Down (buzzfeed.com) Tw: self-harm mention, period mention, “biological sex” mention

How do I deal with dysphoria (Neutrois Nonsense) Tw: use of trans*

Transfeminine-Specific

Transfeminine Dysphoria Tips

More dysphoria tips

Hip dysphoria

Transfeminine Period Dyphoria

Having sex or masturbating

In-the-closet transfeminine dysphoria tips

More in-the-closet transfeminine dysphoria tips

Transfeminine resource page

Songs

Virtual makeover

Dysphoria about not being able to birth a child

Transfeminine resources

Height dysphoria

Transmasculine-Specific

Transmasculine dysphoria

Dysphoria when you have to wear a dress

Dysphoria and periods

Masturbation with dysphoria

Transmasculine resources

Binding without a binder

Height dysphoria

Hip dysphoria

Non-binary specific:

How to feel more androgynous

Mix and Match Androgynous Swimwear For People Of Any Gender

Practical Androgyny

Formal Tips for Nonbinary Cuties

Activewear for the androgyne aesthetic

Take care of your mental health! You can try getting a therapist and being in therapy, and take a peek at a few of the things below:

Awareness of unhealthy thinking styles

Distress tolerance skills

Distress tolerance activities

Panic list for distress tolerance

Improving distress

How to make a comfort box

Emotion regulation skills

Emotion regulation worksheet

Problem goal framework

Mindfulness of your current emotion

Letting Go of Painful Emotions

Vicious cycle and alternatives

What will help?

Positive self-talk

Self-validation

Behavioral Activation

STOPP worksheet

Triggers

Coping with dissociation

Handling dissociation

10 Tips on How to Work Through Feelings of Social Isolation

An interactive self-care guide

Anxiety Masterpost

Check our Mental health page for tips on dealing with specific issues

Distract yourself! Watch TV, play video games, or do craft, or waste a few minutes on one of the websites below:

Social Dysphoria: The Game

tap the keyboard to play the piano (Tw: flashing lights)

listen to rain

cute little games

click on the ad to donate food to pet shelters

free rice.com

NASA pic of the day

gibberish essay typer for fun

military time clock that changes color

play echogenesis (basically click on stuff and listen to music)

make designs

drag your mouse for an expressionist painting

this website just says “heeey” and “hoo” repeatedly

do nothing for 2 minutes

look at calming scenes and listen to relaxing music

sound effect drums

dramatic music plays while the things you type fall off into space

click on the boxes to make electronic music

comic asteroids explode

colorful sand layers

whale follows your cursor

watch indie movies

rabbit: watch netflix online with a friend

watch netflix with a friend

find the song that was playing in that show/movie

How to Download Songs or other Audio from Tumblr

infinite jukebox

play all the music posted on a tumblr blog

code academy: learn to code

learn a new language

learn new stuff

learn sign language

draw something or edit pics

make homemade playdough

make stress balls

print mandalas to color

cool crafts

Our Suicide Hotlines and Crisis Resources is a list of places you could contact to talk to someone if you’re feeling suicidal. Please, reach out and get help. We can’t answer suicidal asks, but we care about you.

Reblog this and tell us how you deal with dysphoria!

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Not only is it a pain for those who use wheelchairs to get into buildings or vehicles, almost every store has narrow aisles. It’s a hassle to shop. Heck it’s a hassle trying to walk through those aisles with other ppl, let alone trying to wheel your way through. I just wish the thought even occurred to the ppl who design the store layouts to make maneuvering the store convenient and easy for everyone.

If You’re Gonna Make Something Wheelchair Accessible, Don’t Make it a Thing

Here’s some examples awkward accessibility being a thing:

Your at a hotel that has a lift to get you from one sub-floor to another, but the lift can only be unlocked and operated by one specific person that the hotel now has to go find. Sure, they’ve made the entrance to the sub-floor is accessible, but now it’s a thing.

The buses are wheelchair accessible but the driver has to stop the bus, take 30 seconds to lower the goddamn ramp, move passengers out of their seats, hook up the straps and then secure you in the bus. Sure, they’ve made the busses accessible but now it’s a thing.

The restaurant has an accessible entrance, but it’s past the trash room and through the kitchen. Sure, the restaurant is accessible, but now it’s an insulting thing.

Here’s some great examples of accessibility not being a thing:

The train to the airport pulls up flush with the platform. I board with everyone else and sit wherever the fuck I want. Riding the train is accessible and not a thing.

In Portland, I press a button the side of the streetcar and a ramp automatically extends at the same time the door opens. I board in the same amount of time as everyone else. This is not a thing.

I get that it is difficult to design for wheelchair accessibility, but folks need to start considering the overall quality of the experience versus just thinking about meeting the minimum requirements.

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Starting to get a little bit of chest hair...not sure how I feel about it b/c I’m just not a chest hair kind of guy...of course it’s nice to see progress; but i’m not looking forward to the inevitable day I decide to wax it😱😱

[a-tymoony-blog]

Gay culture is wishing you could go all the way back and be yourself from the beginning

[a-tymoony-blog]

Post Op Top Surgery Long Term Chest Care Tips

Hey followers out there, I wanted to make a post about top surgery long term chest care tips since I am now almost 20 weeks post op my double incision with nipple graft procedure. Also because there aren’t many posts about chest care tips specifically for brown/south asian/desi Queer & Trans* folks and as I have brown skin, Keloids happen and I wanted to talk about that here and just talk about what I have been doing that works for me to take care of my chest. Everyone is different so whatever works best for you and if you have more tips, would love to hear them. These are the things that have just been working for my body.

