[SIZE="2"]Have you seen that TV commercial for the “Thundershirt?” It’s a special Velcro wrap-thingee that you put on your dog to either calm him (or her) down, or keep Fido from barking too much. It seems a snug wrap like this acts as a surrogate hug, and the dog feels much calmer, constantly soothed by this once-removed embrace, alleviating anxiety in a fuzzy-scientific kind of way. The TV commercial ends with the amazing sight of four dogs sitting side-by-side, wearing their Thundershirts and not making a peep...
This got me thinking – doesn’t the same thing happen when a man wears a bra? I often say, from my years of experience as a transvestite, that I feel like I’m being hugged all day when I wear (my) female underwear. It’s a curious feeling, to be sure, and I WANT to be hugged – nobody hugged me while I was growing up, so I have to do it myself as best I can. How’s that for an explanation of why a male would want to “feel” like a girl? He just needs a hug, and the clothes DO it...
Once I get my self-induced hug, I calm down, get “within” myself, and a change takes place. I am no longer masculine by design, rather I am feminine by way of containment – there is closeness, where once there was distance. There will be no “barking,” no destruction, and no uncontrollable behavior, for everything is OK – I am being hugged, and I am happy. It’s funny how this works, and, if dogs are any indication, all mammals must know the value of hugging. Perhaps this is how we evolved in the first place, by hugging our way to the TOP...
“I only want to be loved” is the mantra, whether or not you acknowledge it, and, if no one can give you a hug when you need it, you do the best you can under the circumstances. I wear a bra to feel contained, but not confined, and I become conscious of my body as a result. All of my interesting undergarments work together to hug my previously neglected body, and I cannot help but feel different, alive, and definitely detached from masculinity. It’s no wonder that male garments do not offer this embrace, for if they did there would be no need for anything else...
With all this in mind, MtF crossdressing is a meaningful experience, with useful techniques for calming the average male, but few would recognize it as such. Are we, as men, or boys, supposed to be perpetually at loggerheads with the world, barking up an imaginary tree in a perpetual display of useless aggression? Why not get a hug, via the “wrong” clothes, calm down, and sit quietly, getting in touch with all those feelings we are not supposed to know about? All it takes is a little imagination, or a little unmentionable, to make it happen. Sweet dreams, my darlings...
Do you feel HUGGED when you dress? I certainly do...
PS – Here’s a big hug for you all: [/SIZE]