Autogynerphilia, narcissism, or none of the above!

[Gillian Gigs]

There have been several posts asking whether we as CD"ers are autogynerphilic, or possibly narcissistic. Maybe we are neither! I speculate that if we took a good look at ourselves while dressed we would see that we are emulating what many of us consider to be the perfect way for a woman to be dressed. The best example I can give is found in the comments in the photo threads. We like to see skirts, dresses, hose, heels, and yes abit of cleavage. Many of these pictures are of some one dressed to the "nines" and it is not very often that we see the ladys dressed that way. Just because we like to wear skirts, hose and heels ourselves doesn't mean anything more than we just like to wear skirts, hose and heels. I would be quite happy to go out dressed that way and still look like me...a guy!

[Lynn Marie]

Yes, I dress to emulate my dream girl within the bounds of propriety with respect for the venue I'm visiting and also I'm restricted by my own physical limitations. I enjoy a good presentation. Always have in boy or girl mode.

[kimdl93]

I prefer not to paint with a broad brush. I am sure that some CDrs may be expressing autogynophilia and equally sure that others may be pathologically narcissistic. However, I also suspect that such 'diagnoses' apply to a relatively small percentage of the transgender population. At the same time, I don't buy the assertion that most of us simply emulating the feminine appearance we like to see. It's a lot of work to go through in order to see an often unpersuasive and unsatisfactory imitation of the real thing, particularly if a males head is sitting unadorned atop the reflected image...and if that's truly all there is, it rather sounds like autogynophilia.

One still has to ask why one feels the need to emulate females. All Hetero males enjoy the appearance of women, but few choose to imitate their dress. Perhaps beneath such explanations there is the same underlying cause...some developmental trait that lends, to a greater or lesser extent, a desire or need to express some degree of femininity.

[Pat]

Well, sure we dress the way we think women should dress to look their best. Kinda makes sense, right? Why spend the time to dress in a way that you think makes women look awful? I don't even dress my guy self to look awful. But I'm not always dressed to the nines (though I guess these days we should say "to eleven" right?) Sometimes I'm just wearing a tank top, jeans and sneakers. That makes me just as happy as minidress and heels and is a lot less trouble. There are days I dress and don't shave or put on makeup. (Not that I'd ever go out that way.) But I always put on clothes I think look nice and I always have a quick admire as I go past the mirror. Am I autosomethingoranother or am I just a human being?

[Teresa]

Gillian,
If you saw my thread titled, " That never ending feeling !" The literal translation of loving yourself as a woman does tick my box ! As some pointed out is has a sexual connection which I admit to so it's not so much narcissistic because of the lack of sexual content in that !
Whether Blanchard was flawed or not I think he got the basic idea right, as Kim points out the numbers that fit in the box may be quite small !
When I first joined the forum I didn't expect any more labels other than CDer the fact that I fit in the box of AGP doesn't make any difference to my dressing or how I feel about it ! I do like to have answers when others ask about it rather than just say I don't know when they ask why I CD.
I will also admit that I prefer to look like my avatar and be passable rather than look like the guy !

[StephanieinSecret]

I agree with the posters above me that it's important not to ASSume everyone experiences things the same way.

Speaking for myself, I definitely see dressing as a self-centered activity. Given the harsh and filthy conditions that I work in every day, I see it as my chance to look and feel good about myself. I also do understand the autogynephelia, but it is not an inherent part of dressing for me. It comes and goes like anything else.

I don't worry about my dressing being self-centered unless it threatens to affect my relationships with other people.

[Kate Simmons]

I just like to look nice when I dress Hon.:)

[Beverley Sims]

I don't know about all the overthinking.
I just want to go out dressed nicely and look like a "girl". :)