Jump to content
  • Welcome to the TransPulse Forums!

    We offer a safe, inclusive community for transgender and gender non-conforming folks, as well as their loved ones, to find support and information.  Join today!

Words That Are Not Ok


Guest ashermohawk

Recommended Posts

Guest ThomasJames

i can't stand discussing...periods in reference to myself. my girlfriend will be complaining about hers and i have no problem. hell i ask her if she needs me to do anything and sadly i've memorized most of my friends' cycles. but ever since i started mine my mom and i have referred to the stuff for them soley as items. and the first time, i got so sick i went to the hospital so at first i blamed the blood on my sever kidney infection.

Link to comment
Guest ashermohawk

oh, this conversation started up again? cool.

something that also gets on my nerves is my aunt. her nickname for me is "Girly". she actually calls me "girly" in place of my name........BAH!!! :doh1:

Link to comment
Guest Juniper Blue

in my teens and early twenties I actually would stutter when trying to say the word lesbian ... I was raised with homophobia and the word was said like a dirty word and it took me a long time to re-claim it. Now, I can say that I am a lesbian without a feeling of deep sense of shame and with even some pride. I do not perfectly identify with the word ... but I see it as a clinical term that defines how I am viewed (legally) in society. I see myself as pan gender and androgynous ... neither male or female ... So, I do not feel the term lesbian really fits ... Also, I am attracted to women but I do not limit myself and define myself to this as a rigid and permanent reality ... in this sense, I identify better as pan sexual. I tend to fall in love with women but I am open to loving a person beyond gender and I have dated other genders on occasion.

So, back to terms .. none feel "right" but they help us to communicate and so, I prefer terms that are anatomically correct or linguistically correct as I see these as most respectful in most instances. If a person is triggered, I woudl try to avoid these words as much as is possible.

- J

Link to comment

Off the top of my head, I don't have a problem with any particular words when I hear them by themselves. I hear lots of slang words every day and am fine with it. I even use slang myself a lot like many bio guys. Though not in a disrespectful, offensive way. And I don't ever ever call people something they don't want to be called. But being as I'm a guy, I talk like a guy.

The thing is that when words like "lesbian" (NO offense to lesbians, I'm just not one :) ), period, chick, she, her etc. are applied to me personally, it upsets and angers me insanely, sometimes with a force I can't control. It makes me want to freak out and scream and hit. If anyone refers to my genitals with female words, I get super dysphoric - right away! It really makes me angry!

So the words by themselves I don't have a problem with but when they're used about me, it feels like one of the worst forms of abuse ever.

Talon.

Link to comment
Guest Juniper Blue

Yes, Talon ... I have a experienced a couple of times when a guy would say very deliberately and rather loudly "Young Lady" or "Ma'am" as if it were a mockery ... I felt that this was trans phobic and done to "put me in my place" It is very abusive. Words can be used like weapons.

Link to comment

I feel the same as many who have posted before. I can't use the words 'breasts', 'period', or so on, in reference to myself. I hardly even say them about others. I refer to 'that thing that happens to me every month' as 'crap happening'. And if I need items relating to that, I keep it very vague. So vague, I'm surprised anyone catches on. :P And I could hardly bear to even write 'bra' in one of my fictional stories.

I hate being 'ladies'd' when I'm out with female relatives. Ughhh... :banghead: And the word 'woman' in reference to me, terrifies me. But the worst of all... being called a female specific insult. You know the sort... a five letter word starting with a B, for one. :angry: That type of thing makes me more dysphoric, oddly, than someone referencing my anatomy. I had that happen once and curled into a ball over it... felt terrible, and dirty for days. -_-

Though, I'm not bothered by the words, in themselves. In fact, even slang doesn't bother me unless, of course, people are being sexist or something. If someone called me a female insult in jest, or for another reason, as long as they saw me as male, I wouldn't care. I just never want to be called something simply because I'm seen as female.

