The Satisfaction of Gender Dysphoric People After Sex Reassignment Surgery from Socio-Sexual Stand Point: A Qualitative Study

Abstract

This study aims to elaborate on the life experiences of individuals who have undergone final gender reassignment surgery through open-ended interviews. The study assessed the social, emotional, and identity-related outcomes of surgery and the alignment of preoperative expectations with post-surgery experiences. While significant diversity in the details of these experiences could be expected, exploring common perspectives among them can also be enlightening. Materials and Methods: The participants in the study were individuals who experienced gender dysphoria and had undergone gender-affirming surgery, with a minimum postoperative period of 3 months. The study sample included 12 participants, 10 male-to-female transgender individuals and 2 female-to-male transgender individuals, who provided informed consent to participate. Patient selections and interviews were conducted purposefully until data saturation was reached, and considering the breadth of the relevant concepts, data saturation was determined for each time point regarding a specific subject, encompassing a spectrum of patients' perspectives and concepts, including contradictory and opposing viewpoints. The interviews were recorded, transcribed, and analysed using a 7-step thematic analysis method. Results: This study examined two main categories, pre-surgery and post-surgery, with six main themes extracted for the pre-surgery category and two for the post-surgery category. Each main theme was further discussed in several sub-themes.