- Jazz Jennings says she is "super happy with the results" of her third gender confirmation surgery in an Instagram post and in the new season of I Am Jazz.
- Jazz, 19, has had a difficult surgical course and experienced complications after her initial surgery.
- Gender confirmation surgery can help give transgender individuals the appearance and functional abilities of the gender they identify as.
Jazz Jennings has been open about the highs and lows of her life as a transgender woman. In the last two years, the Youtube star and LGBTQ+ activist has undergone multiple gender confirmation surgeries.
Now, Jazz has good news for her fans and followers: surgery number three is complete. She shared a smiling photo of herself in a hospital gown in bed. Jazz explained why she's smiling in the Instagram caption: "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 family has been by her side through each surgery. Her brother Sander Jennings commented on her photo: "Although this surgery was one of the scariest moments of my life, I am so glad I was there to stick by your side the entire way 😊👏🏻"
Back up...when did Jazz's surgery ordeal begin?
TLC star Jazz Jennings revealed back in June 2018 that she was preparing to undergo gender confirmation surgery. Her TLC show, I Am Jazz, follows her throughout her journey.
Jazz was assigned male at birth but identifies as female. She had her first gender confirmation surgery in 2018, and told ABC News that this was something she'd wanted for a long time. “This is a moment that I had always envisioned and just experiencing it was so surreal," she said. "I was like, I can’t believe this is happening.”
Jazz said her surgeon also requested that she lose 30 pounds before going under the knife. “That was really, really challenging because I had an addiction to food,” she said. “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.”
She previously opened up to ABC News about her gender confirmation surgery and revealed that the process wasn’t exactly seamless. Season five revealed that Jazz's surgery was a bit more complicated than others (Jazz hadn't gone through puberty because of hormone blockers, so she didn't have enough penile skin to create a vagin*).
Despite a longer-than-usual surgery (hers took double the time of a typical gender confirmation procedure), Jazz's surgery went well, according to Newsweek. "It's better than what I hoped for," said Jess Ting, MD, Jazz's doctor.
But the real reveal happened when Jazz finally saw her new vagin* for the first time—on TV, no less. "Oh my god, that's crazy," she said. "It's a pretty vagin*!" Jazz also had to learn how to use her new vagin*, telling her family “I don’t think I know how to pee!”
Jazz experienced complications soon after her first surgery.
Everything seemed fine, but a few days later, Jazz started having complications. "Her wounds were definitely separating and a blood blister began to form," her mom Jeanette said. Jazz’s doctor recommended that she go back to the OR for more surgery.
In season five episode five, Jazz was wheeled off into surgery with her mom in the waiting room, according to Newsweek. It turns out, Jazz was taken into surgery at just the right time, according to Dr. Ting. "As I was getting her on the bed, I heard something go pop," he said. "When I looked, the whole thing had split open. If we hadn't done it today, in the OR, it would've happened in the hotel."
Jazz was in the hospital for 10 more days after that, until she was finally discharged. But it took another 13 days for her doctor to determine that she was okay to fly back home. "I'm just so excited, I'm very, very homesick," Jazz said. "I can finally move forward in the healing process."
Jazz goes through even more procedures during season 6 of her show.
The sixth season I Am Jazz, which is airing Tuesdays on TLC, continues to document Jazz's transition and all of its ups and downs.
In the season premiere, Jazz undergoes a corrective surgery on her cl*tor*s.
Jazz shared her own perspective on Instagram and 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."
Earlier this year, she showed off her scars in swimsuit photos on Instagram. Jazz shared the big reveal for the #decadechallenge on New Year's Day. In the photos, she's wearing a maroon one-piece swimsuit and her scars on her upper thighs are clearly visible. She wrote in the 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❤️#decadechallenge."
Okay, tell me more about gender confirmation surgery.
Gender confirmation surgery is a surgical procedure that can help "give 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).
For a male-to-female transition, gender confirmation surgery may include facial surgery, top surgery (to construct and shape breasts) and/or bottom surgery, to reconstruct male genitalia to female genitalia, according to the ASPS. What kind of surgery a person gets depends on their specific desires, and not all transgender people choose to have surgery, according to GLAAD.
Jazz previously revealed on her YouTube channel that she was having a vagin* constructed, which is called transfeminine bottom surgery. The surgery transforms existing male genitalia and reconstructs it into female genitalia, the ASPS says.
Since Jazz began transitioning at a young age and never went through puberty, her procedure was slightly different. At age 11, Jazz had a hormone blocker implanted in her arm to hinder the growth of her penis, according to the Daily Mail.
Because she didn't develop fully as a male, there wasn't wasn’t enough tissue in her genital area to construct a vagin*. Instead, she likely underwent an “experimental” procedure that involved taking out her her peritoneal lining (a thin membrane that surrounds her stomach) to build the vagin*l canal—something she discussed on YouTube in May before her surgery.
“I’m going to have new genitalia…like penis to vagin*…that’s some serious sh*t, y’all,” she said in the YouTube video.
Jazz, whose third and possibly fourth gender confirmation surgeries will be covered even more in season six of her show, I Am Jazz, told ABC News that she saw her surgery as the end of her transition. “I’ve gone through the whole medical process, and this is really the last thing that will validate my identity as a woman,” she said. “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.”
Korin Miller
Korin Miller is a freelance writer specializing in general wellness, sexual health and relationships, and lifestyle trends, with work appearing in Men’s Health, Women’s Health, Self, Glamour, and more. She has a master’s degree from American University, lives by the beach, and hopes to own a teacup pig and taco truck one day.
Jennifer Nied
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.
