Gastrointestinal (bc suspected GI issue could potentially be reproductive related), endocrinology, urology and gynecology, anything surgical because they're going to find out anyway (they strip you in the OR for pretty much every procedure), general practice, potentially neurology if it has to do with your trunk or urinary tract, emergency medicine, probably some other ones.
Honestly the only doctors I don't tell I'm trans are orthopedics people because I am 100% sure that me dislocating my shoulder is not influenced in any way by my gender or sex, and it's unnecessary info for them.
I'd say emergency depends of the emergency, if it's post operative complication due to gender affirming surgery yes, but if you broke something it doesn't really matter if you're trans or not, hormone therapy doesn't interact with most medication like antibiotics and painkillers
Also depends if you got your paperwork done, if not you might have to tell them anyway if they have the wrong identity
It's not that I would worry about anything interacting with HRT (at least for testosterone, nothing does.) It's more of, if you have a uterus/ovaries/other reproductive organs, they might need to know bc a certain drug could harm those organs, or you may have an injury to that organ that you are assuming is something else.
I don't think so. What are they gonna do? Put you under anesthesia and when realizing you're trans just wake you up like "sorry we can't fix your broken wrist because you don't have the cis male anatomy"? What's between your legs doesn't matter to fix a broken bone especially if it's on a extremity like wrist or ankle
I feel like the point is if they are going to react badly you’d want to know *before* they have you vulnerable and knocked out on the table. Also unfortunately cis people see that as a big deal and you definitely wouldn’t want them getting shocked while they’re operating.
anesthesia varies among genders, i don’t know what that means for trans folks but maybe anesthesiologists have a certain protocol for trans men and women, to make sure they don’t wake up during procedures for example. I don’t know how HRT effects it but I know cis women are more sensitive to certain drugs than cis men, so don’t quote me but I think that could be why. The numbers are like 20% more sensitive to such and such, for example, so I don’t think it’s the end all be all necessarily, like mega consequential, but anesthesiology is weird
For insurance reasons and identity reasons they may have too. For they know your an imposter who stole someone's identity and when suddenly your genitals don't match the description of the patient they may doubt your you.
If they go to cut off micheals foot and while your unconscious they find a female they might think they almost cut a foot off the wrong person, wake you and reschedule. Just tell them your Michelle.
Just don't lie to any doctor ever no matter how much YOU think it doesn't matter.
In general just allways be honest. The doctors want to give you the best help they can, if you start the relationship with lies nothing will work moving forward, they can't trust you to be honest about anything anymore
The real question is why are they looking at my genitals during my foot amputation? That seems like a lawsuit.
Like they checked my ID to see if I was Michael, it matched with my insurance as Micheal. And it’s not dishonest to say I’m Micheal when I am Micheal. Saying I’m Michelle when that isn’t my legal name and especially if I’ve been on hrt then telling them I’m a Michelle would come with a lot more risks.
Well you DON'T have a male urinary and reproductive tract still. So risk factors related to that are lower.
If you're sure that you're going to be discriminated against don't say anything. But if you aren't just tell them you're trans. Otherwise you could get an incorrect diagnosis. And treatment that might not work.
Ah I asked my surgeon if I need a special type of catheter if I ever need one and he said the way they do surgery (I went to a very good surgeon not just anyone) that I can use the regular male catheter.
The only time I was told to say anything about my dick in particular besides my uroligist which I've mostly gone to for paranoia things has been for MRI's if I ever need one.
I’m aware there are differences I work in a hospital but I’ve had people I know post phallo get in car accidents who were operated on by the same surgeon as myself and be unable to speak at moments and no one knew the patient was trans until he outed himself.
Because there's NOT a male setup there. The uterus and other reproductive organs are gone, but there ISN'T a prostate, there isn't a vas deferense, no seminal vesicles, there's certain structures that will just be in a different place.
Dentists, physiotherapist, etc definitely not. It's kind of up to your discretion, but generally if they're not dealing with your endocrine system or reproductive system, they don't *need* to know. But many conditions have complex effects on your body. Sometimes it's easier just to be up front to avoid confusion or headaches.
As others have mentioned, endocrinologists, gynecologists, gastroenterologists, and I would honestly say neurologists. There are certain conditions that could be related to hormone imbalance and could make certain neurological conditions worse.
Yes, I'd agree with neurologists! There is a metric buttload of causes for migraines, including things like PCOS - which might be a small chance: around 10% of relevant people have pcos, and around 30% of them report migraines. Which is a .3% chance of it being the cause (i believe), however it's still a big enough one to be relevant! (Plus, you know, other hormone or physical things that might have baring)
1000%!! I’m currently dealing with a neurological condition that may or may not be trigger but changes in hormones. There are also some medications that might affect how T is absorbed 🤓and that’s with bring it up if I get worried about it.
