If you could turn the clock back....

[heathr1]

Do you wish you had never begun dressing? I sometimes do.

[linda allen]

I would just answer "Nope", but the forum won't allow such a short post so I had to add a bunch of unecessary words. ;)

[ronda]

that is a I would if I could but can't so I won't type question myself I have no regrets in my life I am what I am that is the way I was born Hugs Ronda

[mariehart]

I would always have begun dressing. It's as much a part of me as anything else I do. In any case I mostly don't do regrets anymore. But if there's one regret though it's that I didn't take it seriously enough or dress often enough and that I tried to leave it behind while chasing a silly career choice.

If there's one good thing about getting older, it's that I can now have a more objective look at my younger self. Looking back I can now see most of my ambitions were an illusion and maybe even an attempt to hide my true self which is expressed when I dress up. Better late than never I suppose.

[Deedee Skyblue]

The only thing I would like to change is when I was born - I would sure have loved to have been able to dress, to the nines, when I was young enough to have a chance of looking really good.

Deedee

[Raychel]

Nope, There are certainly some things that I would change, if I could
turn back time. But not dressing is certainly not on he list.
I would have told my wife a lot sooner and been dressing the way I like a lot earlier in life.

[daviolin]

Heck no! It would have been so boring going to all thoughts women's stores with my mother. I used to love the fantasy of it all. Now I can live it. Daviolin

[Kate Simmons]

I doubt that I would change much unless i didn't have any commitments. Then perhaps I would seriously consider transitioning since I would be younger.:)

[Gillian Gigs]

To turn the clock back thinking leads me to two extremes. The first being that I would never have gotten into it. The second is that I would have jumped into the deep end of the pool and as a young person I would have done all I could to go out and pass to the best of my ability. Lets face it, all of the beautiful clothes are designed for the young crowd. In our youth many of us would have had that right kind of beauty for these clothes. As we all age everything turns abit frumpish, or so it seems to many of us.

[stephNE]

Throughout my life, I feel like I have thought about my choices and most always made good decisions. I really don't regret anything I have done. However, I do regret a lot of things that I didn't do. If I could turn the clock back, I would have dressed more, starting going out at an earlier age, and dressed a lot more often!

[NicoleScott]

No, it's been fun, and I'm glad I didn't miss out. Maybe I missed out on other things, who knows?
But your question (do you wish you had never begun...) makes me wonder - how many "crossdressers" never crossdressed for various reasons: religious prohibitions (real or perceived), family reactions, or internal conflict (I'm a man and can't do that even though I want to). I have no doubt that there are such men out there. How miserable could they be for not ever giving in to the desire?
Turning the clock back is another matter. Yes, I would have probably done some things differently but it's a moot point.

[Jaymees22]

I'm happy I started dressing, but think I should of started sooner. Jaymee

[CarlaWestin]

If I really could turn the clock back with the memory of the future, I would tweak everything. And, I would occasionally crossdress in drab men's clothes.

[Christina Kay]

No ,it's part of me. It's the part that has caused confusion , anger,being deceitful. But the part that has caused me to grow. To be understanding, emotional,more empathy to others. My only wish if I turned back time, would have been to be more open to my wife.

[LilSissyStevie]

Heck no! I always wanted to be part of a despised and misunderstood minority. Who could give THAT up?

[Kelly DeWinter]

No,

But I would love to set the clock back to the week I met a certain special someone, then I would hit the snooze button again and again and again and again and again .................... :daydreaming::eek::heehee::o

[Robin777]

No, I would still dress,it is a very big part of me and always has been. If I could turn the clock back on my age back to a 20 yr old in 2013 I would do things differently. I would not have stayed a closet dresser because I would have had this forum and the rest of the internet resources to build my confidence to go out. Growing up in the 60's and 70's none of this was around. Now we have this online support group.

[Tracii G]

Why on earth would you want to give up dressing?

