UPDATE: my surgery is booked for October 8th!! this meal train will help my partner and I with meals, groceries, and other needs such as visitors or pet care! venmo: @that0nebarista cashapp: $that0nebarista ________________________________________________________________________________ Hey y’all!! My name’s Alika for those of you who don’t know me! I’m 26, my pronouns are he/they, and I am trans masc nonbinary! here are some resources if you don’t know what those terms means! https://transequality.org/issues/resources/understanding-transgender-people-the-basics https://us.modibodi.com/blogs/womens/transmasc https://lgbt.foundation/help/what-it-means-to-be-non-binary/ I have been transitioning for 6 years now, socially and medically with hormone replacement therapy (HRT). I’m excited to say that I have been able to finally take the steps towards top surgery, also referred to as a double mastectomy! This is a very important step in my journey towards receiving gender affirming care as well as improving my mental and physical health. I remember as young as the age of 3 feeling out of place in some way, not feeling comfortable with myself. Unable to pinpoint what the feeling was, I struggled for a long time figuring out what all of it meant. I grew up in a religious household and in church most of my time. I went to religious schools up until junior high. Figuring out my sexuality and gender identity were nearly impossible with my upbringing. When I was younger, I remember wanting to dress like my dad, put gel in my hair like his, and wear cologne like him. I was glowing, going into work with him and people call me his lil mini me! For a while, I picked my own haircuts and they were consistently a really stupid bowl cut that I would point to in the “boys” section at the family friend’s salon. Everyone would ask “are you sure you want that one???”. “you’ll look a boy if you get that one” they would say. But I LOVED it, I wanted to look like a boy because that’s how I felt but didn’t know how to verbalize that. I couldn’t communicate that I didn’t feel right in my skin. It was more than just being a tomboy girl. It wasn’t until a few years later that I was told I couldn’t wear boy clothes anymore and that I needed to dress more like a girl. I had to grow my hair out and wasn’t allowed to cut it all the way up until I graduated from high school. I wore the dresses, did the whole make up thing, trying to fit into this gender norm of that I didn’t feel right in. I knew I liked girls when I was younger, and I fought hard with myself to accept that and deal with the consequences of being gay, which meant I thought was going to hell and no one in my family accepting me. It wasn’t until I was in 7th grade that I learned what being transgender meant through videos on youtube and blog posts. I immediately knew that it was exactly how I was feeling, simultaneously freaking out that this was an even bigger deal than just being gay. I suppressed this feeling and identity all the way until I went to university. It wasn’t until then that through therapy, figuring out my gender identity and truly accepting that in order for me to be happy, I needed to live my authentic self. I came out as trans feb 28 2018, started testosterone march 28 2018, and haven’t looked back since. I have had continuous support from friends and family in my transition! I’ve stood my ground with my identify and who I am. I can’t express how much I love and appreciate you all! I refuse to be held down by people who claimed to love me no matter what but do not support me for being my true self. I have been using a chest binder for the past 6 years and It has been an excruciating 6 years, let me tell ya. I bind my chest to feel more comfortable in clothes and in the mirror, in my own skin. I’ve wore it through so many marching rehearsals, shows and football games, recitals, and lectures, overall at least 8 hours a day for the past 6 years. Sometimes I’m binding for 14-16 hours which is not recommended or healthy whatsoever ever and I cannot stress this enough, DO NOT DO THAT. Possible risks of chest binding for long periods of time include: - chest pain - scarring - overheating - shortness of breath - buildup of fluid in the lungs - back issues - broken ribs or movement of ribs This is why gender affirming care surgeries are SO important. By no means is this a fix all solution but it will help improve my mental and physical health drastically. Surgery will be an outpatient procedure so I won’t need to be staying in the hospital, but I will be out of work for roughly 6-8 weeks for recovery and I will have SUPER low range of motion. My partner will be here to help me in my recovery with most tasks, but we will need assistance with meals, groceries, pet care, or just having visitors! Your support means the world to me! Whether you are able to donate, sign up for a meal/visitor slot, or share on your socials, anything and everything helps! Thank you so much for taking the time to read this far, donate, or share this link! I love y’all so much, ya cutie patooties! - Alika