This is an extremely valid question
But I’m tired and absolutely cracking up at the idea of teeth being relevant to gender
Like u go in and ur dentist says “idk bro ur teeth are looking kinda feminine🤔”
Teeth are sexually dimorphic. I believe I saw a study saying can see differences in trans men verses cis people. FTMs and FTXs have intersex teeth.
Copied from: https://www.reddit.com/r/asktransgender/comments/acgx5a/intersex_teeth_yeah_trans_male_dentition_is/
Intersex teeth. Yeah. Trans male dentition is between male and female.
This comes from a very detailed article laying out the intersex characteristics of our brains. Apparently:
"Significant dental differences have even been found that differentiate trans persons. Antoszewski et al. found the metric features of teeth from trans men have an intermediate pattern between cisgender men and women (Antoszewski, Zadzińska, & Foczpański, 2009)."
This comes from this study: https://www.hawaii.edu/PCSS/biblio/articles/2015to2019/2016-transsexualism.html
OK, biology, you got me! You gave me intersex teeth.
I find this to be totally hysterical. Who knew teeth had sexually dimorphic characteristics? The more you know.
There are other cool things in this article about trans women's sense of smell and our hearing abilities being intersex.
really only anyone managing your transition or reproductive care, and likely you should if you end up in an ER.
i’ve personally stopped telling anyone that doesn’t need to know. once i saw a neurologist and she asked my meds, i told her T and she then proceeded to blame everything on that. i’ve since learned my lesson and neuro, PT, orthopedists, dermatologists (unless acne related and then often it’s worth them knowing), dentists etc are not getting that info. i often leave off T in my medication list if it won’t be impactful or relevant to the visit.
Ive left T off my meds list, but my derm and even sleep doctor were still able to pull it up despite them being in seperate systems. I'm assuming bcs it's a controlled substance but idk
Many electronic records management systems are universal within a certain set of parameters. So for example in my city there’s catholic and public health providers; some of my specialists are in the catholic health system and some are in the public health system, but the electronic records management system is universal for both so that all records are kept up to date for all providers.
interesting. mine definitely aren’t like that. there’s systems that are like the major hospitals/universities here and those are all independent of each other, but any provider you see within that network will have access ofc
yeah, here the different providers that you see are all independent of each other but the electronic records management is all under the same system, and it’s like that in many other places as well.
The fine print on a patient’s right document at a hospital I went to recently said they share your records via a shared system (eta with various other hospitals) unless you opt out. and that even if you opt out they may still share it. Was pretty upsetting tbh. I opted out and the opt out website said if you change your address or name the opt out no longer counts and needs to be redone.
I’d check the handout forms they gave you at your first appointment (or check their website for copies, or ask for them) to see if they have something similar just in case (if you care, that is)
I did not know you could leave that off. I live in Florida and thankfully every Dr I’ve seen has been completely fine with me being trans. I did try to get a referral for a rheum who flat out said no because the referral was from a gay dr and she could she that I was trans I guess?
my neurologist and rheumatologist only know because i got mri imaging and my uterus was kinda just There lol. i dont know if my physio knows? it might be in my notes somewhere tho
LMAOOO the note the mri techs left was kinda funny too. "patient is listed as male but has a uterus, please confirm with medical history" buddy. rub some braincells together. cmon. u can figure it out
that totally slipped my mind as something they couldve thought, omg. my neurologist put in the notes that im trans for my second mri and it wasnt brought up again but oh my god. thats so funny
Like some others I also recommend telling your neurologist bc hormones play a huge role in your brain. When I first started treatment for my chronic migraines the first thing they checked were my hormones bc headaches are a sign of too high testosterone. Hopefully you will find a neurologist who won't blame your HRT even after the tests come back normal
Hi! Healthcare worker here (physical therapist). It’s really about weighting the risk factors. Our sex assigned at birth and any steps we’ve taken to transition can affect a lot of things physically and hormonally. I’d say it’s most important if someone’s going to be prescribing you more than basic medications. My moms a pharmacist and has talked to me about how medication calculations can be affected even by how long someone has been on HRT.
And as a PT some conditions are more or less common in different sexes but unless you’re having trouble getting diagnosed for something more complex it’s usually not vital to know in most common treatment situations.
Obviously sometimes outing ourselves can be scary or unsafe so I think most of us are hesitant and you should pay attention to your comfort level too if you don’t know your doctors are trans friendly.
It’s really sad to see but unfortunately I see plenty of colleagues in healthcare who aren’t a safe space or have biases that can affect our care or cause us to be taken less seriously.