Link to comment
Guest NadineB

Before transition being referred to as a "big guy" always got me. During transition it's the "sir", "he", and "him" but for the most part it's stopped. Except for the phone :-(

The words that get me seeing red now are "Transgender" "she male" "he/she" and "it" and one I had never heard until a butch lesbo walked up to me and called me her sister/bro, then kept talking and called me a "Transgender". The derogatory terms I just used for her is still my anger at being outed in public by her. Then the b@&$h hit on my partner. I could have slapped her back under that rock she came out under.

I am a woman........get it right!!!

Hehe, sorry bout the outburst.

Luv Nadine

Link to comment
Guest ashermohawk

yes, i have been the subject of some "transexualist" comments as well. in the 10th grade, i was walking down the hall, wearing as manly an outfit as i could risk at the time, and behind me this girl and guy were talking and then looked at me and said, "oh look! now that is a real she/he! yo she/he! where ya goin?" i just ignored them and went on my way.

then last year i had gym class, and it was the swimming section. i was having "that time of the month where my stomach hurts" so i didnt have to swim. by this time, i was binding and wearing mostly guys clothes, but was still not out. so, while i was reading my book by the side of the pool, these two guys walked past, and one of them said, "hey, wassup fruit-loop?" at first i was confused, cuz i had only really ever heard that used to insult gay guys. the other guy said, "who are you talking to?" "that!" he pointed to me, "thats a MAN right there!" now, normally i would have been happy that someone recognized the gender i was trying to emulate, but in this situation it was being used as an insult! *sigh* ignorant stupid ghetto black-people! (its ok, i'm black, so i can say that!)

Link to comment
Guest Lonewolf13

Absolutely agree. Those words hurt like hell when in relation to me and I try to ignore/avoid them entirely if possible but if its referring to someone else then its no problem. Somehow I think the unnecassery words like ' miss, girls, she, lady 'etc ( seanjamie - I feel for you, your my little girl is one of the worst thing to be called) as it just feels like an insult or a stab in the back. I have to really hold back my anger when anyone says these things to me. luckily Ive persuaded my mum to mostly say 'guys' not 'girls' when shes talking to me with my friends etc.

Link to comment
Guest mynameisjay

I don't do well with anantomical words either, but the worst thing ever was when my ex-girlfriend and I had recently broken up and were trying to still be friends. We were going somewhere and I was driving. I was telling her about then night before when I'd been out at the bar with friends and been hit on. Her response was "But you're my girl." I swear I thought about hitting the brakes so hard she'd go through the windshield. It was just this moment of red rage. I hadn't told her about my being transgender at that point, so it wasn't intentional, but boy did it rub me the wrong way. Of course that moment passed. Now I am out to her and she's very supportive.

Jay

Link to comment
Guest Masculinity

I have no problem with those words, but I do hate the word ''lesbian'' because it sounds bad...couldn't they come up with a better name for homosexual women?

I hate it when people call me beautiful, princess, little girl, woman and those kinds of female names...yet, I'm still waiting for the day when people can just call me dude, man, etc.

Link to comment
Guest Call me DEAN

Personnaly, I've always hated my name. It's soft, it's long for nothing and there are no male equivalents (such as Martin for Martine or Charles for Charlotte). Now only do I realize why I've never liked it: way too feminine. I cringe almost everytime I hear my full name.

Like others have mentionned, I also don't like the word lesbian when it's used to describe me. It doesn't fit. Again, now only do I know why I've always dislike it. And Masculinity's right, the word itself does sound pretty bad. I don't like words about female genitalia either. Yuck. Nope. It's not like I have anything against women or anything. Those words just rub me the wrong way.

