Sage Buch - The Transmasculine Guide to Physical Transition: For Trans, Nonbinary, and Other Masculine Folks

The Transmasculine Guide to Physical Transition: For Trans, Nonbinary, and Other Masculine Folks

Sage Buch, 2023

This edition Microcosm Publishing, 2023

First Edition, 2,000 copies, First published February, 2023

Design by Joe Biel

Edited by Lydia Rogue

eBook ISBN 9781648410734

This is Microcosm #626

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Microcosm Publishing is Portlands most diversified publishing house and distributor with a focus on the colorful, authentic, and empowering. Our books and zines have put your power in your hands since 1996, equipping readers to make positive changes in their lives and in the world around them. Microcosm emphasizes skill-building, showing hidden histories, and fostering creativity through challenging conventional publishing wisdom with books and bookettes about DIY skills, food, bicycling, gender, self-care, and social justice. What was once a distro and record label started by Joe Biel in a drafty bedroom was determined to be Publishers Weeklys fastest growing publisher of 2022 and has become among the oldest independent publishing houses in Portland, OR and Cleveland, OH. We are a politically moderate, centrist publisher in a world that has inched to the right for the past 80 years.

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Please note:

This book contains every option that is currently available for physical transition for transmasculine and nonbinary people. It does not contain any of the information surrounding social transition. This is not because social transition is in any way more or less important, but because there is so much necessary information that needs to be discussed for both physical and social transition that could not feasibly be condensed into one book without leaving something out.

This book does not contain any information for people who were assigned male at birth (AMAB). Because Im not AMAB, I do not feel confident or competent speaking to those experiences.

An important legal disclaimer:

I am not a medical professional. I am a transgender person who has personal experience with these topics and who has been reading peer reviewed journals and gathering community knowledge over the last ten years. Always consult your medical providers, therapists, and surgeons before taking any meaningful steps toward transition. The information in this book is meant to be a general guide and introduction, and to provide helpful information on options for physically transitioning. This book is not meant to be used, nor should it be used, to diagnose or treat any medical condition. This book is not intended as a substitute for consultation with a licensed healthcare professional, such as your PCP, therapist, or surgeon. Before you begin or change any healthcare program, hormone treatment, or change part of your lifestyle in any way, you should consult your physician or other licensed healthcare professional to ensure that you are in good health and that the examples contained in this book will not harm you. The publisher and author are not responsible for any specific health or allergy needs that may require medical supervision and are not liable for any damages or negative consequences from any treatment, action, application, or preparation, to any person reading or following the information in this book. References are provided for informational purposes only and do not constitute endorsement of any websites or other sources. Readers should be aware that the websites listed in this book may change. This book provides content related to physical and mental health issues; as such, use of this book implies your acceptance of this disclaimer.

Contents

Introduction

Checking In with Yourself

Safer Chest Binding

Packing

Finding and Working with Providers

Hormone Replacement Therapy

Top Surgery

Bottom Surgery

Other Aspects of Physical Transition

Resources

Conclusion

Acknowledgments

References

Introduction

When I first realized I was trans, the journey of transition felt like a never-ending uphill battle to me. As Im white, US-based, and currently able-bodied, this did not bode well for everyone else in my position but without my privileges. The amount of information was simultaneously overwhelming and nonexistent. I found pieces here and there that felt fitting for me, but so much of the information I found felt so exclusionary, and did not account or allow for the experiences and desires of people like methose of us who dont want to follow the typical path that is set out for a binary transition. It felt like I was never able to truly pull together all of the information that I needed or wanted, and what information I was finding was only for what was commonly done, never truly what all the options were.

Because of that, I spent the last ten years doing a deep-dive into all aspects of physical transition through not just reading peer-reviewed scientific research, but through my own personal experiences, interviews and interactions with providers, fellow trans people, parents/families, and attending large gender-affirming care conferences such as the Philadelphia Trans Wellness Conference (Philadelphia, PA), and Genderevolution (Salt Lake City, UT). As I collected all of the information I could, I pooled my notes together and created what is now this book. Because I spent so long gathering all of this information, and I frequently check and read new medical articles that are released, at the end of the book I list recent resources and readings for your reference (these sources are not referenced in the main body text).

I have personal experience with nearly every aspect of this book, and I wrote my experience with each at the end of its respective chapter. I created what is, I hope, a one-stop reference for not just all the potential aspects of physical transition, but also a guide to figuring out what you may personally want out of your transition and your physical self, while allowing for the unique self-expression that comes with finding who youre meant to be. It will give you questions and considerations for every aspect of transition to help you determine what your goals are and how to get there.

Long story short, I wrote this book for you. So you will have a basis to learn about the current options. So you dont have to slog through the mire of information that feels so never-ending and so incomplete the way I did. I wrote this so that you know theres someone else in the world who is fighting for you, who sees you, and supports you no matter what.

Checking in with Yourself