The emotional and psychological implications of botched gender affirming surgery can be devastating. When I say botched surgeries, I am referring to anatomically incorrect aesthetics and/or stenosis (failure or closing of vaginal canal). Women who go through this can experience severe complex trauma due to feeling trapped and hopeless about their situation and bodies. These girls have spent their life savings on the one surgery that should have contributed to them feel whole and complete, just to be botched, often abandoned, and even gaslighted by a surgeon or team they put their trust into.
Gender affirming surgery and life affirming surgeries are meant to create a space for women to feel complete and whole in their bodies, live their truth, and have sexual experiences (should they choose), among other things. Botched surgeries do the opposite, making it impossible for women to live in their bodies and experience intimacy on their terms.
I can’t tell you how many girls have reached out to me and said, I don’t want to live like this” or simply, “I don’t want to live at all”. For every girl who speaks to me like this I wonder how many girls did actually end their suffering. I will be putting more information out there on the process of correcting botched/failed surgeries in the weeks to come, but I just felt compelled to put something out today because these are conversations I’m having with women daily, sometimes hourly. It does not need to be like this.
Botched surgeries can range from dissatisfaction with aesthetics to severe internal complications. Regardless of where a patient is on this spectrum, please know we *usually* correct these complications rather seamlessly.
If you would like to speak with one of our patient advocates or have your case reviewed by a reconstructive surgeon, please do not hesitate to reach out. It does not have to be the end. It can be the beginning.
There is LIFE after Botched Gender Affirming Surgery, follow these steps