EugeniaCooney Fan #332

I’m sixteen and genderfluid/non-binary, I want to start testosterone when I’m eighteen and get top surgery. I want to know how to tell my parents but I’m scared

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Hi Friend,

I don’t know about your relationship with your parents, but I can only imagine that they will ask themselves a number of questions and it would be interesting for you to prepare yourself for these. Since I don’t know anything about this myself and since I’m not in this situation, I can only imagine that they could ask things like: “can you explain what is this surgery?”; “what are the risks of it?”; “it is safe for you/what are the possible side effects of taking testosterone?” ; “for how long will you have to take it / will you have to take it for the rest of your life?”; “what does it mean for you today the idea of doing that?”; “how much does it cost?”; “from when will we see your body changing?” (…).

The idea with preparing yourself to give some possible answers is to try to give them the most concrete perspectives AND that way you won’t feel destabilized. It’s possible that, during the discussion, they’ll ask questions you wouldn’t have imagined. I guess you already know a lot about this but it won’t be the case for them. It will be important for you to reduce their possible fears by showing that you know what you are talking about, that your decision is perfectly responsible and that it really, really corresponds to who you are. In this way, you will set the conditions for a serious and serene discussion.

If you can, take some documentation with you. What seems relevant and useful for them to understand your personnal motives and the different issues linked to this. Sometimes, some people need more “official” resources.

Another suggestion, especially if the discussion becomes difficult for you, is to signify that you give them the time they’d need to think about it. They will certainly need it. Not because your decision would be wrong: not at all. But because it’s an important step in your life and, by extension, in theirs too. :wink:

I hope this discussion will go well for the three of you and that you’ll find with them the support that you expect. Know that, in any case, this community is here for you so don’t hesitate to keep us informed of your situation. I am myself very proud of your choice and I wish you all the best for the future.

Take care. :two_hearts: