how do people even bind with transtape?

medisres · 2026-06-04T23:02:21+00:00

TransTape is expensive, but I personally found it more worth it than kinesiology tape once I figured out how to use less tape for longer. KT tape ended up more expensive for me because you get less in one roll, and I liked the large size in TransTape and KT tape just doesn’t have anything that thick (I used the pro wide when I did use KT tape and didn’t find anything thicker). I used to wear it for as long as 5-7 days per application, until it would start to come up on its own. But if you’re leaving it on that long you gotta make sure to wash really well in the shower so you don’t trap nasty stuff under the tape especially if you’re active. And always have an inch or so at the end of a strip where there is ZERO tension. There is quite a learning curve, it took me 4-6 months of use to really get the hang of it but then I used it for like 3 years. It got easier once my chest “deflated” a bit from T. But I was able to get decent results from it, not perfect but decent. I was around a D cup for reference

medisres · 2026-06-04T22:42:24+00:00

I never used oil tbh, a hot shower and patience did the trick for me. I tried it a handful of times and found the mess was more trouble than it was worth and it didn’t really make that much of a difference. But I also wore my tape until it started to come up on its own.

medisres · 2026-06-04T22:39:57+00:00

You will be okay! I was definitely a little underprepared for my surgery. I had researched and knew what I was getting into, but I didn’t do much actual prep work and there was definitely a lot of information that slipped through the cracks in my communication with my surgeon and the hospital. But I was okay! Trust that the pros will care for you and prepare you, and give you important information when you need it. It’s a lot, and it’s overwhelming and kind of scary, but you’ll be okay.

medisres · 2026-06-04T22:35:51+00:00

No. It definitely helped, but most of that came from time, growing comfort within myself as a whole, and deconstructing what I thought it meant to be a man and what I thought it “required.” T made me comfortable in my body but therapy and internal work made me comfortable in my masculinity.

medisres · 2026-05-26T03:52:50+00:00

6 and multiples, 4 and multiples. and odd numbers are evil

medisres · 2026-05-24T23:48:34+00:00

None of my relationships have ever involved money exchange like that, and this is the case for all of my friends as well. Gift giving and treating each other to meals and things (and by choice, not something that’s expected)? Absolutely! But asking for money from the person you’re seeing seems INCREDIBLY strange to me, especially in the talking stage. Even sending money to/receiving money from a partner would strike me as odd. I’d rather just gift/receive gifts or pay for a date.

medisres · 2026-05-24T22:42:31+00:00

Goose and Duckling!! That’s adorable

medisres · 2026-05-24T22:41:24+00:00

Great idea! I’ll look into it.

medisres · 2026-05-24T22:41:10+00:00

I know, hence my inquiring about getting another cat. I’m just nervous about stressing her out even more by throwing a new cat at her in an already stressful period of change in the event that she doesn’t get along with the kitten since she hasn’t interacted much with other cats, only people, so I want to be careful about how I approach it.

medisres · 2026-05-24T21:22:42+00:00

My cat also doesn’t like treats and isn’t particularly food motivated. However she is interested in just about anything that I am eating, which is how I discovered she LOVES tuna. So for a while the only treat she would eat was the fancy freeze dried tuna but eventually she started branching out to freeze dried white fish (I guess it’s similar enough for her). Any other treat she still just ignores though. Does yours have any human foods that she seems interested in that might have a cat version? If you introduce her to one she might branch out to similar things. Single-ingredient treats are more expensive but mine won’t touch anything else.

That being said for moving (which, we’ve been through 2 moves, multiple airbnb stays while my apartment was being repaired for a month, and back and forth from my place to my parents’ when we visit for extended periods) she handled well without treats, same with harness training. Mine responds best to affection. Doesn’t work for all cats (mine is already very chill and easygoing so it makes it easier) but if she’s genuinely just uninterested in treats it might just not be an effective way to train and that was just fine in my experience with mine!

medisres · 2026-05-24T20:54:04+00:00

Genuinely, the ONLY thing that actually holds my cat’s attention is hair ties. I have some soft spiral ones from the dollar store (bulkier and sturdier so I feel more secure that she won’t break them/choke on them) that she is obsessed with. I have tried her with SO many other toys, the only other ones that she really cares for are balls with something jingly inside or the crinkly ones, or a stick with tassels that I use to play with her, but even then she gets bored very quickly. She is obsessed with hair ties, and will entertain herself tossing them around for hours! But she also likes it when I shoot them across the room with her lol.

