This story is from the comments listed below, summarised by AI.
Authenticity Assessment: Not Suspicious
Based on the provided comments, this account appears to be authentic. There are no red flags suggesting it is a bot or inauthentic.
The user's posts are highly personal, emotionally nuanced, and internally consistent. They share a detailed, multi-faceted narrative of their desistance, including specific triggers (bullying, early exposure to porn, online relationships), psychological reasoning, and the evolution of their perspective over time. The language is natural, with self-reflection and slight edits that are characteristic of genuine human communication. The passion and caution expressed are consistent with the stated experiences of a desister.
About me
I was a teenage girl who felt out of place and started presenting as male online to escape bullying and my negative view of womanhood. For five years, I was sure I was a man and planned to medically transition, but I realized my desire was just a way to run from my problems. I decided to try living as a male without hormones, and that's when the desire to transition completely faded away. I learned that my feelings were influenced by trauma and that I could accomplish everything I wanted as a female. I am now at peace living as a woman and am profoundly relieved I never made any permanent changes to my body.
My detransition story
My whole journey with transition and detransition started when I was around 13. I was a girl who felt completely out of place. I was bullied a lot, especially about my body, and it made me hate being in my own skin. I felt lonely and disconnected from everything. I found a lot of escape online, and that's where I first encountered porn at a very young age. Seeing how violently women were treated in it made me subconsciously think that being a woman meant being weak and a victim. I wanted to escape all of that, and becoming a man seemed like the perfect way out.
Around that time, I also had a crush on a trans male and we had a brief relationship. I think that really kickstarted my trans identity. I wanted to be like him, and I wanted him to like me. I started presenting as male online. It felt like an advantage in those spaces and it gave me a confidence I never had as a girl. I could have the friendships and romantic experiences I desperately wanted. For five years, from 13 to 18, I lived this double life. I was a boy online but still a girl with my family, as I was never out to them. I was so sure I was a man and I was just waiting to turn 18 to start hormones and finally live fully as myself.
But during that time, I was also miserable. The double life was horrible and I felt completely trapped. I thought the only way to be happy was to fully transition. I was terrified that if I stopped, I would never find peace. I thought I would be stuck forever hating my female body.
When I was 18, something shifted. I started to reflect more. I realized that I didn't actually want to be a man; I just wanted to escape my problems. I wanted to escape the bullying, the loneliness, and the way I saw women being treated. I was trying to run from the pain of my life, and I thought transition was the answer, but it just created more pain. I decided to try and just live as a male without medically transitioning, to see if that desire would go away. And surprisingly, it did. It was really painful and difficult at first. I was sure I would never be happy as a female again, but I kept going.
I started to spend more time with people and focus on hobbies, and I slowly realized that people could like me for me, regardless of my gender. I accomplished the same things I wanted to as a male, but as a female. I learned that escaping womanhood doesn't make your life perfect; the other side is just the same with different problems.
Looking back, I see now that my feelings were heavily influenced by trauma, low self-esteem, and a desire to escape. I had internalized the idea that being a woman was bad from the porn I saw and from being bullied. I benefited hugely from not getting affirming therapy or medical intervention, because it gave me the time and space to figure all this out without making permanent changes.
I don't regret my social transition in a way, because it was a part of my journey to understanding myself. But I am so relieved I never took hormones or had surgery. I think if I had, my regret would be immense. My thoughts on gender now are that it's not as important as we think. You can do everything you want in life as either gender. The things I hated about my female body are still here, but I've made peace with them. I'm happy now.
Here is a timeline of my journey:
Age | Event |
---|---|
13 | First started feeling intense discomfort with puberty and being female. Bullied about my body. Found porn and developed a negative view of womanhood. |
13 | Developed a crush on a trans male, had a brief relationship. This kickstarted my trans identity. Began presenting as male online. |
13-18 | Lived a double life for 5 years: socially transitioned online as male, but not out to family. Was absolutely sure I was a man and planned to start medical transition at 18. |
18 | Began to seriously reflect and question. Realized my desire to transition was rooted in escapism, trauma, and low self-esteem. |
18 | Decided to try living as a male without medical intervention. The desire to transition faded. Began the process of desisting and returning to living as female. |
19-20 (Early 20s now) | Found peace and happiness as a female. The body dysmorphia and discomfort are still there but are managed. No longer want to transition. |
Top Comments by /u/Sad_Summer_8635:
I am so sorry and wish that you will find your peace. I fully see some of the similar things in my personal story. I am now in my early 20s, and definitely was not as reflective as you at 15. Hopefully reflecting and understanding the causes helps you to heal.
