Will my grandson grow out of it?

[Cynthia Anne]

My goodness! So many great comments and advice! I knew the first of January when I joined that I was going to love it here! Now I can easy say I love you ladies too! I thank you all thus far from the bottom of my heart!

[sterling12]

Your Family's "Choices," in this situation:

1. Beat it out of Him! Join The Ranks of people who believe they can be The Instruments of God's Will, and change his "sinful" behavior! But....that probably won't work.

2. Seek out "The Proper" Psychiatric Help, preferably A Shrink who can make him quit with Drugs like Ritalin, or Behavior Modification Therapy. But....that probably won't work.

3. Accept his behavior for what it is, and hope that it's a "phase" that he will grow out of. But....that probably won't work. After five years, it's probably about 50/50, and neither you, members of your family, the aforementioned shrink, nor even this child knows how The Story will end.

So, logic says: "be supportive, but probably refrain from active encouragement!" In a few years, The Child's Self-Directed Destiny will probably start to develop. His Transgendered Feelings have begun at an early age, and so far it's been pushing further and further toward A Femme Outcome. Simple Advise? I would encourage all in The Family who will listen, to start learning how to accept this, and they in turn will learn how to help your Grandchild to learn to accept him/herself.

Peace and Love, Joanie

[Cynthia Anne]

Thank you Joanie! I know your right! I started at that age and without support it took many years for me to except myself! Thanks!

[Cheryl T]

Only time will tell.
I fear the worst thing that could happen is to push him in the opposite direction just to impose some societal "norms" on him.
Let nature take it's course and love him with all your heart.

[Jorja]

I don't know what I could possibly add to what has already been said. Just love him for who he is and all will work out just as planned.

[Abbyru1]

This little "guy" knows what he wants, he's comfortable, and apparently hasn't had to face the " mean guys" outside so just let him be. He'll decide were his future will be.At any rate, at this stage in his life, he'll be fine.

[t-girlxsophie]

I cant add anything new but the one certainty is that he has a fantastic grandparent,who will be there for him,whatever may be

[Pythos]

Here is an idea that may help. Don't ask the question at the start of this thread. It implies there is a problem with what your grandson is doing.

THERE IS NOT.

But if you imply that there is, if you go beyond just general caution about what reactions he may get, then you are making what he is doing appear wrong.

Will he grow out of it? He may. On the other hand, if he is made to think that what he is doing is wrong, then he may just submerge like how you, myself, and most other members have here, and absolutely no progress will be made.

Just love your grandson, and let him do what he will as long as nobody gets hurt, or things get destroyed. That's it. That's all.

You can ask him why he prefers these things though, asking questions nicely never hurts.

[Jilmac]

Cynthia, I think you nailed it when you said all he'll grow out of is the dress. You seem to be a very observant person in knowing that your grandson may never outgrow his desire for feminine things. As a lifelong crossdresser I can say for myself that it is part of my being and I haven't outgrown it since the first time I wore panties and a dress at age seven, and I'm 65 now. For your grandson's sake you and your daughter can encourage him to be himself no matter what he chooses to wear or the toys he plays with. Unconditional love is best for all concerned.

[Cynthia Anne]

I cant add anything new but the one certainty is that he has a fantastic grandparent,who will be there for him,whatever may be

THANK YOU SOPHIE for the nice complement! I would never do or say anything, nor, I believe, would his mother to change him from being himself! He is loved I just wish his dad would leave him alone! He is happy 'tel his dad has visitations! And I still don't apreaceate the doctor insisting he will grow out of it! No one knows!

[Billie Jean]

All I can say is that I didn't grow out of it

I didn't either. Cynthia Anne do you think you will either? We are who we are, and thats good for me. I had a neighbor whose son wore all her shoes around the neighborhood . That ws 25 years ago and I wouldn't be surprised if he wasn't a member here . Billie Jean

[Kaz]

There are some very interesting insights here, and so our collective learning grows. Pythos has, as usual, got to some really core issues...

Kids are kids... they are exploring the world they inhabit and they are taking in data and processing it... but not against the frameworks and models we have developed. Wearing a dress may be perfectly natural within the context in which he is growing up... I don't know the context so I can't comment on that.

When do we become CD? No-one knows. There is considerable evidence in developmental psychology that early years are exploratory and we make choices in our teens. Just look at modern marketing techinques to see how they have exploited this!

Will he grow out of it... i.e. is it a phase? Maybe, maybe not..

Is there something wrong with him? That is a different question, but it is predicated on the first.

He is who he will become... love him for it. He is unique. Let him grow and develop, and above all, let him find his own path... it will almost certainly not be the path you would have chosen... but it will be his... and this will be his story

[eluuzion]

First, push this button...
http://www.dramabutton.com

Will he grow out of it?

No, it will actually "grow out of him" if he is a true CD or TS...

Does he present any symptoms or signs of coccygeal pain? (coccyx is the very base of the spinal column~~center of buttocks). This pain originates from the growth spurt of the coccyx, just prior to pushing through the final dermal layers to emerge outside the body, where it is labeled as the tail. This is one of the primary indicators that confirms you are dealing with a Gender Identity Disorder. The CD or TS classification can only be determined after the tail is has grown to full length (approx 6-8months). CDs have a tail length between 5" to 6.5" and TS have a total length between 6.6" to 9", (measured from the point where the base exits the outermost dermal layer of the body.) There are a few exceptions that surpass the 9" length. But these are typically only found within the confines of the pornographic adult entertainment industry.:D
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Ok, on a serious note...

Kids are explorers with endless curiosities that persist in spite of the diligent efforts of parents and society to discourage it, lol. By the time we reach age 5-6 years old, we have firmly established the foundation of our personality which is generally fixed for life. Gender identity and awareness starts emerging around age 2-3.

Obviously, there is a lot going on during those first five-six years of life. Of course our duty as a parent, is to lose our logical perspective in life when it comes to our toddlers, lol. We tend to become “amateur childhood development experts” analyzing our child’s every move, as they crawl the imaginary tightrope that separates “normal” from “abnormal” behavior. We can become obsessed with trying to interpret the behavior of our child, instead of just enjoying them.

If a two-year-old boy goes through a stage of experimentation with girls toys or dresses, we freak out. We forget that this is normal exploration to see what it is like. A two-year-old understands the primitive differences between a boy and a girl. But they do not establish a firm grasp of gender stability until about age three. A two-year-old still thinks a boy or a girl could possibly change into the opposite sex later in life. A three-year-old understands that a boy or girl remains the same sex forever.

I am not discounting the credibility of engaging common sense interpretation when observing their behavior. I am suggesting that as a caretaker, it is worth the effort to maintain a healthy perspective, by understanding how much we influence what a child will become as an adult by what we consciously or unconsciously choose to reinforce or discourage.

There is a lot of good educational material regarding childhood development and gender issues on the net. I think this is one of the best resources for translating complex concepts into layman's terms.
http://www.education.com/reference/a...nder-identity/
http://www.education.com/reference/a...r-development/