How old is too old for transitioning

[Kelly Blaine]

I am not a spring chicken but would like to know from you girls when you think it is too late in life to transition. I have been thinking about this for a long time and would like to know if I have to accept the stage I am at.

[Michelle I]

I am 61, I start my transition in full in January after my youngest son wedding. If the endo doctor gives her permission, homone therapy will start December 1st. I am not sure where I will end up but I do know I need to be me.

[Faith_G]

It's not too late until they are measuring you for a coffin.

[Danni Bear]

It's not too late until they are measuring you for a coffin.

And then only if it is yours and you are in it.

Danni

[Traci Elizabeth]

When is too old to transition - this is a "joke" question right?

I am no spring chicken either but I know there was an article about a World War II Veteran who transitioned now in his 80's to include SRS! So if you are healthy, I don't think there are any age restrictions.

There is also a guy in New England who has several YouTube videos with him transitioning in his late 70's to include SRS.

[Felicity71]

I know of a gal in her 70s getting ready to have SRS. Good luck to her.

[Kelly Blaine]

Thanks,
I really would like to thank everybody for their input. I have been so indecisive on this.

[Stephanie Anne]

114 is far too old. Then again if you get to that age, you can be whoever you want and by law no one can say jack sh%^

[tanyalynn51]

A year ago I would have thought 51, but I have gone through seeing a therapist and started HRT recently, so I guess 52 is cool.

[Rianna Humble]

I have to agree with Danni and Faith, don't wait till after you die to transition,that would definitely be too late in life :heehee:

[Jorja]

We have a new girl in our support group that just turned 93. As long as your not dead, go for it.

[Melody Moore]

Im 48 next week and I consider myself to be young really compared to quite a few other
girls I know. I don't think age should ever stand in the way of living your life as your true self.

[noeleena]

Hi,

It can depend on age well for those of us who have or have had health issues in the main many of us do go through the changes & its okay.

im 63, meds 6 years s r s & b a over 3 years no health problems that wouild have stoped me , attatude , a mind set that can carry you through all the Psychological & Emotional details that will happen you have to be stroung & of a sound mind (not a nut case like me. )

meaning you have to take the flack & be able to laugh at your self & have fun along the way. make sure you have real friends that you can count on when things go wrong, other wise its a walk in the park . yea right . for a few yes,
for this kid , bloody hard yet so good,the ups & downs are a part of it as well.

...noeleena...

[Inna]

I think death is yet "another transition" we will experience so if you can fit one more anywhere in between then hallelujah!
Considering this time transition is in your hands and mind, this shall be one of the the most wonderful incidence in your life, the final transition may be out of your hands and you endup transitioned into an angel or blade of grass depending on who is the gate keeper and if there is no gate and you become "singularity" of an infinite probability of quantum flux then at least you were once this beautiful being whole and peaceful and loving and "one"!

[Karen564]

I really cant say when that cut off age is or if it even exist...because it could be right up to the time of your last breath...So I think it's a highly personal decision that only you can make.
Personally speaking, I would have to consider & ask myself, what am I going to accomplish in the end & would I really benefit from transitioning in my golden years? I think my answer to that would be no, I would not....only because if I ever lived to be 70 or 80 which I doubt I will anyways, I'd say that I made it this far without transitioning, I can live without it & die as I was known for those prior 70 -80 years, & lets see what I am in the next life & go from there....so just feed me massive quantities of Prozac in the meantime...
But then again, who really knows what I would do unless I was actually faced with this sitchuation..because the thinking & rationalization process in my brain could be quite different by then compared to now, since we do think differently as we get older.
So again, it's all personal & nobody can give you that answer except you...All I can suggest is to talk with a therapist to discuss this very question & weigh out all the pro's & con's objectively about transitioning now vs. not transitioning & with the help of anti-depressants if nesessary...

:hugs:

[MaryAnn40c]

All this info is great to hear....it never too late...perfect!

[Karen564]

Ok, Get this, shortly after I made my earlier post here, I was on my facebook & made a comment on one of my friends post who is probably one of the most beautiful girls I know of, she transitioned at a very young age..and now in her early 30's..I knew her long before facebook existed, anyway, after someone else's comment about how transitioning young sure does make a difference (regarding what the hormones can do before T does it's damage) , so I posted to the regard of wishing I transitioned 30 years ago...but better late than never...... Soon after, I get a friend request from an older woman in the UK...And I accepted, she said another late bloomer heh....lol
I replied ya, I started when I was 44 & now turning 50 this friday..yuk...lol

So she replied back, Oh, a Youngster I see...LOL
And then told me that she started her transition at 67, had SRS at 69 & she's now 72 & that she just popped her cherry ! So like Wow ....lol
Anyway, she say's that she's been loving her new life ! and I was like Awww, that's so great & wished her many more wonderful years ahead of her...

