I don't normally talk to high schoolers, but the occasional gig does pop up once in a while. It was a few weeks ago, and I was late to class with the morning traffic. Fortunately, the others that arrived before me were able to give their stories in my tardiness.
It was a gender studies class dealing with the varied influences in our world's history and current issues. They seemed unfazed and quite literate in many of their questions.
Unbeknown to me at the time, there was a transgender student in class. There were small hints that she was T, but I guess I just wasn't really focused on spotting anyone.
She looked decent. Afterward, she asked about electrolysis, but she had no facial hair. From my best guess, she was on hormones, but that was about it. Her voice sounded fairly decent. In our brief conversation, though, it sounded like she was having issues with financing her transition as well as being slightly harassed at school. (I think anyone that is different in high school seems to get harassed.)
Recently, I visited a T forum that many of my previous acquaintances moved to after the fall of GP. I looked through some of the pictures...including before and after shots...and I have to say, the power of youth is just amazing. There are a lot of girls out there that just make incredible transitions in their late teens and early twenties simply by the use of hormones. Some may 'need' FFS later in life as that youthful facial fat gives way to the male boney structure, but they will hopefully have been living very fulfilling lives as women by then.
The power of youth can also be seen this coming Friday on ABC's 20/20 when Barbara Walters interviews 3 very young transitioners. As someone recently mentioned, the older transitioner will likely become more and more rare as the conditions surrounding transsexuals are understood, tolerated, and eventually treated.
5 comments:
I agree Kara and that's where we come in. In a way, we are responsible for that. By being open and proud, we are showing the world that being a transsexual is something that is good. While I certainly wish I could have transitioned at a young age, the time just wasn't right and there is nothing I can do about that.
All that being said, Kara, young 'uns like myself would never have been able to take action when we did if it wasn't for the efforts and outreach of the people who came before us. Seriously, your website was an enormous help when I was first figuring things out. So let's give a little credit where credit's due. ;)
1. The fall of gp?!? I have been out of the loop.
2. I'm 22 and I'm just not feeling it.
It's pretty amazing. I see some of the girls on the forum and I'm just in shock and there's no surgery, sometimes only a few months of hrt. I think in the future, people transitioning very early will become the norm. I've seen a 25 year old referred to as an older transitioner!
Fall of GP, people went to a lot of places. A lot of Xers seem to have disapeared. I think our forum trueselves has the most who transferred to elsewhere, but we're more x than y and I feel more like forum grandma than mom.
Kelly...I'm right there with ya.
Thanks Hayley. =) There were a few that inspired me, too.
Alice...yeah, the fall of GP. Some of it was related to the fact that many of the initial people had completed transition and started to move on with their lives...but there were also a few people that became severely annoying for the rest of the patrons to deal with. A few new forums popped up in GP's place, although GP does still exist as more of an archive now.
As for not feeling it at 22...well, sigh...everyone is different. I got about a golfball size development for my breasts...and basically no nipple development. I've seen women 10 years my elder get close to tennisball (or larger) size with nice nipple development. Some of it just comes down to genetics and metabolism...and luck of the draw on skeletal and facial structure.
K...one day 25 could be ancient for transsexuals. Hell, even 15 might be old. We might be looking at 5-10 years old, or even younger.
What happens if they are able to figure out in the womb that something is wrong and try to fix it? What if one day they are able to correct gender identity dysphoria before it even happens...or are able to get rid of gay/lesbian people by 'correcting' things in the womb? In a way, it would be nice not to have to deal with it, but yet, being T would be a whole lot easier if more people were just accepting of it...and if there was medical coverage for treating it.
...but that is probably another journal entry. =)
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