Did you have to teach yourself feminine or masculine mannerisms?

[Apricot]

It really depends. My voice sounds naturally feminine. Sometimes it gets awkward - especially when I'm on the phone and I'll get ma'amed and I somewhat panic. Most times when I'm on the phone I try to have an authentic male voice. In these situations, I don't know whether to call him/her out on it or just pretend I didn't hear the ma'am - or WORSE, actually try to have a feminine voice on purpose only to sound masculine >.<

I've been on hormones for a while, but I'm not open to hardly anyone so I always have to watch my voice to make sure I don't give myself away. There are aspects of my personality that need work though. I notice that I could walk and stand in more feminine ways and it does help me pass a bit. My posture is particularly bad.

[Aikotribs]

oddly enough I don't conciser myself to be a bad actor but I sure wasn't any good in 'playing girl' ,its just amazing how its nearly impossible to act the other gender !

The only thing I picked up is being open about emotions (once in a while) and I use my hands allot when talking. Other then that ,nope, all attempts to 'girly me up' have been utter and complete failures, next to them being downright traumatic!

[Sera]

Nope. Only thing I changed was my music tastes because stupid me thought that guys can't listen to t.A.T.u. or Evanescence but recently I decided to stop caring and listen to it again.

I like both of those bands.  I would assume that some guys also secretly like them just because they are lesbians and they are into that.

Well, I am still very much male, but I guess I have some 'cute' mannerisms...

[thathalfjapaneseirishboy]

I never had to "teach" myself to be masculine, I always was.

[M.Grimm]

I was sent to a finishing school as a teen to be taught how to act like a lady, because I was way too boyish, according to society/my parents. When I transitioned, all I had to do was stop putting on the facade I was taught at that school. So, for me, the answer is 'no', I just had to be myself and that default is fairly masculine.

[Yakshini]

I'm very non-gendered when it comes to my mannerisms. I speak just like any of my other guy friends, I just have a better vocabulary. The only thing I've really been working on is my body language and learning to move more like a man. This is a but harder to do considering the way your body is made more determines how it moves.

[RachelH]

Very strangely, I talked to my friend who I came out to 1 week ago about my life, and how I felt I had lived a lie. He said that it made sense now.... it seemed I was trying to act male, but always didn't quite make it! Lol! I was so pleased in a way, because it just confirmed that I always had a lot of feminine responses in my life and trying to concentrate on been a male always made me slip up... In fact I can remember my brother and my mum asking if I was gay, again something that I absolutely denied at the time; but they will soon find out the real truth! I'm hoping that when I do go full time, eventually, the natural mannerisms I've suppressed will come out in force. I already found myself been more talkative to girls at work about things such as their hair, something I would have avoided like the plague before.

[Key]

Apparently it was obvious to my friend that I was either 1)gay, 2)trans, or 3)both.  I don't really know if my actions are masculine or feminine, I just act how I want to.  I'm trying to observe walking patterns day by day, and not standing like a guy, sitting, etc etc.  Speech, that may be a bit difficult, I haven't given it a thought yet, but next time i'm with some of my friends i'll observe them.  I already talk as much as some girls though, lol, my teachers have always had to tell me to shut up because i talk to much, and if I can't use my hands, it's a horror. 

[Melody Maia]

No. Like many have expressed here, it was more about letting the inhibitions fall away. I was out with a girl who recently came out and she remarked how I acted so feminine. What I notice is that in social situations, there is a moment where it's like I can hear him tell me how he would react and I know how I would react and I now just choose me. It's like a small hitch that I recognize but is getting quieter and quieter by the day. Pretty cool and very liberating really.

[Just Shelly]

YES!!

I find I have to try and act masculine as I am not out yet.

Like many here, most of my tendencies have just flowed out, I don't try and hide any but some over obvious ones I may mask so not to embarrass my children too much.

Shelly

[Ribbons]

Nope. Only thing I changed was my music tastes because stupid me thought that guys can't listen to t.A.T.u. or Evanescence but recently I decided to stop caring and listen to it again.

Why do you think Tatu played up the lesbian? Plus, Evanescence is mega popular with boys; maybe even more-so then with girls.

[Karla]

I worked hard over the past 10 years to learn masculine mannerisms all of which just went up in smoke as soon as I knew I don't need them no more.

The feminine ones just come naturally.

[insideontheoutside]

No, I was born this way

Yeah same here too. I've done a few good acting jobs on the female front, but that was never me. And even then, I had to observe how others were acting and try to fit with that. But the acting is few and far between. On a daily basis I'm just myself. I'm not trying to walk differently or talk differently or never put my hand on my hip or do this or do that. Bleh, what a way to live your life by trying to copy things that aren't you.