Experiences with the doctor

I felt seen, heard and informed

HF, March 2024 - In 2023 I was lucky to have facial feminisation surgery with Dr. Noorman Van Der Dussen and Dr. Oelbrandt at the 2pass Clinic. I am writing this report half a year after the surgery and every day since I look into the mirror I am glad I have made this step.

I am 30+ years old and I have been openly living as a trans woman since years before the surgery. My work as well as my friend circle were well accepting but my rather masculine facial features meant that I would never pass. I learned to live with the misgendering and looks I got. However, most times I saw my own reflection, I was unhappy with my appearance, especially without makeup. I never had much self-esteem, due to me feeling a strong mismatch between my features and my self-image. I still wanted to look like myself, only like the female self image I had in my head. Dr Noorman van der Dussen and Dr Oelbrandt somehow sensed this image in my head, brought it out and made this dream possible.

2022 I decided to take this huge step and started looking for surgeons who do facial feminisation surgery. I took over a year searching as I wanted to make the right decision. Many surgeons I talked to contradicted themself or would not really explain me the procedure but only give promises. Most never cared about my wishes for the surgery result.

Dr Oelbrandt and Dr Noorman van der Dussen do care! My first conversation was with Dr Oelbrandt and first he asked me the most important question of what I hope to achieve with this surgery. Then he proceeded to describe to me in detail what was possible, by virtually altering pictures of myself and explaining how this could be achieved, in great detail. I felt seen, heard and informed. The same was true in my conversations with Dr Noorman van der Dussen. He detailed the effect of possible procedures and was genuinely interested in me leading a happier life after the surgery.

As this procedure presented a substantial financial investment I was happy that the 2Pass Clinic offered a staggered pay with clear communication about cost and what would happen if I opt out of the surgery.

And to be honest I thought about it. I never had surgery in my life and I was very scared. Marije, Dr Oelbrandt and Dr Noorman van der Dussen were wonderfully understanding and communicated well with me to minimise my concerns. So when the day came I checked in to the 2Pass Clinic. The whole team immediately took amazing care of me. I felt safe and I was able to reinforce my impression of the high standards of professionalism in the 2Pass Clinic. Especially Petra, who is in the Guesthouse above the 2Pass clinic almost 24/7 to care for the patients, was fantastically welcoming and was always there to talk to me and see for my every need.

My surgery included a forehead reconstruction, rhinoplasty, jawline reconstruction and fat transfer to key features in the face.

Before the surgery I had another consultation with the doctors and again they did a fantastic job in describing to me the procedure and at the same time giving me a feeling of calm and professionalism, as well as considering my concerns and wishes. All handling before and after the procedure by the staff of the clinic was excellent. I had a luxurious private room in the clinic for the next 5 days, with professional care. I am very glad for this intensive care as the recovery, specifically in the first days, is important, scary and tough. In this time Petra and the rest of the staff were there and went above and beyond.

The swelling quickly resided and when I left the 2Pass clinic I started to see the results of the surgery. A mere week after and I started to recognize myself in the mirror again. To me this was fantastic. I was well informed before about the timeline of the healing process and the prognosis was spot on: Some 3 months after the surgery most swelling was minimal. The full healing will take up to year but is progressing fantastically well.

My new features are everything I had hoped for and more. I never desired to be a supermodel and while I am sure that's in their capability as well, Dr Noorman van der Dussen and Dr Oelbrandt achieved far greater, by working with the beauty I already had. They brought out my own beauty and transformed my male features into female ones. Amazingly, I see myself in the mirror, much more than I ever did before the operation. With or without makeup, I am happy every time I see myself, as what I see finally matches with my self-image. On top of that they shaved off almost 10 years of my perceived age :D

Of course I will always find little things where I am critical with my appearance and on rare occasions I still have dysphoria. But all of this is now overshadowed by my new found self-confidence and I am so much happier. When I see pictures of myself before the operation I am amazed that that is really how I looked as my appearance now feels and seems so natural and fitting. I now pass on most occasions (On the occasions where I dont it is rather my voice that still does not quite match my appearance). Which is more than I ever thought possible, considering my late transition.

All in all, I want to wholeheartedly thank Dr Noorman van der Dussen, Dr Oelbrandt, Petra and Marije, as well as all the staff of the 2Pass Clinic. You have truly transformed my life for the better and all were above all expectations.

Thank you for keeping my review and feedback you post online to use only my initials HF.