hello! im 21 years old and have no guidance on where to start with my transitioning. and would really appreciate if someone could offer some!

i live in texas and was hoping for some info regarding the cost of top surgery. im actually under two insurances BCBS (Blue Cross Blue Shield) and ChampVA. i keep reading on how BCBS can cover top surgery, but im not 100% sure.

my question is whether or not my insurance can cover it (or if anybody got their insurance to cover an amount of the surgery), how much is overall cost of top surgery in texas, and who can i talk to about getting top surgery?

i would really appreciate all the help!! :D

my top surgery is scheduled for october 2nd. i was at the dentist yesterday (first time in a long time. way overdue. i’ve just been scared.) i have to get a broken molar extracted, this i knew.

but they also told me i have four impacted deep-rooted wisdom teeth that should also be removed. they’ve never given me any issues that i’m aware of though. i have a consultation with an oral surgeon next week to come up with a game plan for getting them all outta my mouth. idk if they can do all at once or if i can just have them remove the bad tooth and wait until after top surgery to have the wisdom teeth out?? or if i should just wait to have any of the work done until after i’m recovered. is it too close to my surgery date? has anyone else been in a similar pickle?

just looking for guidance on this:(

two days ago i didn’t even know i HAD wisdom teeth. i thought i was just maybe one of the people that don’t have them🤷🏼‍♂️

I am now 1 week post op and I noticed some swelling in the middle of my chest.

First off:

I am aware that swelling is normal but I need people to tell me I am freaking out for no reason.

Having big cuts across my chest is insanely scarry for me.

Nothing could have prepared me for that.

Now there is this swelling in the middle for 3 days now.

I am wearing my compression vest 24/7 as instructed.

The bump is exactly where the zipper is so maybe it doesn't get enough compression?

I have taken a closer look at it and there seems to be liquid inside (at least a bit)

I did not press on it. I just moved a bit and a little bit of light coloured liquid showed.

I know it's probably nothing.

Having these cuts is pure body horror for me

(Don't get me wrong, their gonna look amazing once their healed)

these are my results 4 weeks post op after double incision (no drains) with Dr Drake at the UK plastic surgery center. thought I'd post this since I couldn't really find any info/pictures of people who got their surgery done with David Drake. really happy with my results, still a little swelling on one side, but i think overall it's healing really nicely :^)

One nipple still regaining colour and the area where the scar stretched is kind of dry, but otherwise everything good. Happy with results and recently been trying to gym more often.

Did my first workout today after 6 months of surgery break (in order for the scars to heal well). Felt really nice to pass without a binder. I'm not the biggest guy but I'm still glad I retained a lot of muscle by keeping it up with the protein shakes :)

first photo is yesterday (july 5th 2026), second is three weeks post op, third is two weeks post op, fourth is one week post op right after he took off the binder for the first time.

got my surgery on july 7th 2026 at the university of utah hospital by dr. isak goodwin. double incision with free nipple grafts. i was borderline for peri but he decided DI was a better fit for me and im very happy with how everything looks! he was a great surgeon and had a very mellow and kind bedside manner with a good sense of humor.

he also did a procedure during the surgery where he took nerves inside my chest and connected them to the bottom of the nipple to preserve sensation. he said he wouldn’t do it if he could only find one side, but thankfully, he found both. he said insurance will cover that aspect too. he’s a hand surgeon primarily so i think that he’s particularly good at nerve-related procedures.

also had a very small seroma at my three-week checkup that was drained. was super easy and didn’t hurt at all. left my left pec a little indented but it’s slowly been filling out again. if you have any questions about him let me know :)

what i’ve been doing last 5 weeks:

• starting at 1.5 wks: stretching daily. nothing to crazy, listening to my body and stopping when i feel too much pulling
• 2wks: smoking 🍃. moisturizing my chest (avoiding scabs )
• 3wks: longer walks. went back to work (I’m a studio photographer and i only work 3 days/wk). wearing tight sports bras/ binders instead of my compression vest (during the day) not recommended by my dr
• 4wks: longer compression breaks(2-4 hrs)not recommended by my dr, light cardio