[Cheryl Ann Owens]

Yes and No. On the yes side, this is a part of me. At 60 today I remember the joy I felt dressing when I was around 12 and it all felt right for me and still does. On the no side it has caused me a lot of pain including extreme guilt, hiding it, and ultimately a nasty divorce with humiliating consequences. I know after a lot of therapy, whispers behind my back, and counseling to find acceptance, I'll never be the same as any ordinary male or female.

Transition has always crossed my mind. I know I still could but the baggage I still carry is overwhelming and I don't think I could handle it. It's hard enough to keep my blood pressure down. I know I'll spend the rest of my life just making the best of it.

Now if I were a 12 year old today, knowing what I know today, I'd be adamant kicking and screaming all the way to get puberty blockers, get through school, and the transition with the hope of leading a normal female life without dealing with the poisonous T in my body and the ravages it takes for those who transition later.

Somehow it wasn't easy to bare my soul with this post but thanks to this community, I feel better having let my feelings out.

Cheryl

EDIT--- Yes, sometimes I wish I didn't. No, this is part of me.

[CONSUELO]

I was once in consultation with a psychiatrist for depression and we discussed my earliest memory of cross dressing. I was dressed by my sisters. He told me he thought that was abuse. I disagreed and thought his analysis wrong. I am now completely at ease with my cross dressing. What I regret is not being able to understand all of the implications of my cross dressing and sexual desires at an early age. Given the knowledge that I have today I would have done things quite differently.
I envy the new generation their access to the internet and all of the information that brings. It is huge, and for many of the more mature cross dressers on this site, it would have had a major influence if it had been available to them. Yes, I know the internet can be a double edged sword, but knowing that you are not alone would have been a wonderful benefit.

[Rachel Morley]

If you could turn the clock back.... Do you wish you had never begun dressing?
Actually, no. If I could turn the clock back I would have embraced this sooner.

[AllyCDTV]

Fortunately for me, there has been few consequences outside of spending some time and money. I am glad I was able to experience it as such. A couple of months ago, I have decided for a variety of reasons that it was time to get out of Dodge and quit dressing. I have been doing this for over 5 years now and if never starting would have made not engaging in the behavior for the rest of my life easier, then yes I do regret that I ever started.

[AllieSF]

Interesting question that has been asked before and answered in so many different ways. My answer to the direct question is, No. Now that answer is based on my experience dressing from start until now. Since I am one of those very late starters who went from zero to 60 in just a few months, I have never questioned myself as to why I am doing this. In saying questioning myself I mean that I never hesitated to embrace something that gave and still gives me so much enjoyment.

Now, starting late has these advantages; being mature and experienced in life and able to hopefully not belabor or worry over sometimes very complicated issues and scenarios, realizing that the end is one hell of a lot closer than one would like and therefore it is better to make hay while one can still breath and walk, being single and not having the SO reveal and reaction issues to deal with, having the internet, this wonderful site, changing laws and regulations giving so many more minorities, and crossdressing is one of those minorities, more legal protection and helping to further educate the general public that we are humans too, and being fortunate enough to live in a very tolerating, accepting and accommodating place.

So, for me there are some pros and cons in turning back the clock for me. The cons could be serious depending how I could manage dressing younger in life without all the positives that I mentioned above. Would I be frustrated being married and needing to share this with a wife, what about dealing with the kids, no internet, no safe zone to go out and laws to protect me when I did? Would I add to my woes if I had started this younger and then progressed past where I am today to maybe realize that I am closer to or actually am a transsexual with a need to transition with all of its own pros and cons? Would I even be able to embrace who I am at a younger age.

I obviously like the pros of starting younger a lot more. Younger looks, skin and body, less aches and pains, more energy, though my current energy level sometimes even tires out the youngsters, more time to enjoy what I so enjoy now, if transition would be in the future, more chance for the hormones to work and potentially have better results,, and so on.

All that being said and being the practical and pragmatic person that I am, I got what I got and am making the best of it.

[heatherdress]

Life is what it is. But If I could turn back the clock in regards to crossdressing: I would have dressed sooner, more frequently, enjoyed it more, not cared as much about what other people think, experimented with different looks more, pierced my ears, grew my hair, had more fun. I would have travelled to more places dressed, met more people dressed, communicated better dressed. I would have tried to live life fuller as a crossdresser.

