Think about it this way. Tell a ciswoman that she was forbidden to present as a woman, but must wear only male clothing, must have a male haircut, must use male speech patterns, gestures, and posture at all time, and that any failure to do so would result in immediate social rejection and mocking. Further, she would be required to have a testosterone implant for the rest of her life. What do you think would happen?
I'll tell you. She'd have anxiety. She'd develop depression and experience gender dysphoria. This is pretty much a sure thing.
Women may dress or present themselves in male or androgynous clothing from time to time, but they typically do not alter their appearance or behaviors to match for an extended period of time. They definitely do not go on testosterone when wearing male or androgynous garb. They do this entirely under their own volition.
A transgender person, pre-transition, on the other hand is in exactly the unpleasant situation I described above. Social norms, the threat of banishment for violating cultural taboos, keeps us hidden away, forced to cross-dress as our assigned at birth gender, and trying to tolerate the effects of submerging our true selves constantly.
When a transgender woman assigned male at birth presents as female, they are simply letting their gender presentation match their gender identity. This relieves that intense distress for a little while, giving us a glimpse at what our true selves really are. That 'euphoria' some experience when they dress to match their identity isn't really euphoria, but just relief from the worst of the dysphoria for a little while.
Saira has it exactly right:
Quote
When I crossdress, it just feels right. What I feel inside, and what I look like on the outside matches when I crossdress.