• MyVisionsComeFromSoup: Thanks for the question! I want to say that, while I have always felt “not male”…I know that it’s not really correct to say “I feel completely female” as I stupidly said in my first post before I realized I couldn’t edit anything out. The main lesson I’ve learned here…it’s not a good idea for me to post in a public forum while groggy, because I usually will make embarrassing mistakes.
The last thing I want is to belittle what it means to be a woman. I cannot know exactly what it means to feel female, because as much as it pains me to admit it, I was not born in a female body. No matter how much I desire it, I will never be able to carry a child, or be a natural mother. At the same time, I know that even if a woman is unable to have children, she is no less a woman. As much as some trans activists fight for complete gender equality, and saying that “I may still have a penis, but I am still a woman”…I still believe it is fine and maybe preferable for people like me to be called “trans women.” It differentiates us from a person born female (other than the term “cis-gender”, which I don’t really care for.)
Sorry, I’m trailing off…basically, I feel I have a feminine spirit, and I am happiest when people perceive me that way. Portraying myself in that way makes me feel joyful, while trying to fit into a masculine world feels alien and depressing to me. I’m honestly not sure where I fit in anymore, but I’m not so worried anymore about needing to. I have a fairly large frame, and I know that no one is ever going to look at me and think I was born a little girl. I’m coming to grips with it, and becoming a stronger person in attempting to lower my expectations for my future. I’m not fighting to use women’s bathrooms, or certainly not locker rooms. It’s all too stressful for me, and I absolutely do not want anyone to feel uncomfortable if at all possible. If there is a single stall bathroom, that’s always the one I’m going to.
• ChocChocPorridge: Oh, absolutely! It’s very offensive to me when I hear people saying that women are supposed to be “prim and proper beauty queens.” Some of my favorite heroes are the women who go so strongly against those stereotypes! I cannot stand stereotypes at all, and I love it when people go against the unfair expectations others have for them just based on their sex or perceived gender. I just think people should be allowed to be who they want to be…and not have someone calling a woman “butch” if she isn’t perceived as feminine, or a man being called a “sissy” or worse when he appears effeminate. I don’t even like the terms “masculine” or “feminine”, as they themselves are a stereotype. The idea that a woman is just a “not-man” is horrifically insulting, and sadly…history has often shown so many men have thought exactly that way. :(
• Sulis87: Thanks for the comment! I absolutely agree - Gender stereotypes have been holding back civilization for far too long! My greatest hope is for TRUE gender equality in the near future…it’s certainly been long enough, hasn’t it? In addition, my opinion that anyone who thinks that “male privilege” is a false concept is an absolutely apathetic moron, completely devoid of any historical civil rights knowledge.
• RufusTheSpartacusReindeer: Thank you very much! :)
• ageingrunner: Thank you so very much! _ I am so thankful for the medicine that has changed my body more in line with how I always wanted it to be! This might be a little overdramatic, but it’s almost what I imagine it might be like for a person cursed to change into a werewolf, and then suddenly receive a cure to prevent or even reverse the unwanted changes. I was able to manage hiding my feelings easier before puberty started, and then suddenly every year I grew more and more horrified with the changes my body was going through. I had a panic attack when I saw my facial hair coming in, and hair growing on my chest. When things changed down below, I grew to despise them even more. Oh Lord, and my voice…the slow change from my regular voice to an ever-growing deeper one…I still remember crying when I heard my voice on a recording for the first time. I tried my best to not show my fears and distress at school or around my family…but, it was a living nightmare that continued on until I began medically transitioning last year. I know we all go through our own battles through puberty, but…other kids in school seemed okay through theirs, while I most certainly was not with my own.
I absolutely agree also about the gender stereotypes, and I completely understand how trans behavior can be seen as reinforcing them instead of challenging them. I suppose I’ve seen trans people of both types…some who embrace the stereotypes of their perceived gender in an attempt to be accepted as that sex, and then you see others who say “screw it” and throw stereotypes to the wind. I myself hate stereotypes, but then again, I have fallen into the trap of saying I feel “feminine” when she may just need to ask, what does being feminine really mean? Is it the opposite of masculine, and if so…what is masculinity truly? All I know for myself is the stereotype of masculinity is completely the opposite of how I feel, and I want no part of it…nor the genitalia that typically goes with it. (Sorry for TMI!)