So there you go, here's another positive story of someone that transitioned at an older age that is now happy..

[Louise C]

And then told me that she started her transition at 67, had SRS at 69 & she's now 72 & that she just popped her cherry !.
:eek::eek::eek::D

[Hope]

The day after tomorrow - so you had better get started now.

You are never too old to transition, but you are never so young that you have time to waste living in misery.

[Donna June]

Even though Kelly started this post, it's been an encouragement to me. Transitioning is something I've been thinking about and here I was at 52 saying to myself "it's just too late in life" Guess I'm wrong.

[Teri Jean]

I'm 61 pushing hard on 62 and GRS in May of 2011. It is too late when the box is fitted and the hole dug. But that is my opinion.

[Jeanna]

So there you go, here's another positive story of someone that transitioned at an older age that is now happy..

Very nice to hear a positive story for sure. I'm happy the "cherry" got popped too.

[Katesback]

I shall refrain from offering an opinion about how old is too old. What I will say is that from the time that I spent working with many trans people I found a fairly common situation. I really do not know what the cutoff age is but I would guess somewhere in the late 40s. What I noticed is that the people in the under late 40s age group that go through transition often had a notably more positive experience from assimilation to presentation to socital integration. The people over the late 40s teneded to have a FAR more difficult time and many never really seemed to escape being that Trans girl or even worse acting like a boy with a vagina. There are tons of reasons for this but needless to say thats my observations from working with a LOT of trans people. I must say there are exceptions but few.

KAtie

[Melody Moore]

I shall refrain from offering an opinion about how old is too old. What I will say is that from the time that I spent working with many trans people I found a fairly common situation. I really do not know what the cutoff age is but I would guess somewhere in the late 40s. What I noticed is that the people in the under late 40s age group that go through transition often had a notably more positive experience from assimilation to presentation to socital integration. The people over the late 40s teneded to have a FAR more difficult time and many never really seemed to escape being that Trans girl or even worse acting like a boy with a vagina. There are tons of reasons for this but needless to say thats my observations from working with a LOT of trans people. I must say there are exceptions but few.

KAtie
What are you talking about? You might as well say it, you think someone like me is too old. But take it from someone who is part of that demographic... I'm having very little trouble with my transition and I am sure that many others around my age will feel the same as I do. Don't forget that old cliché 'Life begins at 40' and I tend to agree with that statement as well because prior to this I wasn't anywhere near courageous enough to deal with what I'm going through now.

I tell you what, I'm seeing my psychologist in about an hour, and I will put this question to her and let you know later what she has to say.

[Katesback]

Assumptions assumptions my dear. You are now assuming that my opinion is something based on some mystical power you have. I do have an opinion however I did not present it. I only presented my vast experience working with trans people. I cannot tell you how many post op girls I have met that live most of thier lives as men, or the countless older trans women that NEVER really assimilate into society and make friends with just trans people. I found that surgery has little bearing on wether someone integrates and what seems more often than not the case is thier age.
You overlooked the statment about exceptions I am guessing. Perhaps you are an exception I do not know.

Katie

P.S. If you still disagree with me then that is fine.

[MJ]

yor never too old all the best

she just popped her cherry i love the USA i still don't now what first second third base is about, and now this cherry

[Danni Bear]

Katesback,

Katie, yes the younger you transition the easier it is to fit in and assimilate as a woman. The older you are the harder it is to change a lifetime of behavior. Does that happen, yes to all to a greater or lesser extent. It is not all about how you appear to others and what you show to the world at large. To most of us that are older transition is about what is inside us and our own bodies. This is a battle that we have fought for too many years. To continue living as a male causes more turmoil in our lives than we ever face after transition. To be at peace within your own soul is priceless. Transition gives us that peace and harmony.

