jazz reassignment surgery

Jazz Jennings's Doctors Revealed Her Gender Confirmation Complications Were 'Severe'

"I think in hindsight we would have never sent you home from the hospital."

• In a clip from the new season of I Am Jazz , Jazz Jennings's doctors are sharing new details about her gender confirmation surgery complications and ongoing transition.
• The teen reality star and LGBTQ+ activist underwent her first gender confirmation surgery in 2018 and had to have a follow-up procedure due to complications.
• Marci Bowers, MD, says, "it turned out tougher than any of us imagined. I think in hindsight we would have never sent you home from the hospital."

Jazz Jennings has had a tougher transition than her doctors expected. In the last two years, the teen reality star and LGBTQ+ activist has undergone multiple gender confirmation surgeries, and her doctors are now revealing more details about what went wrong in the new season of TLC's I Am Jazz, People reported.

In the episode clip, Jazz's doctors, Marci Bowers, MD, and Jess Ting, MD, speak to Jazz and her family about the previous surgeries. Bowers admits Jazz “has had a very difficult surgical course,” in the show. “She had a very incredible first surgery—it went seemingly very well, but there were problems. And that prompted a second surgery, which I was not a part of, unfortunately.”

“Taking Jazz on as a patient for surgery, we knew it was going to be a one-of-a-kind surgery,” Ting explained in the clip. “We don’t have the experience of having said we’ve done 50 of these. I was just not expecting her to have a complication as severe as what she did have.”

“This has been a real journey, hasn’t it? We knew it would be tough—it turned out tougher than any of us imagined,” Bowers tells Jazz's family. “I think in hindsight we would have never sent you home from the hospital. You know, easy to say now. When I wasn’t here when you had problems and had to go back, I can’t tell you how stressful that was.”

It hasn't been easy for Jazz, either. She shared a bit of what she's gone through on Instagram. Jazz opened up in the caption: "As portrayed in this teaser, the past year has been extremely challenging. I have experienced some of my highest highs and lowest lows... Although it continues to be difficult to cope with the hurdles life throws my way, I have been actively working every day to get better and improve my mental health."

Jazz went through her initial gender confirmation surgery in June 2018 . Doctors had to use a new technique because she started using hormones at such a young age. Since she hadn’t developed enough tissue to construct a vagina, Jazz's doctors used tissue from her stomach lining.

Jazz experienced complications and had to return for a follow-up procedure . “There was just an unfortunate event and setback where things did come apart, and there was a complication,” she told the outlet. “I had to come back in for another procedure, but it was just all part of the journey. The good thing though is that it was only cosmetic and external so it wasn’t too dramatic.”

Jazz came out as transgender at age 5 and has been sharing her transition in the TLC series I Am Jazz and on her Youtube channel. FYI: Gender confirmation surgery gives “transgender individuals the physical appearance and functional abilities of the gender they know themselves to be,” according to the American Society of Plastic Surgeons (ASPS).

The new season of I Am Jazz premieres on TLC Tuesday Jan. 28 at 9:00 pm EST.

Jennifer Nied is the fitness editor at Women’s Health and has more than 10 years of experience in health and wellness journalism. She’s always out exploring—sweat-testing workouts and gear, hiking, snowboarding, running, and more—with her husband, daughter, and dog. 

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Jazz Jennings' Doctors Say She Had a 'Difficult Surgical Course' with a 'Severe' Complication

Season 6 of I Am Jazz will document the teen's third gender confirmation procedure

It's been a year and a half since Jazz Jennings underwent gender confirmation surgery, and her journey isn't over yet.

In PEOPLE's exclusive sneak peek at Tuesday's season 6 premiere of I Am Jazz , the 19-year-old meets with her surgeons, Dr. Marci Bowers and Dr. Jess Ting, to discuss what went wrong with the surgery as she prepares to undergo her third — and hopefully final — procedure.

And her parents, Jeanette and Greg, are hopeful things will work out.

"I feel like we're near the end of the journey at this point," Greg says as Jeanette crosses her fingers. "And I do feel like this is going to be one where they say, 'This is what we've got to do to finish everything up, complete the process, and let Jazz go on her merry way.'"

Speaking to the cameras, Dr. Bowers admits Jazz "has had a very difficult surgical course."

"She had a very incredible first surgery — it went seemingly very well, but there were problems," she explains. "And that prompted a second surgery, which I was not a part of, unfortunately."

"Taking Jazz on as a patient for surgery, we knew it was going to be a one-of-a-kind surgery," Dr. Ting adds. "We don't have the experience of having said we've done 50 of these. I was just not expecting her to have a complication as severe as what she did have."

Jazz underwent the surgery in June 2018, when she was 17. That October, she revealed she had suffered a complication and needed a second procedure.

Sitting down with Jazz and her parents, Dr. Bowers acknowledges the complications.

"This has been a real journey, hasn't it? We knew it would be tough — it turned out tougher than any of us imagined," she says. "I think in hindsight we would have never sent you home from the hospital. You know, easy to say now. When I wasn't here when you had problems and had to go back, I can't tell you how stressful that was."

Later, producers ask Jazz's parents if the doctors' "mea culpa" was important to them under the circumstances.

"You know, it's nice to hear, 'I did something,' and acknowledging that," Greg says. "On the other hand, there's the medical side and an expectation that really should have been met."

Earlier this month, Jazz showed off her scars from her latest procedure on Instagram, calling the marks her "battle wounds."

I Am Jazz season 6 premieres Tuesday at 9 p.m. ET on TLC.

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Transgender teen and 'I Am Jazz' star Jazz Jennings on sharing the final steps of her transition journey: her gender confirmation surgery

This past June, Jazz Jennings underwent her gender confirmation surgery.

It's a dream she’s had since she was 2 years old.

"When I was 2 years old, I went up to my mom and asked her, 'When is the good fairy going to come with her magic wand and change my penis into a vagina?'" Jazz Jennings, 18, told ABC News' "Nightline" co-anchor Juju Chang.

For Jazz, that dream became a reality. This past June, she underwent her gender confirmation surgery -- a procedure that, in her case, essentially re-fashioned male genitalia into a female equivalent.

"It was like a dream. It was. This is a moment that I had always envisioned and just experiencing it was so surreal. I was like I can't believe this is happening," Jazz said.

(MORE: 'I Am Jazz': Transgender teen on grappling with high school, puberty)

Jazz, who is from Florida, is one of the most well-known transgender teens in the country, carrying the torch on behalf of trans rights for the last decade.

Known for her relentless advocacy -- from gender neutral bathrooms, to playing school sports -- she’s tackled some of the most divisive issues for trans kids head on.

"From the time I was six years old, I've been sharing my story. And you know at first I thought, 'Okay, this is all going to come to an end one day and then I'll be able to live my life.' But more and more I realized that I was given this platform for a reason and that I have a strong and powerful voice," Jazz said.

When asked about whether living her life in the public has made it easier or harder to be a trans teen, Jazz said, "It just depends."

"I think for me, I've always been so honest about who I am as a person. And being transgender, I feel like it's something that I couldn't hide no matter what. Don't have to explain myself or the fact that I'm transgender to people who haven't met me before. So it's kind of-- I like that about being public," she said.

Her journey has been documented on her award-winning TLC reality show, "I Am Jazz," which returns for a fifth season on Tuesday, Jan. 1, 2019.

She shared when she, along with her parents, decided to medically intervene with hormone blockers when she was 11, pausing any male development. And then, when she was on the verge of high school, she began taking the female hormone, estrogen.

(MORE: 'We're not a threat': Transgender teen shares powerful message on bullying)

"I have no regrets because it allowed me to prevent myself from going through male puberty," Jazz said. "I feel like that's why my dysphoria hasn't been so bad is because I look in the mirror, and I see the girl that I am on the inside. But not every transgender person has the opportunity to do that."

In many ways, her journey has all led up to this moment. For Jazz, her gender confirmation surgery is what she says is "the final step of transitioning."

"This is really the last thing that will validate my identity as a woman. There is nothing else after this. I just get to be myself, be in the body that I've always wanted. And then I can live my life as just Jazz," she said.

For years, Jazz's willingness to share intimate details has been her calling card, and this milestone is no different.

"I've been criticized for sharing too much information, and yeah, it is personal and uncomfortable for some individuals. But how are we going to learn if someone doesn't step up to the plate and share their story and personal details," Jazz said.

When she first shared her story with ABC News’ Barbara Walters in 2007, Jazz was just 6 years old and one of the youngest documented cases of an early transition from male to female. Jazz started her transition at the age of five.