Dean

Link to comment

Dean, I feel the same way about my given name. The girl name. I mean, I am changing my name right now and everyone will soon call me the right name and pronouns. But I cringe as well when I hear my given name. The very most, of course, when it is used on me. And also when people say she. I know they don't do it out of evil but it still feels like some sort of abuse. But also when I hear my given name for other people with that name, it makes me cringe because my every association with the name is negative, painful and full of bad memories. Maybe in time it'll be better, maybe you kind of distance yourself from your given girl name a bit more and can think of it more as a general name and maybe your old name, something that doesn't apply to you anymore. I hope that eases up a bit. Time will tell. If I meet a person with the same name as my given girl name, I even feel uncomfortable calling that person by her name because every part of me hates saying or writing that name.

Link to comment
Guest Amethyst_Redemption

Like the lesbian thing i hated the term 'gay' in reference to myself because of the implied 'male liking ...' aspect of it.

I feel ya

April

Link to comment
Guest Kael147

Language is so strange. There are words I don't like, but they only the bad "c" words both male and female. I used to have a hard time saying either one, but the other words just feel awkward. When I'm called she or he these days I feel like I'm squirming. See - I'm in limbo land. I look like a woman (butch woman, but a woman), dress like a man, am a man, but can't pull off man completely. So anytime someone refers to me by a gender, I squirm. If it's as a woman (any term) I feel like they are judging me that I'm not "feminine enough" to be a "woman" and when they refer to me as male gender terms, I feel like they are going to realize their mistake and it'll be all weird.

Does that make sense? L I M B O LAND sucks!

Kael

Link to comment
Guest mynameisjay

Kael, I totally get it bro! I hate having to open my mouth and speak, because that instantly takes me from "sir" to "oh, I'm sorry maam." It's like a rollercoaster...happy to be recognized as male but waiting for the other shoe to drop (and as soon as they hear my voice it does).

Jay

Link to comment
Guest Juniper Blue

I think the theme here is that MEN prefer to NOT be referred to as women and are uncomfortable to have female terms, including pronouns driected at them. This seems perfectly reasonable and should not be an issue ... in a "perfect world." I feel that it is very abusive when people refuse to refer to others as they wish to be addressed and with the terms and PGP's that they request. As an androgyne, I feel more flexibilty but if I was 100% male identified, I believe that my feelings would be very different ... most men that I know would take great offense to anyone calling them "girl" etc. or using female terms to describe thier male anatomy. It really bothers me when people act in dense ways regarding peoples names, PG"S etc. in fact, it makes me feel quite angry. This happend a lot to Chaz when he was on DWTS for instance, and I was vocal about it on MSN and other on-line web-sites.

Link to comment

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
  • Who's Online   2 Members, 0 Anonymous, 184 Guests (See full list)

    • Carolyn Marie
    • VickySGV
  • Recently Browsing   0 members

    • No registered users viewing this page.
  • Forum Statistics

    • Total Topics
      80.8k
    • Total Posts
      769.9k
  • Member Statistics

    • Total Members
      12,085
    • Most Online
      8,356

    blakethetiredracc00n
    Newest Member
    blakethetiredracc00n
    Joined
  • Today's Birthdays

    1. FullyHart
      FullyHart
    2. MariPosa
      MariPosa
      (65 years old)
    3. pechenezhka
      pechenezhka
      (17 years old)
    4. Rubycd
      Rubycd
      (59 years old)
    5. Yana
      Yana
      (31 years old)
  • Posts

