Quote from: iKate on July 24, 2015, 08:29:02 AM
It smooths things out.

Yes many women wear them on a daily basis even when not menstruating.

Are you referring to leveling the grade?  Keeping clothing out of the valley (murph)?

To everyone: Whats wrong with informing people you don't get a period and can't have kids?  Find myself proudly explaining why I am part of the solution not the problem!

Quote from: OOAnne on July 24, 2015, 08:45:38 AM
Are you referring to leveling the grade?  Keeping clothing out of the valley (murph)?

To everyone: Whats wrong with informing people you don't get a period and can't have kids?  Find myself proudly explaining why I am part of the solution not the problem!

Because I don't want my trans status to dominate conversations I have with people, and I would rather people just treat me like a woman and nothing but a woman.

Even if I tell people I don't have one its just a passing thing like 3-4 words. And truthfully it distresses me to no end that I will never be 100%. Not just in the eyes of people but my own self. Since I was a kid in fact I saw my mothers sanitary products and wondered if I would get to use them. As icky as that sounds! Cis females would probably think I'm nuts.

And yes as for the liner it's about keeping things flat and not bulging. I'm not as "well endowed" as most AMAB are so I guess this works for me.

Quote from: OOAnne on July 24, 2015, 08:25:09 AM
Do many women wear a pantyliner on a daily basis?

Well, I certainly do, as {at several decades post-GRS} 'natural' vaginal and bulbourethral discharges, will soon stain one`s undergarments. 

Quote from: CollieLass on July 24, 2015, 08:48:30 AM
Well, I certainly do, as {at several decades post-GRS} 'natural' vaginal and bulbourethral discharges, will soon stain one`s undergarments. 

Could never understand white underwear.

ftm here, a view from the other side.  When girls are starting to having periods they are often irregular and not use to carrying supplies, they often ask if anyone has a pad or cork as that is what my group of girls called tampons.  Girls who hadn't started there yet often felt left out on the outside of this female experience.  Some even carried supplies so give the appearance of having started.  A few would get cramps which others could not relate too at all. 

Quote from: OOAnne on July 24, 2015, 08:55:36 AM
Could never understand white underwear.

Have you ever worn white pants?

When I first came out and was alone with my 2 female cousins who i'm so close with they sat me down and explained EVERYTHING about their periods to the point I was amazed that there are millions and billions of females around the world that go through it every 28 days.

Quote from: Stevie on July 26, 2015, 12:25:55 PM
Have you ever worn white pants?

I almost bought white pants the other day, then I remembered I'm not a masochist. [emoji12]


     Hugs,
- Katie
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Yeah I had those thoughts as well, and I have other girlfriends who are like "be glad you don't have periods!" It's like ok yeah I know it might sound crazy but I would actually love to have them.

I mean sure it is very feminine to have periods, but is it really though? What about trans men with periods? Are they women? No! I try to just see it as one female sympathizing with another female, both assigned different bodies at birth but that doesn't really matter now does it?

It's not like these cis girl can relate to my problem of having a bulge in my new skirt that ruins everything amiright?!

I think most genetic women find their periods to be an inconvenience, a nuisance and, for many, debilitating (cramps, headaches and worse). Yes, they are also part of reproduction and motherhood but by and large I'm sure most women would switch them off if they could. It seems to me though, that as trans women, we see it as something that women bond over, because it is a shared experience and something that men are not included in discussing. "Secret women's business"... as they might call it in Australia. Talking about menstruation gives women an option to show empathy and support and sisterhood, so it's no wonder trans women feel it is a potential grey zone for them.

Anyway, I went and bought a small box of tampons to carry in my purse. I might not need them but I can show a bit of support should someone else is caught short.

happiest day for my wife was when she got her hysterectomy,she used to bled so heavy that she wore diapers for pads,the downside was the moodswings til they got her hormones somewhat under control..thats one thing im happy to have missed out on,bad enough i have my own moodswings i deal with

Fertility and menstruation are actually the biggest triggers for me. Last year they started to drive me crazy. I constantly had very dark and twisted thoughts about pretty much everything and everyone. It was back then that I realized that I will never be satisfied with feeling left out like that because I really am being left out. The one thing that keeps me away from that state of mind is the firm belief that very soon we will be able to cure trans infertility. A fair portion of women with AIS (XY women) have a uterus and are able to give an otherwise normal birth via an IVF. That's very promising because they are (genetically speaking) men with working female parts - without any kind of genetic therapy or regenerative medicine. And fertility is a huge business so the demand will be there.

