In some people the urge to crossdress is strong, just as the Force was strong is Luke Skywalker. In others it fluctuates. It can be make them want to dress up every day or it can wane and make them not feel like slipping into a dress and heels for weeks at a time. Chanelle Nirok suggests that if possible you should plan when you are going to exit the life for a while so you can be prepared to jump back into it when you’re ready.
Within the trans community there are different factions, cliques, gender identities and opinionated people. Today Cate O’Malley writes about how all those different types of people need to get along and that everyone who identities outside cisgender norms is entitled to full membership in the trans community. Also, they need they need the support of that community.
Our last report from Amanda was about the fun she had going out for Halloween in San Francisco has Elsa from Frozen. This month’s news is darker in tone. Amanda is struggling with anxiety. Is it due to medications she is taking as part of her hormone replacement therapy? Did it make sense to quit taking anti-anxiety medication? Is the stress of being alone in a place far from your home, or concerns about GRS to blame? Read her latest blog entry and take a moment to wish her well in the comment field.
Today our Correspondent in Thailand, Christine Burr, takes a break from the Thai scene and blogs about a common characteristic of closeted crossdressers worldwide. The extreme planning and precision that must be implemented to take advantage of windows of dressing opportunity that open with short notice. See what happens when “Tom” hears his wife planning an excursion for the coming Saturday.
When The Artist D says that her husband is a coffee table she means that he has a fetish for being used as a coffee table by dominates. There are plenty of other what could be considered “odd” fetishes but is there really a line separating the ones that seem strange from more everyday fetishes? Could baking apple pies with a willing partner also be a fetish? Expand your thoughts and read this post from The Artist D.
Many crossdressers have busy lives full of duties and obligations that preclude dressing up for fun on a regular basis. It may be the demands of a full time job; family time; time spent with friends who don’t know about their pal’s “hobby,” or a combination of things that keeps a CD from slipping into femme mode when they want. Chanelle Nirok, our young CD contributor, has some time management tips to get you dressed up more often.
Dawn and Hannah have been together for almost a year. During that time both of them have changed. Hannah has become more feminine and grown as a woman and Dawn has been happy to see how being who she is meant to be has made Hannah a happier person. But as in every relationship there can be a few rough patches. Today Dawn blogs about one that has gone on for a month.
He, him, she, her, hers, his. Pronouns used in the English language to denote the gender of the person being mentioned in conversation. Markers that put you in the male or female category upon which how you are treated by society rests. Lately a new term has entered the language: preferred gender pronoun. Cate O’Malley isn’t too happy with that term. Do you wonder why? Read on.
Now that Halloween is done people begin to turn their attention to the other holidays that are more family oriented. Thanksgiving and Christmas are approaching. For many people these holidays with with family focus are not joyful. They can be lonely and painful. Especially in the case of people who have been rejected by their families because of who they are. Sophie Lynne has a suggestion that may help some people through the holiday season.
Many girls have the desire to dress up as Elsa from the film Frozen and our contributor Amanda is no exception. This year she decided to do it and do it right with a professional Elsa costume. She and her friend “Cinderella” headed in to San Francisco where they found fun, excitement and some bigoted buttheads.
Acclaimed Transgender Surgeon Outlines Pre-Surgical Considerations for Transgender Children (Philadelphia, PA) “Transgenderism has no age limit”, said Dr. Sherman Leis, transgender surgeon of international renown, and founder of the Philadelphia Center for Transgender Surgery. Recognizing that people who are gender dysphoric are that way from birth, Dr. Leis points out that it should be no surprise […]
There are myths and more myths about Thai Ladyboys. Most of these myths revolve around the assumption that everything is fine and wonderful with being Transgendered in Thailand. That Thai Ladyboys live a wonderful life; going about their everyday routines dressing and living as the females they were clearly meant to be. After all, isn’t […]
A few weeks ago while researching stories to include in TWIT Angela Gardner came across a story about a trans woman folk singer who was upset about how she was treated at an open mike event. She got both kinds of mis-gendering; mis-gendering through ignorance of what might be offensive and through just plain rudeness. Angela has mulled it over and has a few thoughts on how to handle it if you are mis-gendered while out and about.
