Sofia Tuomola tells Iltalehte that she experienced worse pain than ever before while recovering from surgery.
Sofia Tuomola paid about 17,000 euros for the surgery in Thailand. Jukka Alasaari
Big Brother Finland seen in the most recent season Sofia Tuomola went to Thailand for genital surgery as part of her gender reassignment process. About three months have now passed since the surgery in Bangkok. Tuomola spent a month in Thailand, because he had to be there in case of complications.
Tuomola says in an interview with Iltalehti that he recovered well from the surgery. However, the first three or four days after the operation were very difficult.
– I have never had such severe pain before, Tuomola says.
According to Tuomola, the worst pains were not even in the lower end, but in the stomach area. There were also pains in the head, shoulders and legs, among other things.
– I was lying in a hospital bed and couldn’t move. I wasn’t allowed to drink or eat. I had a drip for the first few days and a catheter for a little over a week. It really hurt a lot.
Along with the pains, however, the woman felt an even more significant feeling of immense relief. She had wanted genital surgery for a long time, and finally she felt more whole as a woman.
– I felt that I’m not ready with my transition if I don’t go through this surgery. This is certainly influenced by the pressures of society. I felt that if I had a penis, I was not fully a woman. It was inside my own head, and I can’t speak about anyone else’s experience, Tuomola says.
Not all transgender people undergo genital surgery as part of the gender reassignment process.
“Now it feels right”
In the past, it always bothered Tuomola that the genitals had to be hidden and taped out of sight. She could wear three panties on top of each other to keep everything hidden and look the way she wanted. Now life is more carefree. And feeling in your own body feels natural.
– Many assume that [sukuelinkirurgian jälkeen] there will be an aha experience or a reborn feeling. I rather felt that now it just feels right. It feels like this should have always been like this, Tuomola characterizes.
Sofia Tuomola has already noticed in practice how life is more carefree after genital surgery. Jukka Alasaari
Feeling natural in your own body has already been seen in practice. A woman living in Manchester, UK was visiting her friend in Finland and took a shower. After the shower, it was no problem for him to walk naked in front of his friend.
– Or, for example, I could go to the sauna naked among friends. Before, I couldn’t have imagined that I would be naked in front of someone I know, Tuomola says.
Tuomola says that he went to Thailand for surgery because, according to him, there are the best surgeons in the field who are passionate specifically in the field of genital surgery.
– In Thailand, you can get good end results quite cheaply compared to what it costs in other parts of the world.
He says he paid around 17,000 euros for the surgery.
No rush for sex
The operation was three-part. First, he underwent hair removal from the lower head using the electrolysis method, i.e. with the help of electric current. Then a piece of colon was made into a vagina and the clitoris, labia and urethra were shaped from the penis. Tuomola also talks about the surgery and his life after it in detail in his YouTube video, where he answers people’s questions about the topic. You can watch the video below. In the video, the woman says that the surgery lasted about nine hours.
Tuomola says that after the operation, it is recommended that vaginal sex is not practiced until three months have passed since the operation. Tuomola’s time has come to an end, but she is in no hurry. Even though the places have improved as they should, he would still be excited to engage in intercourse at this stage.
– I was thinking of waiting another 2-3 months for someone, if such a person happens to come across.
After the surgery, Tuomola has to have her vagina dilated for another year. This means using a dildo-like device regularly to keep the hole as long and wide as the surgeon intended. For the first six months, this should be done twice a day, one hour at a time. For the next six months, the number is only once a day. At certain intervals, we move to a larger size.
Tuomola has found the dilation quite painful, especially when moving to a larger size.
– When it’s been the first couple of minutes, it doesn’t really feel like anything. I read a magazine or a book, play on the iPad and call my friends, and I’ve taken naps at the same time. You can’t get out of bed, but stay there for an hour, says Tuomola.
Before genital surgery, Tuomola has, for example, been on hormone therapy and underwent surgery to make her face more feminine in her trans process. While in the Big Brother house, the woman said that she spent around 15,000 euros on cosmetic surgery.