Vitamin E Cream

I have been putting vitamin E cream 2-3 times  day on my scars and nipples since I was 3-4 weeks post surgery; it really helps with longterm healing of the scars and also over time lessens redness. My nipples have some redness and my right side is more tender so the vitamin E cream also helps sooth some of that soreness

Manuka Honey and Manuka Lozenges Manuka honey is an organic form of honey that you can find at health food stores and stores that sell natural products. Manuka honey has been used by Indigenous communities for healing. It is also anti bacterial and is a great anti-inflammatory and also has the power to repair scar tissue. I use the honey to rub on my scars. Honey can definitely get sticky so I usually apply it to my scars when I can be at home without a tshirt on so it doesn’t stick to my clothes. I also got pure Manuka honey lozenges that I have been having orally; this has made such a difference for me and my swelling for my chest it has been a real help.  It is a tad more on the expensive side because it is organic and natural, but if you are able to have access to it I feel like in the long term is worth it. Or if folks are able to buy you post op care supplies asking them to get this would be superhelpful

Scar Cream I have been using the scar cream in the upper left corner since the end of May. I have been applying it twice a day and reduced it to once a day about 2 months ago so that I could use the vitamin E as well as the Manuka Honey. It has really been helping with healing and redness. This is the cream I got from the clinic I went to

Polysporin I used polysporin for my second week post op. I had to keep the compression vest on without removing it for a week and then in my second week, I would remove my compression vest and gauze pad, remove the little square gauze pieces, one on top of each nipple and apply dabs of polysporin onto the gauze pads, put them on my nipple, wrap myself in the pillow like gauze pad and then put my compression vest on. The polysporin really helped heal my nipples fast and made them much less scabby.

Rubbing Scars Since my one and a half month post op, I have been taking the time to rub my scars - I put the vitamin e cream on and rub them as much as I can which helps them, I have noticed over time appear less red

Arnica Pellets Arnica pellets ($4-$7 from a health foods store) help reduce pain, swelling and bruising. They are little pellets that literally melt under your tongue. I started taking Arnica 1 week pre op 3 times a day until I was 3 weeks post op. I feel like it truly made such a huge difference with my healing. Helped make my chest feel holistically less painful.  

Icing I iced my chest a lot. I had really dark purple bruising around my armpit because of how tight the compression vest was especially during my first week post op. I would put ice near my armpit areas, mostly to numb the pain of the bruising - 15 minutes on and off with ice on both sides. I continued to ice up until 3 months post op and still ice once in awhile to help the tenderness

Heating Pad

I really struggled with healing because I am a committed stomach sleeper. Because I was having a lot of back pain, I would often take naps with the heating pad behind my back to help temporary relieve the pain of sleeping on my back for so long

Prescribed Pain Meds (Tylenol 3s)

If you are prescribed pain meds to get right before surgery to have after I recommend taking them. Even if you don’t feel the pain right away. I didn’t feel in pain right away, but felt the pain a few hours later and wish I had taken them right away so I didn’t feel the pain as severely. For me, I was experiencing more pain in my second and third weeks of being post op and the T3s really helped me with sleeping as the pain was making me super uncomfortable and sleeping was a real struggle

Pillows

Pillows make a world of difference during recovery. Have lots, and if you are able to make or purchase a nursing pillow I would totally recommend that as these pillows would really help with your back and propping yourself up, as well as resting your arms.

Melatonin

Really helped me with sleep. It helps regulate sleep patterns and sleep cycles and is a naturally occurring hormone. It makes you feel more sleepy. I felt groggy when I would wake up in the morning but it really helped me with getting a good sleep in my third week post op.

Stretching

One of the things that happened for me if that I felt super sore around my under armpit area and tense around my shoulder area because I had to rest my arms for a few weeks. So a nurse gave me some small arm stretches to do at home to help ease my arms up back into mobility. One of the stretches was standing in front of a wall, reaching my arm out and slowly with my fingers going a bit higher on the wall each day. I went with my own pace and did this stretch for quite awhile

Having a Supportive Care team If you are able to, have anywhere from 1-5 people looking out for you and helping take care of you. Anyone you can really trust and who can be really supportive for you in your recovery process. I needed help with a lot of things - from putting my seatbelt on in the car, to carrying grocery bags, to making meals - it really helped me to have chosen fam around who I could really trust and who were able to support me in my process through all of my grumpy moments, haha, I watched tonnes of shows while healing and that really helped take my mind off of my pain. If you have any questions you want to ask or just want to talk about top surgery, just fire me a message & I hope this helped a bit=)

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You can’t support trans men whilst saying you hate men.

Trans men are men, not a subcategory of men.

Saying you hate men includes trans men.

[a-tymoony-blog]

And this is how religious people should react when someone comes out to them

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hey marvel i know infinity war is gonna be a clusterfuck so how about you give us one (1) nice thing and let steve hug his goddamn boyfriend