[Alice Torn]

I wish i had not been born with a mental/emotional illness, and nervous disorder, and maybe had been born with normal maleness. My life has been a life of mental and emotional tortue issues, and crossdressing has made it even more torturous. It is a forbidden pleasure, but like any other, comes with a price, and kicker. I wish i had been born with a mentally and emotionally mature , true father, also.

[PretzelGirl]

There are things in my life I wouldn't mind changing. But you don't change the things that make you whole. I have never had a feeling like this that I am truly being me instead of conforming for everyone else. So I guess in a roundabout way, I am saying no. :heehee:

[SophieKitty]

If I could turn back the clock I would have began CDing a lot earlier in life during my Uni years!

[Tina B.]

I started dressing at around 6 years old, I'm now 69, after 66 years of dressing, or thinking about dressing, or trying to hide the fact that I'm a cross dresser, I don't have any idea what life would be like without it, would I feel whole, not sure, can't chance it, so no I don't guess I would. Not that it hasn't been a burden a lot of the time, and many times in the past I wished it would go away or never had happened in the first place. But I would never want to be the person I was when I tried to Deny what I am, I didn't like him.

[heatherdress]

Reminds me of a poem:

"I'd Pick More Daisies" (by Nadine Stair, at age 85)

If I had my life to live over,
I'd try to make more mistakes next time.
I would relax.
I would limber up.
I would be sillier than I have on this trip.
I would be crazier.
I would be less hygienic.
I would take more chances, I would take more trips.
I would climb more mountains, swim more rivers, and watch more sunsets.
I would burn more gasoline.
I would eat more ice cream and less beans.

I would have more actual troubles and fewer imaginary ones.

You see, I am one of those people who lives prophylactically and sensibly and sanely, hour after hour, day after day.

Oh, I have had my moments
And if I had it to do over again, I'd have more of them.
In fact, I'd try to have nothing else.
Just moments, one after another.
Instead of living so many years ahead each day.

I have been one of those people who never go anywhere without a thermometer, a hot water bottle, a gargle, a raincoat, and a parachute.

If I had to do it over again,
I would go places and do things.
I'd travel lighter than I have.

If I had my life to live over,
I would start barefooted earlier in the spring and stay that way later in the fall.
I would play hooky more.
I wouldn't make such good grades except by accident.
I would ride on merry-go-rounds.

I'd pick more daisies!

[Aly Cat]

I would have changed a lot of things.
I wouldnt have gotten married so young, I would have done more self exploration when I did start dressing and probably would have found myself going through lots of counseling and eventually srs (at that age I didnt even know it existed), I would have told my sister when we were kids and had her support earlier on, etc etc etc....

The problem is that hind sight is 20 20 and the only reason I would change all those things is because of what I know now. I had to go through what I have been through to know what to change all those years ago, and sadly we dont get do overs or take backs. I have a lot of things I would change if I could, but I cant so I just simply look forward and educate myself as best I can on what is in store for the future.

[Lorileah]

Nope. No way. Nu uh. Like most I wish I had jumped in sooner

[VS Fan]

There are TONS of things I would change about my life if I could go back. This is NOT one of them... as others here I would have jumped in sooner and embraced it. I think of all the times when I was "so close" to realizing this part of myself... in high school, in college... would definitely like to go back in time and leave myself a little note :)

[Tina_gm]

If I could turn back the clock and couldn't change who I am I would have dealt with my trans genderd self sooner, about 30 years sooner.

[Julie Denier]

My life certainly would be a lot simpler if I didn't feel the desire to dress as a woman. But this thing of ours being what it is, I'm not sure it's a matter of "if" you start dressing, but "when" ;)

[Frédérique]

If you could turn the clock back.... Do you wish you had never begun dressing? I sometimes do.

