some good news too

[Aprilrain]

So I took the paperwork required for "change of name" downtown today. It was stupidly easy. I can't believe i fretted over that! The Magistrate was really nice and just signed this and stamped that and set up a hearing date. Where i live it is required that a name change be published in a paper of general circulation. So there is this court index paper that like no one reads and they just do it automatically and send you the bill which is $30. The name change its self cost me $100. August 12 I go back for the hearing and then I guess my name will be changed. YAY!
I have my gender marker form ready to go for my therapist. She is going to sign it on monday and mark complete. What that means for me is that I will not have to ever do it again which would NOT be the case if she marked transitional. Apparently there is no law stating you must have had SRS or any kind of surgery at all here in Ohio to change your gender permanently. In fact if you don't do it this way in two years it will revert back to the original and you will NEVER be able to change it again unless you fill out another form BEFORE your license expires! YIKES! im way to dittsy for that! Once i get all that together it's off to the BMV for a new licenses, having earned my proudest F ever : ) I cant wait to get carded for something! lol.
Also I have an appointment with Dr Mcginn for a consultation October 4. its something. ssssssslllllllooooooowwwwwwllllllyyyyy moving ahead.

[Laurie Ann]

April from here on Follow the Yellow Brick Road to your ultimate destination

[Jennifer Marie P.]

That is great news April you are on your way.

[Steph.TS]

congrats, things look like that are falling into place.

[AKAMichelle]

It is a long process and it isn't easy and it shouldn't be. You want to be just difficult enough to make you earn what you are working toward so the weak and those not very serious will turn around. I am glad that you are making so progress.

[Bree-asaurus]

It's easy enough here because there is a lawyer and judge that are cool with it. Together the combination is really easy I hear, but it costs $600. My Boyfriend is going to do it soon, and hopefully me not too soon after.

[Aprilrain]

It's easy enough here because there is a lawyer and judge that are cool with it. Together the combination is really easy I hear, but it costs $600. My Boyfriend is going to do it soon, and hopefully me not too soon after.

$600!!!!!!! highway robbery!!!!!!

[Bree-asaurus]

$600!!!!!!! highway robbery!!!!!!

I know... court costs + cost of the one lawyer willing to do it (and he does it with the one judge willing to do it)...

... It IS Texas... :/

[Aprilrain]

no lawyer required here thank god!

[Bree-asaurus]

no lawyer required here thank god!

Yeah... I think here, you technically need to have SRS to change your gender, but this lawyer and judge are more accepting and they look past that.

I'm just glad I was born in California... That means brand new birth certificate... unlike Texas that only amends it. And my BF, born out of the country... so federal government doesn't really care and let's you change it easily :P

[Aprilrain]

Ohio doesn't let you change your birth certificate either so im screwed on that one : ( oh well

[gretchen2]

Congratulations April, name change is way cool.

[Jennie1975]

Hi great to hear April. I have just been taking those steps myself. Here in Seattle it cost 150$ for name change, 10$ for name and gender marker on drivers license. And I was born in calif. too, don't know the cost or details of birth cert. change. Maybe you could send me a link to any info you have about it Bree?

[Bree-asaurus]

Hi great to hear April. I have just been taking those steps myself. Here in Seattle it cost 150$ for name change, 10$ for name and gender marker on drivers license. And I was born in calif. too, don't know the cost or details of birth cert. change. Maybe you could send me a link to any info you have about it Bree?

This is what I've found so far... I haven't made any calls for further information, like what to do if I no longer live in CA or if I have to show up in court still.

http://www.courts.ca.gov/1105.htm#gendername

[boardpuppy]

Another step completed and so every lucky you are to. I love happy stories.

[Jennie1975]

Thanks Bree. Looks like I have to wait till after surgery.

[Jay Cee]

So I took the paperwork required for "change of name" downtown today. It was stupidly easy. I can't believe i fretted over that! The Magistrate was really nice and just signed this and stamped that and set up a hearing date. Where i live it is required that a name change be published in a paper of general circulation. So there is this court index paper that like no one reads and they just do it automatically and send you the bill which is $30. The name change its self cost me $100. August 12 I go back for the hearing and then I guess my name will be changed. YAY! ...

