Coming out to your Doctor

[Kimmy55]

I would like some advice on this subject from those of you who have came out to your General Practioner.Mine is a doctor who I have had for years and is someone I trust.Do you think it would be wise to tell her about my CD'ing,or just keep it to myself

[MiraM]

Unless you are planning on going on hormones and transitioning, there is no real need to tell your GP if you are just a casual CD. If you are planning to go on HRT and transition then you should tell your GP as she would be able to refer you to a good Endocrinologist.

[Lisa Golightly]

Do you think it will help with a diagnosis?

[Super Amanda]

Unless you are planning on going on hormones and transitioning, there is no real need to tell your GP if you are just a casual CD.



Do you think it will help with a diagnosis?



I agree with them. Unless you seek hormones, it really is not necessary to divulge details of your private life.

If you just need someone to tell though, I don't see any harm in telling, and it may help you to simply talk about it.

For myself, I straight out told my doctor I want to transition, and she wasted no time in helping me with the next step.

[Lorileah]

I tell my doctor everything that I think may be pertinent to any testing or future diagnoses. But I trust her implicitly. Besides she has seen my toenail polish :)

[Phyliss]

I tell my doctor everything... she has seen my toenail polish :)

Had to laugh at that comment. About 3 yr ago my Dr. wanted me to have a colonoscopy, ( not a fun thing) and when I went to see the Dr. for the initial "talk" about what to do, he had me fill out a bunch of forms, as he was reading the questions, he gets to one, and says "This may not apply in your case, but be sure to remove all nail polish prior to the procedure." Had to smile inside.

As for saying something to my Dr. ... I did, only because I don't have to worry about what I'm wearing when I go to an appointment. Plus, at the time I wanted to see a shrink, just to be sure of my thought process and find out some things about myself.

[Kimmy55]

Thank You for the imput.As I have an appt tomorrow now all I need do is decide which direction to go.

[anonymousinmaryland]

Okay. Someone tell me why no nail polish for a COLONOSCOPY??? Strikes me as strange, to say the least. (Unless it was a doctor's office standing joke.) Tell me, please.

[jenniferj]

One of the monitoring devices they use (I think it's to measure blood oxygen) clips on the end of your finger and "looks" through the nail. It won't work if your nails are painted. I think the old-timers also used the skin color under the nail as an indicator of how deeply under you are.

BTW, when I had my colonoscopy done, they gave me this marvelous drug. I remember waking up once during the procedure and looking at the monitor and asking if that's what I look like inside. They said yes. I went back to sleep. And the marvelous thing about the drugs is that I have a very warm and pleasant feeling whenever I think about. They do tell you to be careful NOT to make any important decisions for 24 hours...:daydreaming:

-jj

[Lorileah]

One of the monitoring devices they use (I think it's to measure blood oxygen) clips on the end of your finger and "looks" through the nail. It won't work if your nails are painted. I think the old-timers also used the skin color under the nail as an indicator of how deeply under you are.

Yeah that :) It is one of the places that no matter your ethnic background you are pink


BTW, when I had my colonoscopy done, they gave me this marvelous drug. I remember waking up once during the procedure and looking at the monitor and asking if that's what I look like inside. They said yes. I went back to sleep. And the marvelous thing about the drugs is that I have a very warm and pleasant feeling whenever I think about. They do tell you to be careful NOT to make any important decisions for 24 hours...:daydreaming:

-jj

Like if you really enjoyed the colonoscopy and wanted to make it a lifestyle? :)

[jenniferj]

" Like if you really enjoyed the colonoscopy and wanted to make it a lifestyle?"

I will probably get bleeped for this one, but:

I am told (by a nurse who assists on these procedures) that arousal is a very common side-effect of the drug (remember, you are wearing just a johnie) and that the motion and pressure past the prostate is often sufficient to incur the release of that-which-must-be-wiped-up. Maybe that's why I remember the experience so fondly. And maybe that's why they sent me flowers the next day.:battingeyelashes:

-jj

[Phyliss]

Perhaps I should have explained better, but yeah, it's so the Dr can see how you are doing, among other things they check for.
BTW I went and had my polish and acrylic fingernails removed, with an appointment for the next day to have it put back on.

[karynspanties]

Let me just say this. I had a job interview yesterday. I had to go to their doctor for a physical and wizz quizz. I had to take off my clothes, put on a gown, leave my underwear on. I was wear black micro-fiber boy shorts with lace waistband and lace around the leg openings. The doc did his thing, never said a word about the underwear, why? They are not interested and they have seen it a million times. So just wear what you want and do not worry about it.

[Jennifer in CO]

depending on what your wearing, you may not have to say a word...