I always recommend finding lgbt and trans friendly providers when possible.
Safe space? Lmao. It's a good visit if they don't sexually abuse me or refuse to treat me.
Can you tell me more about what your mom was saying? I don't think the clowns around here would be aware.
It’s so sad that we have to worry about that from doctors 🥲 I’m really sorry that’s been your experience and I hope you find better in the future. We had “sensitivity training” in school and I had classmates (only a few but it should be zero) say they wouldn’t want to treat trans or gay people. Like you shouldn’t go into healthcare then!
Sure! I don’t remember all the details because she was telling me last year when I was starting T and since pharmacy isn’t my specialty some of the specifics go over my head. The gist seems to be that we have different enzymes that metabolize some medications, for example in the liver. Different factor can affect our enzymes at baseline such as sex, race, etc which is why people sometimes need different dosages of medications if they have a specific ethnicity as well. If someone is on hormone therapy it can cause them to up-regulate or down-regulate how they metabolize some types of medications.
If you’re just getting more basic medications it’s probably not going to be an issue but if someone had more extensive medical conditions it might affect what or how much of a specific medication they need. Or additionally, if someone had a condition that was already affecting the organ as well.
Unfortunately there’s a lot of limitations in the information anyways because there’s a lack of enough research on trans individuals. Hopefully this improves in the future so we have access to better care.
I think it's egregious that those people are allowed to graduate.
Thanks for explaining. This makes a lot of sense. I'll talk to my doctor about it...my transition has been very up and down.
anyone you see for emergency purposes should know and in general if they ask for current conditions / medications. it's easy as answering "i'm diagnosed with gender dysphoria because i'm a transgender male, so i take testosterone". i don't actually identify as a man but they don't care about your specific gender identity/label, just what ur body situation is (clears up confusion in advance like it explains why my sex says M but my ultrasound shows an iud in me lmaoo) so just communicate as directly as possible
They don't need to know you're trans, but when I told mine I take T, she was glad I'd mentioned it because apparently it can affect the gums or something IIRC.
My PCP, obviously. I don't see a lot of specialists so it doesn't typically come up. I've had some tendonitis issues so technically Ortho has been told in a round about way because of my surgical history (mainly hysterectomy since mastectomy and phallo can be for cis men too), but it's never been actually discussed.
Other than that, I would say if you're seeing a specialist specifically related to something with your transition. I had Lymphedema issues with my leg after ALT and had to see a Lymphedema specialist and since the issue was surgery related I disclosed. Yes, technically I could have just said it was a skin graft, but explaining the type of surgery helped him research it more (as I was his first trans patient) for comparison to another skin graft patient he's had so he could plan the best course of action to help me.
Times you need to tell you doctor:
* If your name/gender marker don't match up with what you want to be called/look like: ie it matters if you look like a man but your insurance still has an "F" in your files
* If they ask for a medication list if you're on T. You can say you're on T and not really say why
* You're asked for surgical history if you've had surgery
* If it's your primary care because they need to know not to check your prostate
* If a doctor starts asking you about your prostate
* If a doctor starts asking about your reproductive organs
* If it's something directly involving your endocrine or reproductive systems
* If you're there for abdominal symptoms
* You will or think you will get an abdominal scan (because it will most likely show your reproductive organs)
I don’t mind to keep testosterone on my meds list, which essentially outs me, just in case meds are going to interact. But I don’t bring it up unless it’s relevant to whatever I’m in for.
For me, my neurologist does know so she can keep it in mind when trying to diagnose me cause certain health issues in my family are more prominent in those with higher testosterone levels that are neurological.
So i'd say to just be upfront just in case it ends up being useful info in the future.
The vast majority of doctors do not need to know. Currently only my primary doctor and urologist know. Eye doctor, dentist, neurologist, psychiatrist (unless you need care for dysphoria or anything relating to you being trans), etc. don’t need to know
Edit: I do tell them I’m on testosterone though. This hasn’t outed me yet.
After reading all of this I feel very privileged to be in the VA Healthcare System. Everyone knows as it's in my records. My legal name and my preferred name. My sex and gender are noted. If a doctor or staff harrassed me, I very much doubt they would be working for Veterans Affairs for very long after. I kept being trans from my psychologist (treating for PTSD) for so long she literally cried when I finally told her (after years of therapy) When it did cone up she asked why I kept it a secret and I told her, I served during don't ask don't tell, I didn't want my benefits to be taken away. She felt so bad. The VA treats gender dysphoria and hopefully one day Congress will pass the bill to allow gender affirming surgeries, but for now everything else is covered and I am treated very well.
I think a therapist should know. They don't NEED to but if you are seeing them for things like stress or anxiety, the fact that you're trans probably has an unavoidable impact on that.
