So like I said I'm not really sure what to say here...
I haven't had anything done or what not
But I do have a strong curiosity as to what it would be like had I been born of the opposite sex
Never really looked into what kind of things are taken to be switched though until now
And from what I've found there's a plethora of information on the subject
I guess to give you some basics though
My name is Aaron, I'm 19, and I come from a very religious family so this sort of things is very unknown to me
Though there is a very strong curiosity about it
Whether I would personally choose to change my gender I'm not entirely sure at the moment
Because there are a lot of what ifs and questions in my head about
If I eventually didn't choose too then it happens
But I'd be all for everyone who did make the decision
And to be honest after browsing about and looking around half the time I can't even tell someone had an operation
it's that convincing O.O
So yeah erm... I guess if you have any questions for me go ahead and ask?
I'm really hoping to learn something and expand my mind to things :]
As I said I come from a very religious family so I've been hidden and sheltered from a lot of things all these years.
So I have a very open mind and am willing to get opinions and listen to people who have gone through everything and find out more about it :]
As questions come to mind I'll add them in here unless there's another place to put them

Hi Aaron,
Welcome to the site. Feel free to explore and ask and question. There are rules and they are in Susan's section. A Mod will send you a link.

There is no reason to be intimidated, over awed or worried. We are normal people living normal lives. We are all around the world, I'm in Adelaide, South Australia; a fair old swim from the USA, where I presume you are.

So post away, read stuff and ask questions. There are no dumb questions BTW.

Hugs

Cindy

@Debbie
Curiosity, a want for information, and a want for someone with which to discuss this.
Because my parents and friends are very close minded and opposed to this type of lifestyle change.
My parents being religious find it the work of the devil and an abomination against their Christian god.
And my friends being very critical about this kind of topic.
Which leaves me with no one but myself with which to discuss until now.
Seeing that there is a very friendly and helpful air about this forum I decided to join to learn more and perhaps make a decision later on down the road as to whether this type of change is something that I want for me or not.
Really I need a kind ear to listen and a kind tongue to respond.
Something that I have a hard time finding at home.

@Cindy
More so than intimidation, and worries I find myself feeling more curiosity.
The possibility that one is able to change their gender and to live a life normally with their new choice is one that intrigues me.
I've thought about what it would be like to live as a lass rather than a lad since probably middle school, but never had I contemplated the possibility of that ever becoming a reality for me.
As I said in my first post it amazes me how hard it is to distinguish someone who had a change, being as I'm used to the Hollywood version of transgenders and never having any exposure to people who actually are in real life unless I have and just never noticed it.
I still am not entirely sure as to whether it's something that I would want for myself but if not I would like to have the knowledge and the confidence to help someone along that I may meet in the future who has the same questions as I do now.
I hope to learn a lot from this site and someday make a decision as to whether I feel it's right for me or not.
I have a lot to learn I can imagine, and a long way to go before I come to that decision, but I have a very open mind and the chance to have someone with which to discuss this takes an ungodly amount of pressure off that I had felt bearing down on me.

Hi and welcome from another Aussie.

At 19 you are supposed to be questioning everything, so why should your gender be any different?  We all occupy different points on the gender and sexuality spectra, and they can change with time too, so don't feel shame or guilt regarding where you decide you happen to be sitting at any given moment.

Lots of nice folk and useful info here, so post away!

Karen.

@Karen
Thank you for the kind words :]
I will definitely keep them in mind :]

@Debbie
Problems with that I have none :]
Actually prefer to be asked questions as I'm terrible at formulating them >.<

To be honest I don't really like myself as I am now
I don't feel all to attractive to anyone, I deal with severe depression issues and possibly anxiety as well.
On the gender question I don't really care for the male sex.
The mentality, the genitalia, all of it disgusts me.
It's rather primitive and very barbaric in the light that I see it as.
The homophobia(something I've found to be much more laxed in women), the need to be the stereotypical fur covered man(which is another thing, body hair disgusts me which is something I find pleasing in the female figure and actual for a long while I did shave my entire body so as to remove leg hair and chest hair and the like, and still to this day continue to shave a few choice areas), and also the hardened unforgiving attitudes for they have no soft side to them which again is something I find pleasing to me in women.
In all honesty I feel that I fit in better with women than I do men.
Though I am straight, I sometimes think that I have more of a woman's set of emotions, and a lot of the times I catch a lot of crap for it.
My dad used to be one of the main purveyor of that unwanted crap.
Though I don't communicate with my family much anymore aside from my sisters because of the way that they are.

More or less yes it is all in my mind at the moment.
When I was little though my mom used to put me into dresses and skirts she would make for my cousins to make sure they fit as we were about the same size back then, and then recently I dressed up in women's clothing all the way down to the underwear which was a pair of boyshorts(and ungodly comfortable they were) for Halloween a few years ago, and actually got a lot more looks dressed as a woman than I did as a man and fooled several people, I do think there was a guy who was about to approach me until I began talking because I had made no attempt to disguise my voice.
I do ponder it from time to time though such as when I lay in bed, or when I just simply have nothing going on.

