How many of you have been in the military?

[Nell27]

Thanks to all of you served, especially those badass warriors in Viet Nam.

For me it was the US Navy submarine service, 1978-1984. I was not into ladies clothing back then, and it had no impact on my dressing. I did meet my beautiful wife during that time, and my heart still skips a beat when she enters the room!

That kind lady is very accepting, though not terribly enamored, with my desire to dress as a girl. I am very blessed that she was willing to fall in love with a sailor back in ‘82.

Nell

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Retired Navy. I did 30 years and decided it wasn't really for me. Had no affect on my desire to dress.

Glad to hear you figured it out after 30 years, Terry. 😀 Thank you most sincerely for your service!! ⚓️

[Valentina_Rossi]

Hi!!

Thanks so much for taking the time to answer! I did not realize how many how you had experiences connected to Vietnam.

I wanted to ask because I originally lived in s very cosmopolitan city in Latin America. Moving to another, much more conservative city, where there was a very performative masculinity among men (that I found cartoonish) I discovered that there were very vibrant gay and queer underground/scenes, much more than in my original, much more open city. I tended to think that the pressure to show a certain kind of manliness made it that some of that tension had to go somewhere... resulting in those undergrounds.

I was curious to know about your experiences, since the army is supposed to be as manly a place as any. But I can see that this is not the case at all.

Thanks again for your disposition

Love love
Val💋

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Hi!!

@Pat: thanks for the links!!! And sorry for asking something that was already sort of answered☺

@Steph: I can not imagine the poor people who got dosed with agent Orange. I only know the effects from reading... I also worked in a VA hospital in the Midwest with spinal cord injuries patients for a couple of years. This was my first contact with US military... both the patients and personnel were kind and lovely. But the installations were appalling! Rottening and falling apart... Most of the people I worked with were wounded in Serbia and Afganistan.

@Stephanie47: I am sorry to hear you had such a horrible experience in Vietnam. At least you met your wife while in service. And this is the first time that I hear about CDing as a way to cope with PTSD. It makes sense, I think.

@doc: we share that feeling about the army! Though I was there only for one year☺

Thanks again for the generosity of your time, and to the people who PM me about this.

Love love
Val💋

[Ceera]

I volunteered for service in the US Navy in 1975, right out of high school. The USA had just ended sending troops to the Vietnam war, we were at peace, and I hoped to get the military to pay for a good chunk of my college education. If the Vietnam war had lasted another year, I would likely have been conscripted into the army. The US draft lottery for conscription into military service ended just before I became old enough to potentially get drafted.

I was, at that time, heavily repressing any 'non-straight urges'. I wasn't cross dressing at all. The idea hadn't even occurred to me, outside of a few childhood experiments. The idea that my mind had a strongly feminine aspect and that my true gender identity wasn't strictly 'male' hadn't occurred to me at all. I knew from certain 'experiences' while still in High School that I was potentially bi, but I shut that down hard and tried not to think about it, because I also knew my father would be devastated if his only son was not straight. He couldn't even say the word 'homosexual', but otherwise he was a stellar father, and my family life was great. So I didn't want to disturb that by acknowledging any 'odd' sexual orientation issues.

I did my best, served honorably, and even got a letter of commendation for my work performance under pressure. But I hated living in close quarters with lots of other guys, and having no privacy at all. I was very uncomfortable about the whole living conditions thing. Didn't mind the work (I was a computer tech on a guided missile cruiser). Didn't mind the hours, or even being at sea. I served in the Mediterranean, Atlantic and Pacific. But after about three years it got to a point where I couldn't stand it any longer. Back then, if you were gay or Bi and admitted it, they would give you an honorable discharge if your service otherwise had been good, and mine was. So I took my honorable discharge, went to college, and left the military behind me. I glossed over exactly why I got out when my father asked, giving him other reasons.

My CD/Trans activities didn't happen until I stopped repressing my 'non-straight urges', after my father had died. It was decades later when I started to explore my feminine side, and realized I was transgender, that it dawned on me that my issues with military living conditions had likely stemmed from my feminine aspect in my mind (which was bi, but female gender identity and tending strongly to lesbian) internally screaming about having to live with all those guys! So for me, military service didn't have any sort of cause/effect relationship with my cross dressing.

[Kiwi Primrose]

We had compulsory military training in the 1950s, 12 weeks introduction and three weeks a year for another three years, plus staying on the reserves for more years. Nothing too onerous or dangerous.
I gave up my bra and panties for the duration.
The main thing I learned is how much I dislike all-male company.

[Lacey New]

Army, Infantry 73 to 78. Glad I served, even happier to get out.

[Alice_2014_B]

Air Force active-duty 2000 to 2004.
Air Force Reserves 2008 to Present.
Stationed in Arizona for a year.
Then stationed in England for two years.
TDY to Germany.
Deployed to Qatar, Iraq, Kuwait, and Senegal (west Africa).

[Roxanne Lanyon]

I worked for the U.S.Army for 30 years, Europe: 11 years, Deployed to Desert Storm, then Bosnia, and finally pentagon. I was a civilian employee all of the time.