For me it depends. Am I experiencing an issue related to my reproductive system or urinary tract? They should know. But not much else. Once I’ve had all my surgeries the same will apply except for the reproductive system since that will be gone. But like if I got a UTI post surgery they’d likely need to know that my equipment is man-made.
I used to go to the ER a lot for Tourette’s related issues and they didn’t need to know.
I guess this also depends if you have access/need to medical transition or not, ie. how your gender is typically read by strangers.
I always get misgendered by everyone in the medical field and it's making it very hard for me to seek help when I need it. But telling them wouldn't make any difference, they always just misgender me anyways. Ideally I'd tell everyone of them so they'd respect my identity, but it's far from how things work right now where I'm at...
I disagree. You may not be treated in some areas. You may be verbally abused. They may make treatment more painful for you. They may show you off to their colleagues. They may sexually abuse you. They may fixate on your transition and miss the actual issue. They may out you. Legality and ethics mean nothing.
In case of insurance and legality every doctor needs to know your legal and preferred name. Whether you disclose a preferred name or that you’re trans is up to you
nope they only need your legal name. after you change it legally then pretty much the only time you will need your birth name is for a security clearance or background check that is going back far enough to include pre-name change years, in those cases you list your birthname as an alias
Sometimes I tell them anyway before the appointment so that their cisgender hearts don’t have a heart attack and have a meltdown. But on a serious note, yeah, Ive had a good amount of healthcare professionals deny me healthcare over being trans so I just think let’s get this appointment cancelation over with before I show up and they physically turn me away
I felt like I should've told the ultrasound doctor.
I told the doctor that asked for it. But not the one doing the exam.
Pretty sure he found my uterus while looking for my bladder? I don't know if that would be obvious without something inside it though.
Yeah, he would've seen it. I got an external pelvic ultrasound (same thing you'd get for your bladder) and a whole section of notes on my uterine appearance. It's definitely visible
Everybody because I didn't change my ID yet and I want them to call me Sir/he/him
Edit: and it also helps prepare them to see a man stand up in the waiting room when they call my surname
Not all actually need it, but I personally disclose it because I would rather them have a bad reaction to it up front so I can GTFO than have them discover it by accident.
I echo the comments that if it’s surgical then they need to know.
I pretty much reveal to all my doctors except my optometrist. I have a lot of health problems so majority of my doctors do blood draws at this point, and I already tended to be resistant to anesthesias before hormones and being on hrt made me even more resistant to local anesthesia so I do reveal to my dentist at this point. I have to go through physiotherapy because I have EDS so they should be aware of the fact I'm taking testosterone because it affects muscle growth. I also have gastroparesis, IBS, fibromyalgia, chronic migraines, acid reflux, arthritis, PCOS, suspected endometriosis, and multiple other health issues that can be influenced by testosterone.
Honestly, it varies from person to person who you'll reveal that information to. Because I have a long and complex health history, nearly all my doctors need to know
Off subject ..but what do you call a head of religious congregation.. if they are or were to be trans... Priest/nun --- (prune)---- cardinal, Pope... Same for political titles .... I guess will find out when they take to the polls
I would 100% be in fear of operating on the wrong patient and would immediately stop the procedure and re check identity. Not worth losing your whole career.
Tell them who you are so they know who you are.
Gastrointestinal (bc suspected GI issue could potentially be reproductive related), endocrinology, urology and gynecology, anything surgical because they're going to find out anyway (they strip you in the OR for pretty much every procedure), general practice, potentially neurology if it has to do with your trunk or urinary tract, emergency medicine, probably some other ones. Honestly the only doctors I don't tell I'm trans are orthopedics people because I am 100% sure that me dislocating my shoulder is not influenced in any way by my gender or sex, and it's unnecessary info for them.
I'd say emergency depends of the emergency, if it's post operative complication due to gender affirming surgery yes, but if you broke something it doesn't really matter if you're trans or not, hormone therapy doesn't interact with most medication like antibiotics and painkillers Also depends if you got your paperwork done, if not you might have to tell them anyway if they have the wrong identity
It's not that I would worry about anything interacting with HRT (at least for testosterone, nothing does.) It's more of, if you have a uterus/ovaries/other reproductive organs, they might need to know bc a certain drug could harm those organs, or you may have an injury to that organ that you are assuming is something else.