Congrats, April! It feels good to get that under way, si?

Just got my "name change certificate" in the mail the other day - now I get to fill in the paperwork for all my other stuff, once my new birth certificate arrives. Really surprised that you have to go to court for this - here we just fill in the paperwork, pay 140.00, and get it stamped by a notary public.

[Aprilrain]

Each state is different but mostly i think they are concerned your trying to defraud the government or some how get out of paying your bills LOL

[danielleb]

I'm taken aback by your wild mood swings, all the while things are moving so dramatically forward for you.:confused:

Congrats April! Sounds like it's all going in the right direction for you.:)

[Aprilrain]

I'm taken aback by your wild mood swings, all the while things are moving so dramatically forward for you.:confused:

Congrats April! Sounds like it's all going in the right direction for you.:)

yeah me too.............

[Bree-asaurus]

I'm taken aback by your wild mood swings, all the while things are moving so dramatically forward for you.:confused:

Congrats April! Sounds like it's all going in the right direction for you.:)


yeah me too.............

It happens... I've been doing much better lately, being myself far more often than not. I was even able to go a whole week without once donning the guy apparel I keep in that drawer. But still, things can happen that just bring me down. One night last week after some alone time with my bf, I got really depressed about having used my extraneous parts... I was up until 5 in the morning. I wasn't really thinking about it the following day, but then something else happened and got me down... even with things going so well, I felt like I wouldn't be able to make it. But I knew that's a negative thought, I knew it's my fears taking hold of me (aided by my dysphoria), and I am able to pull myself out of it.

Ups and downs are part of our lives, but everything will be okay. I hope you know that. Even when things seem their worst, they will get better, and you have to remember that. And a lot of the fears we have may not even come to light.

Besides... what are women without mood swings?! :D

[Aprilrain]

Besides... what are women without mood swings?! :D

Men......................................lol

[Bree-asaurus]

Men......................................lol

That was rhetorical!

[Melody Moore]

Funny thing is girls, that I know men out there can have mood swings just as wild
& crazy some women can. So what is their excuse? 'It's that time of the Month?' :heehee:

[Aprilrain]

I know I did. Its funny I guess I never thought about how emotional I really was when i was a "guy" it just tended to manifest its self in anger instead of sadness and that fight or flight response made it impossible to assess my feelings. I reacted mentally (angry) and physically (adrenaline) Now I react mentally (sad) and physically (cry). same emotions different response.

[Melody Moore]

same emotions different response.
You hit the nail right on the head April, it is different in how men & women deal
with emotions. I use to get angry but like you I too feel sad & cry now instead.

[Aprilrain]

yeah I think woman get labeled as emotional because we cry a lot more than most men and no one ever stops to think about how anger is an emotion too. Plus when I was ruled by testosterone I'd become withdrawn and quiet and didn't usually share with my male friends how i was feeling. Now I NEED to talk about my feelings or else they just get worse and my GFs ask me how I'm feeling anyway.

[Melody Moore]

Now I NEED to talk about my feelings or else they just get worse and my GFs ask me how I'm feeling anyway.
Yes, I noticed that as well April & it is interesting that women need do this a lot more & are there for their same
sex peers unlike the guys do. As a male if I had any issues & tried to talk about them to my male friends I would
expect to be told to shut up & get over them. I am not sure exactly why guys are so emotionless & insensitive like
this but I know it was one of those things that set me apart from other males all my life. I couldn't ever be so callous
& uncaring. I think this is why you also might have become quiet & withdrawn, because as males we are essentially
taught by our same sex peers to 'man up' & never have any emotions or express our emotions or deal with it ourselves.

I think this was a mentality that came about out of war & the women became more caring for each other because they
had to learn to depend on each other while their men were away in battle & of course some never returned. So it became
more ingrained in the female psyche to naturally look out for each other & help each other through the difficult times. This
is why I believe women take a more genuine interest in their same sex peers. And from what I am reading here April is that
your emotions were typically always 'female', but you struggled because you were expected to deal with them as a 'male'.