No, that has never crossed my mind. In my world, where happiness is MY responsibility, I’m extremely glad that I began to do that thing. I mean, look – I’m still writing about it, after all these years! If I turned the clock back, and I was faced with the same situations, I would undoubtedly crossdress again, you know, for thrills and adventure…
:battingeyelashes:

[AlexisRaeMoon]

My life certainly would be a lot simpler if I didn't feel the desire to dress as a woman. But this thing of ours being what it is, I'm not sure it's a matter of "if" you start dressing, but "when" ;)

I think this one sums up what I was thinking. If I could go back to the first day I tried on my mom's heels, I don't think I would've been able to do it any differently. If it hadn't been that day, it would've been a different one. I think another way to ask the same thing would be, "Do you wish that had never found wearing women's clothes appealing in the first place?" Because if you do, but you don't act on it, then you probably go through life feeling really, really frustrated. I don't suspect there are too many on this forum, but I'd love to hear from any guys out there who want to dress, but intentionally don't (and I don't mean those of us who take a few months or even a year or two, but seriously have given it up for many years and don't intend to go back.)

And lord, that must take an un-human amount of self-control!

[NathalieX66]

I wish I had accepted and my transgenderness early on in life.

I'm both guy and girl........now I wouldn't have it any other way.

It took me late in life how to deal with it, and to figure how to go forth.

Gender, to me, is just the spots you play on a chess board.....well yes, and not really.

I finally accepted the fact that I can't stay permanently on either side of the gender spectrum, and I am happy with that.

[NatalieGirl]

heathr, even if you feel there's something wrong with CD, there's no point in worrying about it. Dressing up doesn't harm a fly.

[MissTee]

Well, I feel that's like being born a fish and wishing you never starting swimming. I must say, too, that I didn't decide to start dressing. I was born with a string compulsion for it and am at my happiest when I follow through.

[sara.s]

I wouldn't waste "the clock going back" on not being a cd. I have many other things that I would like to change.

[LasVegasXD]

Do you wish you had never begun dressing? I sometimes do.

I know how you feel. There has been bad times when I wish that part of me wasn't a part of me. When I get over that emotional outburst, I realize it is me; just as it is you. If you and I didn't have this facet to ourselves, we would probably be a lot different people, and I don't mean that in a good way. I feel more in touch with females and more cognizant of male bs like mansplaining about female reproductive issues. Really I feel a better person for being the fun cute and sometimes sexy crossdresser that I am. Sure there have been issues but the good far outweighs the bad. Would you lop off your nose because it itched too much?

[sandra-leigh]

I was born in the early 1960's. Christine Jorgensen was known by then, but I didn't find out about her until I was old enough to bother to read the newspaper by myself. If she was a factor in our local culture at all, it would have been as a "bad example" to the religious school I attended.

I wasn't much welcomed by most of the kids at school. Actively picked on sometimes, and left out of things a lot of the time. I played with my (older) sister's friends sometimes; they weren't seeking me out, but they would tolerate me. I didn't fit in with the boys, and they let me know I didn't fit in with them... but at the same time I "knew" I wasn't a girl.

What would I have done if I could turn back the clock? Depends: do you mean my full adult mind in a child's body, or do you mean just enough to tell young me "Eventually you will figure out that you are female; the longer it takes you to accept that, the harder it will be to transition" ?

If someone had told me that before I was ... oh, 14-ish... then I would have had a very hard time believing them. They would have been just one more person unjustly attacking my identity. Probably the best time to have caught me would have been just after I first consciously experimented with wearing the clothes to find out how it feels for women to live in society back then. If you'd gotten me shortly after I thought to myself, "I can't actually be female to see what it is like for women, but I can at least try the clothes to see how they feel for women", then I might have taken it seriously. But I have doubts that I would have "come out" in school (maybe at home.)

[danielletorresani]

I love dressing up, shopping and feeling feminine....LOVE IT! However, if I had a chance to prevent my much younger self from ever putting on one of my mom's dresses, I'd totally do it. It's brought me a lot of hot times, but I think I'd be a much better and more focused person without it.