Danni

[Danni Bear]

yor never too old all the best

she just popped her cherry i love the USA i still don't now what first second third base is about, and now this cherry


MJ,

You either need to be a child of the fifties in the US or a GG to get first,second,third base or popping a cherry. LOL

hugs
Danni

[Hope]

Assumptions assumptions my dear. You are now assuming that my opinion is something based on some mystical power you have. I do have an opinion however I did not present it. I only presented my vast experience working with trans people. I cannot tell you how many post op girls I have met that live most of thier lives as men, or the countless older trans women that NEVER really assimilate into society and make friends with just trans people. I found that surgery has little bearing on wether someone integrates and what seems more often than not the case is thier age.
You overlooked the statment about exceptions I am guessing. Perhaps you are an exception I do not know.

I don't know Kate, I think you were pretty clear. You strait up said that you think that the magical "cutoff age" is "somewhere in the late 40s" and then went on to reiterate your qualifications for saying this as "my observations from working with a LOT of trans people." That is obviously your opinion. And that is fine. I think you are horribly misguided, but you should at least have the courage of your convictions and fess up to it. When someone disagrees with you - own what you say.

Personally what I found distasteful was the crack about "a boy with a vagina" and those of us who choose to socialize with "just trans people" leaving little to the imagination as to how you think of the other members of this community. I am sure you will make excuses for these little barbs, but you drop these sorts of little poison comments in here a lot - and no one here needs to hear that sort of crap - not from someone who is supposedly one of our supporters. We hear enough of that sort of garbage from idiot pastors and family members and legislators and our own egos already.

The truth is that it is never too late to transition - it is never too late to get on with living whatever life you have left to the fullest - it is never too late to find joy. And it is not for ANYONE other than the person doing the transitioning to decide when they are done, or what they are supposed to be at any point in the process. If a 22 year old girl wants to spend the rest of her life living as a "boy with a vagina" that is her bloody business. If a 60 year old retired mill worker wants to spend the rest of her life surrounded by nothing but other trans folk, that too is her business - and no one needs you, or anyone else, looking down your nose at them because that isn't how YOU choose to live your life.

[Rianna Humble]

I have been so indecisive on this.

You know? I used to be like that, but now I'm not so sure! :heehee:

[renee k]

I turned 61 in October, and just started down the road to transition.

Renee

[Danelle Tino]

I turned 61 in October, and just started down the road to transition.

ReneeI will be turning 64 soon & will begin to enjoy being who I always wanted to be until it's no longer fun which hopefully will be until I'm at least 94...

[Danelle Tino]

And you look wonderful...

[Melody Moore]

I don't know Kate, I think you were pretty clear. You strait up said that you think that the magical "cutoff age" is "somewhere in the late 40s" and then went on to reiterate your qualifications for saying this as "my observations from working with a LOT of trans people." That is obviously your opinion. And that is fine. I think you are horribly misguided, but you should at least have the courage of your convictions and fess up to it. When someone disagrees with you - own what you say.

Personally what I found distasteful was the crack about "a boy with a vagina" and those of us who choose to socialize with "just trans people" leaving little to the imagination as to how you think of the other members of this community. I am sure you will make excuses for these little barbs, but you drop these sorts of little poison comments in here a lot - and no one here needs to hear that sort of crap - not from someone who is supposedly one of our supporters. We hear enough of that sort of garbage from idiot pastors and family members and legislators and our own egos already.

The truth is that it is never too late to transition - it is never too late to get on with living whatever life you have left to the fullest - it is never too late to find joy. And it is not for ANYONE other than the person doing the transitioning to decide when they are done, or what they are supposed to be at any point in the process. If a 22 year old girl wants to spend the rest of her life living as a "boy with a vagina" that is her bloody business. If a 60 year old retired mill worker wants to spend the rest of her life surrounded by nothing but other trans folk, that too is her business - and no one needs you, or anyone else, looking down your nose at them because that isn't how YOU choose to live your life.

Hi Hope...

that really needed to be said and if I wasn't in hospital & feeling a lot better than I am right now I would have said it myself.... just
another prime example of how some of the worst bigots we have t deal with are members of our own community. So thanks for that.

Hugs :hugs: Melody

[Katesback]

Bigot is not something I have been called before but then there is always a first. As you wish my dear. As you wish.

Truthfully I kind of sit here smileing because the whole thing reminds me of the recurring post that seems to pop up. The topic is why so many girls come for a while and then disappear to be never herd from again leaving the community to often accuse them of being tradors and such.