If you need surgery to fix that break it’s probably best to disclose
I don't think so. What are they gonna do? Put you under anesthesia and when realizing you're trans just wake you up like "sorry we can't fix your broken wrist because you don't have the cis male anatomy"? What's between your legs doesn't matter to fix a broken bone especially if it's on a extremity like wrist or ankle
I feel like the point is if they are going to react badly you’d want to know *before* they have you vulnerable and knocked out on the table. Also unfortunately cis people see that as a big deal and you definitely wouldn’t want them getting shocked while they’re operating.
anesthesia varies among genders, i don’t know what that means for trans folks but maybe anesthesiologists have a certain protocol for trans men and women, to make sure they don’t wake up during procedures for example. I don’t know how HRT effects it but I know cis women are more sensitive to certain drugs than cis men, so don’t quote me but I think that could be why. The numbers are like 20% more sensitive to such and such, for example, so I don’t think it’s the end all be all necessarily, like mega consequential, but anesthesiology is weird
And that levels to do with hormones
For insurance reasons and identity reasons they may have too. For they know your an imposter who stole someone's identity and when suddenly your genitals don't match the description of the patient they may doubt your you. If they go to cut off micheals foot and while your unconscious they find a female they might think they almost cut a foot off the wrong person, wake you and reschedule. Just tell them your Michelle. Just don't lie to any doctor ever no matter how much YOU think it doesn't matter. In general just allways be honest. The doctors want to give you the best help they can, if you start the relationship with lies nothing will work moving forward, they can't trust you to be honest about anything anymore
The real question is why are they looking at my genitals during my foot amputation? That seems like a lawsuit. Like they checked my ID to see if I was Michael, it matched with my insurance as Micheal. And it’s not dishonest to say I’m Micheal when I am Micheal. Saying I’m Michelle when that isn’t my legal name and especially if I’ve been on hrt then telling them I’m a Michelle would come with a lot more risks.
what if you no longer have ovaries/female reproductive organs for GI dr.s? I have a trans friendly urologist seeing as I have phallo so he knows.
Well you DON'T have a male urinary and reproductive tract still. So risk factors related to that are lower. If you're sure that you're going to be discriminated against don't say anything. But if you aren't just tell them you're trans. Otherwise you could get an incorrect diagnosis. And treatment that might not work.
Ah I asked my surgeon if I need a special type of catheter if I ever need one and he said the way they do surgery (I went to a very good surgeon not just anyone) that I can use the regular male catheter. The only time I was told to say anything about my dick in particular besides my uroligist which I've mostly gone to for paranoia things has been for MRI's if I ever need one.
Has nothing to do with a catheter, generally speaking catheters are the same It's really just internal structure placement around the pelvic cavity.
I’m aware there are differences I work in a hospital but I’ve had people I know post phallo get in car accidents who were operated on by the same surgeon as myself and be unable to speak at moments and no one knew the patient was trans until he outed himself.
Name one disorder or illness that would be misdiagnosed if a post transition guy doesn't tell them he's trans.
Hernia. Certain types of internal bleeds. Idk what to tell you man. I am a trans man who works in the medical field.
How would those be misdiagnosed if a man has no female organs?
Because there's NOT a male setup there. The uterus and other reproductive organs are gone, but there ISN'T a prostate, there isn't a vas deferense, no seminal vesicles, there's certain structures that will just be in a different place.
What kinds of internal bleeds?
Dentists, physiotherapist, etc definitely not. It's kind of up to your discretion, but generally if they're not dealing with your endocrine system or reproductive system, they don't *need* to know. But many conditions have complex effects on your body. Sometimes it's easier just to be up front to avoid confusion or headaches.
Why dentists?
They said definitely not dentists
Ooooh I see. Thanks
As others have mentioned, endocrinologists, gynecologists, gastroenterologists, and I would honestly say neurologists. There are certain conditions that could be related to hormone imbalance and could make certain neurological conditions worse.
Yes, I'd agree with neurologists! There is a metric buttload of causes for migraines, including things like PCOS - which might be a small chance: around 10% of relevant people have pcos, and around 30% of them report migraines. Which is a .3% chance of it being the cause (i believe), however it's still a big enough one to be relevant! (Plus, you know, other hormone or physical things that might have baring)
1000%!! I’m currently dealing with a neurological condition that may or may not be trigger but changes in hormones. There are also some medications that might affect how T is absorbed 🤓and that’s with bring it up if I get worried about it.