[prene]

Well life might be simpler.

But, I love dressing and my only problem is finding a accepting gg.

[Sabrina133]

Like most here, have accepted myself a lot sooner. It would have brought peace and tranquility at a much earlier age.

[Loni]

if only i could go back in time and take over my body at age seven with what i know now. 💃

give up dressing never i would have just known what and how.

.
.

[erickka]

I only wish that I could turn back time about 25-30 years and know then what I know now!

[Kandy Barr]

Let's see..... If I had never started crossdressing I would;
Only have one closet of clothes instead of two...
Only have ugly shoes and boots to wear....
Wouldn't care about my figure and weight...
Wouldn't experience life from a fem perspective.
Wouldn't get to experience this wonderful forum...
Wouldn't get to see me as her.....

Need I go on? The answer is emphatically No!!!

[Beverley Sims]

Like Kandy before me, Ienjoy life too much.
Another emphatic NO!

[Marcelle]

Like most here, have accepted myself a lot sooner. It would have brought peace and tranquility at a much earlier age.

Well said Sabrina . . . If I had accepted myself sooner and integrated my femme side with the male side earlier, some of the things I did while angry at myself (read - transference to those around me) would most likely have never happened. Not in a million years or for all the money in the world would I ever supress Isha if given the chance.

Hugs

[Jessicajane]

I don't think many of us have a choice about dressing , certainly for me its not something I choose but need....

My regrets are that I did not understand at an earlier age and as a result did not have the confidence to express myself and take advantage of youth,which as a number of other posts have said, would have helped pass ability .

but the sure thing is we all have amazing courage in retrospect I would have done this and gone here etc etc...truth is probably age and experience was needed before I was able to accept who and what I am....

[Traceyjo]

Oh no, I never ever wish I hadn't begun dressing. The added pleasure it has given to my life is immense, something that would have been terrible to have missed out on now I know how wonderful it always makes me feel. My only regret is that I didn't discover it earlier in my life not having started until my early 40's. I still enjoy and appreciate everything else about the great lifestyle I am priveliged to be experiencing but dressing and finding my feminine side is a gift that adds to it so much.

[heathr1]

I have guilty feelings though.

[laura.lapinski]

Well, I think a good part of my dressing may have been environmental. I had a father you yelled at my mother and all of us kids. I discovered the pleasure of self-stimulation at age 3 or 4 and used it as an escape and coping mechanism. I think things just developed from there, letting my mind wander and make up scenarios that were erotic and brought pleasure. When I got caught pressing my pelvic area against something (I always did it fully clothed) from time to time, I remember feeling so embarrassed and shameful. I learned to restrict it so discovery wouldn't happen. If someone saw me, they never said anything. Don't ask don't tell kind of thing.

I've been able to compartmentalize the CDing, but it did create a ton of confusion for me growing up and even into adulthood until I discovered that others did it too. I don't think its a big deal now. I'm more concerned with how my childhood affected the partners I chose in life, and in trying to just understand myself and live the happiest life that I can, being as honest with myself as I can and with those who I am intimate with. I think though understanding how we developed, we are able to fully accept and love ourselves, and can then be ready to share ourselves fully with someone else.

[Sarah Beth]

I wouldn't change the fact that I dressed, what I would change is that I would put more effort into it much sooner in my life than I did. If I knew then what I know now I would be less afraid of what it was and what it meant to me as a person. I honestly believe that having that part of me has made me a better person in this life. I think its made me more caring, more understanding and more tolerant.

[audreyinalbany]

I too wish I had made peace with it sooner; it would have been great to have had the strength to go out when I was thirty years younger and forty pounds lighter.

I used to wish that I had never begun or that I din't have the urge to cross dress, but, with time I've gown to accept it and don't find it nearly as upsetting as I once did. I wish now that I had more of an outlet for it rather than simply dressing up at home or occasionally going out shopping alone. It's be nice to have a small group of girl friends to associate with.

[Joanne108]

No I actually enjoy dressing as a woman without guilt. I think I would have crossdressed one way or another at some point in my life if I did not start when I did. I have no regrets.