Although I luckily did not experience sexual violence as a child, I encountered >!porn!< at a very young age. Seeing the almost violent expressions towards women might have led me to similar subconscious conclusions as you - I could escape all that if I was a male, and not weak. Additionally, I had some online relationships where I remember being taken advantage of. Maybe I didn't realize at that time how it affected me, because in real life no one showed any interest in me (to the extent that I later on kind of sought that attention).
And feeling disconnected from femininity as well. I was bullied and lonely. Bullying probably made me hate my body, because the bullies used to comment my body especially. Then, it would be easy to escape that if I just was a male, they didn't comment boy bodies like that. But also the loneliness, feeling so different from everybody and then going into online world where being a boy would bring considerable advantages on girl-dominated spaces.
Meanwhile I somewhat agree, I think this person should seriously consider before taking T. I never took hormones and I feel like it was a blessing. In my understanding, they change things quite a bit. It might also be difficult to quit it once the changes have been noticeable to people, because of the stigma. The less changes, the easier to back off.
And if someone is in a detrans space looking for experiences of what could possibly go wrong, I think that is a great reason to just wait it out and make sure that it is really what is the best (not to say that careful consideration wouldn't be useful for some of those who are jumping straight into it as well). For so many people there are other reasons as well, and maybe transition doesn't fix those.
You know, escaping womanhood doesn't make your life perfect, and in many ways the other side is just the same with different problems and anxieties.
When I was at your place, waiting to be 18 to start transition and hormones, I was so sure I wanted to be a man. That I was a man already. But later, after desisting, I realized that I didn't want to be a man, I just wanted to escape my problems (bullying, loneliness, being a woman in this society).
Within a year, I desisted (after I had been trans for 5 years). In my case, I was not out and had to live a double life. I absolutely hated the situation back then but it was the thing that saved me and allowed me to change everything quite easily.
My point is, you are now 15, you are so young. You might not consider all the relevant causes and circumstances, you might realize a lot of stuff later on (this goes for adults too). If you are scared, transition won't take it automatically away, and many times it will not make your life better in a way you imagine.
It is possible that you transition and find that it is nice, but it is also possible that life is just the same or even worse. Please take your time, especially if you have any concerns.
This is true too, I understand your point better now. I remember how final everything felt and I couldn't find a way out although I was only socially transitioned (and was not even out to my family). In the end, life goes on, even if it is super difficult. But it would be awesome if this point of reflection prevented future regret and guilt.
I am a female desister and felt a lot of same feelings when I was trans, presenting as a male. I don't know how to help you but I just want to say something my own experience: desisting was not as horrible as I thought during my trans horror. I thought too that I will never find peace being female. Even in the early stages of becoming a female again I was sure I will never be happy, and yes, it was painful. But I am happy now, although all the things I hated about my female body are still here.
Sometimes there are other reasons to feel this way. I escaped my pain and found even more pain. I was scared to return the same path but surprisingly it was totally different.
Is it totally impossible for you to just try to live as a male? Maybe after some time you won't want the transition so bad. It is not guaranteed of course but maybe worth trying. Maybe, just maybe it will feel like an ease.
And maybe try to go through your life in general. Do you have enough good friends and support, hobbies? Try to spend more time with people and doing things you like, isolation just makes it million times worse. You will notice people liking you in a way you don't, and realize that you can accomplish all the same things in either gender. You cannot change your feet or body size but you can do everything all the same.
I had a little similar experience - a crush on a trans male and a brief relationship with him. I guess it kickstarted my trans identity. I wanted to be like him, and I wanted him to like me.
Social reasons might affect your will to transition, e.g. you feel like it is easier to function on the relationship/friendship world as a male. You like the male role better or you dislike womanhood because how women are treated, for example. Maybe someone has mistreated you and you have associated it to your gender at the time? I don't think that is a good enough reason to transition. It won't fix the issue on deeper level, or maybe everything will become even more complicated.
Thank you for sharing and your kind words - the loneliness has been the worst part for me. I adopted such a strong female identity afterwards and kind of wanted to push away everything that happened. I want to forget being a man. But it has been secretly terrifying me, especially in my dreams.
I feel like some of your experiences are very similar. You learned from your mother that men are dangerous, I learned it with porn, looking at how violently women were treated. And then, there is the male attention that girls "should" get and even look for. I escaped to trans identity because no one showed me that attention but instead bullied me because of my body (I think there is the root of the bodily hatred as well, I wanted to change everything about myself). As you said, as bigendered you could feel confident and liked. As a man, I could have friendships and romantic experiences I desperately wanted (although looking back, I'm sure I could have found online friends as a girl as well).
Seeking that male attention was the first phase after becoming a woman again, and the way it happened was another trauma. I got to realize something absolutely horrifying about womanhood - although men mostly are not like your mother has described, there are people who don't like me because of my beauty or my personality but what I can offer them.