1. Schedule a consultation with Dr. Chandler

Schedule a virtual or in-person consultation with Dr. Chandler to learn more about top surgery, go over your specific anatomy, and review your surgical goals. You will have the chance to bring up any concerns you have about the surgery, recovery, aesthetics, and any other issues on your mind. We encourage you to bring a list of questions to your consultation and any photos you like that show your ideal post-surgical outcome for your body type! After your consultation you should feel empowered and informed, and you should have an understanding about what incision patterns would best fit your anatomy, as well as the general timeline involved in your journey to top surgery. You can request a consultation on our website here or book a consultation directly here.(link to scheduling page) Make sure that you send us the required paperwork prior to your consultation, which you can find on the Forms section of our site.

2. Continue your discussion via phone or email

After your consultation, there are often questions that come up that you may have forgotten to ask or that you think of later on. Feel free to call us or email us your questions! You may also setup another appointment with Dr. Chandler if you feel more comfortable having your questions answered in a telehealth or in-person visit setting. There is no limit to the number of consultations allowed before you have top surgery, and it is important to feel comfortable moving forward. Dr. Chandler is very responsive to email, phone calls and text messages to the office phone line.

3. Obtain a Therapy Letter of Support and Obtain Insurance Approval (if needed)

If you are hoping to have insurance pay for your surgery, approval by your insurance will be necessary. Dr. Chandler will send the insurance company her note along with a note of support from your therapist (which is required by most insurance companies). If you don't have a therapist, we work with many therapists in our area who specializes in Gender Affirmation, you can look for a therapist in your area who you feel comfortable with, or you can check out an online resource such as https://thegalap.org/. We are dedicated to your case and we will handle the entire process of insurance approval for you from start to finish. See more info about therapy letters here.

4. Schedule your surgery

Once top surgery has been approved by your insurance or you have decided to pay out-of-pocket, you can schedule a surgery date that works for both your and Dr. Chandler’s schedule. If you are traveling for surgery, you can plan your travel arrangements, book airfare, request time off from work for recovery, and find accommodations. See our guide for Out of Town Patients for more information.

5. Preoperative visit

Sometimes the initial consultation is done well before your surgery date. You can opt to have a second in-person or virtual pre operative visit a few weeks before surgery so you can ask additional questions and go over your surgical plan in more detail. You can use this opportunity to ask more questions about postoperative expectations and more details about preparing for surgery day so you can feel comfortable with the entire process. This is not a required visit, but many of our patients choose this option.

6. Surgery day

You should arrive at the facility about 1.5 hours prior to your scheduled surgery time. After surgery is complete, you will remain in the recovery room for about two hours and then you will be able to go home. A friend or family member must pick you up and stay with you immediately after surgery.

7. Postoperative Week 1

In the first week after surgery, your job is to avoid strenuous activity and heavy lifting (keep your heart rate and blood pressure down to avoid excess fluid production, avoiding all activities that may break a sweat or anything that would cause you to be out of breath),walk frequently around your house but at a leisurely pace (to avoid blood clots after surgery, generally a few times a day at least),keep your dressings and compression wrap clean and dry and take care of your drains. If you had surgery involving free nipple grafts, you are only allowed to sponge bath while keeping your dressings clean and dry. If you did not have free nipple grafts, you are allowed to shower at 48 hours and replace your compression wrap after your shower. Showering is not required, and you may leave your dressings on if you choose to .Your first postoperative appointment visit is usually about6-8days after surgery. If you have any questions during this time you can reach out to Dr. Chandler at the office number by phone or text.

8. First postoperative visit (~day 7)

Around one week after surgery, you will have your first postoperative visit with Dr. Chandler. If you have drains, usually they will be removed at this visit along with your dressings including nipple dressings if you have them. You’ll receive instructions about additional incision care that is needed moving forward. Your compression wrap will be replaced and continued for an additional 2 weeks. After this visit, out of town patients may travel home. A follow up visit should be scheduled either in-person or by telehealth at 3 weeks postop (2 weeks after the first postop visit).

9. Additional follow-up visits