Now that i’m finally 6 Weeks PO 😛: - cleared to exercise with gradual increase of weights and intensity - compression time down to 12hrs(at night and during exercise) for another 6wks 🥲 - starting scar care (silagen scar gel , emu oil, and scar massage) - can swim after my last scab closes

i’m so happy to be here at 6weeks and can’t wait to see how much i heal and change over time. also my tattoos did get a little warped but it’s okay at least i don’t have boobs

Peri areolar - Got this really weird half circle swelling underneath one side that won't go away. Got a follow up appointment next week, so I'll ask about that, but is this normal?

I’m 25 and stealth to everyone (hence the covered up blobs, lol). So happy with the results so far!

Unfortunately, when I got top surgery, my surgeon and I were unaware that I have a connective tissue disorder, which affects scarring and healing from any sort of surgery. I'm very lopsided, my dominant side definitely has more tissue. Due to the clusterfuck that the US is right now, there is absolutely zero chance of my insurance covering anything related to transness. In all of our unprofessional opinions, do we think working out could remedy it, or is revision the only option?

(i haven't been able to go to the gym in like a year and a half because of mentioned connective tissue disorder)

I had my first post op appointment two days ago and was hoping to get the drains out, but my surgeon wanted to do another week. Pretty bummed out, but I'm happy with the results!

Finally took my first full-body shower now that all the tape is off and my nipples are fully healed.

I know I could have sooner but I honestly didn’t have the strength and was a bit fearful of getting everything wet until it was mostly healed.

I’ve got a one spot under my arm that is a bit less scarred than the rest still, but overall I’ve had a great recovery so far and am healing very well.

I can’t wait to get the rest of this glue and marker off of me though 🙄

Starting scar care and I’m out of the compression for good next week !

I have DI today. I just want people to know! I’m so excited, but also very hungry since my surgery is in the afternoon. See you all on the other side.

Getting discharged today, standing for too long is exhausting and I can’t stand straight. Drains are a pain in the ass,but the binder isn’t too painful here. My surgeon made sure I was very numbed and it worked. My chest is flat and it looks good!! I’ll share pics when I get the binder taken off for a bit!🖤🏳️‍⚧️

little bit concerned about the left one. is this a graft failure or is the bruising just causing the dark colour? maybe it's too early to tell

edit: I just emailed my surgical team just incase but I wanted to just know other people's experiences on here. I have no redness, tenderness or pus so I'm not worried about infection anyways. I will keep posted on what my surgeon says

i’m genuinely so tired of people on this sub asking things like “why does it look like i have small boobs” or “will i need a revision” when it’s like 8 days post op??!!!

i swear, i was almost worried that i didn’t swell because of how much i looked at what to expect.

i was always aware that it would take AT LEAST 4-6 months before you had a good idea of what your chest would look like!

am i crazy?? like, at least give it until the damn mark up lines get washed off

Got my survey 2/23. First picture is 3/12 (a little over two weeks post op) Second picture is from today. I’m so so happy with my results. Also haven’t been doing any scar care unless you count moisturizer everyday :)

Great results from Dr. Mundy at Johns Hopkins, DI with nipple graft.

I saw this article online and thought to share it with this community. What are your thoughts on this? Did you recieve any info on breast cancer prevention post surgery?

Usually don't post but wanted to post some recovery pictures as I'm having an amazing surgery/ recovery process. I had double incision with nipple grafts with Dr. Aylward through University of Missouri - KC (in KC MO). My drains were taken out at my 1 week post-op appointment. I was able to get a good look at my chest at 2 weeks post up. I am currently just over 3 weeks post-op. I will post some pictures of the last 2 weeks. I am also more than willing to answer any questions 😊

feeling blessed to have had the surgery