This is something I have pondered about for a while though.
Not so much the actual change as I had never looked into it until now, but I want to say I've wondered what it would be like since middle school.
Just all the different aspects of a women are something known but unknown to me at the same time.
Because I have asked women what it's like to be one but I've never experienced it before.
The only downfalls in my mind that I can think of off the top of my head are the menstrual cycle and pregnancy but with SRS those wouldn't be a factor for me.

Edit: I did think of a question, is it possible to do all this and still look normal with Pectus excavatum(also called a sunken chest, or I call mine the dip lol)?

Hi Aaron, it's nice to meet you! I am 49 and live near Boston. This is truly a global community, you'll be meeting a wide variety of people here. Get posting, there are a lot of topics to cover! Hugs, Tracey

Hello Aaron,
I have a son with the same name spelled the same as yours.
Glad you joined.
I am a transitioning male to female and a strong believer in Jesus Christ.
Jesus gave two commandments first love the Lord God and love your neighbor as yourself.
The church I go to has a theme "Love God love people nothing else matters."
And that is the motto I live by, or am trying to live by.
It took me awhile to be at peace with what I am and what I needed to do about it.
All of this to say not all Christians are close minded.
If you would like to talk more about my journey to this point pm me.
This is a great place to learn about gender issues.
Welcome to Susan's
Jillieann

Hi and welcome to the site! I understand you are questioning things about yourself and gender in general, but some of your statements trouble me a bit.

Quote
and also the hardened unforgiving attitudes for they have no soft side to them which again is something I find pleasing to me in women.

This is a generalization and quite biased. I am a female to male transsexual, and I am very soft and emotional, I am even sometimes on the feminine side, but I am still a guy and am changing my body to reflect that. I know I will get a lot of crap from both men and women due to my soft side. A lot of people just won't ever understand.
But even so, some of the softest and most caring people I've ever known have been male, so I have the opposite experience from you. Maybe it's because of cultural differences.
I just hope that you can resolve and see the difference between your life experiences and your actual identity before you do something so life-changing as transition.
A lot of people, both male and female, are brought up to see male genetalia and men in general as disgusting and threatening, but in reality, it's just a perception that is nothing but a social construction.

In any case, good luck whatever you choose to do

@Tracey
It's nice to meet you too :]
And most definitely there are very many topics to cover lol
I just don't know which ones or where to start >.< haha

@Jillieann
Hello to you too :]
That's actually kind of neat you have a son with the same name lol
Not many people I talk to know someone with the same name as me let alone their offspring haha
I wish more Christians were like that
I know I can't say all of them are close minded but what I grew up in was a very religious and closed minded family
All of the churches that my parents took me too were very closed minded
and have brought up transgenders in their lectures, though I won't repeat their words.
So I simply know what I was raised in, though I can say that there are a few Christians I have met in the real world who follow a motto very much the same as the one that your church has :]
But the majority of the ones that I have met are all fire and brimstone and anything like this is an abomination against their god :\
I never took too it though in thus why I'm here now
I believe all are entitled to a choice and they are the ones to make it and should be accepted for whom they are rather than shunned.
Thank you for the welcome though I intend to try to learn as much as I can here about something I know so very very little about.
Also I would PM you but I currently don't have access to that :\

@Wraith
You are correct in your observation that it is a generalization and is very biased.
This comes from my own personal experiences in life and what I've grown up with.
Because I do know there are men who are more in touch with their emotional side, myself included in that, and that there are women who are very cold and hardened.
My upbringing follows something along the lines of this:
The boys play sports and get into the mud, while the girls play with dolls and dress up.
The boys are scolded and received a whoopin' if they cry, while the girls are comforted and held.
As the boys get older they are expected to more or less lose all touch with their emotion, while the girls as they get older are encouraged to be more in touch with them.
Guys who wear eyeliner and/or have long hair are gay.
Gals who do not wear dresses and skirts, and have short cut hair are lesbians.

That's a part of why I have come here is to discuss this topic with people who are willing to listen and won't shun me away for the questions that I ask and the opinions that I have. Which as I said earlier is something that is very hard to find at home.
I am used to dealing with closed minded people who can't discuss a topic that they find taboo without tweaking out on me.
Example I told my mom I wanted to dress as a chick for Halloween because I thought it would be fun, in return I get an earful and then am ignored.
This presents a very tough environment to talk about much of anything as if they don't accept it then it shall not be spoken of.
My perception of men and the male genitalia comes from my own experiences with them.
I find them very distasteful and have only gotten along with so few that the ones I could actually stand could probably be counted on one hand.
And as for the genitalia that's my own personal opinion, I have never really like it the aesthetics or the function, in my opinion I feel it gets in the way and even my own honestly repulses me. I find no joy or pleasure in having it, it is simply there.
But before I decide to do anything as permanent as a transition I do intend to poke around and find out as much information as I can about not only the process and what all it entails but also find out as much as I can about myself.

Aaron,
I see you have enough post to PM me now if you like.
Do read through the Wiki Articles for they are full of gender related information.
Jillieann

'ello, welcome

Haha it's what I do :]
Answer each one that comes up as best I can with as much information as I can because it usually results in answers sooner, and less questions later ^.^
Thank you :3