How much has the internet helped?

[Lucy Lou]

How much has the internet helped with our cross dressing..

Even if this is obvious, it is worth repeating.

The fact that I am writing this here says a lot. For so many years some people have dressed alone and wondered if the were the only ones, or were they odd or something else. Now that there are sites like this and so much information out there, it has given many people the answers or just the satisfaction that they are not alone.

Then there is the issue with buying women's clothes and make up. Some people can just go into a shop and get what they want and not worry what anyone thinks. For other's it is more of a nightmare. Yet, buying on line makes it so much easier because it is anonymous.

Personally, it has helped me enormously and I know that there are others that will agree.

In my view, putting the bad stuff aside, having the internet, how it is now, has so many benefits for cross dressing. Long may it continue.

Lucy Lou xx

[CynthiaD]

Not just the Internet, but the http servers and world-wide web browsers. There was an Internet before the www, but it was nothing. Just email and FTP, both of which predate the Internet. Then there was the pre-commercial http period, which didn't add much. The first websites were just http interfaces for much older FTP sites. But once the Internet was opened to commercial exploitation, the whole thing exploded. Now the whole world is right next door.

But to answer your question, yes the Internet has opened the world for us. I always knew I wasn't the only one, thanks to Sexology Magazine, but that knowledge was of no use. Crossdressing was still something you did in private. (I'm a child of the '50s.) Throughout most of my younger years, crossdressing was illegal, so there were good reasons to keep it secret. But the Internet has helped to open everything up. We still have a long way to go, but communities such as this one are crucial to making that progress.

[kimdl93]

It's hard to measure how much. Subjectively, the whole of the Internet has made a number of things possible. Shopping, especially before I came out and went out, was so much easier. There is of course a lot of information availablele on every aspect of life as a transgendered person...some good some utter nonsense, but that's what our brains are for. And of course, this site has provided opportunity to interact with so many people who share our experiences, fears, questions and examples. The latter has been invaluable.

[Kate Simmons]

I was well established as a CDer long before I was ever on the Internet. It has helped me to find new friends though, especially through this Forum.

[Alice Torn]

It made me realize i am not the only one with this compulsion. And, i was shocked to see that most were married, not like single me.

[Mink]

Not just the Internet, but the http servers and world-wide web browsers. There was an Internet before the www, but it was nothing. Just email and FTP, both of which predate the Internet. Then there was the pre-commercial http period, which didn't add much. The first websites were just http interfaces for much older FTP sites. But once the Internet was opened to commercial exploitation, the whole thing exploded. Now the whole world is right next door.

all I know is that they CLAIM the intra-net came about in 1994/1995ish ... 20 years ago today! ... ******** I say! ... it was more-so 1996/97 when it REALLY got going!

to say nothing of 1993 or 1991 or 1989 (nope! no world wide webby I just don't see it!)

but that is neither here nor there!

things between oh say 1999 and 2003 were quite groovy!

but then youtube and anti-myspace people and tumblr and twitter ruined everything!

web 4.0 in space!


internet for ME has maybe somewhat helped... in learning of others and their stories or views on the many aspects of CDing (and beyond!)

but I would say for me (personally) what I read about people no longer feeling as strange or so alone or odd... doesn't ring all that true!

I feel like sometimes the internet really HURT me in terms of confusing me and getting more into or addicted to the badder sides of CDing (over-buying / obsessing / etc) which probably affected my life in ways I could never quite know at the time in regards to relationships and day to day life

such is mango


lord knows all those storysite / sissy satin hypnotized pink panties etc type stories really warped my fragile young man mind!

I was a wee lad!

[Emily CD]

The internet opened up a whole new world for me. Yes, I will repeat what many others have said in that for years I thought I was the only person that did this. The ability to shop online and find things in my size is wonderful. Outside of the support groups, not the least of which is all of us here, the best thing for me is being able to see actual women dressed in the style I prefer. The challenge then becomes finding outfits that resemble their appearance. Looking back, which is always so easy to do, I wish I would have waited longer to get remarried (if at all). Couple this lifestyle with the internet and everything those 2 worlds bring and I guarantee things for me would have drastically different.

[Cheryl T]

I simply wish it had been around when I was in my teens and twenties. It would have made a huge difference in how I felt about myself at that time and I'm certain it would have changed my entire approach toward this and life in general.

[Adriana Moretti]

the internet is the devil and is outting you.....no..im kidding........I'm glad its been around i started dressing when the internet was in its early stages....remember chat rooms?? A.S.L ?? OMG ... .....but it has definately helped me learn alot and in return share with others.

[junetv]

As a person who grew up in the 70's/80's it let me realize that I wasn't alone when I got on AOL in the early 90's, perused newsgroups and ftp servers in the late 90's. Then there was the geocities phenomenon, now we have flickr, facebook, instagram, twitter, reddit, and crossdressers.com to relate to each other. For myself, I use the internet for shopping

[~Joanne~]

I am sure that we all thought we were alone for the longest time so the internet surely blessed me in the fact that I am not. I have met, through this site and the internet, so great sister's, GG's, and made friendships that will last me the rest of My life. Being able to share all things CD related, the good, the bad, and the ugly is also a huge plus.