    • Carolyn Marie
      I've been looking forward to the legitimate medical groups coming out strongly against Cass' biased and one sided report, so I'm really glad to see the article you posted, @Davie.  Unfortunately, it won't get nearly the coverage that Cass has gotten.  She has done her dirty work.  Hopefully the pushback and investigative reports on her and her support network will result in her work being shown for what it is.  She is a fraud, and sooner or later all frauds are found out.   Carolyn Marie
    • KayC
      CONGRATULATIONS, Jessica!!  That's really BIG! I myself did not experience a huge emotional roller coaster.  It was more like a smooth slide into emotional comfort.  The biggest effect I felt is when my Dr put me on T-blockers first.  I felt a bit 'empty' for a couple of months, but then realized it was just because the 'T-monster' was no longer running around inside of me.  Then I felt it was my new 'normal'. I feel like the estradiol was the 'frosting' on my transition affirmation.  It's been only positives.  I do cry a lot more, but it's only because I finally feel free to allow my emotions to come out.  To me it's not 'hormonal' ... it's FREEDOM!   Everybody is different but it sounds like you are under great care.  I hope you have a beautiful first year in transition on HRT (keep us updated if you can).
    • Desert Fox
      Yeah, whatever happened to “good morning”?  I think “hey you” can also work to address people without offense…”you” can be single or plural so that works for any gender, non binary, or any group of people, and can be pleasantly offensive or neutral.   And I am very familiar with the experience of being “ma’amed” while in boy mode, particularly on the phone by customer support people located outside north America for some reason. 
    • KayC
      I'm hoping this election cycle might finally cause 'that' party to pay a price for such nonsense.
    • Desert Fox
      So nice to hear things are going well for you. Support is huge and that is especially great when it comes from your SO as well as your family and son. I think being happy with one’s own life’s direction can set the stage for not only other successes but attract others who are in alignment with one’s own ideals. it sounds like you are definitely on a positive trajectory!
    • Desert Fox
      There is some progress being made, some positive awakening from those who understand the difference between biology and the societal roles and rules that have been created by humans to separate, restrict and control other humans. Unfortunately so many people are still set in one way of thinking about gender, whether it benefits them directly to do so or they just fail to think about things for themselves for whatever reason, and they often cite religious or other historical sources to try to back up their argument, sources which typically could be open to various interpretations.   Pushing boundaries is what makes progress and it’s what we are meant to do…but most everyone that has pushed a boundary also gets pushback. Most everyone who has disagreed with conventional thought is called a fool or worse; those who invent something get ridiculed and laughed out, then their ideas are stolen for someone else’s profit. We suffer tremendously to push boundaries but ultimately it’s what society needs to evolve.
    • Ashley0616
      Goodness! You sure have been busy! That's really crappy of what your oldest pulled. That part about the talking about getting asked if it's an enhancement was funny. I guess your boss is going to miss you and just has a funny way of showing it? 
    • Desert Fox
      I read this thread with great interest…thank you, Sally for sharing your life in this detail. As I too identify as bigender, I suppose I am also looking for validation of my experience because I don’t know many transgender individuals that stay in a long-term part-time situation. For most, bigender seems to be a temporary step to fill-time transition or it is more of something someone puts on, as in cross dressing or drag. I have always struggled to explain how someone could legitimately have two identities sharing one body, yet that’s basically how it has been for me for my whole life, all the way back to early childhood.    You and I are roughly in the same era, and growing up with gender variance was different than it is nowadays. Some of our experiences were similar, but generally your life went quite differently than mine.   Back in the day, a part-time person was called a transvestite and a full-timer was called a transsexual (often committing to bottom surgery as well), but I’ve really come to dislike the cross dresser/transvestite label because it tends to be associated with those who are fine with being cis, but like to dress in drag for fun or fetish. And that doesn’t describe all part-timers. I would say that I’m actually a transsexual who chose never to transition, and presenting female part-time is how I have coped with lifelong gender dysphoria. I don’t like myself being male, and never did, I simply accept that I am and have lived most of my life that way and just don’t care to put in the effort and money to transition.  