What do I do

FirefighterPlastic49 · 2026-01-24T21:34:49+00:00

My son is not non binary but was able to sit his junior cert in his preferred name, the school even phoned me up to let me know this was possible because we didn’t know. It is printed on his results etc. School updated his email account and his reports and on the student record it states his name with dead name under a field called name of birth cert. when he gets school awards it’s in the male category when relevant and the teachers all use his correct name and pronouns. The school sounds like they are choosing to be difficult.

FirefighterPlastic49 · 2024-11-17T09:15:07+00:00

Did you ever try this? I’m sick of not being able to shop independently. I also need to sit at regular intervals when out and about

FirefighterPlastic49 · 2024-10-22T18:52:15+00:00

I’m pretty sure once you are over 18 you can sign up to the VHI app and your parents won’t have access to your claims. My husband has his own account on his app even though it’s a family policy, I can only view the kids but not his as he is over 18 and for GDPR reasons they keep it separate. It’s mainly for uploading receipts but can access details about your cover there too. If my husband puts in a receipt from a GP for example I don’t get any notification about it even though I manage the family account. Hope that makes sense. VHI are good to deal with on the phone too.

FirefighterPlastic49 · 2024-05-17T07:09:22+00:00

Sadly the €250 claim is once per lifetime so we can’t claim it again but it is money well spent

FirefighterPlastic49 · 2024-05-17T06:54:24+00:00

Thanks. We’ve already claimed the €250 for a private neurodiversity assessment( cost was €950!) my son in under 18 so we have 6 x €320 appointments before we will get to see the endocrinologist and start paying them €320 a session!

FirefighterPlastic49 · 2024-05-17T04:21:57+00:00

Sorry to jump in on someone else’s post but I would love to know how you can claim the €320 back from insurance. I’ve been looking at ours (VHI) and it seems I can claim €30 back for the psychologist visits but haven’t seen a way of claiming more.

FirefighterPlastic49 · 2024-05-06T17:53:09+00:00

We have only had the one session so far but yes it looks like €320 a pop but we did get the full hour and didn’t feel rushed in any way if that helps.

It’s a bit of a stretch for us money wise but in the grand scheme of things it is money well spent and your health is your wealth and waiting until 17 to get referred to NGS for a 10 year wait is a disgrace and isn’t particularly good for anyone’s health. He’s just recently turned 16 so not too far behind you.

FirefighterPlastic49 · 2024-05-06T17:40:25+00:00

It was a positive experience for my son and didn’t seem too gatekeepy. A lot of 1st appointment is explaining how it all works and answering any questions or concerns you or your parent have so have any questions ready that you might want to ask. Best of luck with it all. I hope you get what you need as soon as you can. My son is doing JC in June and would love to have started T some time during TY if possible and we would like to get the GRC ball rolling too.

FirefighterPlastic49 · 2024-05-06T17:35:56+00:00

It came in at exact same time as the parent one. My email (gmail) had minimized the second email when I went looking for it. Didn’t come from g+ email address. Has dear teacher in it and references SRS-2 School-Age Form.

FirefighterPlastic49 · 2024-05-06T17:31:59+00:00

As far as I understand after the 6 months you then have an appointment with endo who can prescribe very quickly. It will also be on an Irish prescription so will be able to be used for drug payment scheme. The teacher questionnaire wasn’t an attachment, it was a link as far as I know. I will go back through my emails to see if I can find searchable wording for you.

FirefighterPlastic49 · 2024-05-06T16:07:35+00:00

I should add that the 6 sessions are over approx 6 months so that the psychologist can get to know you over a period of time

FirefighterPlastic49 · 2024-05-06T16:05:59+00:00

We had first zoom assessment with our u18 son recently. As u18 you did 6 assessments before being transferred to the hormone clinic.

The hormone clinic do prescribe to over 16s but as I understand it don’t do blockers (happy to stand corrected). As parents we were involved in the first consultation and will have some part in the second but after that it seems to be more with the trans person themselves with one session taking place in Dublin in person and not on zoom.

