Medical doctor's journey to be a woman

[Steffie]

Hi girls,

A friend e-mailed this article to me. It is long but definitely interesting and worth reading with accompanying videos too. Whether you are CD, TS or somewhere in between, it shows the pitfalls that TG people face and coping that must be done. Link is below.

Steffie

http://www.boston.com/news/globe/magazi ... ull_story/

[Virginia]

Hi Steffie,

Well, not so unnatural a journey that a lot of us are in the midst of, is it???

I guess for a lot of us the biggest phase of this is actually accepting, deep down, the truth of who we really are!

Then the question of "Virginia's Challenge!" You look in that full length mirror at that woman looking back at you and the two questions come to the fore front! "What is she worth to you?" and "What are you willing to do for her?"

The journey you provided to us is really not that unremarkable. It could have been an airline pilot or a fast food clerk. Those of us who are blessed with this gift face the same dilemmas, some deal with it faster than others and some take different paths in an attempt to reach the same end. Some of us make it and some don't.

Thanks for sharing this with us!!!

Love,

Virginia

[Steffie]

Then the question of "Virginia's Challenge!" You look in that full length mirror at that woman looking back at you and the two questions come to the fore front! "What is she worth to you?" and "What are you willing to do for her?"

That's very well-put Virginia. You articulated it very well.

If you're alone, the answer is much simpler but when you have a SO then there is really a second girl looking back at you in a sense. I guess I'm fortunate in that I still also like being male sometimes too. If I wanted to be a woman 24/7 then I would have a dilemma. My wife told me a long time ago that she could never stay married to someone who took hormones or who changed into a woman 24/7. My wife is very tolerant; I didn't know what I would do if I ever were in a situation similar to the MD in the article.

On thinking about this however I think that sometimes in life we can't get EVERYTHING we want; if I did want to be a woman 24/7, I still would have to consider my wife's feelings. Being able to go out on most weekends and be a woman isn't so bad though. In my humble opinion, though, to take it beyond that (i.e. showing up to work as Steffie and being a woman all the time) would be getting greedy and that would not be fair to my wife who has supported me through this transgendered journey. Luckily though I still embrace my male side too but who knows what life holds for any of us?

To use an analogy, my GG friend has a Mercedes convertible. I liked it but I can't realistically afford one. I am happy with my Toyota and it is a good car. It may not be as glamorous but I still am happy as a lot of people don't have. Same analogy with this: if you can't be a woman 24/7 but have a spouse, being one part time isn't so bad either. For some people to choose to be a TS even though they are married, it must be really deep rooted in them. I admire their courage but I can never do that (just my opinion).

It's really hard to be transgendered but what we have is still a gift I guess.

Steffie

[Virginia]

Hi Steffie,

We all seek balance and you may or may not have found yours, but whether or not you realize it, you have stood in front of that mirror, looked at Steffie and made a decision, just between you and her. Granted, your SO was perhaps influential in your decision, but none the less you have made a decision, one that hopefully works for you -- it seems to anyway, based on your "adventures" and we all love reading about them.

You are keeping the faith and hopefully you will not have to get to the hard stuff, like some of us have had to do, i.e., being forced by "outside" influences, family, friends, work, belief systems, etc, to have to make the ultimate decision as to repression, suppression, ignoring or death of that part of you!

I would say, "keep the faith," but you are doing that quite nicely, so I will say, Go forth woman, and BE!!!

Love,

Virginia

[DonnaT]

I've known Deb, the doctor, for a while. She came to DC last year, and we had dinner. A really nice person.