This story is from the comments by /u/Dear-Shift-7636 that are listed below, summarised with AI.
User Authenticity Assessment: Not Suspicious
Based on the provided comments, the account appears authentic. There are no serious red flags suggesting it is a bot or a bad-faith actor.
The user's posts are highly specific, emotionally consistent, and contain intricate personal details about medical procedures, psychological history, and the long-term social and physical consequences of transition and detransition. The narrative is complex, self-critical, and evolves over time, which is difficult to fake convincingly. The passion and anger expressed are consistent with the genuine trauma experienced by many detransitioners.
About me
I was a feminine gay boy who transitioned to escape the trauma of homophobia and abuse. I was quickly given hormones and surgery as a teenager, which only made my mental health worse and permanently altered my body. I now see I needed therapy, not medicalization, to accept myself as a man. I deeply regret the irreversible changes and feel I was preyed upon by the system. I'm finally detransitioning and learning to heal as my true self.
My detransition story
My whole journey with transition and detransition has been long and painful. I was born male, and from a young age, I was a very feminine gay boy. I had long hair, wore makeup and women's clothes. My dad is very conservative, and he always punished me for being so emotional and feminine, unlike my brothers. I felt like I didn't fit in as a man.
When I was 14, things got really bad. I was hospitalized for suicidal thoughts and severe self-harm; my arms and legs are still covered in scars. I was also using a lot of marijuana. My older brother abused and harassed me constantly for being gay. To escape, I started selling my body to older men on Grindr. I was clearly mentally unwell and I suspect I have borderline personality disorder. Looking back, I was deeply traumatized and just trying to survive.
At 15, I came out as transgender and started using a new name and pronouns. I started using the women's bathroom at school. I think a big reason I transitioned was to escape from the reality of being a gay man. I was terrified of growing up and aging as a male. Becoming a woman felt like a way to stay youthful and avoid the kind of life I saw for myself. It was a form of escapism. I also fell into an online echo chamber and had friends who were also trans, which made it all feel normal.
When I was 16, after only two one-hour appointments with a psychiatrist at a children's hospital, I was prescribed estrogen and puberty blockers. They never looked into my history of trauma, self-harm, or sexual exploitation. At every appointment, the doctors would ask if I had dysphoria about my penis and if I wanted vaginoplasty. I always said no, but they kept asking. It felt like they were pushing me towards more surgery. I now see these doctors as predators, preying on vulnerable kids for money.
I was on hormones for almost six years. The estrogen caused me intense emotional issues and mood swings. I destroyed romantic relationships and friendships because it made me act erratically. A male body isn't meant to run on female levels of estrogen; it made me mentally unstable. I also decided to get surgery. At 18, I had breast augmentation, and at 19, I had facial feminization surgery (FFS). I erased my family's heritage from my face—my strong jaw, brow ridge, and Roman nose—and now I deeply regret it. I look back at old photos and get so sad; people used to tell me I looked like a model.
Throughout my transition, I dated men, but every time a relationship ended, I’d feel the urge to detransition. Instead of facing it, I’d turn to drugs or hookups with multiple men. It was a horrible cycle. I passed completely as a woman, but a voice in my head kept telling me how much I hated the trans lifestyle. I put off detransitioning for two and a half years because I was scared and because the constant affirmation from the trans community kept me trapped. It was like an addiction.
I finally started detransitioning at 21. The hardest part was letting go of "passing." I knew that once I stopped hormones, my male puberty would resume, but I’ve been left permanently altered. The puberty blockers stunted my growth; I have a small frame compared to my older brother, and that’s not reversible. I don’t even know if I can have children now. The scars from my breast implants are obvious when my hair is wet, and I’m looking into removal surgery.
Telling my family was scary, but they were supportive. My dad was just glad to have his son back, and our relationship has gotten much better since I told him. He never voiced his doubts because he wanted to support me, but it put a strain on us for years.
I now see that my transition was driven by internalized homophobia and trauma. I needed counseling, not hormones and surgery. I believe the trans movement is a cult and this will be one of the biggest medical scandals in history. I feel preyed upon. I have many regrets about transitioning; it was a huge mistake that permanently changed my body. Now, I’m learning to accept myself as a feminine gay man, and I’m finally starting to heal.
Here is a timeline of my journey:
Age | Event |
---|---|
14 | Hospitalized for suicidal ideation and self-harm; history of abuse and exploitation. |
15 | Socially transitioned (new name/pronouns); used women's bathrooms. |
16 | Prescribed estrogen and puberty blockers after two psychiatric appointments. |
18 | Underwent breast augmentation surgery. |
18 | Legally changed name and gender. |
19 | Underwent Facial Feminization Surgery (FFS). |
21 | Began detransitioning by telling my father. |
21 | Stopped hormone therapy after nearly 6 years. |
Top Reddit Comments by /u/Dear-Shift-7636:
Totally agree... I was prescribed estrogen and puberty blockers when I was 16. Only two hour long appointments with a psychiatrist at Children's hospital then I was given the green light to start hrt.
