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Being told who to be


Lane0wolfe

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In the part of Kentucky that I live in everyone is religious and I mean that to the most extreme of existent(of course it's nothing like the WBC.).

Anyway ever since I was small I related more toward boys thank I did the girl's my age. However it wasn't my parents that were the problem...No both my parents provided neutral choices and let me choose whatever I liked and for that I am

grateful. However the one thing that I can never shake is the fact that I was

Forced to go to church as a preteen.

I was around eleven when she started making me go. Sure I had went up until that point but I always had a choice. Now don't get me wrong I am religious but my

Mom's reasoning is what I don't completely understand because it was when I was around that time when I chopped my hair off for the first time.

Now in my mom's opinion a girl/woman is suppose to have long hair and she expected me to follow that code. But the thing was, I hated my hair....I could always imagine myself with something similar to a buzz cut and always said that was what I would do when I got older.

The hair style I settled for back then was more of a pixie cut than anything else because the hairdresser refused to do what I wanted(hair dresser was my cousin also so she knew my mother.)

Needless to say my mom freaked out and basically asked me why I wanted to look like a boy.

At that time I had no answer. So she assumed that I was lesbian and made me begin to wear dresses and skirts and asked the preacher to pry for me since I was going through a phase after the passing of my dad.

Everyone I knew (minus a few cousins that got forbidden from talking to me during this time) began to tell me how I was wrong for wanting to be like a guy and I started believing it; even if I still dressed in pants and kept my hair shorter than my mom would have liked.

This lasted up until I met this one girl invited me to come to her church. she's in her mid twenties now though I have no idea what age she was at that time

Though she was obviously older than me.

I'll call her "A" to respect her privacy but she was the reason I didn't turn my back on religion.

You see what made "A" different was that she was masculine and she felt the same way toward girls as I did, and the best thing was...the preacher at her church knew.

He didn't agree with any of it but he didn't judge and that was more than what I could have asked for at that age.

For that short while I didn't feel lost, I felt like I could finally be myself but it wasn't meant to be because "A"s parent's had gotten divorced and she was moving in with her dad downstate.

Again I fell into a slump because hardly anyone understood how I felt; even the guys I had use to hang out with only saw me as a girl and I hated it.

I think I had only five friends in middle school and only one knew how I felt and didn't try to change me and actually helped me through a lot of my emotional problems during that time and even if her and I are not on speaking terms at the moment I still owe her a lot just for putting up with me back then.

High school was a different story all together. I met a group of students that had a lot in common with me. One was MTF and actually on hormones, one was FTM and the other four was just crazy.

It was because of them that I started expressing my gender identity and even had my hair cut in an almost army fashion for the first time. But like always people's always saying

"You're going to get kicked out of church."

So what? It's just a building and there are churches that would accept me. Just because I am not comfortable with the gender I was assigned at birth doesn't mean my faith has lessened.

My mom still see's me as a girl...My brother is homophobic and everything else in between but most of my family knows something's up with me; especially when I tell them to call me Lane.

But I know that if I ever want to be happy I have to break away from the social norms and be my own person; even if it means losing the support and love of members of my family.

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Hi Lane,

Yeah, doesn't it suck being told who and what we're "supposed" to be? It's like they are denying that you are valid, that you exist for the wonderful person that you are. I am not at all surprised at how you feel.

I think there are some important points to be made here, such as:

1. Try to find others that you can openly talk to. Maybe it's someone at church or elsewhere. But if you know they are going to listen but say something like "pray that this all goes away" don't talk to them. Go find someone who really listens and gives you support. I agree, these people may be hard to find. But it's important.

2. Do try to find a church you can go to and feel comfortable at. Maybe there is one in another nearby city/town where you can meet new people.

3. Have you looked online to see if there is a local support group, near where you live? Maybe they can also suggest a church(s) for you. And anyway, you may find others you can talk to.

4. I think it can be helpful to talk to a therapist. But I don't know about your ability to pay or your insurance. Please think about this. Then, we can think about ways to find one.

5. Have you seen Warren's blog here at TG Guide? I suggest you read it, add your comments and thoughts, and maybe you guys can communicate via private messages. It seems to me that you have some of the same issues in common.

I really hope this helps you and am glad that you wrote your post. It's by reaching out to this wonderful community that we may all help and support each other.

Sincerely,

Emma

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Hello. My name is Dr. Oweena Scott PHD. and I am a Clinical Psychologist. I offer my services to any one transgendered who is in need of help on line FREE OF CHARGE. My e-mail address is Dr_Oweena_Scott@therapist.net. I am also trans gendered so I am familiar with the needs that you face.

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great post but hey believe in yourself also remember god loves us all short fat thin or small straight ,gay, bi, trans heavens i know he even loves me and all i am is a xd bi 24/7 so if i know that why do we need churches as ive read enough bibles to believe that god bless us allxx

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