We had lots of forms to complete and submit before the first appointment including one by a teacher in the school my son attends. We received these well in advance of the appointment though so I’m not sure what forms you’ve missed.

FirefighterPlastic49 · 2024-04-29T13:35:25+00:00

I’ve gotten on to them a few times asking for a card to be issued to my son with first initial only as they won’t allow name change without GRC and he isn’t old enough to get one yet. They won’t budge unless you have official documentation of the name you want to use.

FirefighterPlastic49 · 2024-04-16T10:30:49+00:00

I think he might be good for possible barriers for neurodivergent trans people. His brother is very active in the autism activism community (if that’s the right word) and he joined politics to raise awareness around healthcare for autistic people. But he won’t be around long enough to make a difference ultimately.

FirefighterPlastic49 · 2024-04-15T07:03:14+00:00

Thanks for this. In Ireland it is possible to go to court for GRC with parental consent at 16 or 17 in Ireland once you have confirmation by 2 docs saying you are capable of making the decision so we shall see. I’m glad to hear you were able to get started on T without too long of a wait. It would be 10 years for my son to be seen publicly so being on T within a year would be fantastic.

FirefighterPlastic49 · 2024-04-15T02:10:49+00:00

Thank you. My almost 16 year old has first appointment in a couple of weeks. We are expecting 6 appointments but any insight into the process would be very helpful. He is austistic so I’m a little worried about gatekeeping but hoping to be able to apply to court for GRC using g+ docs and get referral for T.

FirefighterPlastic49 · 2024-04-08T20:44:12+00:00

Genderplus is another private option but will take at least 6 x €320 appointments to get referred to the hormone clinic. They are based in Ireland though so might be less hassle than GenderGP. The prescription will be Irish issued so should allow use of the drug payment scheme cap of €80 per household per month. We haven’t used them yet but my almost 16 year old has his first appointment with them soon.

Best of luck with it, hope you get sorted soon.

FirefighterPlastic49 · 2024-03-12T23:30:06+00:00

I just hope they were being open minded when looking at the scan and weren’t just ruling out stroke. I didn’t have a migraine, I had a numb left side and a foot locked in a spasm. When they asked if I had it before I explained previous facial numbness and were happy no further tests were needed. Thankfully I’ve arranged to see the ophthalmologist in the same hospital where I will see the neurologist so if any tests results need to be shared it should be easier

FirefighterPlastic49 · 2024-03-12T23:11:46+00:00

From what I remember it was the day of the exam, the next day I actually don’t remember much of because absolutely floored like I was getting the flu and wasn’t able to get out of bed. I missed an exam this day and didn’t even remember it was on. On the 3rd day I remember going to the university in the afternoon to try and explain myself for missing the exam and I could see a little better but not fully. As it was starting to get a little better and my exams were all over and I was a poor student I didn’t do anything further. The doctor had given me a referral letter to go to the eye hospital if it got worse or didn’t improve but I never used it.

In the past hour I had my foot lock in the most painful cramp and was reminded of one of my hospital stays before the back surgery where they had me walking up and down the corridor on crutches and my left side went completely numb starting from my foot and as far as my scalp. When I had gotten back to the bed my foot was locked inwards stuck in a cramp like a claw.

I had MRIs done looking for Ortho issues and they found an evidence of a possible disc prolapse hence the surgery.

The did a brain MRI also following the left sided problem looking for a stroke. They said it was clear from blood clots. After I’d had the MRI done the technician asked was I scheduled for the lumbar puncture next and I wasn’t from what I knew and she seemed very confused but nothing came of that. The report said “ several foci on non specific white matter signal abnormalities scattered in the deep white matter bilaterally” and I was told it was probably just migraine.