Last time I saw my Doc I was wearing black slacks, a black turtle neck sweater and under it a black ribbon-strap satin cami and boy-short panty set. Oh...rose/lace trouser socks and my 'Believe' loafers from Payless. He said nothing. The nurse on the other hand made a comment that I looked comfy today. With the door closed she said she had the same sweater and hadn't thought about wearing the cami to stop the ichies...(its wool)

Jenn

[Evelyn]

It all depends on why you are seeing your GP, surely.

If you are attending because you have a cough, then obviously no, you dont have to discuss anything to do with being a CD.

In my own case, I was suffering from depression, had come out to my wife and kids, and needed medical support.

It was a difficult thing to do, to discuss my innermost secret with a man (even though he was a Dr), but I have to say, it was the best decision I ever made.
I got lots of help through therapy counselling. By the way, all the experts I spoke to were women, and they were very supportive and understanding, and entirely non judgemental.

Stay safe x

[sandra-leigh]

I've been seeing my doctor for depression for about 5 years. He'd been puzzled more than once about why my body was resisting some of the drugs and why I wasn't coming of the depression (and associated panic) as expected. I did discuss difficulties in my relationship, but even taking those into account, when he finally referred me to a psychologist, he used a term which means roughly "being affected by a stress/trauma event long after a typical person would be".

Exactly a month ago today, during my visit, he was trying to pump up my confidence a bit, and in doing so happened to ask a question about how I would introduce myself on one of the electronic social networks. I answered that it would depend on which one, because they have different purposes. He didn't see at the time what difference that would make. The easiest way for me to answer, short of telling him to drop the question, was to tell him about being CD and transgendered. He didn't quite believe me for a brief moment as he had never observed that my clothes were women's clothes. But he asked me why I'd never shown up dressed for an appointment, "if that is who you really are? Were you afraid?" And he said that my brain had always been in conflict, that "the brain knows".

So my appointment this morning, I went in a skirt and near-blouse and a top and pantyhose. He congratulated me. During the discussion that ensued, he said that now it made sense that progress had been slow, because my brain had been in conflict (even though I hadn't know it). He now somewhat expects me to go public (stop hiding it) including at work, and he thinks that once I do so, my depression will lift quite a bit. I think that what's going on with me is more complex than that, but he was enthusiastic about my prospects.


So, I guess like the others above, I would ask in part what your motivation is. Not that I mean to discourage you from talking to anyone! I'd say that if you are seeing your doctor with regards to something other than regular medical checkups, that if you feel you can trust him, then do tell him, as it might have relevance in ways that you don't expect. Even if it is a routine checkup, if you are getting past 45-ish, I would consider telling him: if you feel inside yourself that you cross-dress for more than just "fun", that you have a "need" to cross-dress, then if you tell your doctor, he might want to check some hormone balances or such things to cross-check that your biochemistry is in accordance with the way you would like it to be.

And if you've never outed yourself to anyone before, then it might just Be Time. As long as only you (and possibly your SO) know, there is a part of your which tells yourself that "This isn't really part of me, I could give it up if I had to, I just don't want to". When you start telling other people, people that know you, then you force yourself to take it more seriously. It doesn't matter how many sales clerks you've told you are a cross-dresser, until you have told yourself that you are a cross-dresser, told yourself at a deep "This isn't playing any more!!" level, then you don't start asking yourself the serious questions about "Now what?? How am I going to live the rest of my life with this as an internal fact?"

[JenniferR771]

My wife and I have the same doctor. I think I recall she told him about me. and then blamed me and my cd for her depression. Doc and I discussed it next appointment. No problem, but he was not particularly sympathetic. Has not mentioned my cding in recent years. Doctor patient confindentially should prevent him from talking to anyone about it--unless there is real need for diagnosis or treatment.
Actually, I have told other doctors on purpose for no reason. They have to keep it confidential.

[sharli61]

they monitor the flesh color of the toe under the toenail to make sure that the anesthesia is not reducing blood flow. i think

[Evelyn]

My wife and I have the same doctor. I think I recall she told him about me. and then blamed me and my cd for her depression. Doc and I discussed it next appointment. No problem, but he was not particularly sympathetic. Has not mentioned my cding in recent years. Doctor patient confindentially should prevent him from talking to anyone about it--unless there is real need for diagnosis or treatment.
Actually, I have told other doctors on purpose for no reason. They have to keep it confidential.

You mean he did'nt offer any help or advice, what a complete idiot he must be. To me this is completely unacceptable behaviour by a so called professuional.
It makes me soooo angry when people in need are ignored.

