Mr Jeckyll and Mrs Hyde

[Emily Anderson]

Are there really two "sides" to a crossdresser?

I can fully understand that CD's have a hard time reconciling why we crossdress, and are often confused about their masculinity and/or femininity.

Note: please DON'T ask me to define the terms masculinity and femininity!

However, where I fall short is understanding the concept of having two distinct sides (male and female). What do people mean by sides?

Help!

[Karren H]

Beats me.... I'm me no matter what I wear....

[Tina Dixon]

I'm all ways pounding on the inside of his head to let me out :bonk:

[Angie G]

Some think they are 2 different people. Him and her. I'm just one me A girl with boy parts. Thank God I can cover them with girl clothes.:hugs:
Angie

[AnnMorgan]

I think of it as having halves. One Mas. the other Fem.
but the same person. They can be blended to some extent but for me they are very different.
The Mas. half wants to be GIB, then roll over and go to sleep but the Fem. half will cuddle and talk and why? Because we all know it's what we would want if the roles were reversed.

When out shopping with my SO, I get the "here hold my purse" routine. My Mas. half tucks it under my arm and hopes no one notices but my Fem half thinks"No, this purse and these shoes were never meant to go together." Then while I'm still in the Ladies Dept I'll look around and end up in the Shoe Dept. And how I love heels!

[Amy Hepker]

The world I have to be a guy and the world where I can be my true self Female. My Female side is moving into my Male side of things as I am wearing Female things almost all the time now.

[Deborah Jane]

By day he is Jack the Lad, leather jacketed road rebel!!

But when the evening comes.......

He becomes Super Tart a girl in a miniskirt!!

Disclaimer.....
Any relationship between this and any character living or dead is purely intentional :p

[Nikki A.]

To me it means repressing the part of you that society may not accept. However once you are in the right situation you can let that part of your personna out. We may hide it but it is a part of who we are.

[christid66]

I'm all ways pounding on the inside of his head to let me out :bonk:

Tina's nailed it for me :heehee:

[TGMarla]

There are not two "sides" to me, either. Only two outward manifestations of me, one that looks like an everyday guy, and one that wears dresses and frilly things a lot. But inwards, I stay pretty much the same.

[Nadia-Maria]

Hi Emily,

For me, it's a bit like artistic expression.
As a girl, I may and need express my feminity.
And my feminity is me too.

Kisses

Nadia

[CD Susan]

Emily, I do not have any difficulty at all in understanding the 'two sides' of being a cd. All of us are the same in the regard that we have both masculine and feminine traits about us. The fact that some chose to use the term 'sides' is a thier way of expressing the two parts of thier personality. I understand the two sides of me completely and am comfortable with it. I only wish that the feminine side of me could be expressed more often.

[StephanieF]

Hi Emily,


The way I've looked at the whole thing is...

- gender is not necessarily conditional to sex (duh .. I know)

- gender is not a matter of sides. It's more like a spectrum. Everyone has both genders just as everyone has testosterone & estrogen to some degree and to put it very simplistically, most of us are born at one end of the spectrum or the other. If for a variety of reasons we are closer to the center of the spectrum we feel a need to express our other gender, whether to the point of surgery or just a need to feel pretty and feminine.

- due to the society we live in, the easiest way for men to accomplish this, is through dress, and imitation.

That's my understanding and:2c:

[Byllie]

Probably a better way to say it is we each have two aspects to our personality, feminine and masculine.

[Kate Simmons]

It's not "sides" as much as it is the distinct feelings and energies. By societal programming, most of us think they are separate. They are not. We just have to re-learn what occurs naturally and let go of the inhibitions.:)

[darla_g]

I think this is too complex an issue to summarize so succinctly. Reasons and motivations are so varied.

[DanaR]

I'm me not matter what I wear as well.

[Ravin_nightshade]

I dont think there are two people in here just one some times i think fo my self as two mainly to keep my self in check so that joe doesnt do somethink ravin would do. Its more or less a selfdefence mechanizm.

I know my spelling sucks like hell!!!!!
well love ya gotta go

[Sarahwithanh11]

Since this concept is how I came up with my last name...

For me, my guy life is the normal, usual, day-to-day. I have a good life and I like it.

I also like a break or vacation now and then, and that's where Jessica comes in. It's a totally different feeling, different world, different way to relate to the world.

The two worlds really don't mix, and it works well that way for me. But everyone's different. I'm a cd, not a tg, and there is a difference.

[Bev06 GG]

Very complex isn't it. I dont think my partner actually has two sides. He is just Jay and Andy rolled into one. His femme side doesn't disapear when he goes to work in a shirt and tie, and neither does his male side completely go when he's dressed. He is Andy/Jay. His image to the world may alter but his perception of who he is doesn't change one iota.
Bev
PS I have noticed though when he drives dressed he's a real wimp, but thats probably down to the high heals and I tease him like mad about women drivers.

[Melora]

My other private side is quite feminine..
Hehe
I think Even My Wife thinks this,
A bit...

[erickka]

I'm with Karren on this one.

[Beth-Lock]

The psychologist Carl Jung had a lot to say about this, and likely any therapist would have their views informed by his theories and constructs like the persona, anima and animus. Jung seemed to imply it was deeper than mere role playing. Obviously, we all hope it is quite different from multiple personality disorder, if such a thing really exists. (Refer to: The Three Faces of Eve.)

[Ruth]

The Jekyll and Hyde concept is good because it's so wrong. Stevenson was emphasising the two polar opposites, good and evil, manifesting in one person, and it's easy to fall into the fallacy that male and female are opposites, and that CDers are somehow switching between the two poles. I would say not.
All people, not just CDers, have masculine and feminine traits, and CDers stand out because we actually dress the part when we want to emphasise the feminine.
I wouldn't regard the masculine and feminine even as two sides, rather as different moods. For our own reasons we may wish to add substance and definition to our feminine mood by having a femme name, but I would not say there is anything resembling a split personality going on here (at least not in most of us!)

[KayR]

For me, I stay the same inside whatever I wear. Its just an outer shell as far as I'm concerned. I personally don't have any conflict that requires my "inner femme" to surface. I just like wearing their clothes!

[Jilmac]

I would define sides as personalities. I think a person's masculine side to be a little rough around the edges where the feminine side is usually more refined and polished. Just my :2c: Luv and :hugs: Jill