Gender Hacks: How To FEEL Your Transition
Euphoria doesn’t require a subscription to HBO
Do you know what many trans folks hope for?
What many trans folks look forward to?
What many of us spend our lives trying to taste for just a second?
It’s called Euphoria. It’s the opposite of Dysphoria. It’s the EXPERIENCE of our gender finally feeling validated.
I’d like to offer you what I think are NINETEEN pretty cool ways that may help you feel Euphoria, but I feel it’s the final one that pulls it all together for a big transition finish…
You’ve Already Done The First Step: Question Whether You Are Trans
Here are eighteen others!
- Say the words aloud that you are thinking and feeling
- Tell yourself that concerns about possibly transitioning are often concerns about other people
- Learn the language that describes your existence
- Tell yourself that gender dysphoria can be physical, mental, emotional, social, or all of the above
- Recognize you don’t have to experience gender dysphoria to be trans or to want to transition
- Journal for twenty minutes every morning about how you are feeling about your gender exploration
- Find stories to connect with (even if just online at Queerly Trans ❤)
- Give your inner bodyguard a hug
- Open a dialogue with your childhood self
- Film yourself talking about your gender
- Film yourself encouraging the you that’s watching your videos
- Set an appointment with a friend (even just yourself) to go buy ANY piece of clothing at a thrift store
- Go shopping at a thrift store and buy the damn thing
- Express yourself differently in private and see if you feel differently. Would you feel this way in public too if you were comfortable and safe?
- Slow down long enough to notice what’s working for you (no matter how small)
- Gauge your stress levels and adjust your transition pace accordingly (a snail’s pace is still a pace)
- Employ self-care as needed
- Create a written account of this part of your journey
THE FINAL STEP
PUT SELF-AWARENESS INTO ACTION
Transitioning is not about reaching an endpoint. It is about taking steps and then continuing to take steps. It is about first having the confidence in who and what you are so that you will take that first step and then never stop.
No matter what happens, no matter what you face, no matter what obstacles trip you up —
Whoever you are —
Whatever you know yourself to be —
You could never stop BEING that thing any more than numbers could disappear. There will always be three lights, even if there are no minds in existence to count anything.
(WAIT…wtf?)
NOTE: This article was written with reference to the workbook that proved essential in my transition: You and Your Gender Identity: A Guide to Discovery by non-binary gender identity therapist Dara Hoffman-Fox (offsite to Amazon)