Our late founder JoAnn Roberts called Halloween a holy day of obligation for crossdressers. It is the one day in the year that regular guys can experiment with wearing women’s clothing without repercussions from their friends. The Artist D believes that Halloween should happen everyday and what the world needs is more straight men wearing dresses. If they did that the whole world would shift and anything would be cool.
For some reason many religious people, who claim to follow God’s laws, find that judging LGBT people is just fine. Even though it says in the Bible, “judge not….” And most of the time they judge us to be sinners. That leads to LGBT people who believe in God being abused and mistreated by their fellow Christians. They are tossed out of their congregations and must wander in the wilderness trying to find the promised land. Today Josy C blogs about her experience with religion.
Dana Bevan has been asked to speak to a youth group at her church on what her life has been like as a trans person. Today Dr. Bevan presents us with the outline she intends to follow for her talk. As you might expect from a person of scientific orientation she will tell the group of the scientific evidence she has gathered showing that being trans is not a choice but something you are born with.
Christine Zee has been blogging about her transition journey all summer and now in the fall of the year she is nearing the end of her trek. In this month’s installment Christine’s mother shows some progress is accepting her. Her legal name change is now in the works and she is set to take a several business trips in the next few weeks during which she will come out to more of her colleagues and associates.
After hearing the advice “follow your dreams” for most of her life Cate O’Malley has decided that is good advice by it needs to be amended. Not everyone will want you to chase your dreams. There will be those in your life, those you care about deeply, who will not understand your dream. See what Cate advises if that happens when you try to follow your dream.
In addition to being our TGF cartoonist Christine-Jane is also an actor in amateur theatricals. It was while performing in one of those that CJ met the woman who would become her wife. After many years together, with her wife knowing all about CJ’s feminine side, they were approached by the producers of a documentary […]
It’s almost time for Halloween and the ghosts, goblins and ghouls will be competing with the Donald Trumps for as much Halloween candy as they can get. Sophie Lynne has mixed feelings about Halloween. On the one hand it’s the holiday that let her true-self out of the closet. On the other hand now that she’s out and living as her true-self she doesn’t want to be anyone else.
The only constant is constant change. Amanda has been on a journey, both in space and time, and in gender. From the east to the south and then off to the west, Amanda has been on the road. San Francisco always called to her and now she lives near that city by the bay. Will she stay or does her journey continue?
For many trans people who come out while they are married their expectation is that the marriage will be dissolved. This is often true but it doesn’t have to be. When a husband is becoming a woman their wife has many fears, questions, and concerns. Sara, the leader of the TransCentralPA’s spouse support group has some advice on what trans husbands need to do to possibly save their marriage.
Thailand has a reputation of being tolerant to its trans people, known as “ladyboys.” But there have been barriers placed in the way of a ladyboy achieving success. While they can pursue an entertainment career you don’t see many ladyboy CEOs. New laws have gone into effect in Thailand that are aimed at stopping the discrimination that holds back the ladyboy population. Learn more in Christine Burr’s Dispatch From Thailand.
Is it good to be seated at the popular girls’ table? Groucho Marx said he wouldn’t want to belong to any club that would accept him as a member. Being out in the open and popular could dim the glamor that shown so strong as part of the underground. Even a cool club get’s boring when the “bridge and tunnel” crowd shows up. This year Southern Comfort has moved from Atlanta to Florida. Will Florida be too “bridge and tunnel”? Ch, ch, ch, changes.
Christine’s Journey continues. So far things have been proceeding according to her plan. She is on track to begin full-time as a woman on December 1. She has spoken to all the management people at her job and is getting a “coming out” letter for her clients. Intensive electrolysis is doing its job. There are a couple of problems though, with family. And so the journey continues.