[TSchapes]

As part of my education outreach, I've told many of my doctors including my dentist. Why? I figure if they react badly, maybe I don't want them as a doctor for one. But a lot of the times it has to do with appearance. Like for example, I just had toe surgery and my doctor couldn't understand why I was fretting about a scar on my foot. And I said look, I wear strappy high heels and I don't want a Frankenstein looking toe. And once I showed him my pictures of Tracy, he got it.

Doctors have to keep this stuff a secret because of the HIPAA laws, so if it were to get out, law suit. So for me, if the need arises, I tell. If you have plastic surgery, I recommend you tell so that they understand you may not want your feminine attributes ruined.

Not all doctor's are comfortable with this information btw. They are people. In talking to other CDs that happen to be doctors, the surgeons are probably the least likely to understand TG because they are more jock orientated. I hate to put that generality out there, but it is something I keep hearing.

But if you feel comfortable telling, by all means do it.

-Tracy

[linnea]

I'll be telling my doctor at my next check-up. I'm going to do so for a couple of reasons. First, I want to stop worrying about forgetting to wear male underwear when I go for a doctor visit. Second, I'm thinking about hormones (HRT) and I want to discuss the possibilities with her.
However, I don't think that you or anyone else necessarily needs to disclose crossdressing to a doctor.

[Barbara918]

Doctors aren't surprised by anything nowadays. Mine never said a word when she inserted the stethoscope in my bra (except to say she thought it was very pretty).

[Cary]

I told my Doctor last month. I was such a load off my mind. He was very understanding and supportive. We had a nice long talk about the subject, and I left feeling better than I have in a longtime. He told me that my dressing can be a great stress reducer, which improve my overall health. Doctors are trained to deal with alot. I'm glad I told my doctor. I'm definetly underdressing for all my future appointments.

[Stephanie-L]

As others have said, it really depends on why you are going to the doc. If it is for something that might be CD related, then you should mention it. The folks here talking about depression, etc are great cases in point. Also, if the medical procedure can affect your enjoyment of CDing, such as the foot surgery post, then definately speak up. However, if there is no realtionship between the reason for your visit and your CDing, then you don't need to mention it. As others have noted, if it is something medically related, the doc or the staff cannot discuss it with anyone else, except in certain specific circumstances. They also are not supposed to even acknowledge that you are a patient of theirs, but this is not as stricktly enforced except in mental health. And if they like to gossip a bit and think that your CDing has no medical bearing, well, they are human.

As to the nail polish, the folks who said it interferes with the monitors are right, sort of. It used to interfere with the oxygen saturation monitors, the newer ones work better, and their are ways to work around nail polish.

The drug that was probably used for the coloscopy was either propofol or versed, or both. They are great drugs that I give every day (I am an anesthesia provider) but with high potential for abuse, just ask Michael Jackson.

Anyway, sorry to go on so long, hope your visit goes well....Stephanie

[MissConstrued]

What the hell you need a doctor for anyway?

Just don't get sick.

[Mya Summers]

How in the hay do you end up w/female Dr's??? I hate have male Dr's..lol

[Laura_Stephens]

I am NOT trying to stir the political pot.

However, in the current universal health bill in Congress, there is a requirement that all doctors, hospitals, etc. provide all medical records to the government even if the government is not paying for your healthcare.

It is just something to think about.

[Kimberly Marie Kelly]

know that I'm transsexual, so she can work with them and they can work with her as far as any medications I may be on. So far my primary doctor is okay with it, my other doctors which I had tests with are okay with it as well. No one gave me a hard time or anything and I go to the office visits as me, don't bother changing into male clothes anymore.. :battingeyelashes:

[kellycan27]

I came out to my doctor right after our first date. Actually I got outted, but I would have told him before our second....:straightface:

[trannie T]

Crossdressing is not a medical condition so it need not be mentioned. Unless the physican asks why you are wearing a bra.

[sandra-leigh]

Crossdressing is not a medical condition so it need not be mentioned.

There is non-trivial scientific research indicating that for at least some people, cross-dressing *is* "a medical condition", in the sense of having biological and neurological bases. The questions are more "is it an abnormality or common?" "is there anything about it that needs to be treated?" "To what extent should a medical professional encourage cross-dressing considering the problems it can bring?" "Is it more 'responsible' for a medical professional to say 'Dress the way that makes you happy and don't care what other people think?' or to suggest trying to find accommodations without 'coming out' publicly considering the potential consequences" ?

If you say it isn't a medical condition and you therefore should not talk to your doctor about it, then you are also implicitly recommending that doctors not be trained to deal with the worry and stresses and so on that people might bring to them, and you are also implicitly recommending that doctors not be trained to be able to detect harmless cross-dressing from real "mental illnesses" (to use the common term) that might result in similar behaviour (e.g., some autistic children miss cues so badly that even though they are not cross-dressers, they are unable to figure out what is "normally" worn by one gender or another.)