[Angie G]

Never even when I was hiding it from my wife. Now she knoes and accepts it is so great to be a crossdresser.It is and always was what feels right for me.:hugs:
Angie

[Connie D50]

I think that I couldn't not dress it's in my DNA, now sometimes I wish I had a different DNA, however not sure if I want a womens DNA or a Mans DNA lololol

[suchacutie]

My only wish is that we had found Tina sooner!!! Since my wife and I can't relive our lives with Tina from an earlier age, we'll just have to live our gendered lives to the fullest from now on! :)

[JamieTG]

I don't regret being a xdresser, however I do regret feeling guilty about it for so long that it affected my self esteem. I also regret not telling my mom when I was a teenager so she could understand why I was having problems. I'm sure talking to her or even a therapist back then would have made a big difference in the way I felt about myself.

[nikki5]

Sorry that I did not have the courage to do it when I was younger. All that wasted time.

[randeegirl]

I would have accepted my feminine side much earlier. Many of my positive qualities are related to me being feminine. I am very proud of that !

[Starshine24]

If I could turn the clock back to stop myself from doing what I do, then I'd probably only be delaying it. I sort of look back at it as holding my breath. I'm gonna do it one day or another, its like a compulsion.
On the other hand if I could borrow that free time travel card, I'd use it to stab myself the day I started smoking :P But I'd just be pretty and a nonsmoker!

[Tina_gm]

I am fairly certain I have done all that I could to keep the Cding from being a part of me, yet still failed in that regard. So since it is a part of me, turning the clock back I would have dressed way earlier. My experience in the Air Force and being stationed Overseas is something I feel was very important as far as life education, so Ify I could turn the clock back I would do it after getting out of the air force and then start embracing this part of me then. By now I would have found full acceptance of who and what I am. I would like to be able to think that I would still meet my current wife, and that I would have found the peace and balance as to where she would have known early on and it would have not scared her away. No matter what, I would not have gone through all of the years of torturing myself over this aspect of me. I regret that a lot. A lot of wasted time hating myself when I shouldn't have, and going without something that brings me peace and comfort and does not hurt anyone.

[Cheryl T]

If I could turn back the clock I would just be sure to come out much, much sooner. I wish I had explored this more in my early 20's. It would have done wonders for me and eliminated years of guilt and hiding.

[Stephanie47]

Life would have been a lot less complicated if I was not a cross dresser. I've given up trying to figure out why I am what I am. So, if the question is whether or not I wish I was born without this urge/need/compulsion, I'd say "Yes." Since I accepted myself, and, no longer self loathe, self hate, etc, I no longer feel anything negative concerning cross dressing. I love dressing up when I get the desire/urge/ or whatever motivates me.

Today, I slipped into a Merona light brown sweater dress with all the proper undergarments, hosiery, and heels with the same ease as yesterday when I was en drab mowing the lawn and raking the leaves. I am what I am.

[jennloves55]

No. I have always been more confident about life when I'm dressed. There is just something about silky nylons and dresses with heels that has made me happier. I would have been a little more open about it. I've always wished I could dress all the time.

[Devin C]

I really don't think I'd change a thing. I love my life just as it is. On one day I'm a bad ass biker dude an the next a sexy sweet lady. An my wife is there for both of me. Lol why would I ever want to change that.

[Sharon B.]

There are a couple of things I would have like to change but crossdressing isn't one of them.

[Karren H]

I wish I had never wandered into my mothers closet.... and I wish I had practiced my slap shots more..... I could have had my name on a Stanley Cup by now! lol

[Maria 60]

I believe some days are better then others and that applies for everything else in my life. One day it's all good, and the next its all crap. When I have time to dress it's the best, but when opportunity doesn't come, it's the worst.

[franlee]

No, it is something I do for me and with all the years I worked and sacrificed it was one of the very few things that was "my thing." I only shared it with the ones I trusted and wanted to. Besides I would have probably had all kinds of health issues due to stress if I had chose to eliminate or omit CDing.