I’m naturally a pretty girly male but I have to add hair, makeup and clothing to present female and I also try to “tone down” my girliness in male form. True androgyny never worked for me; I always switched between male and female looks, but at least that allowed me to use public bathrooms without issue.     I’m very curious - did you have a set of people, ie friends, family, coworkers, who only knew you as “male” and another set who knew you as Sally, with only a few (like your wife) knowing both sides? Such was more or less the case with me. 
    • mattie22
      I feel like a fake sometimes I am not really transfeminine WELL UNDER THEAT UMBRALA but whatever i call it. Like i do not deserve it others know ealer than me and did not identify as their gender at birth well It is more like just enough of me did to get by growing up and there were not many other options on what else i could be and when i got older i just found out about the standard trans people feel like they're born in the wrong body and i saw my self as a male so this could not be me even though it did not comply fit me. even though there is a part of me that likes to be seen and treated like a woman and ideally would probably like to live at least 70 percent of my time as one and perhaps the rest as male but what does this make a freak. also, I am around people who do not like people like me and they are family and do not know. this makes me feel even worse. Sometimes I wonder if I m just some gnc male, who is just using this as an escape if I become a woman for real I do not have to deal with all the crap that comes with being a feminine bisexual male. There are so many layers.
    • MaeBe
      I bet you looked every pennies worth of that million! I'm sure, even beyond the courtier's interactions it was a very fun evening.
    • MaeBe
      I haven't been posting much, it's been a bit of a whirlwind: My wife took a job in WA State, meaning we're moving halfway across the country by the end of the Summer. I was told "it would be good if you had a new job by the end of the month", meaning I'm getting laid off at the same time. My eldest snuck booze while we were at our friends' house, had a bad interaction with his anti-depressants, and then had the huevos to lie that he wasn't drunk while accusing us of not trusting him. There's been a lot to process lately.   That said, I got called ma'am for the first time today while out. Twice! I can't stop thinking about it. Later, my dad showed up without plan to watch the Liverpool match and I was way more girled up (see ma'am) than he's ever seen me; hair, makeup, tight top, skinny jeans, and brand new sandals. At one point he pointed at my boob and asked, "is that 'enhancement'?". If you call a t-shirt bra enhancement, I guess? "Nope, that's just me!". Later, my boss came at me all passive-aggressive via chat after hours, too. I'm kind of tired with his -crap-. I won't have a job in two weeks, so it's cool to just assume I'm sabotaging things? K. /eyeroll   It's been an interesting day.
    • Sally Stone
      Post 12   “First Kiss”   It was October 29th, 2003.  My dear friend Willa had purchased tickets for the two of us to attend “Red Hot Halloween,” a public Halloween party held at the Sanctuary in downtown Pittsburgh.  The event was a fund raiser benefitting the Pittsburgh AIDS Task Force.  It was a great cause but it was also the perfect opportunity to let the adventurous side of my feminine persona have a little fun.    My first question to Willa was: “What should I wear?”    “Are you kidding?” She responded.  “This is your opportunity to be the Sally of your dreams.  I suggest you dress to impress.”   My first thought was to dress naughty.  It was Halloween, so it could be the perfect venue for something with an erotic edge to it.  I thought about going as a dominatrix or a naughty French maid.  After we talked about it, and weighed the pros and cons, Willa and I decided against naughty, and instead, chose to wear the fanciest evening gowns we could find.  Willa bought an expensive, silver sequined gown, and matching high-heels just for the event.  Me, on the other hand, I couldn’t justify spending big bucks on an evening gown for a single event, so I took a less expensive route.  It is amazing what you can find on the sale racks at big department stores when you look hard enough.  For a mere 30-dollars, I found a black, sleeveless column gown with matching bolero jacket.  The dress had a slit up the right leg, and it went all the way to my upper thigh, very sexy.  Being a column dress, it was form-fitting, and hugged my curves like a glove.  To complement my dress, I wore black patent high-heel pumps, a long blonde wig, and a set of long red fingernails.  