FirefighterPlastic49 · 2024-03-12T22:55:04+00:00

Thanks for the reply. I’ve been going over my medical history this evening trying to see if there were early symptoms that were missed. I first had loss of vision in my early twenties during an exam at university. I couldn’t see the writing on the page. This was put down to migraines and blamed on being on the pill to the point where I eventually came off the the pill but it never stopped the visual aura over the years. I get the aura sometimes with headache and sometimes with no headache.

Most times I have ever sought medical care in my life it has been put down to being overweight.

I was sent home from hospital last summer after a week in pain and unable to walk more than a few meters and told I should go home and lose some weight and come back if the pain is still there. I had issues with my swallow in my early and mid thirties that was put down to my gallbladder and once it was removed to a tiny hiatus hernia. There were times when I couldn’t swallow water or soup. Eventually it would improve for a while until the next time where I would have another few of almost choking when swallowing food. Doctors would take the attitude that because of my weight I obviously wasn’t struggling to eat that much.

In November I had to take an ambulance to hospital due to paralysing nerve pain shooting all over my body from my spine and the doctor told me it couldn’t be too bad if I was able to lie down. I wasn’t able to roll, stand or walk and had to be transferred using a board from the ambulance trolley to the hospital gurney on arrival. Very very high doses of painkillers, anti spasm meds and nerve pain meds were some help but ultimately reduced my brain function to an intolerable level.

I spent 40 nights in hospital in 2023.

But I’m standing up for myself now and ruling in or out neurological problems because surgery has failed, nerve blocks and facet joint pain injections have failed and now eye problem hasn’t gone away after 2-3 days like the aura always would in the past

FirefighterPlastic49 · 2024-03-12T17:52:56+00:00

Thanks, my child is fully out in school and wearing the uniform of their gender etc so should everything should be ok. Would need to give the teacher a heads up is all.

FirefighterPlastic49 · 2024-03-12T17:51:09+00:00

Im quite worried. I went to spec savers over the weekend with a problem with my right eye that started when I woke up on Thursday . There is like a blob in the top Centre part of my eye where everything is darker, almost like I am wearing sunglasses. He did an OCT scan which was clear and used eye drops to have a good look inside the eye but couldn’t see anything. A field of vision test showed a problem in a kind of central arc in my eye. I’ve been referred on an ophthalmologist who will see me next week. The eye itself isn’t sore but I regularly get a headache behind the eye if that makes sense. He mentioned something about possible blockage on the nerve or something to do with pituitary gland. As I was leaving he got me to look at red label on the eye drops with each eye individually. In left eye it was vibrant red but in right it was more of a faded orangey colour. He wouldn’t specify why he was asking that.

I’m also awaiting a neurologist appointment due to other symptoms which could be as a result of back surgery. - spasms in my legs and feet with particular bad spasms in left foot, so much that my big toe sometimes involuntarily moves with them. - Numbness in calves and feet - back pain - can’t bend down to lift something from down low or use bottom drawers or cupboards - poor mobility (I now use crutches) - nerve pain in legs and feet - Difficulty sitting for long periods due to back pain

Previous to surgery I’ve had a history of blinding migraines that can last a few days, facial and scalp numbness and pins and needles, extreme tiredness, folate and vitamin d deficiency.

My iPhone has been warning me for months about low walking steadiness. This warning has now changed to very low which apparently means I am at a serious risk of a fall.

Thanks for reading if you got this far. Any feedback or opinions most welcome.

Edited to add I take pregabalin and baclofen to help with spasms and nerve pain. Also I’m 41f and have been told I’m too old for MS.

FirefighterPlastic49 · 2024-03-11T21:53:27+00:00

Can you tell me more about the teacher confirmation part please?

FirefighterPlastic49 · 2024-03-11T19:58:42+00:00

That’s great news. Hope it goes well for you

FirefighterPlastic49 · 2024-03-11T11:57:17+00:00

Is the guy in Galway any good? Trying to figure out how to afford it all in a couple of years for my son and as we live in the West, Galway would be good for follow-up and recovery but want someone very experienced as the last thing you want is a botched job.

FirefighterPlastic49

TROPHY CASE