In my male guise I would shovel snow off the sidewalks at my home and at my church.  I live on a corner and my church is on a large corner lot - there's a lot of sidewalk to shovel.  I've found the task much more difficult this year.  I got an email from a church friend today, saying the church shouldn't rely on a 60+ year-old woman to shovel its walk.

I've been concentrating so much on all the things I can now do as Kate, I hadn't noticed the things that are much more difficult or the things I can't do. 

It is glorious to be free, but what limitations come with that?  I have found I feel more vulnerable and have taken precautions, but what other limitations come with this new-found freedom?

- Kate

Customers blanch when I carry heavy stuff. Especially men, or old women. It's like "Oh my god that box weighs half of what she does let me get it/let someone else get it." Considering my lifting maximum is supposed to be about 25lbs with my spine, I don't mind.

Sex on top is a lot harder. So much strength lost. Honestly, exercising feels a lot harder too - granted, it might be simply because my only exercise nowadays is walking, but using an elliptical for a minute is more draining than I could ever remember. And after a full semester of sprightly springing up 3 flights of stairs 3 times/week or more, they feel harder now than in the beginning.

I've actually had to change the radio station before when a bad combination of songs was played. Stupid emotions.

Leaning over or laying down on hard surfaces. Yeah.

@ Kate


But what about a 60+ year old woman with a brand new snow blower? 

@ Autumn

Be sure to play it up if there is a cute guy around to help. 


I have noticed that 20 lbs. of cat litter now feels like 40 lbs. 



Hugs and Love
Janet

The loss of upper body strength is one of the things that we have to get used to, my dear.

We are, after all, the weaker sex.

But we are also the fairer sex as well!  And that is the best part!

-Sandy

Yes!.  Loss of strength and endurance is just part of transition.  Not a problem for me and Yes cat litter does seem to weight 40 pounds now LOL.

That's the thing...
We don't "gain" any freedoms by transitioning, we swap out old ones for a set that suits us better.
For instance, we swap the ability to "appear perfectly normal" with the ability to "be ourselves", at least for a while.

No place nor state of being is necessarily "better" than another, only more suited to our needs and personality. (Making it more right for us, which feels better, but may not factually be better.)

Quote from: Miniar on December 04, 2009, 04:24:08 AM
That's the thing...
We don't "gain" any freedoms by transitioning, we swap out old ones for a set that suits us better.
For instance, we swap the ability to "appear perfectly normal" with the ability to "be ourselves", at least for a while.

No place nor state of being is necessarily "better" than another, only more suited to our needs and personality. (Making it more right for us, which feels better, but may not factually be better.)

Quoted for truth!

Although when we finish the process and are fully settled and secure in our new gender and sex some of us do try to occasionally "bend" the rules a little. For example I'm a lot less hostile to excercise and sport these days...