As I recall, it took me three-hours just to do my makeup.  The end result, though, was worth the effort, because I felt like a million bucks.  It’s so obvious, why girls love dressing up – it’s an unbelievable high!   Inside the club it was a sea of bodies and the costumes were amazing.  At one point, I was standing on a balcony that overlooked the dance floor.  I was nursing a cocktail and watching the crowd.  Suddenly, there was a gentleman standing next to me; I didn’t notice his approach.  He told me I looked fabulous and he offered to buy me another drink.  I declined his drink offer, but we struck up a conversation.  Being a little slow, it took me a while to realize he was hitting on me. I never imagined anyone would ever actually be attracted to Sally, which I think contributed to my cluelessness.  So, I was shocked, and initially, a little creeped out as well.  After all, I wasn't into guys, and this was new to me.  As we continued talking, and he kept throwing accolades my way, I went from being uncomfortable to actually being flattered.    The event, being an AIDS fund raiser, had me assuming this guy was hitting on me because he was gay, and he thought I was, as well.  I wanted to set the record straight, so I casually mentioned that I wasn’t gay.  To my amazement, he responded by saying: “neither am I.”  Okay, now what was I supposed to do?  I didn’t want to be rude, but I didn’t want to send the wrong message either.  While I was trying to decide how to tell him I wasn’t interested, he asked if he could kiss me.  Not sure what I was thinking at that moment, I said “okay.”  He kissed me, and as strange as it was, I gave into it, not pulling away or disengaging.  It wasn’t a super passionate kiss, but it was more than a friendly peck on the lips, and I actually enjoyed it.  When we separated; however, I got the sense his passion had cooled.  I could only assume that my response to his kiss sent some kind of message that I wasn’t interested.    Whatever it was he picked up on, it let me off the hook, and I didn’t have to rebuff any further advances.  For this I was grateful, but at the same time, I was actually a little disappointed.  Clearly, I wasn’t going to lead him on, but it was so gratifying to know I had sparked his interest.  Despite his diminished passion, and his obvious realization I wasn’t going to be his girl, he remained the perfect gentleman.  We chatted for a few minutes more, then he gave me the nicest smile.  Again, he commented on how terrific I looked.  Then he added, “maybe I’ll see you later.”    It was hard for me to reconcile how I could have garnered the attention of a man.  In my mind’s eye, I knew my feminine presentation didn’t completely mask my birth sex, so why would a self-proclaimed straight guy actually be interested in me?  Had it been the only time something like this would happen, I would have chalked it up to random chance.  But it wouldn’t be the last time a man would hit on me.  It doesn’t happen often, but it still occurs more than I would have guessed, and I'm always surprised.    I have never asked, but I have always been curious to know my would-be suitor’s motivations.  Were they hitting on me simply because they happened to be fond of trans women, or was their attraction triggered by connecting with my inner woman?  And, however unlikely, did they mistake me for a cis woman?  I guess it really doesn’t matter much one way or the other, because ultimately, I’m not looking for any kind of a relationship.  However, I’d be fibbing if I said I wasn’t at least a little interested in another opportunity to get kissed.   Hugs,   Sally
    • Ivy
    • Betty K
      Thanks Davie! And don’t worry, I didn’t take it that way. It’s just such a big topic I can only hope to tackle it one bit at a time.
    • KathyLauren
      This is not uncommon.  I started out going to the therapist in androgynous clothing: from the women's department, but plausibly masculine.  What made it easier was when I started going to a trans peer support group.  Most of the people there were presenting fully feminine, so I looked out of place in my androgynous clothing.  The peer pressure made it easier to dress in skirts.   I started out changing in a gender-neutral bathroom near the meeting room.  But I soon started wearing skirts in the car to and from the meetings.   Yes, it was nerve-wracking at first, but I soon realized that no one was looking and no one cared.    You can do this.
  • Upcoming Events

Contact TransPulse

TransPulse can be contacted in the following ways:

Email: Click Here.

To report an error on this page.

Legal

Your use of this site is subject to the following rules and policies, whether you have read them or not.

Terms of Use
Privacy Policy
DMCA Policy
Community Rules

Hosting

Upstream hosting for TransPulse provided by QnEZ.

Sponsorship

Special consideration for TransPulse is kindly provided by The Breast Form Store.
×
×
  • Create New...