So I'm 100 percent sure that I want to transition, i'm living in the UK. My question is should I wait until I'm living away from my parents before I pursue transitioning? Or should I come out to my parents now? I can't stand being a boy and I really want to be a girl however starting this september I will be going to college for 2 years and after that I will be old enough to move out on my own so I was thinking it may be smarter to do things after college. I must admit it is difficult having to pretend to be someone I'm not every day and I would rather transition as soon as possible.

In your opinion what should I do, I have been asking a lot of questions and I'm slowly making progress and building an idea of what to do in my mind however this is a big dilemma that I need to find a solution to.

Edited for age

Hi Lyra,

At some point you will need to tell your parents, be it now or in a couple of years. If I was 16 again and given the chance I'd take the hit and tell them but I don't know your situation and we are all different.

Unfortunately time is not your friend, as you get older you will develop into the wrong direction and some things are impossible to change later on, ideally you could at least get access to testosteron blockers which would prevent any further male development and since this would leave all options open I think your parents might be more receptive.

Then again your parents might turn out to be fully supportive.

Depending on how your parents are, I would come out soon if I were you. I faced a similar situation- I was 16 when I started transitioning, but I wasn't sure whether I wanted to start then or wait. I got to a point where I just couldn't stand it anymore, and I took the gamble, and it ended up working out in my favor. I think that if you can, it's definitely healthier for you mentally to start going in the right direction as soon as possible.. although, I would test the waters with your parents first, maybe show them a few articles about trans people, make a trans friend and bring them around, something along those lines. See how they deal with that, then continue on with whatever knowledge you gain there.

I started figuring things out in my late teens. I ended up waiting 10 years to start transitioning because I was scared and I KNEW that I would lose all my "family" when I did because of religion. A decade later, i'm doing just fine without any "family" and I deeply regret waiting.

I think you should wait, it's hard to live on your own that early and this comes from a gal just a year younger than you.. Really 16 or 18 isn't a big difference you can still start transitioning with some clothes or around friends but be sure to be safe... Of course the earlier the better I can't start right now because my mom is muslim and she'll never understand nor support so I'm waiting until College :3