I was a flat chested bean pole as a guy and am a flat chested bean pole as a woman. With my androgynous features, passing has never been a problem for me. I logged nearly 100 hours in public the six months before I even started HRT. I'm not sure how much you have been out and about as your female self, but perhaps you can start testing the waters to build up your confidence? Some people can jump right in with both feet, but I've always been the "stick in my big toe to test the water" kind.

Ginny

After 2 years on hrt when I went full time, yes, I passed.  But even before then, I found that the better my attitude about myself, the better I passed.

I still can't really pass for the life of me and am hopefully going fulltime in 6ish months. . . so at this point I guess I just have to hope it can change with time lol. 

I don't really know when I went full time, I was androgynous for a long time even after starting hormones.. I guess boobs kinda swayed it a little. But once they came through and were more visible I started getting ma'amed a lot more etc.
So I guess for me I went full time when my boobs began to show and other people noticed them and addressed me as female.. so they both went hand in hand for me.

I guess I'm passable. I've been living full time outside of work/school/official documentation for several months. Now I'm going at school. The anticipation of running into people I know is worse than actually doing it. So far it's only been passing people briefly in the halls, or me practicing invisibility. Who knows who's actually recognized me, no scenes yet. People from last semester thought I was a chick mostly, anyway.

One guy in one of my classes recognized me and called me by my male name after class when everyone was scrambling and no one heard it, but today after class we talked for a second before he got a call and he was using my female name and friendly. Saves me having to bring that up unless he does.

It'll be fun when I invariably run into the lesbian I met last semester who I only admitted to being bi to.

I am not pretty, in my opinion, but "it's better to be a homely woman than a hot ->-bleeped-<-." I'm also not wearing makeup - I'm so bad at it normally that I haven't even tried. But I'm in a class learning about it. When people have put makeup on me, I feel like I look *GORGEOUS*, at least dead on. But I'm not to the point where I can reproduce that. At least, after over 2 months of my voice being screwed up by being sick, I'm finally getting it back. I've un-trained a lot of muscle memory in that time though :/ My worst nightmare was getting sick and having my voice messed up as I started to go full time, and it happened. But I got through it.

I think the last time I got 'sir' while not at work was back in October, when I was standing there in a miniskirt and knee high boots and a tank top at the ren faire and a woman came up and asked where I got my chicken on a stick. Of course, there's a LOT of crossdressing by men at those places.

I have some coworkers who like to bring customers to me because they know that I'm going to take care of them, but they will of course tell them what a great guy I am. One in particular enjoys trumping me up with puffery - complimentary of course, but when some person is told about what a fantastic guy I am who really knows his stuff, who is a learned gentleman and they come down and meet me they're *very* confused. It's very awkward when I have other customers that I'm dealing with and people come up and broach that topic.

Last time I talked to HR they said that I've got to legally change my name before they'll work with me... but I don't think that's right as my company has a perfect HRC score for trans employees. Once I have the chance, i'll be calling employee assistance. It can take weeks to do that, and especially since I just decided I need to change my last name too, I'm not ready to do that ><

I've been on E since august, but wasnt on the right dose til the start of November.

I will also say that being full time in a consistent social setting with lots of people who do NOT know that I am trans, is a COMPLETELY different experience than being full time when I run errands, shop, live my life, with friends or partners who know my history. But I am starting to feel immersion and having trouble remembering what it was like to live as a guy.

It just really sucks living in a poorly fitting bra, AND being tucked for so many hours of the day. I feel so restricted in my movement.

And lastly, before I stop editing this, I haven't been to work since the 24th of January. I am really not looking forward to pretending to be a guy again. I mean, I don't even remotely *try* to act male but it's very dissonant in my mind to be perceived as such.

Final edit: I guess the fact that when I am forced to out myself to medical personnel or other situations, and people say "you don't look like a guy" means yeah, passable enough.

I went FT a week after I started taking HRT. o_0 I didn't seem to run into a lot of problems, and I didn't think I was uber passible, but I guess I got by. I guess already looking androgynous helped. *shrugs*

Quote from: K8 on February 01, 2010, 07:38:12 PMI checked "other" too, but because when I started full time I just didn't care whether I passed or not.

I went full time the same day, or actually the day before I started HRT. If I look back on that time now, and the fact I was totally self conscious about everything, I don't see how I ever got through it. Today almost a year later passing is never a problem, voice included. But like Kate my attitude at first was that it really didn't matter because I was doing this for me, not anyone else, and that got me through.

No. I went full time after 12 months HRT, that was 6 months ago and I'm still dealing with people calling me sir/he/him/they all the time. I get by fine in the city because people there either just don't notice or have the grace not to make it an issue but where I work out in the Western Suburbs in customer service it's a different story. A 6ft, broad shouldered girl with large hands/forehead/feet and a questionable voice sticks out like a sore thumb and some are confused, some don't know how to treat me (they use the wrong pronouns but without malice) and some make a point of being disrespectful. I'd move if I wasn't tied to a really good job there but most of the time if the rest of my life is going well I can deal with being a pariah. Not passing isn't a dealbreaker for me - I'd never go back even though I haven't achieved what I wanted to - but it can be an unwelcome extra source of stress that on top of everything else can really get me down.

Quote from: FairyGirl on February 04, 2010, 04:12:58 AM
I went full time the same day, or actually the day before I started HRT. If I look back on that time now, and the fact I was totally self conscious about everything, I don't see how I ever got through it. Today almost a year later passing is never a problem, voice included. But like Kate my attitude at first was that it really didn't matter because I was doing this for me, not anyone else, and that got me through.