What the community often overlooks is that they really are women and being a woman does not imply that one should or has to identify as anything other than that, on the contrary for thier own personal growth it is fair to say they are FAR better off spending thier time in the real world instead of the trans world. Another reason these people you never hear from avoid the community all too often is that they realized that they could not help people whos glass is already full. Another reason they dont come around is that when they actually have provided REALISTIC perspectives from thier COMPLETE transition they are often accused of being something negative such as a bigot.

I might also point out that I presented my observations from working with countless trans people. If you get all worked up about something I said on a web page then how on earth could you ever possibly face the big bad world?

Katie

[Danni Bear]

Bigot is not something I have been called before but then there is always a first. As you wish my dear. As you wish.

Truthfully I kind of sit here smileing because the whole thing reminds me of the recurring post that seems to pop up. The topic is why so many girls come for a while and then disappear to be never herd from again leaving the community to often accuse them of being tradors and such.

What the community often overlooks is that they really are women and being a woman does not imply that one should or has to identify as anything other than that, on the contrary for thier own personal growth it is fair to say they are FAR better off spending thier time in the real world instead of the trans world. Another reason these people you never hear from avoid the community all too often is that they realized that they could not help people whos glass is already full. Another reason they dont come around is that when they actually have provided REALISTIC perspectives from thier COMPLETE transition they are often accused of being something negative such as a bigot.

I might also point out that I presented my observations from working with countless trans people. If you get all worked up about something I said on a web page then how on earth could you ever possibly face the big bad world?

Katie

Katie,

A bigot you are not. sometimes you do make insensitive remarks as do we all. Forums such as this and others do a service to many in providing different views on many different subjects. yours are as valuable as anyones elses.

Danni

[Melody Moore]

I might also point out that I presented my observations from working with countless trans people.
Well Kate, as I promised I told you I was going to see my pyschologist the other day who has worked with lots of trans-people in a professional capacity as a clinical therapist and I asked her if there was any such thing as a cut-off age. The first thing she did was hand me a copy of the Harry Benjamin Standards Of Care for Gender Identity Disorders which I was allowed to keep for myself & I have it here with me in hospital - since then I have read through the entire document & found no mention whatsoever of a cutoff age for transitioning. However here is what my pyschologist actually told me,

There is no cut-off age when it comes to actual transitioning, the only limitations she was aware of is that oestrogen patches should be considered for males over 40 years of age or those with clotting abnormalities or a history of venous thrombosis. Some surgeons wont perform SRS on people over a certain age due to medical complications.

Age was not a factor when it comes to the actual transitioning & there was nothing to support a belief that older people will have a harder time than someone who is younger. My pyschologist also said that older people have actually have an easier time than younger people who are still trying to find themselves because the older people have more confidence, where the younger people have a harder time due to fears & reservations (IE: What will my friends think?) How well you pass as a female does not have any bearing on how well you will cope with transitioning, its how you deal with any sort of difficult situation that arises that is more of the important issue.

I have noticed a similar trend seems to go on with members of this forum. It also appears to me that there is a much higher number of older people here from what I can see who are transitioning than younger people. The younger people seem to have more fears & reservations, whereas the older people have struggled longer and finally got over those fears & reservations. Also you can see how many older people have actually posted in this thread and noone else has drawn a cut-off age to transitioning but you!

Kate, you are entitled to your opinion, but personally I don't trust or value your opinion at all - I do
however trust the opinion of my clinical pyschologist and from the collective opinions on this forum.

[Katesback]

Ummm back to the glass is always full. Please re-read my original post. I NEVER ever said there was a cutoff age for transition. What I said is there is an age somewhere in the late 40s that APPEARS to be the point where you can notice the difference between the success level of someone transitioning.

Your therapist is being paid money and of COurse is going to taylor her answer to appeal to you and keep you comming back. There is a small group of professionals that do quite well making money off trans people. No dount they do well considering that trans people themselves perpetuate so much inaccurate information within the community. For example I challenge you to go from front to back of the Standards of Care and find where it says that a TS girl HAS to follow them let alone go to a therapist (I know I did not). It is absolutely appaling to consider how many trans people feel that being TS implies that you MUST see a tharpist. Another wonderful concept, the absolute need to go to a ENDO. Once again I encourage you to comb through the medical literature on this and you will find that for most people any doctor will do just fine for TG issues. As a matter of fact all the information a doctor needs is available on the internet published by DOCTORS that are TS experts. One could simply print off the guidelines and go to any doctor and get care. Of course I have NEVER seen anyone put this information in print on a Trans website but myself.

