Hello guys,
I'm from Greece and I have been living here for all of my 18 years. Like most, I have been feeling dysphoria with my body. The thing is I don't know how to get started with everything. I've been through depression and have been to a psychiatrist but was never open about my feelings as I was too scared of any consequences.
I met my girlfriend about a year ago and she is by far the only reason why I picked myself off the ground and start feeling alive again. She is supportive although somewhat scared for my well-being. I cannot blame her though and she wants me to thrive and see me smile genuinely but she is also looking on the practical side of things and understands this will be challenging.
I have now come out and spoken to my parents but I still feel lost in terms of how to get started with becoming who I feel. Do I need a psychiatrists 'approval' to get mastectomy (I heard its considered to be mutilation of the body)? Do I need to get approved to start hormone therapy? If so how can I get it? When should I change my ID card and official info to say male and have my own name and not the one chosen by my parents? I'm sorry for all this but its really overwhelming and I feel alone especially in this country.
I'm from Greece and I have been living here for all of my 18 years. Like most, I have been feeling dysphoria with my body. The thing is I don't know how to get started with everything. I've been through depression and have been to a psychiatrist but was never open about my feelings as I was too scared of any consequences.
I met my girlfriend about a year ago and she is by far the only reason why I picked myself off the ground and start feeling alive again. She is supportive although somewhat scared for my well-being. I cannot blame her though and she wants me to thrive and see me smile genuinely but she is also looking on the practical side of things and understands this will be challenging.
I have now come out and spoken to my parents but I still feel lost in terms of how to get started with becoming who I feel. Do I need a psychiatrists 'approval' to get mastectomy (I heard its considered to be mutilation of the body)? Do I need to get approved to start hormone therapy? If so how can I get it? When should I change my ID card and official info to say male and have my own name and not the one chosen by my parents? I'm sorry for all this but its really overwhelming and I feel alone especially in this country.
This post was last modified: 04-29-2015, 12:02 AM by Orion.
Thank you for posting! It's sounds like you are familiar with the common next steps: therapist approvals for hormone therapy and top surgery, and documentation changes. But I have to admit that I have little knowledge to how this is accomplished in Greece.
I recommend contacting the Greek Transgendered Support Association. They may be able to provide more specific advice about how to proceed.
(If you find out anything helpful, I'd love it if you could share it here for the benefit of others in Greece. Thank you in advance!)
I recommend contacting the Greek Transgendered Support Association. They may be able to provide more specific advice about how to proceed.
(If you find out anything helpful, I'd love it if you could share it here for the benefit of others in Greece. Thank you in advance!)
Joshua