Ok honestly? Positive portrayal of bodies like mine in furry art and porn has done more to alleviate my dysphoria and body image issues than surgery did.

Yes surgery helps! I’m grateful that I don’t need to bind anymore and that my chest is no longer physically painful, but I have to admit that social acceptance and positive representation did so much more for me mentally and emotionally than surgery did.

I think surgery is too often made to seem more important than factors like social acceptance and positive rep, it can even be harmful to portray transition surgeries like fix-it-all’s for our body image/dysphoria issues. This is obv just my personal experience/observations!

You don’t need surgery to be trans, you don’t need to want surgery to be trans, if a you don’t want surgery for any reason you are still trans.

Surgery can also be traumatizing, I personally can get very triggered when discussing bottom surgery (sometimes without even realizing it). Any kind of surgery can be traumatizing, your body has to endure a lot of pain and heal. It can rly take a toll on you mentally/physically.

I don’t regret getting top surgery, but had circumstances been different I probably wouldn’t have gone through with it. I do miss nipple sensation/the feeling of being fondled, but it was the best choice for me bc of other contributing factors.

There are many effective ways of dealing with dysphoria that don’t involve surgery. Surgery can be helpful for some but it’s not for everyone, and having surgery or not doesn’t make one better/worse than anyone else. And it’s ok to back out of a surgery! Shit happens yo.

This thread is based on my experience and observations and isn’t meant to put anyone down. What you choose to do with your body is your business, don’t let anyone make you feel like you need to change it/keep it the same if that isn’t what you want.