I was reluctant to post photos of my junk because: I’m not well hung, my phallus is twisted, and there is a lot of outer tissue remaining so things don’t look a ton different from the front. That said, there aren’t a lot of photos of Dr. Dugi’s work and he’s one of the few meta surgeons in the area.
PROCEDURE: I had first stage metoidioplasty in February 2020 with Dr. Daniel Dugi in Portland, OR. At the time, I was living out of state and insured by Kaiser who contracted with OHSU in Portland. Kaiser flew me and my partner to PDX, put us up in a Residence Inn for a month, and flew us home. My out-of-pocket surgery cost was less than $300.00. I began transition in 1996 and waaay back then, surgery was inaccessible because it was cost prohibitive. When I discovered that Kaiser would cover meta, I was over the moon and pursued surgery.
I had monsplasty, vaginectomy, UL, scrotoplasty. The experience at Dr. Dugi's office and at the hospital was amazing. I stayed in the hospital for three nights and recovered at the nearby hotel. Dr. Dugi and his team visited me in the hospital (on a Saturday), and it was really a morale boost. I had a SP catheter for 30-days. I flew home to HI the day after its removal. Initially, I was really swollen, and my bladder had to readapt peeing on its own. It became apparent when I was home that I had a small fistula at the top of my phallus. Thankfully, this resolved on its own after a few weeks. I had some granulation beneath my scrotum which resolved after using silver nitrate (it stings). I had one application before my flight home, I did one on my own, and my doctor in HI did the final one. It healed up fine after that.
GOALS for Stage 1: I have been reluctant to post these pictures because I am in between stages and I've had a long-standing complication. My goal going into surgery was to be able to pee standing up. I've been using a STP for decades (!) and I really hoped to be able to pee standing up, through my fly, without a device. I am not hung. At all. I don't measure my junk (frankly, I'm not sure how to do this really) and I really wasn't sure what to expect post-surgery. I knew that if I had UL, I would do everything possible to pee standing up. I have been REALLY happy with overall results. I’m especially thrilled to have the vaginectomy. It feels so much better for me and affirming. My perineum has healed fine, and my scrotum has as well. Dr. Dugi responded to emails via MyChart and I had an appointment with him to discuss complications in May 2020.
Long-standing Complication, torsion: When I was healing, as I look down, the right side of my phallus appeared to be adhered to the outer labia. Visually, the phallus on the left side was freed up, and the right side felt stuck, pulled to the right. My phallus healed at an angle so my urethra tilts to the left and is nearly horizontal. Not ideal. As a result, my stream sprays like the flat setting on an adjustable sprinkler attachment, as opposed to the urethra facing down. My pee goes everywhere! If I stand up to pee, I have to do it with my pants down to my ankles and at a urinal. This is not something I will do in public. If I sit down, the stream shoots forward, travels beneath the toilet seat, down the exterior of the toilet, and on to the floor. Not ideal. I use a STP device (still) when standing at a urinal in a public restroom. When at home, I have to use the STP or squat, lean my pelvis forward over the toilet and aim as best I can.
GOALS for Stage 2, Balls and Repair: Dr. Dugi reported during my consult in March 2021 that he is discouraged by the high complication rate (50%) for testicular implants. He prefers to create a male-looking scrotum using the outer labial tissue that he moves downward and adds fat and other tissue to create the ball sac. I really wanted to have testicular implants. I also know several guys who’ve had complications so I knew it was a risk, but not a 50% risk. I am extremely active. I run, bike, hike, walk, swim, work out as much as I can. I have been concerned about how implants may or may not impede my activity in some way. Would the balls go between my legs too much when running? Would I break a ball, injure myself when cycling? I appreciate Dr. Dugi’s frankness about the complications; he gave me the choice about the implants. I opted to forgo implants, have surgery using existing tissue, including fat, and see how it works for me. If I opt to have implants, I can do that after about three months healing. While I am not thrilled about the absence of implants, I am willing to give it a shot to see how it looks and works for me. It may be the best choice considering my activity level and the high rate of complications.
My number one goal is to repair the torsion. I can live without the implants, but I really want my phallus to be free of the outer tissue (which he will use to create the scrotum) and to un-twist the phallus so my stream points downward. Dr. Dugi is not sure he’ll be able to repair the torsion during stage 2. I was absolutely gutted when I heard this news. He did say that he would make every effort to do so. Until he gets in there to see what’s what, he cannot be sure what’s creating the torsion and he does not want to risk damaging things if he snips tissue. Again, I appreciate his honesty about the limitations of surgery and associated risks. As much as it’s difficult to accept, I don’t really have much of a choice.
Stage 2 tentatively scheduled for June 2021: I am hoping to have surgery in June. It was tentatively scheduled for June. My biggest complaint about this process? The lack of responsiveness from the surgery scheduling team at OHSU. I’m hoping to confirm a date this week.
Seriously, the girth on these things is always so ridiculous...
