i’m a transgender male who has fully transitioned (on hormones 4+ years, all legal paperwork changed, had top surgery to remove breast tissue in october of 2021) & i finally went back to work after a long recovery in january.
i work in overnight replenishment, aka i just come & stock stuff while the store is closed. i’ve had a reoccurring post operative complication though that involves a small wound reopening in my chest & it has happened two times since i began working. the first time i didn’t think much of it but i came into work anyway & hit a box against it & bled all over myself & my shirt & then decided to take the next day off because i got really worried.
he didn’t believe that i had surgery, though, & was saying all that happened was that i superficially cut my nipple & was using it as an excuse to not work, & then joked to my coworkers that i probably had nipple piercings. i’m not out as trans, i stay stealth especially at jobs because of bad past experiences, so i didn’t specify what the surgery was for, just that it was surgery. & hearing that he didn’t believe me the first time didn’t make me feel that great.
well, the complication is back & i was supposed to work on the truck, which is how i accidentally hurt myself at work the first time. so i made the decision to call out again after asking my mother if it would be a bad idea to go in like that. i’m really nervous he won’t believe me though, again, & i probably won’t be able to see my surgeon for at least a week because of how booked their office always is. so i’m not sure if i can get a doctors note quickly.
does anyone have advice on dealing with topics like this? or what i should do?