Top Surgery

I had my chest surgery on 14 January, 2004 at 09.45 am with Dr Michael Brownstein in San Francisco, CA. I tried to eat healthier in preparation for surgery, but it was very hard for me to lay off the sweets. Both Bailey (my then-partner, who had surgery on the same day as me) and I tried to increase our protein intake at least somewhat, and started (again) having salad with dinner in every night and taking a multivitamin and Vitamin C every day. I tried to take up weightlifting, but I just didn't have time.

My surgery diary is here.

Pictures of my chest are here. None of them are remotely gory; they're of my scars, which are essentially two lines across my chest, and close-ups of my nipples so you can see how they were grafted on, and how they healed, but again, there's no blood or gross stuff at all.

BREAKDOWN OF COSTS

- Dr Brownstein's fee (just for me): $4,750 -

- Surgical Facility fee (just for me): $1,077 -

- Anesthesia fee (just for me): $800 -

- Pathology fee (just for me): $250 -

- 3 Round-Trip Airline Tickets: $940.35 -

- Hotel (for all three of us): $785.30 -

- Food, Sightseeing, etc. (for all three of us): $452.00 -

- TOTAL: $9,054.65 -

Transster.com is by far the best place to look at guys' surgery results - for bottom surgery as well as top - and see how the different surgeons measure up.

Check out here for a crash course in the different types of top surgery available to FTMs, and exactly what they're about.

Some great - and relatively recent - accounts of top surgery:

Kael's surgery (Dr McLean, Toronto, 2004)
Lace's surgery (Dr Brownstein, San Francisco, 2002)

Some advice from folks who have had top surgery:

No aspirin before surgery - it'll make brusing and swelling worse.
Especially before surgery, take Shark cartilage for leukocyte formation to fight infection.
Especially before surgery, take Vitamin C 1000 mg w/ bioflavanoids and rutin for tissue integrity.
Especially before surgery, take Vitamin E - only the natural stuff (the synthetic thins the blood) and not more than your surgeon recommends - taking too much can cause your scars to keloid (those thick, rope-like scars that stick out).
Especially before and immediately after surgery, eat a nutritious, high-protein diet.
Take button-down pajamas and button-down shirts with you. You may not be able to get clothing up over your head after surgery.
Take some sort of "Wet Ones" or baby wipes so you can keep clean during the time before you're allowed to shower again. Be careful of using them near the drain holes, though - people have gotten infections by getting too close.
Get bendable straws in case you're too sore to lift drinks the first couple of days.
While you're on antibiotics, eat plain yoghurt or take acidophilus tablets to prevent yeast infections (you don't want those to happen).
Get a loaf of bread and eat a slice every time you take a pain pill, even if you're not hungry or you just ate something else. The bread will help reduce or even eliminate nausea from the pain pills.
Anaesthesia can take a long time to drain out of your body - up to a month or more, especially if you're sensitive to it. While it's draining from your body, it can cause significant depression. Talk to your doctor about getting a one-time prescription for antidepressants if this concerns you.
If you have scars, once the surgical tape is off your scars, rub Palmer's Cocoa Butter with Vitamin E lotion on them to help them fade.
If you have scars, keep your scars out of the sun for a year to prevent keloiding. If you must go out in the sun bare-chested, put white medical tape over your scars - not even the strongest sunscreen can do the job.
Also, go to http://groups.yahoo.com/group/ftmsurgerysupport/files/ (you'll have to join the group first) and click on the "pre-surgical_suggestions.txt" file.