Thread: Father who forced the NHS to give him a sex change by trying to do it himself

Father who forced the NHS to give him a sex change by trying to do it himself... with a Stanley knife

By LOUISE BOYLE
Last updated at 3:29 PM on 27th September 2011



A father almost bled to death after he tried to slice off his penis during a DIY sex change.
Kirsty Cass, formerly known as Andy, was so unhappy living as a man that he took a Stanley knife to his genitals and tried to sever the organ.
Miss Cass, from Crawley, West Sussex, was unable to stop the bleeding and had to call an ambulance. She was taken to Royal Surrey Hospital where doctors saved her life by reattaching the penis.





Change for the better: Kirsty Cass wanted to be a girl from when she was very small. She said: 'The first time I went out in public dressed as a woman, I was so nervous - but it felt amazing'
Miss Cass, 49, is now living full-time as a woman and preparing to have proper gender-reassignment surgery.
The council worker said: 'I was so desperately unhappy in my own skin that I would have done anything to change myself.
'I realise now how dangerous it was to try to give myself a DIY sex change - I could have easily bled to death - but it seemed like the obvious solution at the time.

'I'd battled with gender issues since I was a little boy, and one night I just had a few beers, looked down and thought ''that shouldn't be there''.
'I went downstairs and got a Stanley knife out of my toolbox and just started hacking away.
'The pain was unbelievable. It only took a couple of minutes of cutting before I quickly sobered up and realised the danger I was in.


The way she was: Andy Cass (left) battled for years with gender dysmorphia before trying to cut off his penis in desperation, and has been living as Kirsty, right, for the past two years
'I grabbed a hanky and tried to stem the bleeding and dialled 999. I don't remember what happened next, just waking up in hospital and realising my penis was still there.
'Doctors explained they had to reattach it - but it had to be there to be used if I ever had proper gender-reassignment surgery.'
After the traumatic incident, Miss Cass then began to turn her life around with the support of friends and her 21-year-old daughter Jodie.
She said: 'I started living as a woman full-time after that. I was worried what my work colleagues and friends would say, but they've all been really supportive.
'I'd even attempted suicide when I was younger, I was so unhappy - so it's an amazing feeling to finally be the person I know I should be.'
After her ordeal, Miss Cass was referred to a psychiatrist who diagnosed her with gender dysmorphia.
She has been living as a woman for two years, taking a daily cocktail of tablets to suppress male hormones.
She said: 'I have always felt uncomfortable being a boy, ever since I was at primary school.
'In my teenage years, I wasn't interested in having a girlfriend at all - but I went out with a few girls to try to fit in.
'I eventually did get married to a wonderful lady called Linda. It took years before I confessed that I wanted to dress as a woman, and she was very supportive of me.
'Our relationship broke down eventually - we were and still are great friends but there was no spark between us.
'I realised that I wanted actually be a woman, as well as dress like one - and I sank into a really deep depression.
'The first time I went out in public dressed as a woman, I was so nervous - but it felt amazing. I can't wait until I've had the operation and I'm 100 per cent woman.
'Deep down, I've known I've wanted to be a woman all my life - but it took a DIY sex change for me to realise it.'


Read more: Kirsty Cass: Desperate father almost dies in DIY sex change using Stanley KNIFE | Mail Online