One Word Wednesday: "Top Surgery"

You've heard the term. But what exactly does it entail?

When I first heard of “top surgery,” it sounded strange and even a little sinister. That’s because I really had no idea what actually lay beneath those two words. I was also DEEPLY scared by the idea of my then 12 year-old going under the knife.

JJ had asked me out of the blue one day when we were taking a walk in the woods (our daily ritual during Covid-times), “When I turn 18, can I get top surgery?”

Before I could even think, I assured them they could.

But it scared the crap out of me! Then, a friend from PFLAG pointed out to me that people have surgeries to augment or decrease their breast size all the time. I started to recognize that I was unnecessarily freaked out by a fairly simple procedure that would improve my child’s mental health.

Simply put, “top surgery” is an operation that either augments or decreases breast size and appearance.

JJ had top surgery when they were thirteen. This involved removing their breasts and redesigning the orientation of nipple placement so that they now have a chest that appears entirely masculine.

Before they went into surgery, they told me, “Please do not ever ask me if I regret this surgery.”

I have not, and they clearly don’t regret it one bit. Immediately after the surgery, their increased comfort in their body was evident. That was two years ago and we haven’t looked back.