One minor down-side was when the surgeon said that it was very hard to get both sides exactly the same lengths though. All women are asymmetrical though, so I shouldn't worry about it. I said that was okay then, so long as they were shorter and out of the way. Her before and after pictures looked pretty promising though. My labia may end up being only slightly asymmetrical.
Another thing that was different from a year ago was her plan to trim my right labia up top, where it is quite thick. She commented that my labia looked like they could be from two different women - that's how asymmetrical they were. So in addition to the length, she wanted to change the thickness to match the left side. I asked if this would affect the clitoral hood. She said yes, it would cut partially into the clitoral hood, but it shouldn't affect any of the nerve endings in the clitoris. I am a little nervous but will have to take her word for it.
The surgeon then ran through post-op care: no sex for 4-6 weeks, no gym or heavy exercise for 4-6 weeks. Fortunately I'm single at the moment, so the sex restriction isn't a big deal. The gym restriction is a little annoying, since I'm supposed to be training for a hike in April, but at least I can do regular walking. And it's for a long-term gain, so I shouldn't complain much.
After discussing it all, she asked me if I was still interested in labiaplasty. I said yes, so she sent me to speak with the nurse that would book me into surgery.
The nurse was very friendly and helpful. She seemed to have a lot of knowledge about the procedure. The surgeon's fees hadn't changed in the year since I had last seen her, but the private hospital fees had increased slightly. The nurse took my private health insurance details and said that she would contact me later about whether I was covered. I hope so - it was the main reason why I've waited this long to have the surgery!
The nurse explained that in a "worst case scenario", I would be out of pocket by around $5300. Medicare would reimburse me for some of the surgery costs, but not all. This is a little disappointing, but considering I'm spending similar amounts on laser hair removal, maybe it's not that big a deal.
Then came the surprising twist - the next available surgery date was this Wednesday! And after that, there wasn't anything available for a few weeks. But I still wanted to do my hike in April, so I had to cater for the 4-6 week recovery time. So it looked like I was going to have my surgery in just two days! But was that okay? I had an interstate trip planned for the weekend.
The nurse asked what I would be doing on the trip. I said, nothing too exhausting - just walking and spending time on the beach. She said that would be fine, and perhaps even a good time to go, since labiaplasty patients tend to feel okay for he first few days after their surgery. It's after a week when the sutures start to fall out and feel itchy.
Okay then, looks like I'm going to have labiaplasty this Wednesday then! Wow, this is crazy soon! The nurse booked me in and I paid the surgery fee. This Wednesday! Just two days before my annoying labia is gone!
