The transformation

I glance into the mirror to see my handiwork, and I feel silly. I’m the clown in my own private hell. I close my eyes before I turn to walk away. I glance at the full-length mirror and catch the middle-aged creep staring back at me, looking like the laughing stock I feel at that moment.

A really nicely written post (it's short), from Stefani documenting her change from boy to girl...but just for a few hours.

The transformation is from Stefani's blog, A Girl in Disguise.

When Does She Become He

I've been a long follower of Zoe's blog, A. E Brain.  It was among the very first of the T-Blogs I discovered.  She's a very smart woman with an interesting story.

In Zoe's most recent post, When Does She Become He, she links to a post in LGBT Perspectives Magazine.  In Zoe's words:

Pithy, concise summary of the science of sex and gender. Highly recommended for all medical professionals, and as an educational resource for lay people too. 

I agree, but I'll also add that this is a really good article to give to a friend or relative who is struggling with the whole trans thing. 

Here's the direct link to the article.

Nadine on Being Anything You Want

Nadine knows a lot about doing the very best a person can do. She knows about loving herself, and wants everyone else to be able to do that too.

She also knows there are some things nobody can do, and how wrong it is to set young people up for failure:

Anyone can be anything they want. Why do we tell this to our children?  Why do we set them up for failure?  This is SO not true. It is quite impossible to be anything you want to be. For example, what if I want to be a 6 foot tall blond bombshell with big natural curves? Yeah, that is just not going happen.

In her post What a Lie! Nadine explains how, with a different and realistic approach, we can help our young people find pride in working hard to accomplish goals.

dysphoria and aging

I have said previously in this blog that I feel dysphoria worsens with age but I am now rethinking that notion. What I think happens instead is that we finally succumb to the years of pressure with increasingly weakened defenses.

I recall a line in one of Helen Boyd's books suggesting that increasing gender dysphoria, with age, could be related to increasing T levels as males grow older.   Joanna is suggesting another theory.   Something to think about...

Dysphoria and Aging is from Joanna's blog, Musings from my everyday life...

Andreja Pejic: All About That Girl

"You won't be special anymore. You'll just be a woman who can't have kids." That was the charming reaction Andreja Pejic received when she told a former lover about her plans to undergo genital reconstruction surgery. Andreja's response? "Women are not baby machines. There's a lot more to being a woman, so reducing them to that is quite disgusting".

Abby has featured an interesting article about Andreaja Pejic.

Everything changes when you can be yourself

There is no greater change, in my opinion and experience, than changing one's gender and/or sex, and these are people who for the most part have not been able to live their whole lives as themselves.

Everything changes when you can be yourself, is a beautifully written post authored by the beautiful Tammy, from her blog, Tammy's World.  

In part one of a multi-part series, Tammy discusses her transition and how it has affected her.

What It's Like

For me, my male genetalia doesn’t really cause issues.  My facial and body hair is what causes the distress.  I can never get my face close enough.  A good razor, once with the grain, once against the grain, in hot water, high quality shaving oil, then moisturizer. Some times I shave more than twice. That’s just the face.  I shave my full body.  I also shave my head.  A shaved head looks androgynous compared to male pattern baldness.

Brenda talks about gender dysphoria in What it's like.

Meet The Allen Family

Today, something very different from our usual features.

Des and Lacey don't do a blog, but they have something very important to say, and they are sweet and fun to listen to and watch.

So often we hear about the families that cannot manage to stay together through transition. If you would like to hear from another couple who have managed to survive, please meet Des and Lacey Allen in the video below, and to see more, follow this link to see all of their videos posted so far.

You can’t catch me; I’m the gingerbread man. (TW: abuse)

Meet Vincent, a transman and the author of the blog, Becoming Vincent.  

Vincent is a terrific writer, and I want to thank Lucy Melford for introducing me to his blog, which is now listed on T-Central.

I took a quick look through his blog and found virtually every post worth the time to read.  The featured post, You can’t catch me; I’m the gingerbread man. (TW: abuse), talks about abuse and compares those being abused to the children's story about the Gingerbread Man.

After you have read that post, read An Open Letter to my Family of Origin.  You will learn much more about Vincent in this post.  Transmen and transwomen will be nodding their heads in agreement as the read.

A chance to be you

I used to feel it was important to pass, but that was many years ago. I guess it was a bit like trying to wish yourself thin. It ain't gonna happen. Likewise, for me, and a few others, passing is something that's not going to happen.





Those are Lynn's words, above, despite the fact that she really does look fab!

In, A chance to be you, Lynn discusses passing but, more importantly, just being herself.  

The Slippery Slope

I first heard the term, The Slippery Slope, applied to crossdressing, when I read Helen Boyd's book, My Husband Betty.

Nadine takes a look at the slippery slope....how it applies to her and others and how it applies to her spouse and other spouses.  

This is, perhaps, one of the best posts I've seen in a long time from any blogger.  I totally get what Nadine says in the post.  I wish I had written it.  

If you're a crossdresser but question if you're headed towards the TS side of the spectrum, you should read Nadine's look at The Slippery Slope.

My first adventure

It may seem trivial to everyone else, but that first step out of the relative safety of the apartment is daunting. There’s security to be found in the confines of that self-imposed prison, of sequestering yourself behind walls of plaster and paint, hidden from the world without, no one seeing, no one knowing the identity of the girl I truly am.



Stefani talks about her first time out, in public, as herself.  Did she survive her first adventure?  Read, My first adventure, to find out.

What it means to be non-transitioning

.......for non-transitioning transgender, we aren't typically targeted by bigots or the right wing religious zealots. However, we endure the pain of their words and hate. We can get by in the world, on the outside. On the inside we mourn, on the inside we contemplate ending it all at some point. Non-transitioning doesn't mean we accept who we are, it means we have trouble accepting physical changes as a real solution. My getting surgery doesn't make me a girl, I already am, but my body will now be this imitation of a girl in the most shallow of ways. I'm not saying that those who do change their bodies are wrong or imitations, they are brave and glorious for their courage. I just feel this way about myself.

Powerful words from Beth on a subject you don't see often (although you're welcome to go through my own blog for similar posts).  What it means to be non-transitioning, is from Beth's blog, Right Brain Wrong Body.

 

Louboutin Shoes

Signature red soles, ... a sex trigger for men.... encouraging a testosterone surge....

Our friend Lucy has written a clever piece that includes some very good insights into shoes and what they represent for women.

As she says, "I always keep in mind that cheap, badly-designed, badly-made, ill-fitting shoes do your feet harm - and they will look tatty, or fall apart, within a year"

But there is always more in a Lucy Melford post, so read on and enjoy Christian Louboutin shoes.

InspiringTrans*Kids - Sadie

For myself and many other gender variant kids growing up in generations that understood next to nothing of gender related conditions, it meant we had zero hope of receiving medical treatment, tolerance or support for what we were struggling with. 

So true for many of us, but not necessarily true for today's trans-kids.  Abby has a nice, feel-good, post featuring 11 year old Sadie.  

Thank you, Abby, for posting, Inspiring Trans*Kids - Sadie.

The road not taken

Thirty years ago I was given the perfect opportunity to discover the person I wanted to be. Unfortunately it came at exactly the wrong time. Through a combination of cowardice and self-hatred, I rejected it at the time, and what I lost has haunted me more and more over the years.


Nicely written, and from the heart, Susie reminisces about days gone by and opportunities missed. The road not taken, is from Susie Sometimes.