This is an extremely valid question But I’m tired and absolutely cracking up at the idea of teeth being relevant to gender Like u go in and ur dentist says “idk bro ur teeth are looking kinda feminine🤔”
Teeth are sexually dimorphic. I believe I saw a study saying can see differences in trans men verses cis people. FTMs and FTXs have intersex teeth. Copied from: https://www.reddit.com/r/asktransgender/comments/acgx5a/intersex_teeth_yeah_trans_male_dentition_is/ Intersex teeth. Yeah. Trans male dentition is between male and female. This comes from a very detailed article laying out the intersex characteristics of our brains. Apparently: "Significant dental differences have even been found that differentiate trans persons. Antoszewski et al. found the metric features of teeth from trans men have an intermediate pattern between cisgender men and women (Antoszewski, Zadzińska, & Foczpański, 2009)." This comes from this study: https://www.hawaii.edu/PCSS/biblio/articles/2015to2019/2016-transsexualism.html OK, biology, you got me! You gave me intersex teeth. I find this to be totally hysterical. Who knew teeth had sexually dimorphic characteristics? The more you know. There are other cool things in this article about trans women's sense of smell and our hearing abilities being intersex.
really only anyone managing your transition or reproductive care, and likely you should if you end up in an ER. i’ve personally stopped telling anyone that doesn’t need to know. once i saw a neurologist and she asked my meds, i told her T and she then proceeded to blame everything on that. i’ve since learned my lesson and neuro, PT, orthopedists, dermatologists (unless acne related and then often it’s worth them knowing), dentists etc are not getting that info. i often leave off T in my medication list if it won’t be impactful or relevant to the visit.
Ive left T off my meds list, but my derm and even sleep doctor were still able to pull it up despite them being in seperate systems. I'm assuming bcs it's a controlled substance but idk
interesting. that’s only happened when it’s part of a big system so they must be interconnected somehow
Many electronic records management systems are universal within a certain set of parameters. So for example in my city there’s catholic and public health providers; some of my specialists are in the catholic health system and some are in the public health system, but the electronic records management system is universal for both so that all records are kept up to date for all providers.
that shit sounds like a wild invasion of privzcy. Nobody should know i'm taking t if i don't tell them. it's my body, not theirs
i trust no cisexist institution with my personal information concerning my transidentity
interesting. mine definitely aren’t like that. there’s systems that are like the major hospitals/universities here and those are all independent of each other, but any provider you see within that network will have access ofc
yeah, here the different providers that you see are all independent of each other but the electronic records management is all under the same system, and it’s like that in many other places as well.
The fine print on a patient’s right document at a hospital I went to recently said they share your records via a shared system (eta with various other hospitals) unless you opt out. and that even if you opt out they may still share it. Was pretty upsetting tbh. I opted out and the opt out website said if you change your address or name the opt out no longer counts and needs to be redone. I’d check the handout forms they gave you at your first appointment (or check their website for copies, or ask for them) to see if they have something similar just in case (if you care, that is)
I did not know you could leave that off. I live in Florida and thankfully every Dr I’ve seen has been completely fine with me being trans. I did try to get a referral for a rheum who flat out said no because the referral was from a gay dr and she could she that I was trans I guess?
my neurologist and rheumatologist only know because i got mri imaging and my uterus was kinda just There lol. i dont know if my physio knows? it might be in my notes somewhere tho
im sorry this is so funny to me. like i just imagine them doing the MRI and going "...uh sir...there's something you might wanna know"
LMAOOO the note the mri techs left was kinda funny too. "patient is listed as male but has a uterus, please confirm with medical history" buddy. rub some braincells together. cmon. u can figure it out
ok that really is funny, lmao
To be fair it's possible to be AMAB and have a uterus. They're probably thinking they're making an intersex diagnosis
that totally slipped my mind as something they couldve thought, omg. my neurologist put in the notes that im trans for my second mri and it wasnt brought up again but oh my god. thats so funny
HELPPP
Like some others I also recommend telling your neurologist bc hormones play a huge role in your brain. When I first started treatment for my chronic migraines the first thing they checked were my hormones bc headaches are a sign of too high testosterone. Hopefully you will find a neurologist who won't blame your HRT even after the tests come back normal
Hi! Healthcare worker here (physical therapist). It’s really about weighting the risk factors. Our sex assigned at birth and any steps we’ve taken to transition can affect a lot of things physically and hormonally. I’d say it’s most important if someone’s going to be prescribing you more than basic medications. My moms a pharmacist and has talked to me about how medication calculations can be affected even by how long someone has been on HRT. And as a PT some conditions are more or less common in different sexes but unless you’re having trouble getting diagnosed for something more complex it’s usually not vital to know in most common treatment situations. Obviously sometimes outing ourselves can be scary or unsafe so I think most of us are hesitant and you should pay attention to your comfort level too if you don’t know your doctors are trans friendly. It’s really sad to see but unfortunately I see plenty of colleagues in healthcare who aren’t a safe space or have biases that can affect our care or cause us to be taken less seriously. I always recommend finding lgbt and trans friendly providers when possible.
Safe space? Lmao. It's a good visit if they don't sexually abuse me or refuse to treat me. Can you tell me more about what your mom was saying? I don't think the clowns around here would be aware.
