- The Little Boy Book
Transitioning female-to-male in Australia
Stand by your Man (and stay sane in the process!)
Is it worth having liposuction
ONE OF the greatest joys of my testosterone induced physical transformation was the reduction in the size of my hips. After taking T, much of the fat from my hips moved to my abdomen, thereby creating a completely separate problem, but at least I was now a more masculine shape. But after a couple of years on T, with some ups and downs in the dosage causing some problems, the changes to my hips and abdomen stopped and I couldn’t seem to shift the last stubborn vestiges of the dreaded ‘girl fat’. Even worse, it appeared to totally resistant to any amount of diet and exercise – one of the perils of transitioning as an older person with an already stubborn store of oestrogen induced, genetically pre-disposed fat I guess. I began to look for options. How could I reduce and alter the shape of the fat around my hips and waist when it seemed resistant to reduction by natural means? All of the focus was on chest surgery or lower surgery. I found plenty of stuff about other procedures for MTFs such as female facial feminisation and facelifts but I could find nothing on body sculpting or any other ‘non-core’ procedures for FTMs. I had however read in a book about one man who had undergone liposuction, although the reasons for his having the procedure were not explained, I began to explore this option.
My hips are wider than your average man’s and always will be because that is the way I’m built. Luckily there is a huge variance amongst men and many men have wide hips. The width of my hips, per se, was not the problem. It was the distribution of fat. My mother had a different take: “Haven’t you seen the fat some men carry around their hips?” And of course she was right. Some men do carry a lot of fat around their hips, and not just older men. The difference is that their fat has never been a marker of something they’re not.
I have the view that there is no point in whingeing about something if it is within your power to change the situation. On that basis I decided to investigate liposuction. I could not find too many other options and there was a lot of general literature available about lipo. It seemed to me that it might do the trick. After numerous consultations, I booked into a day clinic with a qualified plastic surgeon who was a Fellow of the Royal College of Plastic Surgeons. He was not a cosmetic physician and he used an anaesthetist. These were necessary criteria for me. While it was not necessarily a guarantee of a either a good surgeon or a good result, it reduced the odds.
Make no mistake, liposuction is an extremely brutal and invasive procedure regardless what anyone says to the contrary. It is not ‘minor’ surgery. I had treatment on my hips and my abdomen. It was extremely painful and I was left very bruised and had to take an extra week off work to recover. I believe I was given very poor advice regarding post operative care. All of the post operative advice I had read indicated that I would have to wear a compression garment for at least six weeks. My surgeon told me a compression garment would not be necessary in his experience, but that a pair of bike shorts or something similar would suffice. I was happy to hear this because the thought of wearing some all encompassing girdle for six weeks did not thrill me. As I had not bought a compression garment, I ended up wearing a control garment I bought from a department store. The bruising lasted about three weeks and the pain, while severe at first, was still quite noticeable (although by no means unbearable) after several days. I was quite uncomfortable for at least three weeks. I wore the substitute compression garment for six weeks.
I don’t know if the lack of a proper compression garment had any lasting effect on the result, other than perhaps prolonging healing, but after a few months I noticed uneven fatty deposits on my upper abdomen and a thickening of the fat around my hips which has not gone away with time. However, the treatment on my lower abdomen was quite successful, with a permanent reduction in overall fat. While liposuction was not a complete waste, I did not achieve the desired results, and certainly not in relation to the overall reduction of hip fat. Maybe my expectations were unrealistic or perhaps I did not research the probable outcomes thoroughly enough prior to proceeding. Either way, I will not be undergoing any further liposuction. That isn’t to say I wouldn’t still opt for some sort of body sculpting ‘intervention’. I am exploring some non-invasive techniques, such as ultrasound, which was unavailable when I first began exploring the possibility of body sculpting. Of course the efficacy of many of these techniques is still under debate and will need to be convinced they are value for money before I proceed.
In the meantime I am continuing to exercise to increase the size of my upper body so as to lessen the emphasis on my hips. This is much cheaper and a whole lot less painful than liposuction.
Things to keep in mind if you are considering body sculpting surgery:
Take your time in deciding on procedure, technique and surgeon. Shop around and try to see surgeons who are used to dealing with men. The surgeon I chose predominately dealt with women, although he was fully aware of what I wanted and why. I went to him because I’d had previous dealings with him, he operated in my parent’s home town (therefore I had somewhere to recuperate afterwards) and I was familiar with his work. The skill and reputation of the surgeon are more important to me than cost or technique. In this case I believe seeing this particular surgeon may have been a mistake. In hindsight I probably should have sought out someone more familiar with body sculpting for men.
Check the qualifications of your surgeon. A cosmetic surgeon has different qualifications from a plastic surgeon (although sometimes the same surgeon can be both) and a cosmetic physician is not a surgeon at all but that isn’t to say they aren’t suitable for the procedure you want. Just be sure of who you’re getting, and that they have the specialist qualifications, practical experience and the appropriate level of training for the procedure you are seeking. Also be mindful of post surgical care as the quality may vary from clinic to clinic. Be prepared to shop around and get two or three different opinions.
Research widely before taking the surgical route. Is there more you can do in the way of diet and exercise? Sometimes it’s hard to be objective. Ask someone else how you look because maybe the problem isn’t as bad as you think. Is there a less invasive technique that might be suitable? And remember, no cosmetic surgical intervention is a weight loss technique nor is it a substitute for a good diet and sustainable exercise program.
The cost of the surgery varies depending upon the city and the clinic. I had my procedure done in Adelaide, which was much cheaper than if I’d had it done in Sydney or Melbourne. While cost may be a major consideration, just remember you’re likely to get what you pay for. Costs can range from $4500 upwards. This does not include theatre fees or ancillary medical services such as an anaesthetist.
Any surgery has risks and not everyone is a suitable candidate for surgery. It is important to discuss this with your surgeon beforehand so as to reduce any known risk factors.
Sandy, NSW 2011