[Seana Summer]

I probably wouldn't change much if I could turn the clock back.

What would be cool would be to turn the clock ahead and remain the age I am now and no older!! Before the internet many of us were quite isolated and didn't know others existed. The federal (U.S.) gov is likely to pass non discrimination legislation that, from my understanding, will cover gender expression.

What will 20 years from now be like???

I am excited for the future!!

[Rudolph]

I think I'm going to have to agree with the general consensus that although not having an urge to cd would have made life simpler I wouldn't want to change who I am

[SheriM]

If I could turn the clock back, I would dress fully earlier. I soooo want to be an attractive female in a short skirt. Everybody likes a pretty girl. Oh, and it would be nice to have a more feminine face as well.

[Pandys]

I would have started dressing much sooner it would have been easier to "pass".

[wanagione]

If I could turn the clock back I would have been out along time ago. So many years wasted in fear and uncertainty.

[Sally Martin]

I just don't know how to answer this question because crossdressing has been with me all of my life. It would just be weird without my crossdressing. I am 72 now and I started when I was 10 or so. I do wish that I had had earlier access to the information that I have been able to find on the internet. Until I went to counseling in my early 60's I thought I was some kind of way out there. Now I know better and this forum has been a big part of my education.

[Pinky188]

If I could turn back the clock, I would have started dressing as a girl alot earlier!!!

[Cami.Aeris]

I could wish for dressing earlier and getting out more when I was young, but I was very confused at the time. Once I had time (and help) to mentally sort things out, they got better. :)

So no, would not change a thing! :)

[rachelcdtvcd]

If I could turn back the clock, there are things I would do differently, but I think I would only "enhance" my dressing experience. I certainly wouldn't want to abolish it. I enjoyed it too much when I was young and still get the same reaction today. Matter of fact, I'd actually dress more often!

[Lexi Moralas]

Yes and no , dressing is like a gift and a curse all at the same time.
But knowing all that I know now I wish I had done a lot more dressing and going out in public when I was younger

[Megan70]

There are many many times I've answered this question and it is usually YES I wish I had never started as, in the long run it was a curse not a blessing or 'gift' as some cd's proclaim. I was forced in to it by my father who wanted to punish me for goofing around teasing my sister and wearing her dresses. " No son of mine is gong to wear a dress, I'll get it out of you:", so for one week as an 8 yr old child I had to wear my sisters dress around the house after school. I was terribly embarrassed. So it became dormant and like many came back with an uncontrollable vengeance at 13, and i was fully dressing and going out in public, which I continue to do today 50 years later and enjoy it because I pass and am a woman among them for 3 hours out. I love the prepping the makeup and the under garments from yesteryear, girdles, garters stockings etc.

I just wish the clock and time frame of my life and the world changed together and I was dressing from 1960-75 (which I did but as a kid) in all the feminine clothes and dresses, petticoats,makeup and teased bouffant hair styles as a young man from 20-30 all through the 60's. (the Lawrence Welk look girl) Gone out in public, passed and interacted as a woman.

But that was not acceptable in those days and you literally could get arrested for wearing female clothes in public.. It would have certainly been the golden years including the introduction of the mini skirt in 67. How I wish that time shift could have been then.

But If the clock turned back I wish that incident had never happened, turned me into a Crossdresser and would be sitting here typing this now.

[Karen kc]

If I turned the clock back far enough,before the net, I"d be the only cd in the world, remember those days?

[kimf]

I would continue to dress and would have gone out in public earlier.

[CarolynO]

Oooh if I can turn the clock back,i would not have suppressed it as I did sometimes in my "better" years.I would've had more fun with it now that I dress more "comprehensively" .

I'd love to relive my teens and twenties.Had a lot of great times cd'ing when I was younger.Sorely miss/would have back members of my extended family who have passed on too.

[irishsissy]

Oh My, I would of never got married, and would of definitely spent the money to get totally trans G. The only time I,m happy is when I,m Cindy.

[heathr1]

Thank you for your lovely replies.

