I just ran across this while looking at the "MTF" #tags on Tumblr,


"I am a girl on the inside, and I hope on the outside as well someday, but I still take pride in the fact that I will be one of the few who can honestly say that I have experienced life from both the male and female perspective. It may give me some valuable insight to life and people that others may not have because they have not experienced both sides like I have. Optimistic thinking like this gives me hope that my life will get better. I try to look on the bright side of things."

This is exactly how I feel. Being trans gives me insight into our world a cis person will never know. I don't feel being born trans was a birth defect or something that needs to be fixed. I'm not mad that I was dealt this hand. It's part of who I am and I wouldn't be the same person if I had never been trans. I would be someone different.

And they are right, being positive just makes life better!

I don't feel like I have a male or female perspective.

I never lived a male life. At all. Nothing about it gave me a normal male perspective. And I didn't think of my life in the way a normal male would.

But I was also not raised a cis female. I didn't have the same experiences and the same ability to take gender congruency for granted. So I can't quite say I have a female perspective, even if I do have a female personality.

Your perspective is based a lot more on a few years in some lifestyle, I think.

I have become involved with a couple of local support groups and hope that my life experience might be of some use to younger people questioning their gender.

I don't claim to be any sort of expert, just offering an empathic ear, and offering a few observations, as well as showing that it is never too late to start.  I have a friend who works in the area of Sexual Health Education, and she encouraged me to just be there for them as  Aunty Karen, an older confidante and support.

Karen.

I won't say I've truly experienced life from a male perspective ever, but my life experience has made me aware of certain things. For example, how gender-based persecution needs to change for both men and women, rather than it being a one-way street some women think it is.