See precautions that trans women should take when warming up – 08/24/2023 – Equilíbrio

Salter Tatianna Pessoa, 26, began to feel dissatisfied with her appearance as a teenager. She is a woman with male genitals.

Unable to afford sex reassignment surgery, he began to “aquendar” — the name given by the trans community to the practice of hiding one’s penis and testicles.

Tatianna uses adhesive tape from her groin to the region just below her lower back to disguise the volume, especially when going to the beach. “Over time, I got used to the pain and discomfort,” she says.

The practice is common among trans women, drag queens, transvestites and non-binary people. With this technique, the volume of the genitalia is placed between the buttocks.

The warming, called “tucking” in the United States, however, requires care so that it does not harm the health of trans women, says family and community doctor Caio Portela, one of the coordinators of the Health Center for Trans Women at Hospital Sírio-Liba. Lebanese.

If done poorly, it can lead to injuries to the skin of the genital organ, result in torsion or trauma to the testicle, circulation problems and even cause infections and urinary problems.

Use of the adhesive

If a bandage or adhesive tape is used to hide the organ, Portela advises that it not be too tight, since the tools can suffocate the skin in the region and reduce circulation, causing vascular problems or torsion of the testicle.

According to the doctor, the ideal is to use a micropore tape or a more breathable adhesive. “The common tape is stronger, but also more allergenic, so the skin is more injured. When it’s time to pull it off, that skin can start to react and become injured, which opens up the possibility of infections.”

Time to go to the bathroom

Ideally, according to the family doctor, one should not urinate with the tucking done, as this makes the strips wet and can increase the chance of infection.

“But undoing it to urinate ends up being a little unfeasible, due to the situation, the place. Then we have to think about jail — if you know you won’t be able to urinate, the person doesn’t drink water and spends the days without hydrating properly, then there is a hydration problem, excess urine in the bladder or the problem of urinating on top of the belt”, says Portela.

The complication caused by the bandages and the fear of going to the bathroom because of prejudice are aggravating factors for urinary tract infections in trans women, says doctor Ubirajara Barroso Jr., director of the Escola Superior de Urologia da Sociedade Brasileira de Urologia. “This is due to moral harassment, violence or embarrassment that can be created”, he says.

People with a penis, however, have greater protection from the disease because they have a larger urethral canal.

Usage time

The amount of time a person remains hot can be problematic. If there are many hours throughout the day, there may be damage to the tissue of the genital organ, which needs to be preserved in case of a future sex reassignment surgery.

“We usually say whenever the person may not be [com o tucking], don’t be. Whenever possible, you can undo it to facilitate blood circulation and skin breathing”, says the doctor.

In addition, Portela claims that there is psychological and social work to be done to build the idea that gender is not necessarily linked to the genitalia. “People say that it doesn’t take that much effort to hide it, that it’s to be comfortable, that it doesn’t have to be a prison”.

Facilitators

The first time Tatianna warmed up more comfortably was when she bought specialized panties for trans women online. She bought four, each for R$20. But they got old and, because of the high price, she went back to the tape.

“There are some materials like special warm-up panties that make it less difficult”, says Portela.

The so-called “warming panties”, however, can cost up to R$ 100. Tatianna’s were from the Woggan Trans online store, but there are other brands such as NoNeca, Segredo Lacrado and Trucss.

Trucss, which is made to order, launched a campaign in June to be made available on the SUS (Unified Health System). The online petition has 3,500 signatures and has gained support from artists.

Singer and actress Linn da Quebrada, who wore Trucss panties during her participation in the reality show Big Brother Brasil (BBB), shared the petition on social networks.

A Sheet, Linn said the brand is about wellness. “It’s important to wear something that thinks about our body’s comfort. Nobody would like to live wearing uncomfortable underwear, because it hurts. It’s not, by far, a mere aesthetic issue. We’re talking about quality of life and body health,” he says. .