The Jennings family, who have three older children, were already at the time facing backlash for allowing Jazz, at such a young age, to present herself as trans. Ten years later, the family said they still find themselves defending that decision.

When asked how she would respond to people who might think her parents brainwashed her or that she was too young to know, Jazz said, "I really, really hate it."

"And hate's a strong word. But I hate it when people are, like, 'My parents abuse me into being transgender because they wanted another girl, not a boy.' And no, that's not how it was. This was all me. This is how I felt. And I was the one telling them that, 'I'm a girl, I'm a girl,'" Jazz said. "They just embraced and loved me for who I was. And they didn't force me to do anything. They never force me to do anything."

In the upcoming season of "I Am Jazz," viewers will get to see major milestones in her life, including Jazz attending her first prom, celebrating her 18th birthday and the final steps of her transition.

The surgery came with obstacles. Jazz said her doctor requested that she lose 30 pounds before the surgery.

"And that was really, really challenging because I had an addiction to food. And it was something that gave me comfort. And I had to let that go because the surgery is so much more important to me than any slice of cake or pizza," Jazz said.

The surgery was also complicated by Jazz being at the forefront of so many medical options now available to transgender kids, like the hormone blockers and hormone therapy she said helped save her life.

"Being on the blockers is something that I don't regret at all. But the only, you know, downside to it was that I didn't have enough growth down below. So there wasn't enough tissue to work with when it came to the surgery," Jazz said. "And it was very challenging to find a doctor, a surgeon who was willing to perform the operation on me just 'cause I'm such a difficult case."

Jazz and her family sought out a brand new, groundbreaking technique.

"They’re using the tissue I have, the peritoneum, and also, they may take a skin graft as well. I say it's going to be like a patchwork vagina, Franken-vagina," she said laughing. "So yeah, as long as it's functional, that's all that matters."

She added, "And I want it to look somewhat pretty, just 'cause it's my body."

"Nightline" caught up with Jazz nine weeks after her surgery. Though she was on her way to a full recovery, getting there wasn't easy.

"There was just an unfortunate event and setback where things did come apart, and there was a complication," Jazz said. "I had to come back in for another procedure, but it was just all part of the journey. The good thing though is that it was only cosmetic and external so it wasn’t too dramatic."

"My life wasn’t in danger. I had the guidance of two incredible surgeons, and they really just supported me throughout the entire process and took control over the matter," she added.

Jazz hopes her surgery will help pave the way for the next generation of trans girls seeking to have the same surgery. With the surgery behind her and now in her senior year of high school, Jazz's future is coming into focus for her, including what she wants to do after college.

(MORE: Reality TV star Jazz Jennings 'doing great' after gender-confirmation surgery)

"I've been thinking about that more and more lately. And I mean there's really no pressure for me to decide anything right now. However I'm thinking about focusing on like sociology and gender studies. I am finding myself becoming more and more passionate about the gender binary of this world and just the difference between gender and sex and helping people understand that so that all, you know, gender nonconforming individuals can be more accepted in this world," she said.

Jazz said she's thought more about continuing her advocacy.

"I think it really just depends on what direction my life takes. But more and more I'm thinking about just continuing my advocacy," Jazz said. "My passion is reinvigorated not just for trans rights but for equality for everyone and I really think that this world needs some changing, because we are not in a good place as a society right now, and I think if people could open their eyes and realize that if we choose a path of love, of accepting one another and embracing our differences."

Watch the full story on ABC News' "Nightline" TONIGHT at 12:35 a.m. ET.

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TLC Star Jazz Jennings Posts First Photo After Gender Reassignment Surgery

By Daniel S. Levine

I Am Jazz star Jazz Jennings posted her first photo after gender reassignment surgery this week, thanking fans for their love and support.

“I’m doing great, thanks for all of the love and support,” the 17-year-old Jennings wrote on Thursday, alongside a smiling selfie from her hospital bed.

Videos by PopCulture.com

Jennings announced earlier this month that she was undergoing an experimental reassignment surgery.

“Because I started the blockers so early, I never went through puberty,” Jennings told her fans on her YouTube channel . “I got this implant in my arm… it blocks testosterone in my body so I don’t develop as a male and get a beard, mustache and deep voice. That’s why I’m able to be so feminine. I didn’t have growth in that region.”

