So here I am, 2 years into hormones, 4 years since deciding to transition and now people are chiming in saying things like " I don't like Heather.  You don't look like a Heather.  As long as it isn't Heather"  This is strange for me, as I still have yet to figure out what the defining features of Heather look like.

So my mother, whom I believe has the absolute and unequivocal right to name her child, suggested Claire Michelle. 



Claire?  Really?!   

How did you choose your name, and what factors did you take into account?  Do people give you a difficult time about it?   

When I was 15 I had two lesbian friends that adopted me as one of their own.  They made it clear that in order to be one of the girls, I had to have a girl name.  Out came the baby name books and we all labored for a few days.  Nothing resonated.

After a while, I remembered a family friend that used to dress me up like a doll and play with my hair when I was about 4...some of my earliest memories.  Katie...said it out loud and that was that.  Instant acceptance and so I became Kaity.  Spelling was my own choice.

I started thinking as Kaity at that point and have for the following 32 years.  Your name is important, though some might argue how much.  It has to me something that you are proud to own because it is the label for YOU.  It has to be something that you recognize yourself through.

What the heck? If your name is Heather, then you look like a Heather.  I couldn't tell you what a Heather looks like if you put a gun to my head -- although, I'll admit I would presume that said Heather was white and born in the 80s.

That said, I think Claire is nice, so maybe don't take name advice from me.

Im still in the process of choosing my new name. I asked my parents what they wold have named me had I been born a girl. Turns out they didnt have one picked out lol. It took awhile to find one that felt comfortable. I gave each name a 2 week trial period, if it didnt feel right to me I ended up moving to a new one. Have been going by Rachel for a few months now. Think Ive got my new name and I quite like it. Now just have to make it legal In the end as long as it feels right to YOU then you've got nothing to worry about. BTW I think you do look like a Heather

I think Heather is a nice name, who are they to say, if you are happy with it that's all that matters

when i started exploring name options i spent weeks trying new names and could not come up with one then one day i was filling out some papers and had to initial them and it was right there, K.C. was my initials and i liked how it sounded so i spelled it out into a name and came up with Kacey, i have recently changed the way i spell my name though so it is now spelled Kacie thanks to my boss mispelling it one day lol, my middle name is a name i have always liked and i think it sounds good together, and that is the story behind the name of ......Kacie Lynne

My fem name is Teresa Cheryl,for she is my twin self,it was easy for me too come up with a fem name,for I've always thought of myself as Teresa,my wife insisted I just use Cheryl,which was no big deal too me.

My mom chose my name. She chose Ria right away because it sounds like my original name.

I had tried a couple others, went with Renee for a while but it grew old. I like Ria and it is appropriate, age wise and nationality wise.

I took her first name as my middle name. I had my dad's first name. I got rid of that. 

I did my legal name change recently and Ria is what it is now legally. I am very happy with it.

(I go by Kate here because I don't want my real name all over the place).

I think this could be looked at as perk of this journey. I got to pick my own name. At first I tried working around others but that was not working for me. I am Jainie. I picked it. It was not my first choice but it evolved into it.

If you have a name that can be dual use then it makes things easier for those around you.  I tend to think of it as cheating but whatever.  That's what I did. 
Heather is great.  You look like a Heather to me.  What's cool about the name is that it's not overly common, sounds cute, and makes me think of pretty landscapes.  What's not to like?

When I was around ten I got up the nerve to ask my mother to call me Michelle instead of the boy version name, back in the mid 60's there was no awareness or explanation at all for what I was feeling in our small town so she just said "don't be silly". As far as I'm concerned that has always been my name even if I had to keep it to myself.
  For many many years I would sign my name as Michelle in such a way most people wouldn't really notice...always makes me smile to do that

Hah!  I wish I could like that like a facebook post! 

I toyed with many names over the years but the one I have now settled on came from my partner. I do journalism and PR for a career and she kept calling me April O'Neil and I just thought: "I actually love the name April I'm keeping it!"

I simply feminised my name, I thought this would be easier as my mother calls me Mike. Now she doesnt really have to change the way she address me other than changing him to her (she still forgets sometimes).
I was thinking that if I do not like it after my birth certificate is changed then I would then change it to something else.

Quote from: HeatherR on October 19, 2015, 01:21:16 AM
Hah!  I wish I could like that like a facebook post! 

I see your "liked" post Heather

I like Heather!  I think you look like a Heather too.  In fact, you look more like a Heather than any Heather I've ever known (which is none, lol)!  If you're happy, nobody else's opinion matters, and they'll learn to live with it or give you a nickname.

I had planned on Alexis for a decade, but my name always started with J and Juliett is the phonetic for J. It was a nerdy whim out of nowhere. Also being named after a famous literary character is great for starting conversations even if I have to endure all the Romeo jokes.
I had no idea that strangers could like your name enough to say so until i transitioned. Everyone loves my name.

In one of my mother's rare moments of lucidity where she managed to pull her head out of her bible long enough to notice the reality around her, she said Jalee would have been nice, but it was several years after my name change and several years too late.

My name came to me before I even realized I was transgender. Kate happened back in 2009, and even though I flipped my name back and forth from then, I am fully certain that it was destined for me.
When I came out to my mom, she told me if I were born female my name would have been Cassandra Ann. I think the name is interesting, but would not change my disposition that I am Kate.
When I am able to officially legally change my name, I will cast upon myself the full name of Kate Ann Wong. Ann as my middle name as a family middle name on my moms side as tradition, and as well as picking up my mothers maiden name, rather than keeping my fathers name (not saying in any way shape or form that I want to disregard my dad or the name, I just think it fits better for myself). Besides then my initials would be fantastic.

Kate <3