A wise old post op trans girl once told me "the problem with so many of the people that are in the trans community is they need thier butts kicked". I remember her words vividly. Not that I condone violence but I do understand her meaning. I am not the type to hold hands and pretend it will be all right. On the contrary I have been well known to chew peoples butts out for wasting away in la la land.


Before you give me crap you might realize that I have helped trans people because I like so many girls that have ACTUALLY made it have tought the professionals that the standards of care are not cut in stone and that someone does not nessessarily need to go to a therapist or an endo or all the other crazy ideas that circulate within the trans community.

Finally a little update. A few months ago due to budget cuts and my desire to move on I no longer work for trans people. I did my bid for king and country and now I am living my life as the girl. Occasionally I might stop by to say something like I did for this post but not very often. As I said I did my service to the community and now it is MY time. Does that make me a trator? NOPE on the contrary I did more than most girls to help but the real world as a REAL girl is my game these days.

[Kelly DeWinter]

....... Kate, you are entitled to your opinion, but personally I don't trust or value your opinion at all - I do
however trust the opinion of my clinical pyschologist and from the collective opinions on this forum.

Wow, Again you stomp on peoples opinion pretty strong. How about lighting up when it comes to disagreeing with someone ? One of the purposes of asking a question in a thread is to solicit opinions. By stomping on people, you kill discussion, which does'nt help the original poster.


I can think of many reasons when you MAY be too old to transition:
(this is only an opinion)
. If you are suffering from Alzhimers or any other issue that affects your cognation functions.
. If you have any medical condition that precludes having surgery.
. If you have any Mental issues, that would be made worse by transitioning.
. If you are taking any meds, that cause problems with the meds taken for transition
. If you are financialy unable to handle the costs associated with transitioning (ie, you need your money to live on).
. If spiritualy your lifelong values will cause you severe distress if you transition.

Last but not least trasitioning after your funeral is not advisable.

[Cindi Johnson]

Maybe some of us are being a bit harsh towards Kate. Seems to me, as we age our opportunities and options decrease, whether we care to admit it or not. The many doors open to me at age 19 are mostly closed to me now, at age 59. Sure, I'd like to think that's not the case; I'd like to believe I could still become a theoretical mathamatition, a published poet, or a beautiful and seductive woman. But it is too late.

I believe I do look better than most 59 year old women. I'm 5'9", 127 pounds, and have clear, smooth skin (thank you, lasers, electrologists, and hormones!). I'm happy when I'm out in the world as a woman; I am at peace only when so. But still, I'm 59 years old. GG's of that age get little respect; do I think I deserve better? Were I to fully transition, would that make me the girl of my fantasies?

No, for many of us (not all!), Kate is right. It's too late to be a woman men desire and women admire. GG's know well that after their mid-40's it's basically over for them; hopefully they've experienced and enjoyed the female pleasures fully by that age.

I'm not saying I cannot transition now. I'm only saying it is most likely too late to fully enjoy the fundamental joys of womanhood. Why kid myself?

more Prufrock than pretty,
Cindi

[Rianna Humble]

I shall refrain from offering an opinion about how old is too old.

It would certainly have been better if you had done what you say here


What I will say is that from the time that I spent working with many trans people I found a fairly common situation. I really do not know what the cutoff age is but I would guess somewhere in the late 40s.

So you are not going to offer an opinion, you don't know the cutoff age but in your experience it is somewhere in the late 40s - notice any inconsistencies in your statements so far?


The people over the late 40s teneded to have a FAR more difficult time and many never really seemed to escape being that Trans girl or even worse acting like a boy with a vagina. There are tons of reasons for this but needless to say thats my observations from working with a LOT of trans people.

These are not observations as you claim, but judgements on the person's post transition life. Guess what, judgements are opinions - something you said you were not going to offer.



I do have an opinion however I did not present it.

You are right that you do have an opinion, but wrong that you did not present it. You offered the opinion that there is a cutoff "somewhere in the late 40s" and continued with a criticism of the lifestyle of people you have come across who transitioned after that age who did not act the way that they should in your opinion.


I only presented my vast experience working with trans people. I cannot tell you how many post op girls I have met that live most of thier lives as men, or the countless older trans women that NEVER really assimilate into society and make friends with just trans people.

Your experience tells you that numerous older people like to associate with others who can understand what they have been through. Your opinion says that this is a negative outcome.



