US tech was like hey a foreign gov (potentially not actually that much) spying on US citizens? That's OUR job. It must be banned

I hate this timeline

Thank you! I'll post around a bit before doing that but I'll get to it. May need some funds for getting out of this hell state in Feb

I'm getting my orchi on Jan. 10 and am starting the process of getting top surgery. Not sure I'll be able to get top surgery before they ban gov coverage of GAC but at least I got the process started. If they do, I'll get it done privately and raise the money the old fashioned way, a combination of getting on my knees and also mutual aid

Valid, I'm in an informed consent area and it still took me five months. But it sounded like OP was wanting to start, so "why wait" was intended to apply to OP's side of things. Getting the process started etc

I started in spring of 2019, and it was so amazing. Like others have said, it was like being able to breathe for the first time, a weight had been lifted, like I felt alive after decades of being walking dead. I felt connected to myself in a way I never had been before. Literally the best decision I ever made for myself. Life is worth living now.

Mental changes happen first. I was happier and bubblier. My introversion turns out to have been partly due to gender anxieties. Your sense of smell expands, colors seem to pop more and be vibrant. Keep in mind here that you'll be in puberty brain for the first few years. I was def acting like a teen for a while. You'll be sleepy, you'll be dealing with reconnecting with the full range of your emotions and that can be a rollercoaster sometimes. Your skin will get softer and fat cells will redistribute after a while. I first noticed it in my legs. I remember looking in the mirror one day momyhs into HRT and realizing hey those ... those look different, rounder, more feminine. I may or may not have but definitely did do a happy squee. You can have height changes, weight changes, even my fingernails became softer.

Why wait? You can take them for a few months (three or so I think) without permanent changes to your body, so if it isn't for you you can just stop.

Awesome, thank you! The intersection of trans and leftist is wild and also not really that unexpected

Ty! I'd been off social media for a year, joined Bluesky literally two weeks ago and then, well. Excited to be in a place that cares about trans ppl

Although calling him a journalist is a gigantic stretch. The man is just three bigots and a PR rep in a trench coat going "just say you're just asking questions about tricky science!"

I'm excited to be here! I was just talking with someone irl about how we need to go back to the old forums type social media stuff and Hexbear drops into my life. I'm pretty isolated irl so it'll be great to meet some new comrades and community

Thank you! It seems a cool and fun place to be!

Good stuff, thank you. I'm a BlueSky user, I'm gonna stay there for now but I'll be active here as well. Glad to have found the place!

For those that asked, Bluesky mods let a certain well known "polite transphobe" "journalist" stay on the platform who is already getting around blocks to harass ppl