Gender affirmation surgery is a surgery that Dr. Duboys and the rest of or staff take very seriously. As such, Dr. Duboys follows the standards of care procedures that are adopted by the World Professional Association for Transgender Health (WPATH). These guidelines follow a series of steps to see if Dr. Duboys will consider surgery. Typically, the first step involves having patients meet with a mental help professional. As a step that many patients dread because of many misconceptions out there, Dr. Duboys thought it would be nice to lay out some of the basics that you can expect from your meeting with your mental health professional. Let’s take a closer look.
It’s a Helpful Tool
One of the things that we tell patients who are nervous about going into therapy before gender affirmation surgery is that they should look at it as a helpful tool. Think of it this way, we want you to go into surgery having every tool that you need in order to head into recovery feeling better than ever, both physically and mentally. During therapy, you will be able to better determine whether or not surgery will give you the outcome that you are going for. Additionally, if you have any issues that you are working through that may pertain to surgery, this will be held prul time to do that.
It’s Not Designed to Dissuade You
As long as you go to the right therapist, you should know that this form of therapy is not designed to dissuade you from going through with surgery. In fact, it’s just there to help you through the process. Going through gender affirmation surgery is a huge deal on your mentally, physically, and emotionally. Even though Dr. Duboys can help you out physically, it’s important that you get mental and emotional support as well; that way you can get through this feeling whole and complete.
If you want to learn more about gender affirmation surgery and the steps that you need to take before the actual surgery, contact our Huntington office today and call us at (631) 423-1000.