Bigot is not something I have been called before but then there is always a first.

Those who said you are a bigot may well be wrong, those who say you presented bigoted opinions are right. Fortunately the latter is not proof positive of the former.


Truthfully I kind of sit here smileing because the whole thing reminds me of the recurring post that seems to pop up. The topic is why so many girls come for a while and then disappear to be never herd from again leaving the community to often accuse them of being tradors and such.

In my not so humble opinion you are introducing this irrelevancy here to try to divert attention away from those opinions you said you were not going to express but then whent on to present as if they were fact.


Another reason they dont come around is that when they actually have provided REALISTIC perspectives from thier COMPLETE transition they are often accused of being something negative such as a bigot.

I might also point out that I presented my observations from working with countless trans people. If you get all worked up about something I said on a web page then how on earth could you ever possibly face the big bad world?


I agree that accusing you of being a bigot for presenting intolerant opinions disguised as "facts" probably was hurtful to you.
That does not justify your attacks on anyone who disagrees with you.

[katrinakat]

I'd start tomorrow if i had the money!!!!!!!!!!!

[Veronica_Jean]

Being 55 and recently having gone full time, I do not feel there is an age limit at all.

I do believe that success can be measured very differently by each of us, and what one calls failure another will call success.

Since transition is a very personal issue, I do not feel that any of us has the right to define for anyone else the proper measure of a complete transition. that is up to us to decide and the rest can go pound sand. Should I choose to not have surgery, and I a perfectly happy, that is success to me and it would be. If I choose to not be with a man, if I choose to grow a beard, if I choose to stand on my head for the rest of my life and walk on my hands, that that too could be success.

The standards of care exists to help medical professionals, not to define us into little boxes where if we don't fit then we are not ....(enter term here).

There are many ways to achieve the physical changes we choose and there are many ways to achieve complete transition, and many definitions of those terms as well.

I for one refuse to accept terms that are defined by others for the purpose of establishing a false measure of success or failure that serves no useful purpose. If I am a happy person living without the angst that being trans brings along with it, then I don't care what others think and I don't care if my definition of transition does not match anyone else. It is for me to decide, not any of you.

Doctors provide advise, medications, and undertake treatment based on their belief of the risks involved (if they are ethical), and those are the factors that dictate what can be done, when, and to what degree of satisfaction. This is not the man focus of transition, and neither is having a boy/girlfriend, lover, children, being read, or any number of things that focus on something other than the feeling of being a whole person that is the most important part.

So age is a factor, but it does not determine the success of transition.

Veronica

[noeleena]

Hi.

What works for one may not work for another. each of us are individuls where we live how wev been brought up all sorts of factors .
im a baby boomer. aug 1947 , & only been liveing my life fully for 13 years , learning ,growing seeing who i am ,

Its not just about s r s .b a or f f s or other details like that its about finding your self & accepteing who you are .

Do we all have the same trip go on the same road, no of cause not & what has happened for me will be very different from others.

Age has been a magor factor for me , at 50 i started to know who i was in regard as to how i would spend the rest of my life before i would not have been ready nore would details have been in place, people would not have been ready every detail was taken care of , & i was being prepared .

Of cause there were down sides like the rose & the barbs , yet the perfume has over come most of those details .
I have intergrated in to our community, im accepted , involved with so many people .

I did not force who i am ,push my way in or demand my , ((so called rights )). no. i have been given a privalage to be with those people & have been exccepted .

After all said & done i should not have been accepted because of how i look regardless of what some people say , I have allways struggled with that & thats over 53 years . plus a lot of other details age should have been a barrier yet that & those other details were sweep aside.

When we put those barriers in place we get no where.

Each of us has a life so lets live as we should,

...noeleena...

[Sejd]

It sounds to me like there is more behind your simple question. Like, what's at stake for me. etc. Is it just a question of age, then I agree with what's been said so far. If it is a question about what implications are envolved with your move? that's entirely another question right? There are a lot of factors playing into a transition decicion, not just age. Maybe age is the least of your problems. I agree with my sisters here on their answers, but I think your question is soo simplified. After all such a step is not compartmenalized to the question of just age. Good luck.

[metalguy639]

Just my two cents here...i saw today that the oldest MTF to go through transition started at 76 years of age. Here's the link...http://www.thetransgendercenter.com/transgenderstories.html :) you are NEVER TOO old!