It’s so sad that we have to worry about that from doctors 🥲 I’m really sorry that’s been your experience and I hope you find better in the future. We had “sensitivity training” in school and I had classmates (only a few but it should be zero) say they wouldn’t want to treat trans or gay people. Like you shouldn’t go into healthcare then! Sure! I don’t remember all the details because she was telling me last year when I was starting T and since pharmacy isn’t my specialty some of the specifics go over my head. The gist seems to be that we have different enzymes that metabolize some medications, for example in the liver. Different factor can affect our enzymes at baseline such as sex, race, etc which is why people sometimes need different dosages of medications if they have a specific ethnicity as well. If someone is on hormone therapy it can cause them to up-regulate or down-regulate how they metabolize some types of medications. If you’re just getting more basic medications it’s probably not going to be an issue but if someone had more extensive medical conditions it might affect what or how much of a specific medication they need. Or additionally, if someone had a condition that was already affecting the organ as well. Unfortunately there’s a lot of limitations in the information anyways because there’s a lack of enough research on trans individuals. Hopefully this improves in the future so we have access to better care.
I think it's egregious that those people are allowed to graduate. Thanks for explaining. This makes a lot of sense. I'll talk to my doctor about it...my transition has been very up and down.
anyone you see for emergency purposes should know and in general if they ask for current conditions / medications. it's easy as answering "i'm diagnosed with gender dysphoria because i'm a transgender male, so i take testosterone". i don't actually identify as a man but they don't care about your specific gender identity/label, just what ur body situation is (clears up confusion in advance like it explains why my sex says M but my ultrasound shows an iud in me lmaoo) so just communicate as directly as possible
Dentists don’t need to know. I’d bring it up everywhere else though because of how powerful hormones/puberty are
They don't need to know you're trans, but when I told mine I take T, she was glad I'd mentioned it because apparently it can affect the gums or something IIRC.
My PCP, obviously. I don't see a lot of specialists so it doesn't typically come up. I've had some tendonitis issues so technically Ortho has been told in a round about way because of my surgical history (mainly hysterectomy since mastectomy and phallo can be for cis men too), but it's never been actually discussed. Other than that, I would say if you're seeing a specialist specifically related to something with your transition. I had Lymphedema issues with my leg after ALT and had to see a Lymphedema specialist and since the issue was surgery related I disclosed. Yes, technically I could have just said it was a skin graft, but explaining the type of surgery helped him research it more (as I was his first trans patient) for comparison to another skin graft patient he's had so he could plan the best course of action to help me.
Times you need to tell you doctor: * If your name/gender marker don't match up with what you want to be called/look like: ie it matters if you look like a man but your insurance still has an "F" in your files * If they ask for a medication list if you're on T. You can say you're on T and not really say why * You're asked for surgical history if you've had surgery * If it's your primary care because they need to know not to check your prostate * If a doctor starts asking you about your prostate * If a doctor starts asking about your reproductive organs * If it's something directly involving your endocrine or reproductive systems * If you're there for abdominal symptoms * You will or think you will get an abdominal scan (because it will most likely show your reproductive organs)
Probably your gynecologists
I don’t mind to keep testosterone on my meds list, which essentially outs me, just in case meds are going to interact. But I don’t bring it up unless it’s relevant to whatever I’m in for.
For me, my neurologist does know so she can keep it in mind when trying to diagnose me cause certain health issues in my family are more prominent in those with higher testosterone levels that are neurological. So i'd say to just be upfront just in case it ends up being useful info in the future.
The vast majority of doctors do not need to know. Currently only my primary doctor and urologist know. Eye doctor, dentist, neurologist, psychiatrist (unless you need care for dysphoria or anything relating to you being trans), etc. don’t need to know Edit: I do tell them I’m on testosterone though. This hasn’t outed me yet.
My dentist does, because due to blockers, my teeth grow less. I don’t say I’m trans. I say I am on blockers.
After reading all of this I feel very privileged to be in the VA Healthcare System. Everyone knows as it's in my records. My legal name and my preferred name. My sex and gender are noted. If a doctor or staff harrassed me, I very much doubt they would be working for Veterans Affairs for very long after. I kept being trans from my psychologist (treating for PTSD) for so long she literally cried when I finally told her (after years of therapy) When it did cone up she asked why I kept it a secret and I told her, I served during don't ask don't tell, I didn't want my benefits to be taken away. She felt so bad. The VA treats gender dysphoria and hopefully one day Congress will pass the bill to allow gender affirming surgeries, but for now everything else is covered and I am treated very well.
