Something That We Knew

When you talk to a trans person one thing I think everyone would agree once you transition it is like a weight has been lifted off of your shoulders.

Transgender surgery can improve life for most, study confirms
New research uses a transgender-specific survey to assess the well-being of people who underwent gender reassignment survey.
Medical News Today
By Ana Sandoiu 19 March 2018

According to recent estimates, at present, there are 1.4 million transgender adults living in the United States, which represents about 0.6 percent of the country's population.

Studies have shown that transgender people have, overall, a lower quality of life than the general population.

High rates of depression, suicide attempts, and substance abuse have been documented among transgender individuals.

For many transgender people, quality of life improves after they transition. Gender reassignment is often essential for their well-being, with better psychosocial functioning, more stable relationships, and higher levels of contentment and happiness being reported by men and women who have transitioned.

Now, researchers from Essen University Hospital in Germany have developed, for the first time, a specific quality of life questionnaire for trans people who have had gender reassignment surgery.

The results of the study don’t come as a surprise to us,

Dr. Hess and colleagues surveyed 156 people who had all had gender reassignment surgery 6.61 years prior to the study, on average. The survey included open-ended questions regarding the participants' "general, optical, and functional contentedness" with the surgery.

The participants were also asked about their psychosocial well-being and quality of life. The latter was assessed at two different points in time throughout the transition process.

Overall, 71 percent of the participants reported feeling very satisfied with the "optical and functional results" of the surgery, with 76.2 percent of the participants saying that they were able to achieve orgasms.
Over 80 percent of the participants reported seeing themselves as female, and 16 percent said they felt "rather female." The authors conclude:

"We could detect a distinct improvement of general and trans-specific [quality of life] and psychosocial resources in our transgender cohort within [the] transition process."

When I transitioned I sent out a letter to all my cousins and one wrote back…

I remarked to _____ as we were leaving  what a warm and charming host you were and how sorry I was that I never knew you well. Now I understand better why. Thank you for sharing your story with us.

People can see a change in us, for me I was more outgoing.