I had a history of being abused and harassed constantly by my older brother for being gay. I was hospitalized when I was 14 for suicidal ideation and severe self harm. My arm and legs are very scarred. I was using copious amounts of marijuana. I was selling my body to 40+ year old men on Grindr. Somehow none of this was ever looked into. I was clearly mentally unwell and I suspect I have borderline personality disorder... these doctors are sick.
Pediatricians don't make much money compared to other doctor specialties. This endocrine field of treating "trans" children must be pretty lucrative.
Yesss I swear when they say puberty blockers are reversible I get so irritated. Or that minors are not receiving mastectomies and neovaginas. I know of several trans identifying males who underwent vaginoplasty at 17. The most infamous FTMTM's I can think of who received double mastectomy at 15 and 14 is Chloe Cole & Kaya Breen. Even if you go onto the topsurgery sub you'll see many minors posting their results. So sad
Yeah it's a total cult. It will be one of the biggest medical scandals in history. I hate myself for falling for it. They try to tell us our souls were born in the wrong body. Absolutely no one is born in the wrong body. I feel preyed on. My body is permanently altered for the rest of my life. I don't even know if I can have children now. We needed counseling not god damn hormone prescriptions
Also every single appointment I had, they would ask me if I was feeling dysphoria about my penis. They would ask if I was interested in vaginoplasty.
I would tell them no every appointment but they kept asking. I can see how this would cause a teenager to feel like something is wrong with their genitalia.
I already said it but OMG these doctors are creeps preying on vulnerable children!
I feel the same when I see photos with my older brother side by side of us. I'm underdeveloped due to being on puberty blockers since a teenager. I'll always be small framed. Puberty doesn't just restart once ceasing the medication, and activists say it's reversible. I totally feel you it sucks
I was on e injections and blockers for 6 years, got FFS and passed 100% but still decided to detransition.
It's scary backtracking on something you thought you were so right about for years. Especially if you are close with family and friends who've stuck beside you before transition and throughout. That's why I put off detransitioning for 2 1/2 years. I thought that voice in my head telling me how much I hated the trans lifestyle would end up going away if I just kept up with HRT. But it never did, it just got louder and louder.
We need to do what makes us happy and not worry about how others perceive us. My only regret is transition. It was an addiction and escape.
I really relate to that first part... now that I'm detransitioning I'm now realizing having an ultra conservative dad growing up definitely contributed to me starting transition, as I was a very gender nonconforming gay teenage boy. Once I found out about transition I saw "becoming" a woman as an escape from my feminine male nature. I was always punished by my father for having more intense feelings than most boys my age and my brothers growing up. Throughout transition I looked into detransition several times, but like you mentioned, the affirmation is everywhere which halted it. I put it off for so long. I wish the medical professionals actually cared to look into this before giving me a bunch of scripts
I agree there isn't many testimonies from us. I wouldn't say there was a specific incident. I have noticed the vast majority of trans identified men who are in my age bracket tend to surround themselves with other trans men. It creates an echo chamber so it normalizes the transition to the individual. I myself used to be friends with other trans people which led me to get surgeries. Over time I began to just get a serious ick for all trans people. I thought I was a true trans. When I completely cut myself off from trans people IRL and online, I was about to pick apart the ideology and start healing.
Hrt caused me such intense emotional issues and mood swings I destroyed every romantic relationships. It literally made me nuts. Lots of friendships ruined. Men having female level estrogen levels in their blood and chemically castrating is unhealthy. Our male systems were designed to run on testosterone dominance. Our hormones affect everything. The men telling you that are trans-brain-rotted. Once I came out of my delusion I'm forever embarrassed about all the social damage I did. Now that I'm off hrt, the mental issues I had with estrogen ceased.
Hi we have a very similar timeline. I came out to my parents and started hrt when I was 16. Breast surgery at 18. Name and gender change at 18. I told them I'm detransitioning now at 21.
This is how it went with my dad "I have something to tell you..." he said okay what is it... "I'm going to start detransitioning..." and he just affirmed me and was honestly glad to have his son back. He asked if I had told my siblings yet and I said no. He said he'll let me tell them on my own time, which I did over the course of a few days. Then we just talked about the whole trans movement and how shady a lot of it is.
My dad has always been supportive of everything I've wanted to do in life regardless if he agreed or not. Him and I are already getting closer since I told him. Him and I haven't been close the past couple years because of how miserable transitioning was making me. Anyways good luck. It's only awkward for a second, but it'll all be fine after I'm sure!