No way is it a hobby at all for me. A hobby is something you can start and stop at any time but it is not for me, for me it is a way of life which I enjoy and which brings peace of mind and contentment and a total understanding of the fact that I was born to dress and to encompass it in all that it can provide.
I started life a lost man now I am a found woman
No the mistake is often made from those that assume that when we (those that treat it as a hobby) describe our crossdressing as a hobby that we include everyone. Look at the replies in the thread. Those that have described their crossdressing as a hobby made the point of not generalizing their view (usually with adding the words like my) Where as those that described their crossdressing as not a hobby have most often generalized that crossdressing is not a hobby and even added their definition of what a hobby is. Are these people that add the definition of a hobby making a point that we (those that consider our crossdressing as a hobby) don’t know what a hobby is?Originally Posted by Teresa
Like geez.......
Chantal,
Sure I know what a hobby is , but my Cding isn't one of them. My main hobby or passion is my painting , I'm soon to combine my need to CD with my painting and hopefully run an art group now that's going to be a lovely combination .
OK I did get hot under the collar about the term " Hobby" linked to CDing some time ago, if you've never experienced what CDing can do to you and your family , how badly it can affect your health you may feel the same way about the term. I'm OK with it now but if it was just a hobby I wouldn't be doing it and put myself and my family through all this .
Some have been inclined to tar everyone with the same brush and assume it's a hobby for everyone , I only buy clothes and other items I need, I don't have hundreds of everything , very few women do and that's the way I look at it .
No one in this thread assumed that crossdressing is viewed as a hobby for everyone (except for those that seem to have issues with the word of hobby) There have been many posts started with the generalizing statements like “crossdressing is not a hobby” and “never is a hobby”. Has there been a statement here in this thread that generalized “crossdressing is a hobby” painting everyone with the same brush? There has been “crossdressing is a hobby for me” and “my crossdressing is a hobby” which describes their own crossdressing.
Princess Chantel makes a valid point.
Presenting as female is not a hobby for me be I am glad it is for many others and I can definitely see why it would be enjoyable to spend your valuable free time crossdressing just for fun. I have many hobbies and pity those around me that never seem to find an interest in something, anything, to motivate them. I would reccomend they try crossdressing as I firmly believe it broadens the mind and the understanding in all humans, regardless of gender, to walk in others shoes once in a while. If it is your hobby then I congratulate you at being brave enough to throw off the shackles of conformity to allow you to discover an enjoyable past-time. Long may you continue. Remember, the time you choose to spend doing things you like is the only time that matters at the end of the day and you have a finite amount of it available to you. So go out and buy some more shoes.
Daisy x
I have hobbies but cd'ing is a way of life since desires age 4 years or so.
Hobby and lifestyle
Very interesting question for me Bailee. Between the age of 12 and 40 when CDing was a turn on and very opportunistic.. I used to call it my hobby. To me it fitted exactly into the category of a hobby, something fun to do but not something I needed to do.
Then when it all changed for me and Becky emerged dressing became a need, something I had to do, it was no longer my hobby but part of who I am.
A.K.A Rebecca & Bec
I think my crossdressing has become more a lifestyle or more part of my life than a hobby. Though I often call it that and even more often refer to it as a hobby. I don't think I would be the person I am if I didn't have crossdressing as a part of my life.
Although I do not dress that much and am more male appearing most of the time, there is a certain amount of gender dysphoria that creeps in from time to time and I MUST dress! No I do not feel it is a hobby for me! I do support those who feel it is however! Hugs Lana Mae
Life is worth living!
"Foxy lady! You look so good!!" Jimi Hendrix
Chantal,
Yes at one time I did have an issue with the term , it was when I first joined and the person posing the question did make the assumption that it was just a hobby to all of us. I admit my mental state when I first joined wasn't very good , I was barely functioning , my wife was not good about the whole situation so I did feel it was an insult to me and my family to lightly brush it aside as an enjoyable hobby .
OK I do enjoy being a Cder now but it's still not a hobby , it's going to be my lifestyle in a few weeks , possibly the start of transition , lets face it no TS would claim it was just a hobby to them !
I wonder if there has been a misinterpretation of what Bailee meant by the use of the term "hobby." Some seem to think that it minimizes crossdressing. However Bailee's words make it clear that that is definitely not what it was intended to convey: "my obsession", "my passion", "my creative outlet", "insatiable urge", "can't live without it". These words clearly refer to an intense and deeply felt experience that I think we can all identify with.
Like a lady
Teresa. Just because crossdressing is not a hobby to you, or indeed to myself, does not mean it can not be a hobby to others and in many cases it is just that. This is a perfectly viable and legitimate option and people enjoying a bit of crosssdressing just for the fun of it in no way diminishes our, arguably more serious, gender issues. Good luck to them, I am glad they have found an interest that makes them happy, many people unfortunately never do.
Daisy.
What words to use to describe crossdressing has been discussed many times here ...... obsession, compulsion, lifestyle, hobby, identity, urge, etc ...... and as a single word description they all fail, but collectively, taking varying amounts of several of these, it works, especially considering crossdressing is different for everyone.
I describe my crossdressing as a mysterious unknown internal drive to transform into the image of a girl/woman (different looks depending on the inspiration at the time).
What drives me to crossdress is different from the pursuit of hobbies, but there are common aspects. For example, to get better at it while enjoying the process: growing better garden vegetables, catching more fish, successful harvesting of game, better at sports/games, and better transformations (to achieve a desired look).
