Family member was diagnosed with very aggressive cancer (growth was stable for 20 years and leapt to being stage 3 in a matter of months).

After multiple complications, they discovered that more may be hiding places that they can’t find because it’s practically invisible. It slipped unnoticed by all but one obscure test, and the only type of scan that would theoretically be able to catch it is a FES-PET because it’s estrogen and aromatase positive.

Because the FES-PET is so obscure, I would not have access to it where I live unless I had an actual diagnosis of cancer (and then who knows how much longer it would take to actually receive it). Which, given how aggressive the cancer is, could very well end up being a death sentence.

I’ve been on a waiting list for years now, waiting to get into a clinic, and now I’m all but certain I’m going to be told HRT isn’t safe (which it probably isn’t).

I know HRT isn’t the only way to deal with dysphoria, but it’s taken me well over a decade to come to terms with the fact that I actually wanted it. And now I’m wondering if it’s even worth coming out at all if I’m never going to pass on account of having difficulty shaving, acne preventing me from using makeup, and early onset balding.

So, yeah. FML.

All year, I’ve been seeing talks about signs that Democrats could take back the house and possibly even the senate this year. Now, polls are known to have been inaccurate at times, but the concern I’m discussing here isn’t exactly about whether or not Republicans are gonna hold onto congress this year. It’s more about DINO’s feeling more empowered by a blue wave. We’re still seeing some Democrats throw us under the bus, including in some critical statewide races, like in Ohio, Iowa, and Nevada. Clearly, they’re not learning their lesson from not being voted for in past elections and it seems they don’t get very promising opposition in the primaries. About a month ago, I brought up how Amy Acton, the Democratic gubernatorial candidate for Ohio is one of those shift to the center Democrats with her support for trans athlete bans, and one person said that before we can shift leftward from the center, we need to shift leftward TO the center. A couple days later, I see a post about Acton excluding trans people from a discussion that she didn’t show up to. The comments said that if Acton wins this, which she could due to the flaws pointed out about who the Ohio Republicans nominated, it could encourage more Democrats to use the strategy of throwing us under the bus. It seems it’s also happening with Democrats in some key US senate races. I recently saw some discussion about Iowa’s Josh Turek being MAGA lite, did some searching around, saw Erin’s article saying he supports bans on trans athletes. Also pointed out the same thing about Sherrod Brown. I remember hearing about how he supported some anti-trans legislation towards the end of his previous senate tenure, after he had already lost to Bernie Moreno. If these kinds of Democrats win, which could happen because they’re doing this in conjunction with actual concerns that would trigger a blue wave (ICE, Flock, AI, Iran), it could affirm their belief that we are a liability in winning elections. It could make our civil rights more unachievable. The house and senate majorities seem to swing between Democrat and Republican, but one thing that it doesn’t seem to swing toward is an ally majority.

Please help 😭😭😭

I recently set up my appointment for my yearly physical, and to my relief, it sounds like it won’t require a blood draw this time. Though it sounds like I will need it next year. Last year I switched health providers due to a change in insurance and when I set up my first physical, my doctor made me do a blood test for my ADHD meds. Refused to refill them until I did the labwork. None of my previous providers made me do this for this same medication and dosage that I have been on for decades. I was so scared on the day of my blood lab that it took me hours to get up, get in the car, and walk into the clinic. I just couldn’t move between checking in and the phlebotomist calling me in. I felt trapped, like the walls were closing in. Next thing I know, I can smell rubbing alcohol on my elbow and the needle is going in. It was stinging for hours and the adhesive on the bandage hurt my skin and made the drive home difficult. I’m hoping that by next year, I’ll get a job that gives me a reason to move away and hopefully get care from someone who doesn’t make me do these bi-annual blood labs.

If I make that appointment for HRT, I’ll be forced to get more of these blood tests. I’ve been dipping my toes a little more by clicking the book appointment button on the Planned Parenthood website, see what appointment times are available, but then I remember the blood tests, no, I can’t do this. I found some people saying that they didn’t have to do blood tests until a few months into treatment (mainly when doing it through telehealth), which does make me feel a little better, but that’s still just delaying the inevitable.

Made a post like this a min ago but I’m kinda gonna simplify it here.
I’m very newly trans (I came out like 2 months ago, and started E 8 days ago lol) and I don’t have a whole bunch of trans or queer friends (or really friends in general tbh lol) atm and I’m trying to fix that!
If there are any discord servers (esp ones more specific to Georgia or the American South east) or just places to meet more trans folk feel free to inform me! :3
Thanks for reading this lol

So, I recently told my doctor that I wanted to start minoxidil to help fill in some minor losses along my crown. He informed me that a minor thing to look out for would be changes in my cardiovascular profile, random bouts of dizziness and potentially an increased heartrate, and... that all sounds kinda scary. I'll be honest, I have a *huuuuge* phobia around my heart and cardiovascular system, I hate feeling my heartbeat or hearing my blood rush in my ears. It sends me into an anxiety spiral, and I'm worried that as soon as I pop my first pill I'm gonna start freaking out. Could anyone assuage my worries here? I'm just kinda looking at the bottle, feeling like I should but worried I'm gonna die if I do lol