Just a little scientific curiousness  on whether or not you would of attempted transition without the internet being around. I think in my case the psychologists I encountered in life for other reasons wouldn't of shown me the path which eventually I did on my own without having the light shown on me. I got help when the choice was life or death for which could of been long ago  dealt with through proper guidance. The internet shown a bright light on the path I needed and led me to a great oasis of hope.

Yes.... And your point is.......?

Just ruffling feathers though.

The internet is my life. It was my second parent. I wish I was smarter when I was young though.

Access to information, experiences, resources and people like us has been a huge part of my transition.  It is hard to put a value on this medium for sharing, caring and creating community.  I have made many dear friends and we get exposure to people and opinions from around the world.

I found the Internet in 1998, and the first thing I did was research transsexualism (the word transgender wasn't being used then), if it wasn't for the Internet I would not have been able to transition.

it tickles when my feathers get ruffled. I was just thinking there was no where for me to turn to. I was in therapy for an assortment of things , but the core issue that needed the most attention was never dealt with, it was only through the internet did the path unveil itself.

Finding information, resources and support on the internet was, and still is, a very important part of my journey.  I don't know if I would have been able to unravel the tangled web of my denial and dissociation from the other problems of my life and allow my true self to emerge if it wasn't for the use of the internet.  I found this site, my therapist and other doctors by using the internet.  I told my kids when I came out to them that I was transitioning that they should be very grateful that the information, resources and support that is available today wasn't available when I was their age.  Because if it had been available, we probably wouldn't be having the conversation we were.   

It didn't exist when I transitioned. We had this thing called CompuServe that charged $6 an hour. There were a dozen of us that posted with any regularity in real time in a "chat room." It was pretty primitive at 110 bytes per second. I always had to wait for the text to catch up with my typing.

It doesn't seem like it was all that long ago.

Cindi

Quote from: Cindi Jones on December 08, 2015, 07:14:08 PM
It didn't exist when I transitioned. We had this thing called CompuServe that charged $6 an hour. There were a dozen of us that posted with any regularity in real time in a "chat room." It was pretty primitive at 110 bytes per second. I always had to wait for the text to catch up with my typing.

It doesn't seem like it was all that long ago.

Cindi

It wasn't When I took my first computer course we were using punch cards. I remember the day the newspaper reported they were going public with the internet. up till then if was for the use of the federal labs and academics..

Quote from: kittenpower on December 08, 2015, 06:40:49 PM
I found the Internet in 1998, and the first thing I did was research transsexualism (the word transgender wasn't being used then), if it wasn't for the Internet I would not have been able to transition.

This is similar to my experience. I got my first computer in 1995.  I had a a lightening-fast 14.4 kbaud modem :0.  You were more resourceful than me, Karen.  It never occurred to me to look for that kind of stuff online.  I can't even remember what I used for a search engine. Yahoo?  Alta Vista?  Googol didn't even exist then.  Neither did the term "transgender", at least as far as I knew.  I went to the University libraries, and pursued through the stacks, looking at the psych and medical journals. As near as I could tell, I might have been a transsexual, but that seemed to involve surgical intervention, so I just didn't know what I was, lol.

Fast-forward 20 years, and wow, the internet has rocked my world, finding sites like this, and stuff like FetLife - so many lifestyles, so much life! It was okay to be different. Everyone has a voice, and a forum, it seems. It's been wonderful.

Terri



 

Without the internet I would have been lost and I don't want to think where my mental state would have been without the information on medical, cultural and reaching out to my community.

I grew up without the internet and maybe ignorance of TG allowed me to create my image of the alpha male persona and survive until the internet exposed my life of deception.

As one of the other girls mentioned, as soon as I figured out how to use it I was all over the trans items available at the time.  This would have be in the early  to mid 90's.  It was on one of Marci Bowers websites that I saw my first photos of the surgical results that were being done at that time.  It's likely that my choice of a Thai surgeon was influenced by that early exposure.

before the internet , the only access I had to information was at a Catholic University library that I lived by, there were few books even though  the school had a medical school and the picture in the books made it look like they were published by a Dr. Frankenstein.

It wasnt invented until 25 years after transition - and five years after completing srs! So no effect at all.

I thought the UK had super secret advanced internet technology for all its citizens. I think its called Torchwood under the directive from Queen Elizabeth I or was it Queen Victoria?

I remember reading about 'men' who wanted to change their gender in a magazine in a barbers shop at a very young age. It was a light bulb moment! It meant I wasn't the only person in the world who was like me.

The internet arrived way after that, maybe (gulp)35 years after that!

Quote from: Cindy on December 09, 2015, 02:06:32 AM
I remember reading about 'men' who wanted to change their gender in a magazine in a barbers shop at a very young age. It was a light bulb moment! It meant I wasn't the only person in the world who was like me.

The internet arrived way after that, maybe (gulp)35 years after that!

for me the light bulb burst with Christine Jorgenson

Internet was a huge part of my transition. It answered many questions for me.

Quote from: Maybebaby56 on December 08, 2015, 07:47:34 PM
This is similar to my experience. I got my first computer in 1995.  I had a a lightening-fast 14.4 kbaud modem :0.  You were more resourceful than me, Karen.  It never occurred to me to look for that kind of stuff online.  I can't even remember what I used for a search engine. Yahoo?  Alta Vista?  Googol didn't even exist then.  Neither did the term "transgender", at least as far as I knew.  I went to the University libraries, and pursued through the stacks, looking at the psych and medical journals. As near as I could tell, I might have been a transsexual, but that seemed to involve surgical intervention, so I just didn't know what I was, lol.

Fast-forward 20 years, and wow, the internet has rocked my world, finding sites like this, and stuff like FetLife - so many lifestyles, so much life! It was okay to be different. Everyone has a voice, and a forum, it seems. It's been wonderful.

Terri

Oh, I'm having so much fun!
Well Barbie, we're just getting started

Honestly, I was so clueless and outer directed that even with the internet I didn't realize what was going on with me until I had to research it for someone else. I became so morose and dissatisfied, (although I couldn't tell you with what), that I began to think it was time to pull the plug. Doing that research on the internet to understand a trans client led me to understanding myself. It wasn't until I found Susan's and gained all of your support and encouragement that I found out what being trans really meant to me and gained the bravery to take the leap and struggle out of my sad state. Therefore the internet was and is key to both my transition and my survival. Thank you all!