i'm gay

That’s me and I need a breast reduction. I wear a bra size 32F, something not commonly found anyplace you can pick a bra up for less than $70. My breasts weigh me down, they are tender and painful at all times, and they give me extreme back, neck, and shoulder pain. Add all of this to the dysphoria I feel as a butch nb lesbian, and you can see why I desperately need a breast reduction.

Unfortunately, my insurance will not provide any kind of pre-approval, even to tell me for sure that they would not cover this procedure. My surgeon feels that, going by the stated guidelines for my insurance regarding these procedures, they would be very unlikely to cover the costs, and I would only find out either way after billing insurance for my surgery after the fact. If they did not accept my claim - which they likely would not - I could be left with a bill of around $50,000 in medical fees. Obviously, I can’t afford this. However, if I bill my procedure as cosmetic and pay for it myself, it would only cost $8,165.

Regardless, I don’t have the money either way. I just got hit with a huge vehicle repair bill recently which drained me of $3,000. Given another few years, I could probably get that money back and even pay for my procedure, but that would destroy my life savings ever since graduating high school in 2013. As much as I feel I need this surgery, not only to ease my physical symptoms but to calm my dysphoria, I can’t justify that extreme depletion of my savings for both school and my future in general.

I’m hoping to reach my goal this summer, by the end of August. I don’t honestly know if that’s possible, but I hate the thought of entering a new year of life as a 24 year old, stuck with the same painful chest. I can’t run, clothes that fit properly are hard to find, and every time I glance in the mirror I’m reminded of the literal burden I carry. I really can’t overstate how dysphoric my chest makes me. I can’t even wear a binder because of the disproportionate nature of my chest. I’ve tried everything I could think of to minimize my chest, from making binders myself from old shirts to trying transtape (which would probably work for someone with a more proportional chest, but again, I’m cursed so it doesn’t work for me) to just layering as much as possible. None of these are viable long term solutions, nor do they do anything to address the physical pain I endure. Please consider donating, or at least sharing with your friends! Also, forgive the deadname and vague generalizations at the link - I’m not out in every context and I want to spread this as far as I possibly can. For everyone who donates, any size donation is helpful and I appreciate you all! For everyone who shares, thank you so much for bringing visibility to my fundraiser!

https://paypal.me/pools/c/84m0lS0um3

If you buy pre-made herbal tea blends (usually have names like Bedtime, Calm, etc) check the ingredients. I just saw a Nighttime blend that had St. Johns Wort in it, which can be dangerous when mixed with some medications. Talk to you doctor what herbs you should avoid. (Especially when you want to ingest st. Johns wort or mugwort) 

My name is Levi, and before I get to any of the explanatory stuff, I’d like to thank you for taking the time to read this. I’m not an “ask-for-help” type of guy so this whole asking for help thing is a little strange for me. Regardless, being an ask-for-help type of guy or not, I’m a guy that needs some help. To be specific, I’m a transgender guy that needs help recovering from what’s called “top surgery", which I will have March 2, 2018. The procedure itself, in more medical terms, is called a double mastectomy. You’ve probably heard it said this way regarding breast cancer. Essentially, my chest tissue will be removed and some reconstruction will take place to rearrange the chest in a more desirable way. It is an out-patient procedure, but it does greatly restrict my range of motion, so much so that I will be unable to perform basic functions without assistance. The recovery time is about three weeks and requires me to be on bed rest for a week minimum.

It’s a procedure that is necessary for many transgender guys, like myself, to live our most fulfilling, complete, and happy lives. I suffer from something called “dysphoria”, funny words, but simply explained it means that my body doesn’t match up harmoniously with my self-image. It’s kind of like my self-image and my physical selves are boxing rivals and this is the last big fight before one of them gets sent home packing from the big leagues. To live with this dysphoria, I have been binding my chest for about 5 years now. I do so with what’s called a binder, which is an extremely uncomfortable vest that I wear to compress my chest and give me the illusion that my actual chest is flat. Binding is a temporary solution that, while giving me the illusion of a flat chest, fails as a long-term practical solution to existing in society without outing me to those that may wish me harm. The surgery I’m having will grant me the freedom to exist on my own terms. I’ll be able to do all the things I’ve been waiting five years to do, from swimming to wearing the clothes I want, to being comfortable as myself on my wedding day. I wish I could explain just how foreign I feel in my current state, but I think it’s a good thing that most people don’t ever have to feel so much like a stranger in their own body.

But I’m ready to go home, or rather to be home in my body, to have it feel like mine. That’s where the help comes in. I am lucky enough to have had my surgery be planned and covered without having to ask for help, but I do need help in the few weeks it will take me to recover and regain my range of motion so I can go back to work. It will take me nearly three weeks to recover enough to get back to work. The weeks that I’ll be recovering will leave me without the funds necessary to maintain my normal income. I will be using all the funds raised to pay my rent, my bills, my medications for the pain after surgery, and money to sustain myself until I may go back to work.

*please read/reblog if you can*

Current as of February 27th 2018

In November my abusive ex and I broke up after what was the last straw in a toxic relationship: he left us financially ruined in a new city where I have no support system. I stayed in a shelter with my daughter for a while before finding housing I could afford on social assistance.

After a hard few months I’m finally stable, able to afford the essentials etc. Unfortunately, I don’t get enough to cover any more than the essentials and I’m expecting my second child in May (though I’ve been in and out of hospital with preterm labour symptoms so it could be sooner.)

Obviously this was in no way part of the plan but I find myself needing to ask for help to get the newborn essentials I’ll need. I figured for just the bare necessities to get me started I’ll need about $500. If you want to know the breakdown, shoot me a pm. I’m working on an Amazon wishlist but prices in Canada are all unreasonably higher than its American counterpart and product availability/shipping isn’t as good so I’m not sure it’s the best option.

My PayPal link

$0/$500

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A pastor says donations of bottled water to his Flint church have dried up in the past month.

Donations poured in from across the nation in the weeks and months after it was learned that Flint’s drinking water was contaminated with lead. At times, the response nearly overwhelmed the effort to distribute water to Flint residents.