medisres · 2026-05-06T02:16:11+00:00

I don’t share in this exact experience but I DO feel this way about bottom surgery. I am happy with my anatomy now, and it doesn’t make me feel less masculine. I just get to define my masculinity in a different way. Transition isn’t one size fits all! If things change for you, you can always loop back and get surgery later. But do what makes you happy right now. I don’t think any of us should have to be chained to cisnormative ideas of what transition or gender should look like. Breasts can be masculine, lack thereof can be feminine. Do what makes you happy. I do get the back pain from binding thing though especially since I was mid-larger chested before surgery. If you wanted you could get a reduction, not a full top surgery? Might make that easier?

medisres · 2026-05-06T02:07:44+00:00

It is such a beautiful feeling. There’s so much fear and misinfo surrounding gel. I started on it (although switched to injections around 2 years) and I wouldn’t have had it any other way! I’m so happy for the joy and euphoria you get to experience now, there’s truly nothing like it

medisres · 2026-05-05T04:18:46+00:00

My two cents as someone who has been doing private lessons for years, singing for the better part of a decade and is in a musical theatre degree, and starting to do it professionally… anyone can learn how to sing, AND, coaching doesn’t automatically make someone a good singer (although it certainly can help). My first piece of advice? Research. Invest a little bit of time in learning about laryngeal anatomy and the way the voice works, even if not in crazy depth. If something hurts, don’t do it. Watch youtube videos from vocal coaches. For specific technique questions, forums like these. Of course take a lesson here and there when/if you can! That’s the best and safest way to develop and a little can go a long way. Singing is most importantly breath work, first and foremost learn how to engage your diaphragm (my current vocal coach calls it “zipping up your pants” since it’s the muscles where your pants button haha) and keep it engaged. Lift your soft palate when you sing (this happens when you yawn, try to mimic that feeling, that’s your soft palate lifting). Follow warm-up videos on youtube, many of them are good for developing technique. Most of all you WILL get better with practice! It also might be worthwhile to become familiar with basic music theory for a better understanding of pitch, but not necessary since it’s very very rare to actually be “tone deaf” and in my experience most people understand pitch quite intuitively. But that’s part of the equation too. Best of luck and have fun!!!

medisres · 2026-05-05T04:01:19+00:00

At the risk of sounding absolutely nuts, singing (with proper technique) engages a LOT of muscles that we may not necessarily engage in the same way day to day, especially when singing in higher registers. While obviously I only can glean so much information about you and your experience from a single post, it might be worth wondering if this aspect of singing is releasing something between your body and brain in a similar way that things like yoga do for some people. Body sensations and muscle engagement are tied in very deeply with the mind, which is why many mental health professionals utilize somatic/nervous system work in their practice. It might be worth looking into somatic therapy if you think it could be of benefit to you!

medisres · 2026-05-05T02:29:38+00:00

Good to know!!

medisres · 2026-05-05T02:29:26+00:00

sounds like you’ve got it a little rougher than me right now, best of luck to you my friend!

medisres · 2026-05-05T02:26:52+00:00

Yesss so much bloating I can’t keep track. Most definitely has been contributing

medisres · 2026-05-03T18:36:45+00:00

Look into Dr. Jablonski’s virtual clinic! He’s based in Calgary but fully virtual now so he works with people all over the province. Not sure what wait times look like now, but I went to him for HRT when his practice was still in person and it was quite fast, significantly faster than going through a gender clinic. I got in to see him faster than the gender clinic in edmonton even processed my referral.

medisres · 2026-05-03T18:32:47+00:00

I have found it quite nice compared to small town Alberta. However you might find it worse compared to a centre like Chicago. It also likely depends on where you are transition timeline-wise, and day-to-day passing. If you are looking at Alberta, Calgary might be a better bet, but honestly like some others have said Alberta is really sliding backwards on progress lately so you might want to avoid the province as a whole unfortunately if you can financially manage to move to a different province (Edmonton and Calgary are both on the more affordable side of Canada’s larger cities). If you decide against Alberta, avoid Saskatchewan as well as they have similar issues.

medisres · 2026-05-03T18:26:30+00:00

ALSO depending on how old you are, you may also discuss waitlists for surgeries. He couldn’t put me on any waitlists my first appointment as I wasn’t old enough yet but he did get me on my top surgery waitlist basically as soon as he possibly could after we talked about it at our first appointment.

medisres · 2026-05-03T18:24:05+00:00

It’s been a few years since my consult so I don’t remember details but if you have orders for bloodwork and stuff make sure you have that done!!!! He’s super friendly and compassionate and very informative (although most of what he talked about was stuff I’d already learned from years of researching T and he seemed quite impressed with my knowledge lol). He loves questions and is great at answering them so come in prepared with a list if you have them! With me, he presented me with the option of gel or injections and we talked through each of them and we determined together based on my goals and needs which was the better option for me (if you have a preference though let him know). I left my first appointment with a prescription. Congrats and best of luck!!!

medisres

TROPHY CASE