I was contemplating a zero depth as well, primarily for medical reasons. I'm older (in my 60s) and have both breathi9ng and heart issues. In the end, I chose full depth because I didn't know what my future held and I wanted to make sure that I was fully comfortable in my own body.

This seems to be a recurring theme. You're right, why go through this kind of surgery twice? I'm not surprised that you feel differently after your surgery. It's a wonderful feeling and you bring a good message. Choose wisely and think long term.

Thanks for posting this. I've always figured I'd go the zero depth route too. I'm sure that I'm much older than you and that's played a major part in thinking that way. But maybe that's just an excuse. I figure I won't have the time and finances to go the two step procedure you are going.

I think I might have to give the idea of full GCS a little more thought before making a final decision. I think that's what I'd really prefer, but it seems harder overall and scares me a little. Thanks again.💗

I had zero depth gcs in 2019, and I am happy with my decision. I am ace, and in a relationship with my ace wife. I felt zero depth was the best decision also because I have Crohn's disease and was in a mini flare at the time. The idea of having my bowel nicked or something else happening did not appeal to me, and the healing time is much less. Also, a bonus - no dilating.

A really important part of the journey of transition is to be open to change. What you desire, what you are attracted to, who you are in relation to others (romantically and platonically), all of this can and does change for many during transition. Before HRT and GCS, I was sooo sure that I was a lesbian, I had only been attracted to women, I had been married to a woman before coming out.. but I was very insecure and dysphoric and avoided physical intimacy even after being on HRT for a while. But once I had GCS (full depth, thankfully) and the cloud of dysphoria began to lift, I realized that no, I'm not a lesbian, actually I really prefer to date men (and to be penetrated by them). I would encourage anyone reading this who is considering surgery to please keep an open mind and be open to changes, don't close doors if you don't have to. We are in the process of finding ourselves for the first time and it takes years and we often end up becoming different people than our prior selves could have imagined, but in a really beautiful and wholesome way.

Good advice. When making decisions that will last a lifetime it's often better to keep options open if possible.

Thank you for posting this. I was never really contemplating a 0 depth, however I was thinking about having a minimal depth one performed. I’m still not economically close enough to achieve this dream, but I will someday I hope ! And reading this is definitely helpful 💗

Some really great thoughts here. I had zero depth 6 weeks ago, and can relate to a lot of what you’re talking about.

GCS has brought about a LOT of changes in how I feel about and see myself. The lack of bottom dysphoria is life changing, for the first time in 10 years I no longer feel like there’s an asterisk to my gender identity for example. But a part of that is that I’ve been better able to understand my own sexuality. I thought I was lesbian, but the truth is I’m bi and suddenly the idea of vaginal penetration seems like something I’d be more interested in than before.

At the end of the day, I honestly still don’t see myself getting a vaginal canal installed. Im pretty happy so far and don’t feel too keen about going through surgery again, even if I could get it covered and afford it. But I feel like anyone considering zero-depth needs to know they should REALLY do their soul searching about what they want, and make sure this is it.

Also something that should get mentioned IMO, js that even though healing is certainly quicker and easier than full-depth, don’t go for it assuming you’ll be fine inside a month and it’s no big deal. I’ve had a pretty typical recovery and my surgeon is happy with how things look overall: no complications during the surgery and only some easily treatable common issues in healing so far(some wound separation, a small bit of granulation). But after 6 weeks I still can’t sit up straight in a chair or cross my legs or really do much more than walk around, and still have a ton of swelling and quite a bit of discomfort when moving around. Stitches and knots are still coming out, and potholes when I’m in the car suuuck. If I weren’t unemployed and didn’t live with family, I have no clue how I’d get through this whole thing.

Make no mistake: no matter what surgery you go for, it’s still massive surgery with a very lengthy healing process. Make your decision, and go into surgery, with that in mind.

In Brazil they use fish skin

Like you my main concern was my lifelong dysphoria. I was strongly considering going zero depth. I thought that as a trans woman who, to be honest, doesn’t pass all that well, I wasn’t likely to attract any gay or bi women. My therapist said “you’re a catch” and suggested I think it through thoroughly.

Although I feel certain I wouldn’t have regretted getting zero depth I’m so glad now that I went for the full vaginoplasty. So is my girlfriend. Speaking solely for myself, it was worth the extra time, healing and I’m sure expense.

I had zero-depth on Jan. 21. Still happy with it, but still recovering.

Curious what were the primary reasons why you feel more comfortable now with the full gcs vs zero depth. I too have thoughts of the zero depth because I am afraid of the recovery time