Jennings explained that her doctors will need to perform a “special procedure” to construct a vagina, using extracts from her peritoneal lining, a thin membrane surrounding the stomach.

“They take that out through my belly button. They use that and harvest that and use it to create the vaginal canal. It looks like real vagina tissue and it feels like vagina tissue. It allows them to make a bigger canal,” Jennings continued.

She said the procedure is so rarely performed that “something could go wrong.” However, based on the photo she shared this week, it looks like everything went well.

Jennings said the surgery was filmed for future episodes of I Am Jazz . Since season four ended in February, it could be anywhere between eight months to a year before the new episodes air.

Jennings, who uses Jennings as a pseudonym, is a trans activist. She gained national attention when she was only six years old and was diagnosed with gender identity disorder when she was five. Her TLC series debuted in July 2015.

After sharing the photo from her hospital bed this week, Jennings was once again targeted by Derick Dillard , who was fired from the Duggar family-starring Counting On for his repeated transphobic remarks about her. “This kind of thinking should not be encouraged by media. A system that allows this kind of child abuse is clearly broken,” Dillard wrote.

In November, Jennings took the high road , tweeting, “In the face of constant ignorance and hatred I prefer to disregard negative opinions and continue moving forward with love.”

“I just want to be as open as I can. It will show other people that being transgender … is OK, it’s not something negative at all,” Jennings told ABC News in 2015. “It’s something that I embrace, that my family embraces, and we just live our life, we face the challenges, we conquer them and we move on.”

Photo credit: Twitter/ Jazz Jennings

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Jazz Jennings undergoes THIRD gender confirmation surgery – and says she’s ‘super happy with the results’

• S.M. Caraballo
• Published : 8:56 ET, Feb 5 2020
• Updated : 9:26 ET, Feb 5 2020

• Published : Invalid Date,

JAZZ Jennings revealed on Instagram she had undergone a THIRD gender confirmation surgery for 'cosmetic purposes'.

The reality TV star, who made headlines for being one of the youngest people to be publicly identified as transgender, took to social media to say she was doing well after her surgery.

The 19-year-old icon posted a picture of herself on Tuesday night wearing a hospital gown, where she revealed the news.

She wrote: "I’m feeling so great after completing my third surgery! This third procedure was for cosmetics, and I’m super happy with the results.

"Thank you to everyone who has followed my journey and supported me along the way."

Her third surgery was also televised during the season premiere of her TLC show "I am Jazz" and fans caught a glimpse of her trip to the hospital.

During the clip, her mom expressed how she was experiencing deja vu because they had walked those hallways twice before.

Her doctors also told producers they would be taking more precautions this time around and that they would count the surgery as a success if she didn't have any issues for the next five or six months.

Before the surgery, she hugged her parents and brother for good luck.

Jazz rang in the new year by showing off her gender confirmation scars while wearing a bathing suit.

She wrote as a caption: "These are my scars on full display in #2019. I'm proud of my scars and love my body just the way it is.

"I call them my battle wounds because they signify the strength and perseverance it took to finally complete my transition."

Jazz underwent gender confirmation surgery on June 26, 2018 after expressing for years how much she wanted to go through with it.

In another post, she opened up about how she suffered complications from her bottom surgery.

She explained in a video post: "2018 was a rough year in my life. I experienced a major complication with my gender confirmation surgery and wound up back in the OR one week after the initial procedure.

"It was a tough journey, but experiences like that one only make us stronger in the end.

"Though it can be hard at times, a positive mindset and the support of those around you can help you conquer any challenge.

"Thank you to all my fans who have supported me throughout the years! Love you all, this video is for you!"

Going into the surgery, Jazz had talked about how doctors were worried there wouldn't be enough tissue to reconstruct her genitalia because she had a puberty blocker inserted in her arm before puberty.

The puberty blocker prevented her from growing facial hair and having a deeper voice.

She attributed her more feminine looks to the implant.

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She said in a  video posted on her YouTube channel : "I didn't have growth in that region and because there was a lack of tissue, they didn't have enough material to construct the vagina.

"So they're using a special procedure where they extract my peritoneum lining through my belly button and they use that and they harvest it and they use it to create a vaginal canal."

Jazz has talked about how she has identified as transgender since she was 3 years old when a therapist held up two dolls and asked her if she wanted to be a girl.

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