I'm not sure how to feel when my best friends (female) bring up their periods. I sympathize with them because the discomfort of it all. But mostly I feel a little left out I guess. I mean (not to trigger anyone at all here) if I do fully transition at some point in the future, I won't be able to have children the same way my female friends do.

However, I don't think it makes me any less female not having a period either. Still I am glad we are talking about this because for the longest time I thought I was the only one who felt this way. Talking helps clear the air, especially since society doesn't really want to talk about female (trans/biological) reproduction.

Quote from: Ms Grace on August 15, 2015, 12:42:53 AM
I think most genetic women find their periods to be an inconvenience, a nuisance and, for many, debilitating (cramps, headaches and worse). Yes, they are also part of reproduction and motherhood but by and large I'm sure most women would switch them off if they could. It seems to me though, that as trans women, we see it as something that women bond over, because it is a shared experience and something that men are not included in discussing. "Secret women's business"... as they might call it in Australia. Talking about menstruation gives women an option to show empathy and support and sisterhood, so it's no wonder trans women feel it is a potential grey zone for them.

Anyway, I went and bought a small box of tampons to carry in my purse. I might not need them but I can show a bit of support should someone else is caught short.

I was reading an article today about men who started carrying a few tampons and pads with them, so they could help support women who may be heavy on their periods and ran out. That is a good idea and a way we could show solidarity. I mean who cares if we don't use them? I carry a few tampons because I do get asked for them. The recipient is usually happy because it would otherwise be a bloody mess, and the vending machines in restrooms are typically not stocked anymore for some odd reason.

You CAN offer empathy and support without having experienced it yourself. I guess as a parent I can offer support and empathy about parenting but female reproductive issues are of concern to me as well even though I do not personally experience them.

Quote from: Jean24 on August 15, 2015, 06:35:36 AM
Fertility and menstruation are actually the biggest triggers for me. Last year they started to drive me crazy. I constantly had very dark and twisted thoughts about pretty much everything and everyone. It was back then that I realized that I will never be satisfied with feeling left out like that because I really am being left out. The one thing that keeps me away from that state of mind is the firm belief that very soon we will be able to cure trans infertility. A fair portion of women with AIS (XY women) have a uterus and are able to give an otherwise normal birth via an IVF. That's very promising because they are (genetically speaking) men with working female parts - without any kind of genetic therapy or regenerative medicine. And fertility is a huge business so the demand will be there.

Yes that is correct based on my experience. I've been treated by two fertility clinics and I believe the technology and medicine to allow XY women including trans women to have female reproductive function is already here and just needs to be implemented. However I think it is more like a 50 year plan. In any case the promise of it happening sometime in the future is enough for me to keep hope that we will be truly equal in every way someday.

I used to carry a tampon all the time as well. That was twenty years ago. I never get asked for one now

I get the feeling uncomfortable part. You'll get used to it. Just compare it to the dysphoric feelings you had before transition and you'll have all the empathy you need to get through this conversation.

I lived in pretty deep stealth and I had the most difficult time talking about child birth and children. I don't like to lie and I've always told people that I have children. That is the truth. I found the most creative ways to approach these topics without ever revealing myself or actually admitting that I was the spermaozoatic donation type person.

Cindi

Ms Grace, you shouldn't feel like a phoney at all. It just happens to be something that you haven't experienced. Friends talk to me about their periods pretty often. I was surprised to find out that many cis women don't know whether we have a period or not. I figured that it was obvious but I have been asked quite a few times. I think that if you learn as much as you can, you can understand better what they're going through and empathize with them. I get PMS every 5 five weeks, so that helps too.

Quote from: AbbyDS74 on September 03, 2015, 08:30:51 PM
Ms Grace, you shouldn't feel like a phoney at all. It just happens to be something that you haven't experienced. Friends talk to me about their periods pretty often. I was surprised to find out that many cis women don't know whether we have a period or not. I figured that it was obvious but I have been asked quite a few times. I think that if you learn as much as you can, you can understand better what they're going through and empathize with them. I get PMS every 5 five weeks, so that helps too.

I think I get something similar too. I definitely am moody around the same time every month.

It didn't start until I started injecting E instead of the pills. I start getting unusually clumsy and I know what's comin. Neckaches, backaches, cravings salt or pickles usually, constipation, some dizziness, and omg the mood swings from one extreme to another. Fun times.

I was in a chemist last week I had some weird cramps and a girl serving was asking me about them, she got me some pills and said these were the ones she always used, I walked out and got in the car, and then it hit me, I was a confused 40 year old woman trying to describe cramps. Sure enough I was now holding some pills that used to treat strong period pain.

I felt like an idiot but they did fix my cramps.