Dilation schedules : Transgender

Dilation schedules

Sun Jul 12 23:25:35 2020 UTC

(17 comments)

I'll be two weeks post op with McGinn this Tuesday, and she wants me to go to dilating four times a day at that point, bumping up to the next dilator. I sort of failed to ask at her office, but I figure somebody here might know... What exactly is the past way to schedule these "four times a day" sessions?

Like, does it need to be four times spaced evenly over 24 hours or just four times while I'm awake for the day? I guess I just feel like the instructions are a little vague. 😅

Bearing in mind that I wake up at like 9am and go to bed around midnight... Does this schedule work?

9am 1pm 5pm 9pm

or is that just like... Too much time between dilating (9pm to 9am)?

all 17 comments

u/Imsakidd

Sun Jul 12 23:44:39 2020 UTC

(0 children)

You’re not going to close up from 12 hours of not dilating, but the next one might be a little tighter/take longer. Same goes for if you only got to 3 dilations on a given day instead of 4.

I think the best approach is to space them out as much as you can, but it certainly doesn’t need to be perfect. Your proposed schedule looks good!

Granted, I haven’t had surgery, but have read lots of surgery resources, so that’s my best understanding!

u/[deleted]

Mon Jul 13 00:03:46 2020 UTC

(8 children)

[deleted]

u/[deleted]

Mon Jul 13 00:14:31 2020 UTC

(1 child)

Yeah, it seems like they tailor the dilation schedules to each individual. I got super lucky with the depth she achieved for me (7+ inches), so maybe that's why I don't have to go five a day? Idk. Like, I go to the last dot on the dilator and I don't even feel it hitting the "back" of my vagina - and the last dot is as far they said I need to go.

We'll see how the bigger dilator plus more sessions works out for me tomorrow though. I'm honestly pretty worried about it. 😬

u/[deleted]

Mon Jul 13 00:46:10 2020 UTC

(0 children)

Okay, good luck! ❤️

u/Hitbox4smash

Wed Jul 15 09:19:09 2020 UTC

(5 children)

Can I ask, what kind of a pain is it? I’m 4 weeks post op and haven’t had any pain while dilating, but I do dilate for roughy 4 hours a day by choice. Laziness takes over and I just want to finish the show I’m watching while dilating.

But is the pain from the stitches? Is it pain from skin stretching? Is it weak enough to still be able to dilate through the pain?

u/TronzAnon

Thu Jul 30 20:05:35 2020 UTC

(3 children)

You said you have no pain, but do you have discomfort while dilating? I'm at month 7 and I still do have discomfort in the beginning 5-10 minutes of using the bigger dilators, like if I try to move up from green to orange. Eventually the discomfort just melts away the longer I dilate during the session, which is nice.

u/Hitbox4smash

Thu Jul 30 20:08:29 2020 UTC

(2 children)

I’m not supposed to use the orange one till 12 weeks post op. I’m at 6 weeks right now. I don’t really have any discomfort while dilating. I just take it slow and focus on relaxing the muscles down there.

u/TronzAnon

Thu Jul 30 20:13:56 2020 UTC

(1 child)

Awesome! Glad to hear it's going smoothly so far! That's great. At week 6 I was still cycling advil/tylenol. Are you on any pain meds?

u/Hitbox4smash

Thu Jul 30 20:15:20 2020 UTC

(0 children)

I’ve been pretty much pain med free ever since 1 week post op. There have been one or 2 times where things felt very bruised and achy though that I took Advil for

u/[deleted]

Mon Jul 13 02:54:47 2020 UTC

(3 children)

I just had surgery with Dr. Brassard, and your proposed schedule is pretty much exactly what I'm doing! I might be an hour late or hour early here or there, but that's my "ideal" dilation schedule

u/[deleted]

Tue Jul 14 23:41:34 2020 UTC

(2 children)

I hope it's going well for you so far. I only started using the blue dilator yesterday and I've only been able to attempt it successfully twice. It's hurting me badly. :(

u/[deleted]

Wed Jul 15 22:26:22 2020 UTC

(1 child)

Aww, sorry to hear its painful :/ I think it'll keep getting easier as inflammation decreases. Stay strong friend!

I have some wound separation and another complication that are making life a bit difficult, but dilations are going well luckily.

u/[deleted]

Thu Jul 16 02:12:59 2020 UTC

(0 children)

Sorry to hear. I hope you're able to get recovery on track, and those complications don't cause you too many issues. <3

u/[deleted]

Mon Jul 13 22:14:01 2020 UTC

(1 child)

i just had surgery three weeks ago with dr ting and im worried about everyone saying they do it five times. the packet i have suggested two times for twenty minutes but ive been doing it for three times for thirty should i be doing it more?

u/[deleted]

Tue Jul 14 23:39:51 2020 UTC

(0 children)

Every surgeon does things slightly differently. I'm sure if you're following your doctor then you're doing fine. :)

u/iSqueam

Tue Jul 14 04:20:28 2020 UTC

(0 children)

I’m 1 month post op, and will be on 4x/d until 6 weeks, then 3x/d for the following six weeks. After that, it’s 2x/d until 6 months when I go to 1x/d. Different surgeon, though.

u/Objective-Database

Sat Aug 22 09:46:22 2020 UTC

(1 child)

Hi, I have a couple of questions: how was your recovery so far? What made you choose Dr. McGinn over other doctors? Do you recommend Dr. McGinn? And how do you consider your results in terms of cosmetics and sensitivity? How is your vaginal depth? How was the stay in New Hope? How was Dr. McGinn aftercare? and by the way many congratulations for the surgery

u/[deleted]

Sun Aug 23 04:00:59 2020 UTC

(0 children)

I had some minor granulation, but it's mostly resolved 1.5 post silver nitrate tx plus using hydrocortisone. Recovery was otherwise uneventful. I chose Dr. McGinn because I think she has the best aesthetics in the United States (and at least among the best in the world), she really focuses on psychiatric health before, during, and after recovery, she's trans herself (which is a nice bonus), and I've seen minimal negative overall experience regarding outcomes compared to other surgeons. 100% recommend.

Cosmetics: I'm extremely pleased. I personally think it looks cis, my cis wife thinks it looks cis, and i couldn't be more satisfied with my cosmetic outcome.

Sensitivity: there is still some numbness in my labia, and I haven't "figured out" penetrative sensitivity yet, but my clit is great and I was achieving orgasm with just that at week 5. Bear in mind that my hormones are still really low (can't confirm, but they definitely feel low) so my libido isn't really where it was pre-op. I'm assuming it'll be a lot more fun once I get things leveled out again. My depth is 7+ inches. I got really lucky with that, and even McGinn was noticeably impressed with herself for managing it.

The hospital stay was great. I loved my nurses and was never in any horrible pain. I hated my hotel though, and definitely recommend that anybody going to McGinn stays at her BnB if possible. I can't fault Papillon for how shitty my hotel was at any rate. Aftercare has been just OK. McGinn really goes hands off after the procedure and leaves aftercare to her PA, Kristal. Kristal is absolutely fantastic and super knowledgeable. She's just not always quick to respond to email. They do give you an emergency number, however (direct cell line to Kristal) that I would imagine gets some quicker results. I never felt like I needed to use it though.