Well said Cindy.
I have no objections to others going down the HRT and all the surgeries route, that is their own individual choice. I don't like it when they get all sniffy and judgemental about people who for a variety of legitimate reasons cannot or will not go down the pills and surgery route.
I have been a member here off and on since October 2008 and I lurked since 2005, and I can say that I have never known a time here at Susan's where most of the mtf members have been so fundamentalist in their views. Of course HRT and the different types of surgeries available were always important and discussed often and at length. However, there were plenty of other threads talking about the non-pills and surgery part of being a transsexual/transgender person. There used to be plenty of good advice about clothes, make-up, jewellery, hairstyles,etc. While those threads are still been written - albeit to a noticeably lesser extent that in the past - we seem to be becoming obsessed here at Susan's about pills and surgeries.
My mother said something to me when I came out that I didn't fully appreciate the significance of at the time. I had spoken for over one hour, almost without pausing and she said to me ' I think that you have got too much time on your hands to think about all this'. At the time I thought it was a rather dismissive comment, but I have come to realise that she was right. Since I have started living as a female - within the family at least - I have discovered that I simply get on with my life. I don't think about my ->-bleeped-<- to nearly the same extent that I did before coming out. I suspect that my mother and sister's complete and utter support for my lifestyle has greatly contributed to feeling much more calm and centred than I used to. Perhaps if I lived alone, or if I lived with a partner/wife who was hot and cold about my ->-bleeped-<- I wouldn't feel as accepted as I do. I can wear an skirt or a dress in front of my mother and sister. I can wear full make-up and sit and apply my make-up in front of my mother without any sign of disapproval, or concern that her son is behaving in a very unmanly way. I even wear bras everyday at my mother suggestion. I wouldn't have had this level of psychological satisfaction had I lived alone. My mother and sister often say to me that blouse etc really suits you, or that lipstick is your colour. I have made fashion and make-up mistakes but my family doesn't say 'why are you wearing that? You're a boy for heaven's sake!' My mother will say ' I don't think that is quite you', and more often that not I agree with her. Living on your own and having too much time to think and analyse everything from every conceivable angle, and without any direct emotional support will drive you round the bend, sooner or later.
