How much research do you do on crossdressing and transgenderisim?

[Naomi Rayne]

I have read a bunch of books, did tons of online research, watched videos, all sorts of things. My first thoughts as most people tend to think were that if i read this ill understand, or if i look this up ill understand. After reading the first book i realized that the only way i can understand myself is through myself. So after that my reading and research became more about curiosity of what other people were saying or feeling rather than trying to discover myself. Now its purely all informational and i love learning things.

[Christy_M]

I have to echo many of the posts here about research to understand me...I have tried for year to figure out why I am a freak. I have read as much as I could find on the internet and barely tapped the plethors of information that is out there. I have started reading "My Husband Betty" with similar resuklts that it didn't really apply to me so no sense to keep reading. I haven't quite come to grips with myself yet but I am thinking someday soon, I will finally accept this part of me as just that, part of me. The more I follow the posts on this site and find others like me (or "similar," "close," "unique,", pick an adjective that fits), the more I find that I am not alone and there is so much to learn from my fellow sisters on this site. I have found so much support and met a few very dear people that will help me on my journey to wherever this might lead me. Essentially, I will continue to research my affliction through this site and one day, be in the same boat as many others that just accept it and then the research will taper off into something more constructive...hopefully still with this forum.

[Jenny Doolittle]

I have tried over the years to understand why I am who or what I am, I have arrived at this conclusion: God has a sense of humor, He/She always provides something to everyone to negotiate in life and I feel this has been my test.

I now find that this has been an oppertunity for me to know life (to some degree) from a view point of both genders. I find myself to be fortunate. The difficulties come from others view of who I am, but then again, isn't that their issues?

So, I guess now I embrace who I am and hope others can understand that I am who I am.

[Tina B.]

I'm in here every day reading post after post, does that count? I need to try Karren's method, I don't read enough labels, I keep winding up with to many things that need to be dry cleaned!
Tina B.

[suchacutie]

Research? LOL...that's what I do for a living! Ok, I'm a scientist and our training pounds into us the necessity of learning the prior art before stepping into the laboratory. I approached Tina in this same way (btw, my wife's training is in the sciences as well, so she completely understands this approach!). Finding Tina at age 55, without any guilt at all, and with the full support of my wife meant that we could work on this whole idea of a feminine self with a vengence! We read, we talked, we planned, we shared idea and information. Three areas of research broke out: transgenderism, creating the feminine illusion from a male body, what is it like to grow up as a woman. Much of the transgenderism material was focussed a bit too much on acceptance for my situation, since we completely accepted the fact that Tina existed and we wanted to know who she was. The immediate need was to start to create the illusion so for the first two or three years all those details of body movement and makeup and clothes and voice took center stage. The my wife noticed that this was the same path that she followed growing up as a girl, and she started to clock Tina as she progressed through those "growing up" stages. At that point it became clear that to complete Tina she needed to know what the differences were growing up in the two genders so she could begin to "feel" the feminine side as naturally as that masculine side he/she had grown up in. This latter process continues more heavily than the others and is not only the usual reading, but also involves Tina talking to my wife about all the aspects of growing up as a girl.

We really must want to do this. No one would go through all this as a joke!

Tina!

[RobynP]

Many years ago before Internet (BI), one of my obsessions was researching anything CD/TG/TS related... I spent many hours, even days, in used book stores and college libraries searching and reading and then searching some more. Initially, I needed to find out if I was the only one... Many years later when the Internet started growing, I was able to spend even more time researching. I used to video tape any televison shows that might have had any important, helpful information. (This quickly excluded many of the trashy shows that shall remain nameless...) I've spent lots of $$$ on books for my personal library, many of which are now out of print.

Did any of this help? Some of it did but there were a lot of rabbit holes I fell into. I probably should have majored in psychology when I was in college. I spent enough time not only in reseaching CD info but having to learn a lot about psychology and other sciences just to try to understand what researchers were saying. It has been a long, strange trip...

Robyn P.

[sometimes_miss]

How much research; oh my god. I've been reading psychology books since I was 9 (which is now >40 years); virtually every trip to the book store I've at least scoped out what books to buy if I was with male friends, and later went back to buy them. I would go to the New York Public library and read everything I could get my hands on; search out periodicals with articles on transsexualism. I've read pretty much everything, every theorist, every discipline, took all the psychology courses I could find, all in the effort to figure myself out. I watch every documentary about gender differences I can find. And it's worked, pretty much; I've been able to understand what happened to me, why I want to crossdress so much, why I constantly feel like I'm supposed to be a girl, but also what there is about me that makes me distinctly male. The book I'm waiting for? "Where to find a GG that truly likes guys who prefer to dress as women". It's sure to be a multi million seller, even if it's only one chapter.

[MargaretJ]

My only reading on the subject is on here, and I tend to ignore the deep serious stuff. I don't feel the need to analyse every thought and deed, or find deep meaning in my every action. I just enjoy Cross Dressing.

[Kate Simmons]

I used to do a lot until I realized that facts and stats don't address the feelings which what it is really all about, so began concentrating on them.

[charlotte_sp]

@OP: Pretty much anything gender-related grabs my attention these days. Maybe I haven't looked hard enough, but a lot of the psychology texts seem to be overly reductionist or outdated, transphobic BS.