• Datun: Thank you so much! I definitely agree that the stereotypes of femininity are in no way at all what makes a woman a woman. (My above replies go further into it.) Oh, and sorry…I had to look up AGP, as I was unfamiliar with that acronym. (I learned something new!) :) I believe Autogynophilia is usually associated with trans women who are attracted to other women, right? If so, I can see how that could be a bit concerning. I suppose maybe it could be a similar level of concern for a straight woman if a lesbian entered the bathroom maybe? I think a large factor may depend on how far along a trans woman is into her transition. From my own experience with medically transitioning, my “male equipment” down there was in no condition at all for intercourse (even if I ever wanted that…which I don’t.) For most trans women, it seems erections are (thankfully in my case) nearly impossible to achieve, and even if they wanted to, the skin is so much thinner that tearing is extremely easy. However, every transitioning trans woman can have a vastly different hormone regimen…so they are all going to be different. Another thing is a small few trans women can’t or don’t medically transition at all. (This is extremely rare from my experience, as most are dying to begin transition ASAP.)
I agree wholeheartedly on the need for being upfront and logical on all of this! So many people get their feelings hurt, then act out in ways that in turn hurt other peoples’ feelings, and so on. Some of the terminology bothers me, and the way some people are so demanding of being acknowledged. There are SO many people who are just like “Respect my feelings and opinions while I disrespect yours!” It’s ridiculous and unrealistic, and gets us all nowhere.
Thank you again for the awesome post! _ I absolutely stand with you against toxic masculinity, which absolutely DOES exist…no matter how much some people claim it doesn’t.
• CoteDAzur : Thank you! I agree with you on a lot of what you said! My response up above to MyVisionsComeFromSoup explains further my feelings on gender stereotypes and my dislike of them. A woman can be a warrior unmatched in strength, without a care in the world for what others find beautiful, having bulging muscles, a hairy body and short hair, or even facial hair. She is still beautiful and amazing for exactly what she is to me, because she is being true to herself. A man can be physically weaker and nurturing and pretty and all the things that are normally unfairly expected of women, and he is no less a “man” than anyone else. That is how I feel, and obviously…the majority of the world unfairly thinks otherwise.
I myself feel at my happiest when I am expressing my, for lack of a better term, “femininity.” I have no intention of ever demanding that I be called a woman instead of a trans woman, no matter how much I wish I had been born physically female. It’s important to have distinction I feel, and as I said before…I’m not really keen on the term “cis-gender.” Also, I prefer female pronouns, but I will never demand anyone to call me by them. My hope is that people will eventually acknowledge a trans person’s feelings enough to eventually consider it.
• Poppyred85: Thank you so much! I grew up so guarded about my feelings, or rather…my TRUE feelings…that now I actually really enjoy being so open about everything. It’s like being able to breathe finally. :)
I actually believe the term “trans woman” is completely appropriate in most cases, and I do believe a distinction is important. Oh, and yes…I definitely identity as a transsexual (or, at least…pre-op transsexual). I would prefer to to have genitalia that resembles a woman (and is able to be used for sexual penetration), but even if it is only externally resembling the vulva, I would be happy. At this point, I would almost even be fine just being rid of my male parts, simply for the way they are in the way and bothersome, a depressing eyesore, and have caused me aches my whole life.
Oh!! Yeah, there are a large amount of transgender people who also are very uncomfortable with people who say they feel female, but still present strongly as masculine, such as with a beard and such. I’ve seen only one of these in the transgender Facebook boards I’m a part of, and they caused quite an uproar. I think a large part of it is because they exactly the face of what everyone is afraid of with the bathroom issues…that just any asshole man can simply say “I feel like a woman today, therefore it is okay” before going into a women restroom or locker room. I completely understand the distress that would come with that, and don’t understand how someone could NOT after all the hell women have gone through for centuries at the hands of vile men.
Ugh….all the “phobia” talk. It's entirely overused in my opinion. I mean, transphobia IS real, and is out there everywhere. That’s a fact. BUT…I don't like seeing people take the tiniest little thing, even the smallest verbal mistake from people who don’t know the preferred language, and call it “transphobia.” Just saying this would probably piss off some people, but it’s my opinion. Don’t get me wrong, I DO understand it…because more often than not a trans person has been met with an insurmountable level of hostility, bullying, or other opposition at every turn throughout our lives. We are prepared for incoming attack at any given second…it’s been ingrained into us. Still though, the “phobic” adjective is thrown around way too easily in my opinion.