Hi, I'm Jaymie (or Cat if you prefer - it's my "new" middle name). I'm doing okay, I guess; thanks for asking, person that I pretended responded to me. Was that sentence a mess? I don't know.

Anyway, I'm relatively "new" to discovering myself in this way. Although, for a long time, I've known that I "wanted" to be a girl. "Wanted" is not quite the term, it's more like... I know that I am a girl but I don't fit the societal gender norms.

I once came out to my parents. I thought they'd be understanding since they are very progressive in their thinking. BUT nope, I was very quickly discouraged by them. I was told that being transgendered would severely limit me. I was told that I am too masculine to "pass." Now that I have my own place and my own money, I feel ready to begin to transition. I mean, I don't want to have a sex change, I just want to be myself. It's kind of hard to explain without detail, and I'd rather not, but I feel like changing myself to be more feminine will be spiritually, mentally, and beautifully rewarding. I have certain non-christian spiritual beliefs and I feel like I'd be closer to the "feminine Divine." But that isn't the only reason... I know that I have to do this, no matter how difficult it may prove to be.

Without a life story, the reason I joined this forums is because I am looking for guidance in my transition and trying to make the most appropriate decisions for my health, safety, and my gender identity and expression as a whole. I'm not sure at this point if I really need HRT, but I am planning on buying my first set or so of women's clothes and other stuff.

I'm nervous not because this isn't what I believe about myself... I'm afraid of being a target of discrimination. I know that I'm a girl, and that I must change for my own mental health. However, I'm still worried about how people who have known me as a "man" will react. I'm also searching for jobs, and I have to use the name on my Social Security card. I'm not changing my name until my gender expression feels right to me. So, all in all, I know what I am, but it may be awkward or painful in the beginning to get it.

How do I overcome the fear?

And, nice to meet you all!

Hi Jaymie 

Welcome to Susan's Place    Glad to have you here, join on in the fun

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Hugs

V M

Welcome to Susan's Place. What you describe in your introduction is the non binary where you have a limited number of changes that you desire. We have many non binary members but feel free to post in any section of the site where you feel comfortable. You may discover after you have made some changes in your life that you desire more than you originally desired. There is not a problem with that as this is a self discovery process.

As for getting over your fears, it amounts to just doing it. The fear quickly passes as you start appearing in public and discover there is nothing to fear. A therapy or support group help with this and may even be willing to accompany you on your early trips in public.