[mexdresser]

If able to to turn back the clock, I would have confided to a female friend earlier in life. The ability to share this part of my life at a younger age is something I've always regretted.

[lynn.crossdresser]

I now wish I started earlier, I’ve asked myself recently would I give it up if I could and the answer is simply no I wouldn’t. I started with panties when I was 18 years old, late starter compared to most I suppose, strange in a way as I had three older sisters to contend with and as far as I remember I never went near their clothes. Now I am 52 years old and have been fully dressing for eight years with an understanding wife. I wished I embraced my feminine side when I was in my twenties, if only to see how convincing I might have been back then, plus all the fun I could have had as I am having now.

[Allison Quinn]

No, i've thought it before and tried stopping. the outcomes made me severely depressed and I never wish to try again.

[Georgia Rose]

I was a very late starter. Do I regret it "NO". Should I have started earlier "MAYBE". My wife's view was that the time must have been right for something to change. I just love dressing as a woman but also love being the man I have always been.

[mykell]

i would love to turn back the clock, and having this support back then amazing!!! to do this in my youth would have been awesome, the clothes are made for the younger women but being able to feel like a girl at any time is priceless, when i slip on my heels my femme just takes over !!!

[MichelleinEugene]

The only thing I'd do differently with regard to turning back the clock is telling my wife right away. On our first date she told me she was (and still is) primarially attracted to women and was exclusively lesbian for 7 years. I came clean about my brief relationship with another man (while in boy mode even). I laid pretty much all of my kink cards on the table... besides perhaps the least kinky and most fundamentally a part of me one. It would have saved a lot of heartache. She has been amazingly supportive of me but I kept it very suppressed for a long time. So now 4 years into our relationship and a year and a half post wedding it is more awkward than it could have been.

[sometimes_miss]

I didn't feel as if I really had any choice in the matter; after all, I was told that god had made a mistake, that I was really supposed to be a girl, and that I should try to learn to be one and maybe he would fix me. And so I did, I tried to be the best little secret girl that I could be for much of my childhood and adolescence. And over the years, the idea 'stuck'. Do I wish it all never happened? Yes. I can only wonder what my life might have been like if all the bad crap I went through never happened. But we have to make the best of the hand we're dealt. I think I did that. While there are a lot of things I never accomplished, neither did I succumb to drugs, alcohol or violence. So in all, I didn't do too bad, all things considered. After 50 years, I finally have my life back on track. A little late, maybe, but I'm still working on improving myself, and always will.

[Lil Ashling]

I would have dressed as a teen and enjoyed my fem side more in public.

[JenniferLynn0370]

I've thought about this all my life. The short answer is absolutely not! My earliest memories are of thinking I was Mommy's little girl, having my own purse and long gloves, using the Avon sample lipstick, etc and that did not slow down growing up. I regret that I did not have the courage to tell my parents how badly I wanted to be a girl. Oh my gosh I wanted to be a girl, but my father would have absolutely crushed my soul for ever saying that and he was a heck of a huge, strong man. So, if I could do it all over, knowing what I know now, I would somehow find the courage to come out to my parents and I would like to think that I would be the woman on the outside today that I have been on the inside my entire life.

[Georgina]

If I could start again I would dress fully in my teenage years. I did not have the chance to do that and now I always wonder if I would have passed as a woman.

[Krististeph]

I would say no. It's part of what I am, if I had not, i'd be even more miserable than I am today. I kind of wish i had gone a different route, and had more support when i was younger. But 'tis what it 'tis, or 'twit'. Hmmm...

I given me a hell of a lot of insight, and made me able to relate to a lot of people who are 'non-traditional' not just crossdressers. Good for the humility.

I miss having a 'girlhood', and explains some of my age inappropriate tastes (prom dresses, et al), even though they are not worn in public, i still feel the inappropriateness, though still being drawn to them. Or perhaps I'm just a sissy. (As i sit here typing in a bright pink sweater with lurex threads woven in).

Guess my answer should be, I wish i had never stopped!!! :-)