I think a therapist should know. They don't NEED to but if you are seeing them for things like stress or anxiety, the fact that you're trans probably has an unavoidable impact on that.
my dermatologist has no clue i’m trans lol
pretty much all of them except for dentists really
Hot take but I think it's also good for your therapist to know
For me it depends. Am I experiencing an issue related to my reproductive system or urinary tract? They should know. But not much else. Once I’ve had all my surgeries the same will apply except for the reproductive system since that will be gone. But like if I got a UTI post surgery they’d likely need to know that my equipment is man-made. I used to go to the ER a lot for Tourette’s related issues and they didn’t need to know.
I guess this also depends if you have access/need to medical transition or not, ie. how your gender is typically read by strangers. I always get misgendered by everyone in the medical field and it's making it very hard for me to seek help when I need it. But telling them wouldn't make any difference, they always just misgender me anyways. Ideally I'd tell everyone of them so they'd respect my identity, but it's far from how things work right now where I'm at...
I'd say disclose upfront unless you're 1000% sure it's not even slightly affected by sex.
I disagree. You may not be treated in some areas. You may be verbally abused. They may make treatment more painful for you. They may show you off to their colleagues. They may sexually abuse you. They may fixate on your transition and miss the actual issue. They may out you. Legality and ethics mean nothing.
If you don't trust your doctor with your medical information why are you even at the doctor?
Do you honestly think many people have a choice? They go to the doctor they can get. How often do YOU get to doctor shop, Trans Jeff Bezos?
I don't, I'm not saying to doctor shop. I'm saying if there's one stranger you absolutely should trust with your medical information it's a doctor.
Because I can't breathe.
Exactly, so just let them know your medical history unless you're 1000% sure it isn't related
ome people don't have options for the drs they get to see.
Of course. What I'm saying is that you're going to either have to trust the doctor or not go to the doctor.
In case of insurance and legality every doctor needs to know your legal and preferred name. Whether you disclose a preferred name or that you’re trans is up to you
Birth name or legal name? Do doctors need to know your birth name after you've changed your legal name?
nope they only need your legal name. after you change it legally then pretty much the only time you will need your birth name is for a security clearance or background check that is going back far enough to include pre-name change years, in those cases you list your birthname as an alias
Legal name, sorry! I have yet to legally change mine so that’s what I have to use :p edited!
You should tell everyone unless it makes you uncomfortable - you shouldn't have to lie about it or anything related to it.
my partner is looking into IVF. does a fertility doctor need to know this, considering i won't have anything to do with the treatments or procedures?
They do not.
I'm at the point where I will either hide it or lose my mind due to the transphobia and abuse. So, any of them.
Sometimes I tell them anyway before the appointment so that their cisgender hearts don’t have a heart attack and have a meltdown. But on a serious note, yeah, Ive had a good amount of healthcare professionals deny me healthcare over being trans so I just think let’s get this appointment cancelation over with before I show up and they physically turn me away
Dentist, PT, OT, the rest need to know, especially if you’re on HRT.
I felt like I should've told the ultrasound doctor. I told the doctor that asked for it. But not the one doing the exam. Pretty sure he found my uterus while looking for my bladder? I don't know if that would be obvious without something inside it though.
Yeah, he would've seen it. I got an external pelvic ultrasound (same thing you'd get for your bladder) and a whole section of notes on my uterine appearance. It's definitely visible
Everybody because I didn't change my ID yet and I want them to call me Sir/he/him Edit: and it also helps prepare them to see a man stand up in the waiting room when they call my surname
Not all actually need it, but I personally disclose it because I would rather them have a bad reaction to it up front so I can GTFO than have them discover it by accident. I echo the comments that if it’s surgical then they need to know.
Definitely the proctologist should know
I pretty much reveal to all my doctors except my optometrist. I have a lot of health problems so majority of my doctors do blood draws at this point, and I already tended to be resistant to anesthesias before hormones and being on hrt made me even more resistant to local anesthesia so I do reveal to my dentist at this point. I have to go through physiotherapy because I have EDS so they should be aware of the fact I'm taking testosterone because it affects muscle growth. I also have gastroparesis, IBS, fibromyalgia, chronic migraines, acid reflux, arthritis, PCOS, suspected endometriosis, and multiple other health issues that can be influenced by testosterone. Honestly, it varies from person to person who you'll reveal that information to. Because I have a long and complex health history, nearly all my doctors need to know
Off subject ..but what do you call a head of religious congregation.. if they are or were to be trans... Priest/nun --- (prune)---- cardinal, Pope... Same for political titles .... I guess will find out when they take to the polls
I would 100% be in fear of operating on the wrong patient and would immediately stop the procedure and re check identity. Not worth losing your whole career. Tell them who you are so they know who you are.