My two current areas of interest are trans demographics and any respectful, evidence-based research on the biological foundations of gender dysphoria.

I would love it if anyone could point me to studies, researchers, institutions, etc.!

[Sarah Doepner]

I avoided everything about it until I realized my crossdressing wouldn't go away. Then I studied everything I could and realized my crossdressing wouldn't go a way. Then I reached out on the web to find friends and read what they had experienced and could say about how their crossdressing wouldn't go away. Then I found friends who I could sit down with and have nice conversations and avoid the question about how my crossdressing won't go away. Then my wife discovered my crossdressing and I did some research again to help her understand how my crossdressing won't go away. Now days I come here and visit and comment and enjoy it all and am pretty pleased that dispite my research, my crossdressing won't go away.

[Kelli Ann]

All I know is that I have accepted myself as a crossdresser and am very proud of it. The most extensive research that I have done, and I mean devoting hours and hours, is educating myself all that I can before I come out to my lovely wife. I have read "My Husband wears My Clothes" which I truly enjoyed and found fascinating and am getting ready to start reading "My Husband Betty". Actually I am planning a deer hunting trip in a couple of weeks and both books will definetely be in my backpack. There is something about nature, deer hunting, and crossdressing education that just soothes my mind. Anyway, research on SO's and coming out to them have been my focus. I want to be armed with everything on coming out to her so I will be prepared for her reaction which I know will not be pleasant. For any one of you girls planning on coming out to your SO I would recommend going to crossdresserwives.com and reading some of the reactions from these women about finding out their husband is a crossdresser. Granted about 90% of these women are extremely negative, but just hearing what they have to say and think really prepares me better for my conversation with my wife. Also let's not forget TG Marla's post about how to come out to your wife which is on this site is very informative as well.

Wish Me Luck

Huggs,

Kelli Ann

[abbyleigh]

None to speak of; however, should I come across material pertaining to crossdressing I will read it.

[Annaliese2010]

@OP: Pretty much anything gender-related grabs my attention these days. Maybe I haven't looked hard enough, but a lot of the psychology texts seem to be overly reductionist or outdated, transphobic BS.

My two current areas of interest are trans demographics and any respectful, evidence-based research on the biological foundations of gender dysphoria.

I would love it if anyone could point me to studies, researchers, institutions, etc.!

If I took the time to research transgenderism I would focus my search on peer reviewed publications in the neurosciences. Neuroscience is multidisciplinary and I'm sure most of the hits would be useless psychology publications. The most fascinating papers would be those that describe neuroanatomical differences and specific genes that may be involved. Or...maybe there isn't a genetic vector but other influences presumably in effect during CNS development in the fetus, maybe related to circulating hormonal imbalances in the mother.

Dunno, just saying, yes I agree. There needs to be developed a biobehavioral model that hypothesizes the neurochemical/neuroanatomical/neurophysiological basis of transgenderism. There can be NO doubt that the ultimate explanation is physical. How are our brains different: by their structure; by how they function.

My guess is the neuroarchitecture of certain important hierarchical structures will look and function as they do in female brains - or are maybe something in between male and female design by degree, varying in a manner that tightly correlates to just how transgendered one is as reflected in ones deep subjective feeling state and the feminine behavior that flows from this.

Bet there's not much of this type of REAL SCIENCE out there yet. Psychology is... next to useless as far as I'm concerned - uh...wrt providing definitive comprehensive answers.

[Satrana]

but I find that you’ll get a better understanding of crossdressing from reading the words contained in this site – much of the revelation is in between the words

I agree, your best research is done in forums like this by understanding why people say certain things. It is many times more revealing than reading a medical journal where the researchers were more interested in inserting CDs into their neat psychological matrices.


Research into CDs is particularly problematic because many CDs will not tell the whole truth or are confused about why they CD. Researchers have little hope of getting to the root of the issue when their data is flawed. And their prejudices and assumptions regularly get in the way. For example most of the research papers I have come across mix homosexuality and crossdressing together as if they were the same thing. They are not interchangeable but researchers with dozens of letters after their names are ignorant of this.

Then my wife noticed that this was the same path that she followed growing up as a girl, and she started to clock Tina as she progressed through those "growing up" stages.

Absolutely spot on. Gender roles are social constructs and GGs have to naturally learn everything we CDs attempt to emulate as they grow up. As adults CDs can accelerate the growing up stage but it still takes years to complete. And the first stage is learning to fit in by copying typical looks and behaviors. Once you feel your femininity is established then you can learn to diverge and develop individual traits true to yourself.

[Jaydee]

Like so many others here, I have done lots of research in libraries and on the internet to understand my CDing. After I came out to my wife, a year ago, she suggested that I talk to a psychologist, which I did. I was hoping he could explain the "why" of my need to dress. He didn't. It took a while, but after talking to him, I realized that my quest to know "why" was an expression of my lack of personal acceptance. Once I realized that, I lost interest in finding out why, and have pretty much stopped my research.

Paul

[TinaMc]

For any one of you girls planning on coming out to your SO I would recommend going to crossdresserwives.com and reading some of the reactions from these women about finding out their husband is a crossdresser. Granted about 90% of these women are extremely negative, but just hearing what they have to say and think really prepares me better for my conversation with my wife.

Never seen that site before, it's pretty awful reading.