I can't describe my crossdressing as a hobby - it's more complex - but there is a hobby component: I like to make headbands. This started by hot-gluing wide lace ribbon onto a plain store-bought headband, as an accessory for my maid's outfit. Then others to complement other outfits. And I can sew, having and knowing how to use a sewing machine, not for making clothes but for altering and customizing.
For me it's not a hobby. It's more of an urge that comes and goes but when it comes it doesn't want to be ignored. When it goes I don't think twice about it. I'm wondering if it'll become more of a part of my life as I interact on here and explore. We'll see!
Daisy,
I have said now that I do understand it being a hobby to some , and I don't have a problem with it but if it was just a hobby to me I wouldn't be doing it . Yes I have also worn some clothes just for the fun of it, like the Union Jack dress at a theme night with my social group .
OK take a different view of this situation, if I'm out and someone asks why I dress and I reply it's just a hobby , then they ask does your wife know and if so what does she think and I reply she loathes it . What are people going to think of me ? They wouldn't relate to it as a hobby anymore than I can , I'm not a selfish and thoughtless person , I couldn't expect my family to accept my CDing on that basis .
Sorry but you just don't get it. You project the belief that those who enjoy crossdressing as 'just' a hobby are doing something bad. It's like you must be transgendered to justify it. Why couldn't you expect your family to accept your crossdressing on the basis of it being something you simply enjoyed? What would be so hard, if anything they would most likely find it easier to accept it as a hobby than accept a desire to transition (which by your own accounts your wife does not accept). You really need to accept that crossdressing is not a bad thing even if, and let me make this perfectly clear, even IF it is 'just' a hobby. I don't like lots of hobbies, say golf for example, but I have lots of friends with such hobbies who I accept despite the fact that they engage in some of their freetime in activities that do not interest me. The simple fact is that wearing clothes that many may consider inappropriate for your gender is NOT a bad thing regardless of why anyone chooses to do it. Your comment about your wife is incredible. How many wives go through their life loathing the hobbies of their husbands? Hunting, fishing, motorbike racing, they can all qualify. What do people think of them? They don't think "oh he's all right but you know what, he rides a motorbike even though his wife loathes motorbikes so he must be a selfish and thoughtless person".
No, it's not a hobby.
A hobby is a pastime that you choose to do in your spare time.
I didn't choose to be a CD. I just am one.
Thankfully,
Daisy,
I have never said it's a bad thing for others to adopt Cding as a hobby , I PERSONALLY believe I would be insulting my family to call it that, that's the point you don't appear to get, I'm in a deep DADT situation and my wife now accepts my needs and understands the need to separate for me to go down that road . I do admit I finally admitted to her that now I've come to terms with it I do enjoy it .
You also may have missed I nearly ended my life twenty years ago over the CDing situation , hobbies do not lead to that . I've finally come to the point where the shame and guilt of CDing has gone, but for most of my life I felt it was wrong , something no normal man should want to do . To live in solitary confinement all those years the last thing I would have called it was a hobby ! I was astounded when I first joined the forum that another member actually called it that but you just don't see it from my angle .
Again go read the TS section and see how many call it a hobby , how many boast of drawers overflowing with underwear and closets bursting at the seams , that could be the road I'm about to embark on . I don't collect clothes I buy them to live the female part of me ,going full time will be a challenge and far from a hobby .
I get your point clearly Teresa but you can't say that crossdressing as a hobby is an insult to family (as you just did) whilst at the same time saying you do not think it is a bad thing. The two are mutually exclusive. What you fail to grasp is that this thread is not about you so I didn't need 2 more paragraphs about your history and why it is not a hobby for you. I get it. I got it the first time and no doubt I will get it next time. I do 'see it' from your angle because I am in the exact same boat as you but I do have the capacity to accept other people have the right to spend their free time as they wish without being looked down on, which your posts (which I have been reading for years by the way) suggest you do.
Last edited by DaisyLawrence; 12-21-2017 at 04:00 AM.
Love the respect you have shown Daisy and those few folks in which have the capacity to acknowledge that crossdressing could be and treated as a hobby for some of us.
Thank you!
Last edited by Princess Chantal; 12-21-2017 at 07:44 AM.
You are welcome Chantel. Having a crossdressing hobby should be celebrated. I for one know how rewarding people could find it. If everyone enjoyed a bit of dressing up every now and again the transgender population wouldn't suffer any of the bigotry that we sometimes do. Time for a new dress I think, there is a sale on at my favourite shop!
Daisy
My hobbies are totally different. I don't think crossdressing is a hobby. Not at all. Sure I know a few that only do it on Halloween maybe then it's a hobby
Daisy,
We appear to be playing on the same football team but refuse the pass the ball to each other !
I did stress Personally in my reply because it applies to me and not others. I have come to accept what others choose to do is their business , we are all different and so are our lifestyles , yes I will defend mine when someone else suggests it isn't right because they fail to understand it. I'm sorry if you feel I'm being condescending , maybe that's years of being brainwashed in a DADT situation , yes I have strong views on that issue as well but now is not the time !
Maybe you didn't need to read my history I know other members are in the same boat as me , they don't all come forward with replies but I do get a great deal of feedback in PMs . Coming to terms with being a CDder and what may be beyond is a gradual process which I now realise is constantly on going and evolving .
I have been doing more than Halloween and It is a hobby for me.....
Read my many shared outings and try to point out what you see that may reflect why it isn’t a hobby for me.
Last edited by Princess Chantal; 12-21-2017 at 09:47 PM.
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