r/trans•
jinseinashi

Trying to get top surgery as a minor in the US...

Advice

Sorry if I can't articulate my situation well but I need advice. I'm a 17yo transgender male living in the US and I'm struggling to find a way to safely get top surgery before starting college next year.

For context, I have been binding my chest almost everyday since I was 14. I came out and socially transitioned a few months later (right before starting high school) and started taking testosterone about a year after that (so it's been a little over 2 years now). I’ve also already had my gender and name changed legally. Despite having extremely supportive parents, I struggled with bringing up the topic of top surgery until this past March. When I did, they were both on board and soon after we discussed it with my gender clinic. I got cleared and received a letter of recommendation for the surgery from my mental health provider in March. We then met with a surgeon from the clinic and it was estimated that I would be able to get surgery sometime next summer (at which point I would already be 18).

However, last month my gender clinic announced that it will no longer be providing gender-affirming surgeries for anyone under 19yo due to new legislation. It's extremely important to me that I get top surgery before I start attending college in the fall of 2026 but at that point I won't be 19 yet. So, today my Mom told me that it seems we're kind of out of options. The only solution that I could think of would be getting the surgery done somewhere abroad, possibly in Canada or something. However, I don't know how that would work in terms of our insurance and stuff. Does anyone have any advice on this? Thank you.

Posted Jul 9, 2025, 4:15 AM UTC

15
Loading comments…