[Kaitlyn Michele]

transition means different things to different people...just like passing

I am learning in the only way possible (by doing it) how difficult it is for me to feel womanly every day ..but i would never define it as a failure to transition, perhaps others would.

One unkind truth is that some girls have the opportunity to transition in a way that allows them to fully assimilate into the community as a woman...others (most?)don't ...and those two groups have different issues and their best interests are not particularly aligned.

if you are narrowly defining transition as being accepted in the community as a woman(as opposed to a transwoman) it gets tougher and tougher as you grow up... i think its an important mental health sanity check for older women here to realize that being "just one of the girls" is often a fantasy, and it's totally ok to accept that you are just gonna be "the trans girl" in the room...you can argue all you want about whether woman and transwoman are two different things, but in reality, if you are perceived as trans, your life is different ..its just the way it is.

i would argue that transition is best defined as changing your role to improve your quality of life...regardless of the specific changes you make...HRT, surgery, coming out at work are all choices that are made as part of the transition...your best chance is to be realistic about your goals and what is really necessary to achieve those goals..(which is what i saw in the OP when she asked how old is too old...).. to really get a good answer to the OP's question, you need to know the OP's goals around transition...

the hard part is that especially for us older folks, we often spend all our lives denying a fundamental truth, we damage ourselves in all kinds of ways and when the shit hits the fan, our ability to think straight and make good decisions has been steamrolled by our desperation and survival instinct

[Empress Lainie]

When I discovered at age 72 that I truly was a woman in a male body, I never lived another day as a male. I have never been happier. Sure it cost me my job of 20 years and my income due to LDS hatred, and I lost my lover of 10 years, but I would still do it. The only difference between me and a post op is I haven't had surgery. I live in stealth so except for those who knew me before and the very few I reveal to, I am accepted as a gg.

I also heard (read actually) that a 76yr old had surgery in Thailand. I can never afford it,and since I am also diabetic and now nearly 76 I may remain a pre-op till I die, but that makes me in no way any less the woman that I am.

Believe me, in spite of any of the problems such as I experienced I still say its worth it and I would do it again even if I knew about those things in advance.

[erika130]

I've been thinking heavily about my feelings & options on this (transitioning) so it's very comforting to read all the answers in here!

I guess 23ish isn't so bad? The thought that scares me is the longer I wait without knowing or deciding the less pleasing the results would be?..

[Rianna Humble]

The thought that scares me is the longer I wait without knowing or deciding the less pleasing the results would be?..

It is undoubtedly true that transitioning at your current age would provide more aesthetically pleasing results than transitioning at mine, but for me the bigger reason not to wait too long is the waste of time living in torment when you could live your life to the full.

I wish I had had the courage at 23 (or better still younger than that) to admit who I am and to follow my heart.

At my age, I may not turn into the next international supermodel, but the changes in my life are definitely pleasing me (except when I give in to doubts).

[tommietv]

personaly your never to old I'm 63 and just starting, just wish there were fewer wrinkles!

[Empress Lainie]

There is always the movie stars facelift tape!

[Inna]

I am coming back to this thread, it is amusing and amazing what time does to ones viewpoint. Is it too late for anything, NO, NO, NO! You can try stupid, I did, and feels the same now as it has then. Jump from a moving train, except preferably at much lower speeds then back when. In fact it isn't the question of weather it is too late but rather what expectations are there to begin with. Understanding of transition is the most crucial ingredient of happiness at the end of the tunnel...............if there is end of the tunnel! What I have stepped into while skipping happily towards the light was reality of barriers I have put in front of me. Idealized expectations within genetic grasp of a teenager aren't exactly graspable by middle aged testosterone riddled, wrinkled, oak boned, bloke. Somewhere in the middle of this trip I got smacked right in the middle of my dude face and stopped dead in my tracks. Slowly from then, my expectations were downgrading and morphing into pure want of femininity but without the extra load of fab luggage. Now, I just want to be me................and even though I have said that in the past, I didn't really mean it this way. Now I do! SO, is it ever to late to be you, hell no, go for it before the lights dim! But make sure of what you are looking for.

[Jessinthesprings]

no such thing.... each age has its advantages and disadvantages. I think 10 or younger is best physically but are we mentally ready for trasition at ten? In that reguard at 50 hormones won't have the effect on you that you would like not mention years of T influence on the body but you are mentally and emotionally mature to make an educated decision and deal with the consequences.