Reply To: Welcome to Transgender Heaven

[Grace Darling]

Hello, Dee,

I am also in the UK.  I’m not sure what you mean about the 18 week wait for an NHS Gender Clinic appointment.  I do, though, recognise what you mean about the 3-4 year wait to go to the Tavistock Clinic or similar.  I don’t yet know whether I want to wait that long.

I didn’t know about bridging prescriptions and was very interested in the link you sent.  I have had a private Gender Psych evaluation.  I can recommend that strongly as a useful experience.  However, as you know, it is not cheap (!).  I did it as the necessary step to get a private hormone prescription.  But I haven’t yet decided whether I want to or can afford to do the private hormone medication.  We all face a two year period of exceptionally increased expense in the UK, as you well know!

I would think that a private psych evaluation would carry some weight with your GP in terms of getting the prescription you want.  However, whatever the public statements may say, I don’t think the NHS functions as a service which meets people’s needs.  I think that, in practice, it is there to provide a strictly rationed service which only addresses the most pressing of needs, and then according to a strict ‘triage’ system.

We might wish it were otherwise in the UK but, unless we vote for a very different kind of funding model, I don’t think we’ll see radical change in the way things run.  Thus, unless you are a patient who is seen as being at significant risk of self-harm, I don’t think any GP will see you as much of a priority against all the other calls upon limited NHS funds.

I suppose what I’m leading up to saying is that, if you can’t bear the wait, and if you are able to, you may have to go private for hormones until you (finally) get your NHS gender clinic appointment in a few years’ time.

I guess this may all come across as a bit gloomy.  Regrettably, though, it seems that Britain is still behind the curve of other comparable wealthy countries in terms of supporting transgender women.

PM me if you think I can help.  If I don’t reply quickly, it’ll only be because I don’t check this site every day.

Much love and good luck,

Grace