This story is from the comments listed below, summarised by AI.
Authenticity Assessment: Suspicious Account
Based on the provided comments, the account "SpiritofJames" is likely inauthentic as a detransitioner or desister.
Red Flags:
- The user explicitly states, "I'm neither trans nor detrans, just an observer." This is a direct admission that they are not speaking from personal experience.
- The language is consistently analytical, philosophical, and detached, lacking the personal, emotional narrative typical of someone who has lived through the experience.
- Comments focus on debating the abstract concept of being "trans" rather than sharing a personal journey of transition and detransition.
About me
I spent years in online communities trying to understand the concept of being transgender, but the idea of a person being misaligned with their body never made sense to me. I worried that young people were rushing into labels and medical changes before truly knowing themselves, potentially creating new problems on top of old ones. I believe our biological sex is a fundamental part of who we are and that true self-acceptance means finding peace with your body as it is. My journey has been one of observation, and I regret seeing so much pain that leads people to seek such drastic solutions. I hope others can find the patience to discover themselves without feeling pressured to change their bodies.
My detransition story
Looking back at everything I’ve written here over the past few years, I see a journey of trying to understand something that, frankly, never made complete sense to me. I never transitioned myself, but I spent a lot of time observing and thinking deeply about what it means to be trans.
My main struggle has always been with the fundamental idea of being "trans." I’ve never been able to wrap my head around what it actually means to say someone "doesn't align with their body." To me, that sounds like saying someone doesn't align with needing to breathe oxygen. Our bodies are a fundamental reality. We can have incredibly complicated feelings about them—we can hate parts of them, feel uncomfortable with them, wish they were different—but the idea of a complete misalignment between a person and their physical self seems vague and confusing to me. I saw people, especially young people, latching onto these labels and identities, and it often struck me as tragic. I worried that they were being staked to a frame before they’d had the time to truly grow and discover who they are.
I believe that who we are is somewhat mysterious and can't be easily categorized. There's a danger in demanding that you fit into a preconceived notion of who you should be, whether that's an orientation or a gender identity. What I always wanted to communicate was a sense of patience. You don't need to have all the answers right now. In fact, you might never have them all, and that's okay.
Part of my concern came from a belief that transitioning could signal a deeper issue. I wondered if it sometimes stemmed from a lack of self-regard or self-worth. I thought that if you can't extend love and acceptance to yourself in your own body, how can you build a healthy relationship with someone else that requires those very things? It seemed like transitioning might create new obstacles in life, both biological and social, on top of that initial struggle.
I also questioned the common narrative that downplays the value of being female. I saw people viewing female biological capacities, like the ability to bear children, as a disadvantage. To me, that seemed like an irrational depreciation of something profoundly powerful. It’s not about one sex being stronger or better; it’s about different trade-offs.
My thoughts on gender are that it is deeply tied to our biological sex. I believe a male who transitions is still fundamentally a male who has undergone unique experiences. Those experiences don't make him less of a man; depending on how he integrates them, they could even make him more of one. I don't have a fear of trans people; I just have a different, and I believe well-researched, perspective that challenges what is often taught in mainstream spaces.
Since I never transitioned, I don't have personal regrets about a transition. My "journey" has been one of observation and philosophical questioning. I regret that so many young people feel such deep pain and confusion, and I hope they can find peace with the reality of who they are, without feeling the need to fundamentally change their bodies to fit an idea.
| Age | Year | Event |
|---|---|---|
| N/A | 2019-2020 | Period of active observation and commenting in online communities, trying to understand the concept of being transgender. |
| N/A | Ongoing | Maintained the perspective that biological sex is a fundamental reality and that identity is complex and benefits from patience. |
Top Comments by /u/SpiritofJames:
Good vid, but I honestly don't understand the recommitment and restated conviction that "there are people that don't align with their bodies." What does this even mean? To me it would be like saying "there are people who don't align with oxygen respiration" or "there are people who don't align with urination or defecation." The realities of what is and who we are can be super complicated, so we have any number of complex feelings about them. But what is "not aligning with" the reality actually communicating? And why insist on reifying some sort of idealized or theorized "trans" identity for something so confused/vague/ambiguous?
Note: I'm neither trans nor detrans, just an observer.
What exactly is "trans?" I admit I can't understand it. As a basic idea, I think it's incoherent. I can imagine that careful attention to the thought processes and theories involved might lead many other people to this same conclusion.
I don't comment here often. This may come off too harshly, and if so I apologize.
Given that healthy relationships demand not only acceptance but, further, sustained contributions of love, care, commitment, honesty, etc, do you find it surprising that it is harder to telegraph your capacity for these things to others after signalling through "transition" that you could not do the same for and to yourself? I suspect many people, including me, would see this kind of behavior (transitioning) as often indicative of a lack of self-regard or self-worth. That, even before or above and beyond biological and other social challenges introduced by transition, might be part of the new obstacles you're encountering.
You've been through some unique experiences the likes of which are almost entirely new to us as humans and to the natural world as a whole. Modern technologies, like the medical technology that you've used, produce new sets of powers and experiences that act on us in novel ways. But it is still a far cry from changing you at bottom. The biological, psychological, and, perhaps, spiritual foundations of who you are remain, largely if not wholly untouched. You are a male who has faced novel challenges and experienced unique and novel things. It is in your power to discover what to make of them. Yet I'd like to assure you that you are no less of a male -- of a man -- because you've gone through them. Depending on what you make of them, they may make you more of a man.
As a man, let me point out: being "strong" and able in certain contexts is nice, but the trade-off is not being able to do many things women can do. And that's what it is: trade-offs. If, for example, one doesn't appreciate procreation or child rearing as much as one should, it will appear like women simply got the short end of nature's stick. But I'm not sure why the depreciation of such capacities should occur.... One thing you might ask is if that is irrational.
I don't think labels are very helpful, especially in teenage and young adult years. The fact is that who and what you are is somewhat mysterious and beyond easy categorization. I think that people should let themselves have the time to emerge and grow before being staked to a frame. Yet at the same time you have a significant power to shape who and what you are, even intentionally, and categories and labels can be a part of that. Perhaps there's a balance to be found.
There does seem to be significant risk, however, to demanding that you fit some preconceived or socially conceived notion of "orientation." I suppose what I want to communicate is a sense of patience and calm about it all. You don't have to grasp all the answers right now (or even ever).
Phobia is an irrational fear. I have no irrational fear of transexuals or transvestites or any form of "trans" anything. I'm simply educated about the topic beyond what Sociology 203 or Diversity and Inclusion 105 at your local University will teach you (or their derivatives on social media).
Long time lurker here. I've been trying to understand what "kids these days" are going through, and this is the first thing I've seen to really help me connect emotionally to someone transitioning. Yet I still find this video mostly, if not entirely, tragic....