[Amber99]

So I took the paperwork required for "change of name" downtown today. It was stupidly easy. I can't believe i fretted over that! The Magistrate was really nice and just signed this and stamped that and set up a hearing date. Where i live it is required that a name change be published in a paper of general circulation. So there is this court index paper that like no one reads and they just do it automatically and send you the bill which is $30. The name change its self cost me $100. August 12 I go back for the hearing and then I guess my name will be changed. YAY!
I have my gender marker form ready to go for my therapist. She is going to sign it on monday and mark complete. What that means for me is that I will not have to ever do it again which would NOT be the case if she marked transitional. Apparently there is no law stating you must have had SRS or any kind of surgery at all here in Ohio to change your gender permanently. In fact if you don't do it this way in two years it will revert back to the original and you will NEVER be able to change it again unless you fill out another form BEFORE your license expires! YIKES! im way to dittsy for that! Once i get all that together it's off to the BMV for a new licenses, having earned my proudest F ever : ) I cant wait to get carded for something! lol.
Also I have an appointment with Dr Mcginn for a consultation October 4. its something. ssssssslllllllooooooowwwwwwllllllyyyyy moving ahead.

Wow I'm really glad that I read this since I live in Ohio also :3. Thanks for the info!

[Aprilrain]

so my therapist signed the gender marker form and now I can't remember where I need to send it uuuuuugggghhhhh! Ive been trying to find the site i printed it off of and just have no idea! SO ANNOYING! why didn't i write that down!

[danielleb]

It happens...
...Ups and downs are part of our lives, but everything will be okay. I hope you know that. Even when things seem their worst, they will get better, and you have to remember that. And a lot of the fears we have may not even come to light...

Haha, no need to tell me! And I'm not even on HRT.:eek: I've been sans guys clothes the past couple of weeks (and threw just about all of them out:) ) and I've been up and down as much as ever (though a little more up than normal, but being thrown back into the extremes of poverty with every step forward:sad:).

I just couldn't fathom how April can get so low while everything else seems to be going so well with her father and all her progress. I'm what the term "hot mess" was invented for, so I should be the one violently swinging, not April who is already so easily stepping into her female life, and has everything in place ahead of her.:D

[Avana]

Ohio doesn't let you change your birth certificate either so im screwed on that one : ( oh well

I actually have an Ohio birth cert. too. I believe you can get some kind of addendum to it, but let's hope in the future that they change the policy! (and maybe lobby for it!)

Congrats!

I just got my 'F' too! Received my license in the mail yesterday and I already changed my SS card... just waiting on passport now.

Hope your photo is better than mine, though LOL. I kind of want to get it redone.

[Aprilrain]

I just sent in the change of gender form not sure how long it takes but I assume a couple of weeks. Looking forward to getting the confirmation letter in the mail and then on the 12th I go back to court to finalize my name change once that is done I can get my new DL. I was thinking about having my hair done that day, maybe makeup too! ; )


Haha, no need to tell me! And I'm not even on HRT.:eek: I've been sans guys clothes the past couple of weeks (and threw just about all of them out:) ) and I've been up and down as much as ever (though a little more up than normal, but being thrown back into the extremes of poverty with every step forward:sad:).

I just couldn't fathom how April can get so low while everything else seems to be going so well with her father and all her progress. I'm what the term "hot mess" was invented for, so I should be the one violently swinging, not April who is already so easily stepping into her female life, and has everything in place ahead of her.:D

Girl this is a hard road and I still struggle with self acceptance. Some days I feel like I fighting a losing battle against my own body! other days its something someone says today I'm fine but yesterday was a "hold on until this day is over" kind of day and I couldn't even tell you why. I wasn't depressed or sad I didn't cry all day I felt totally emotionally flat which in some ways is less bearable than uncontrollably balling my eyes out half the day! at least then I KNOW how im feeling.

today I had a small victory in the war against facial hair. My upper lip has been cleared once but of course the hair comes back which it did and was causing me a lot of distress as the shadow seemed like a neon sign to me. Well today he was able to clear the whole thing in one hour again so I think im winning the war on facial hair its just going to take time and $$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$ $$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$ $$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$