[Sherri_Christopher]

I served in USAF, 1974-79. I swore the oath four days after graduation from HS, against the advice of my parents, uncles, guidance counselor and even my boss at the restaurant I worked. They were all wrong and I had a good service experience in a great AFSC, 25251A. My first duty station was at a base in the Central Coast of California, a truly beautiful place in the USA, and then three years in Deutschland. I got to travel all over Europe! I almost made it a career, but seeing the Air Force was all I knew in my adult life, I decided to separate and was Honorably Discharged. I was still finding myself back then, but a girlfriend left her silky nightgown behind and I'd often wear it and sleep in it. I lived off base on the economy, so it was pretty safe to wear the nightgown.

[Pat]

@Pat: thanks for the links!!! And sorry for asking something that was already sort of answered☺

Not a problem. It was not a surly "use the search function," it was just an FYI. Threads automatically lock if they haven't been responded to in a certain length of time and all the threads I pointed you to were locked -- you were fine opening a new thread if you wanted to get more current responses. I just thought you might be interested in the content.

[mykell]

the most impressive one i remember:

https://www.crossdressers.com/forums...ny+ex+military

[Anna Stouf]

U S Army, 1965 - 1967. Vietnam 1966/67.

Obviously when I was in a war zone CDing was the farthest thing from my mind. I was only concerned about doing my job and trying to stay alive.

When I got out of the Army the CDing returned even more intense than it was before I went in. Now, 51 years later, it's stronger than it's ever been.

[faithricd]

Jamie, I was in the Rhode Island Air National Guard, preparing for a secret mission dubbed “The fall of Fall River”. I’ve been out for a while now, but I believe they are still planning it. Lol. ��

[Valentina_Rossi]

Hi!!!

@Pat: I actually understood it in the way you meant it and I super appreciated it. I went through the links and read all the answers. Thank you so much!

And again, thanks to everybody... you have given me much to think about.

Love love,
Val

[SherriePall]

USMCR and Army National Guard. Not long enough to collect any retirement pay. Sitting here now underdressed. When I got off active duty, I went deep into the fog as best I could at the time. Not even remotely close to now, though.
BTW, I see no harm in a thread like this repeating ones from before. After all, there are always new members who can now share with us.

[Kieroney]

Army. No dressing while in, but I was younger then and was still learning alot about myself.

[SarahBJackson]

I swore into the Kentucky National Guard as an Officer Candidate in 2010. I was supposed to go to boot camp in Ft. Jackson on October 24th. However, I jacked up my knee which pushed my boot camp date back. I was discharged though and I aged out thanks to Obama who lowered the maximum age of recruits.

[Heather Anne]

Spent 20 years in the Air Force. Enlisted after graduating from higf school June 1968. Spent a year in Viet Nam at Da Nang AB (December 1969 to December 1970). Retired from the Air Force June 1988. Did not crossdress while in the Air Force. Didn't start crossdressing until about 2000. Purged everything I had twice between 2000 and 2004. In 2004 joined a support group in Atlanta, Ga and have been crossdressing regularly ever since. Was in federal service from September 1989 to May 2016. Did underdress on occassion fortunately never caught disscovered.

[Sherrii]

I was in the Massachusetts Army National Guard, keeping Massachusetts safe from invasion by Rhode Island.

As someone who lives in R.I. I doubt if R.I. could get it together to invade anything, you have no worries.

I was in the navy for 4 years. I don't know if I would have joined if the draft wasn't hanging over me. I did learn a lot and see a lot, mature a bit, not too much fun while in but looking back I consider it a good experience. And now I can feel that I have done my part to help protect the U.S.A. and keep us free. And that is a good feeling. Sherrrii

[Shely]

I was ARMY in the 70's and the Air force in the 80-90's. retired with full benefits. It turned me from a self centered bozo into a responsible person, (I think).

[Sissy_Michelle]

Valentina,

25 years US Army. Before I joined my mom, and a couple of exgirlfriends knew of my desire to crossdress. All ended and was put into a little box in the back of my mind. Only a couple of times did I allow myself to dress up at a couple of costume parties. But most of the time I lived in fear that someone knew or would find out.

Now that I’ve retired from service, I get to dress up more but. . . My wife isn’t liking the idea as much and we have both agreed to some rules. Sort of a truce but at least we’re still together and haven’t caused any unnecessary drama.

@—}——-
Michelle

[Barbara Black]

Spent three years in the U.S. Army between 72 and 75. I didn't hate it, but I knew it wasn't for me shortly after basic training.
I escaped the draft by having a high number (365), but volunteered right after high school. I deferred entering until October and they stopped sending people to Vietnam while I was in basic training, so I escaped that too, by a hair's breadth.
I had a pair of granny panties that I took to Colorado during my two years there, but went without any dressing in Germany for my final year of service.

[Joanne108]

I was in the military; however, I was dressing long before I joined!

[CynthiaD]

I spent 3 years in the Army during the Viet Nam war. I had given up crossdressing "forever" a few years earlier, and was doing all sorts of uber-macho stuff at the time to "prove my masculinity," so dressing wasn't an issue. Oh yeah. I volunteered. I never left the USA.

[RADER]

I was about to be drafted, instead I joined the Navy, SEA-BEES.
I was already a Carpenter, so why not. I was in for 2 years, of witch
I spent 14 1/2 months in Vietnam. Not Fun.
I could not; and dare not, dress the entire time.
Rader

[Jenn A116]

Drafted in late 1970. Basic at Ft Dix, AIT at Ft Polk 11B. Nam for most of 1971 in Chu Lai and Long Binh. Early release in early 1972. Made it safely, with only a few mental scars which are long healed over. Was a CD before and after.