I'm not surprised. You look so lovely there. Your figure is perfect with just the right amount of curve and your hair is awesome!

i passed before i even started transition lol
i was always called she by mistake
but when i first started i was pretty damn self conscious so that prolly gave me away, i kept wondering what people thought of me so my fear showed
plus my makeup was not perfected like it is now
nowadays people are so confused when i tell them im trans, they can't wrap their heads around it
oh well lol

Quote from: Nero on February 04, 2010, 06:24:15 AM
I'm not surprised. You look so lovely there. Your figure is perfect with just the right amount of curve and your hair is awesome!

oh thank you Nero you're giving me butterflies!

I was often getting mistaken for a girl even when I thought I was being quite the guy 

No, when I transitioned I was 40 pounds heavier than I am now in muscle and well, I looked more like a drill instructor.  It took some balls.  Transitioning definitely played the largest part in my transition:D  Kinda funky wording, but there's things about living female and even walking, talking, and looking female, that no amount of speculation, day dreaming, or hormones and coaching, can ever accomplish.  Now... I'll just say that I'm more than satisfied, but I wouldn't have been where I am now if I'd waited another 6 months.  I would have turned 21 as a guy... or rather, as a newly transitioned transsexual that pretty much looked like a guy.  Wouldn't have met some of my awesomesauce friends, and would have just wasted 6 months in that it would have been another 6 months that I could have been and should have been living as a woman but wasn't.

Besides, why get FFS?  All kinds of women exist with all kinds of faces.  Staying natural is the way to go, in every aspect of your life!  I think a lot of people underestimate the power an all natural vegan diet, no sodas, beers, processed junk, and definitely NO SCALPELS.  You can spend your entire life going over what people see when they look at you, makeup and form altering clothes and blah blah blah, or you can live free:D

Always keep in mind that it's not the face you wear and the body you're in that truly defines who you are, but what you do with it in thi world.  Besides, being pretty and whatnot isn't all what it seems.  You really get to a point where you start wishing people would appreciate what's on the inside over what's on the outside, seriously.

Quote from: inoutallabout on February 04, 2010, 02:32:42 PM
No, when I transitioned I was 40 pounds heavier than I am now in muscle and well, I looked more like a drill instructor.  It took some balls.  Transitioning definitely played the largest part in my transition:D  Kinda funky wording, but there's things about living female and even walking, talking, and looking female, that no amount of speculation, day dreaming, or hormones and coaching, can ever accomplish.  Now... I'll just say that I'm more than satisfied, but I wouldn't have been where I am now if I'd waited another 6 months.  I would have turned 21 as a guy... or rather, as a newly transitioned transsexual that pretty much looked like a guy.  Wouldn't have met some of my awesomesauce friends, and would have just wasted 6 months in that it would have been another 6 months that I could have been and should have been living as a woman but wasn't.

Besides, why get FFS?  All kinds of women exist with all kinds of faces.  Staying natural is the way to go, in every aspect of your life!  I think a lot of people underestimate the power an all natural vegan diet, no sodas, beers, processed junk, and definitely NO SCALPELS.  You can spend your entire life going over what people see when they look at you, makeup and form altering clothes and blah blah blah, or you can live free:D

Always keep in mind that it's not the face you wear and the body you're in that truly defines who you are, but what you do with it in thi world.  Besides, being pretty and whatnot isn't all what it seems.  You really get to a point where you start wishing people would appreciate what's on the inside over what's on the outside, seriously.

I am pretty sure your friends would call you awesomesauce as well! Thanks for sharing your story and thoughts!

Thanks to everyone for participating! It has helped my confidence a great deal and helped me gain different perspectives on a lot of things!

I went full-time 3 months before I started HRT.  I had pretty short hair, didn't wear a wig.  Had a five o'clock shadow, so on and so forth.  Stupidest/bravest thing I've ever done, but I'm better for having done it.

Quote from: SarahFaceDoom on February 05, 2010, 03:56:58 AM
I went full-time 3 months before I started HRT.  I had pretty short hair, didn't wear a wig.  Had a five o'clock shadow, so on and so forth.  Stupidest/bravest thing I've ever done, but I'm better for having done it.

good job honey.  i went fulltime while getting laser, and putting enough makeup on to cover the stubble was a nightmare! lol

Quote from: SarahFaceDoom on February 05, 2010, 03:56:58 AM
I went full-time 3 months before I started HRT.  I had pretty short hair, didn't wear a wig.  Had a five o'clock shadow, so on and so forth.  Stupidest/bravest thing I've ever done, but I'm better for having done it.

I'm impressed. My admiration for you is sky high. Well done.

An important trend among the no people: we are happier, I haven't seen anyone say they regret going full time early, and the world did not end in any of our cases.

I left my family and friends, who thought I was going to university (I actually intended to go to university, I eventually did) got a motel, got my ears pierced and the next morning I got dressed properly, put a little make up on, plaited my hair and then traveled to the city where I would spend the next 15 years of my life.  Living the life I always wanted, I cried before I left because, I was happy at last that I was making a decision that I knew resonated deeply inside me with such conviction that I never questioned what I was doing or what I wag going to do.  I knew it was the right thing to do.

I suppose that to do what I did as I just mentioned above, I would have had to have been very passable indeed.  I never thought of passing, yes I was self conscious for a little while, but that went away very quickly because inside of 3 months of leaving my friends and family I was working full time.  However, the best advice in passing is to be yourself.

Kind Regards
From Erfurt, Thuringen, Germany
Sarah B

Be who you want to be.

I lived part-time through my teens and went "full time" when I walked out of the hospital at age 24. From age 16 onward I couldn't consistently pass as a guy - I confused the heck out of those who assumed I was a guy and those who assumed I was a girl rarely raised an eyebrow. Going "full time" simply meant not confusing people any more. I can only judge my "passability" by the reaction of others.