I do most of my shopping in the stores BUT I also shop online because a lot of what I want, my style, isn't on the shelf's. I am starting to think they send all of the things that can't sell online into the stores these days because their selection is way better online. It's the wait that kills me lol

Also, thanks to youtube, there isn't a thing you can't find out on "how to do" it. I have found this to be the best resource for learning make up and everything else in between. So while there are a lot of bad things about the internet there also just as many positives.

the internet is the devil and is outting you.....no..im kidding........

Sadly, though your kidding, it may be doing just that with the way they are tracking and such these days which will only get worse in the future. No one really knows how far their over reach really goes until the hammer falls. Just sayin.....

[Sarah Louise]

I couldn't agree more, although I wonder if the fact that it's so easy to buy clothes on-line in secret is one of the reasons why I've started cross dressing again after so many years. I don't have very strong desires to cross dress - I just enjoy it when I get the chance and think maybe if it wasn't so easy, it may have stayed as a deep down desire that doesn't surface. Now this is fine all the time I stay in the closet, but what if it comes out and things turn for the worse and it ruins my marriage?

[Mink]

the geocities phenomenon,

yes!

I made a geocities website in 1999 and maintained it quite well into a warped little megasite up thru 2001ish! ... I was so happy it all lasted as long as it did (until 2009! the 10 year anne of my website man!)

I also remember some weird chat room in 99 where i'd make a room called Boys in Panties and sure enough when people found out I was only 15 they got pretty nervous!

ahaha!

oh early internet innocence!

we can never get that back!


also the big message forum for me at the time was pantiesetc (anyone remember that one?) ... that place was the true birth of The Mink!

after it went down it took me quite some time of looking at this board before I signed up and then two more years before I posted for some odd reason!

I still get scared!

[Allison Chaynes]

Yes it has. Like Mink, PantiesEtc was a huge help to me to figure out what all this was, and helped me come out to my wife years ago. This site has also been helpful, as many girls here have great experiences and advice to share. I do get frustrated with every other post being edited or deleted for whatever reason, but hey, it's part of it.

[Sarah Smith]

Great Question! I know for sure i would be nothing like the person/cder i am today if it werent for the internet, this site has been amazing but also im sure the possibilities of internet shopping have been the foundation for many a closeted girl's wardrobe!

Makes you wonder how future tech will change Cding?

Clara x

[Paula_Femme]

I'm in my mid 50's and started dressing in my early 20's... LONG before the Interwebs! I now do all my shopping online; it's WAY more convenient, and, of course, private.

For those that struggle with accepting themselves, wherever they may be on TG spectrum, sites like this must be an absolute Godsend, and of course for our SO's, including my own girlfriend, or friends/family that we confide in, sites like this can help immeasurably in their understanding of, and hopefully acceptance of, us.

For those reasons, and many others, I would say the Internet has been a force for good.

[AletaHawk]

I've barely lived in a world without the Internet, but it's certainly helped me discover so much about who I really am. Just in the past few months on this site, I've come to understand what my impulses and attractions mean.

I'd be miserable and lost without the Internet in so many ways.

[carahawkwind]

It's helped a lot, it's helped me understand it, helped shop, help learn how to dress and do make up, helped find support. If I was 10 years younger, I'd likely be into dressing more and be more out about it at a much younger age.

[Starshine24]

This is what is so amazing about the internet.... It gives everyone a chance to connect. Even those like me.. WiFi reaches into the closet! Amazon has given me an embarrassment-free shopping attitude (as long as no one looks at my browser history!).

[krissy]

The web helped me see that i wasnt alone in this world.That im okay and now that i see that im at peace with it .im a crossdressers and Proud of it !!

[nicoleb]

Before the internet I thought I was the only one around who enjoyed this hobby. Since the internet came along I found out there are lots of others like me. :-)

[ossian]

I've lived a long time with this. And it has been a real srugg!e at times, But the internet and in particular this web site has helped me not feeling alone.

[Crystal Beth]

Wow, where to start! I have learned proper makeup through Internet. Before it was all trial and error because I did not have a GG in my life that I could learn from. Then there was finding others like me. That meant so much being able to find support and helped me venture out into the world and not be ashamed of who I am. Shopping has been fantastic. I am not afraid to shop in stores but I was petrified in the "early days".

[bridget thronton]

And great deal of help - this was not the first forum I found but it is the one I spend the most time in

[Jaymees22]

Yes, the internet certainly has helped me. It's nice to know we are not alone, but sometimes it masks the fact that we are still a very small minority. That said I have learned a lot here about make up, clothing, shaving etc. etc.. It's also important to hear of others experiences out in the world and if it's safe to do them. Hugs Jaymee