How can I be prepared for this?

[harlee]

I returned back to school today after a good summer break  I was looking very forward to going back since I am somewhat stealth at school and being called "she" 24/7 at home for 2 months was driving me crazy!  Some teachers at my school know I am in transition (mostly just all the teachers I have for my actual subjects) and are cool with it. Of course there are other teachers who dont know, since they dont even know me personally. There are around 6 kids at school who also know I am in transition because they knew me before I was presenting as male, or because they found out due to a slip up and I admitted to it But each one has promised not to tell, and they dont even talk about it, so its cool.

However! Something went wrong with my time table...and my subjects got messed up! They were all wrong and I had to see the office lady at lunch. The worst part is that because the subjects were messed up, I was put into a "form" class which goes for about 30 minutes at the start of each day...full of kids who want to go to university! My real subjects (the ones I chose and not the messed up ones on my time table) are not ones eligible for uni anyway, and I didnt want to go in the first place. It gets even better since this class has a list of everyone in it pinned up on the wall, along with their gender aside. My preferred name is on the list...but my gender says "F". Everyday we have to sign our initials next to our name in boxes that are dated!

So Im trying to keep cool about it, and not worry too much, I dont have school tomorrow since its Australia day  Even tho I am getting moved out of the class (I dont know how soon) the list is gonna be on that wall for everyone to see, for at least 5 weeks until the page runs out  I have a couple of friends in this class who are going to notice this and question it...one girl concerns me in particular since she is always looking at everything with my name on it, cause to be honest, I think she has a little crush on me  But the big letter "F" is so obvious to see!

I guess I just need to be prepared for when the questions come. I wont know what to say when I am asked "Hey, why does it say "F" next to your name?" Or what if lots more people find out about this "F" and ask me personal questions like..."Did you get a sex change or something?" I dont want everyone finding out, and avoiding me or giving me strange looks, or everytime I look at them, they are pointing and laughing  Maybe Im exaggerating the whole situation, this is why I am trying to keep calm  If my trans status does become known across my grade, the school and who knows where else...how can I take it with pride? It seems like it would be too hard. I dont want to be embarassed by answering their questions, but I dont want it to look like I am hiding anything secret by not saying anything at all. How can I be prepared to come out to my school?

[Quicksand]

Going from your avatar, I doubt the first thing people will do is jump to the conclusion that you're trans.  You look masculine.  If anyone asks, just do damage control by saying that they messed up at the office that handles records and you've been trying to get it fixed for ages, but they're being difficult and blah blah blah.  Honestly most kids are so self-absorbed that I doubt anyone noticed.  Usually when I sign in on an attendance sheet I look for my name, sign, and then pass it on without looking at anyone else's name/gender.  If your friends do see though, just go with the 'mistake in your records' excuse.

If somehow they figure out you're trans, you just have to own it.  Even if you feel ashamed of it sometimes, I would recommend just that you just fake it until you make it...the only way to avoid people making a big deal out of it or in the worst case scenario, picking on you for it, is to act like you're not ashamed of it and it's not a big deal.  When they sense they can't get to you, then they'll stop trying.

But honestly, I think you'll be fine.  Everyone has always accepted the mistake in my records excuse when I've used it.  If you're truly freaking out it could be worth it to just bring it up yourself, rather than sitting there waiting for someone else to do it...as in, "Oh man did you see the attendance sheet?  They still have my gender as female, I've been trying to get that fixed for ages but the office is being so difficult..."

Best of luck with this though; I feel like this will blow over fairly quickly so don't stress yourself out too much over it!

[Make_It_Good]

I think Quicksand replied perfectly here!

[Sean]

If you're not in that class, why don't you just ask a teacher who knows to remove your name from the list by using white-out (not sure what the product is called in Australia) or by striking a line with a black marker through your name AND gender?

That way they don't have to print out a 'new' list, but people don't have to stare at your name and an F for 5 weeks.

[Mr.Rainey]

Say the F is a typo?

[Marcelo Caetano]

At my college everyone knew about my transition since I started it after starting college.
Most people were cool with it, just a few made fun of me, but people that I really didn't care about, so it didn't even bother me.

Don't be so worried. Maybe it won't be so bad as you think it will. We get scared sometimes and make a big deal of something when others are not even caring.

[Radar]

I'd say they made a mistake (which they did). Then, once you're out of that class take a big black marker and mark through all your info so that no one can read it.