Has the memory ever made you feel dysphoric?

[Motormouth95]

As I has getting up this morning, my right ear began to itch, so I scratched it. As I did, I felt the indentation where my ears had been pierced. My parents made me get them pierced when I was four because all little girls wear earrings. I hated them and refused to wear them. Eventually, I won the fight, and my ears slowly grew skin over the holes, but the mark is still visible twenty years later.  Any time I accidentally feel them, I feel slightly dysphoric. While I know that getting your ear pierced is not a gendered thing my, my mom made me have mine pierced because it's the normal thing for a female to have(earrings). As I grew up, occasionally, she'd mentioned how she wished she'd not allowed me to have the holes grow together because I was such a tomboy. (Asking why I couldn't allow myself to indulge her and be a typical teenager girl). Now, I don't care, but I have no desire to have my ears pierced again. 

I'm just curious if any of y'all have any similar issues. 

[sean erotix]

i get those sort of “flashes”, like putting on lip balm and its like lipstick.

if it makes you feel any better, there are some hot dudes with earrings. there used to be a connotation that earrings were exclusively for girls, but i think thats (amazingly) shifting. i still wear earrings, they shape my face good

also, that kinda sucks your parents forced you to get them. you should have a choice, even if youre freaking 4 years old.

[goisard]

Absolutely yes, my hair and nails are the main causes. My sister used to paint my nails a lot and well, I used to have long hair.

That's why I have to cut both of them so so frequently, sometimes I realise I can't sleep at night because I need to shorten my nails, some other times I can't study because I can tell my hair has grown like half a centimetre.

 

Parents make newborn girls get their ears pierced here, too (not me luckily, it's a Christian thing), but I recall some of them doing it to newborn boys too, if this helps you a bit.

[SL]

Definitely. I have nightmares that I have long hair and look super feminine again so even though I'm supposed to be doing something else in the dream/nightmare, all I can think about is how I can cut my hair. The shut down has been driving me crazy because my hair is growing out and I'm starting to panic a little. My mom went to barber school when she was younger so she could cut it but she won't. She says it's because she's scared she'll mess it up but she also didn't want me to get it cut short in the first place so part of me thinks this is just another of her transphobic ploys. I start getting panicky when my hair touches my ears and now they are almost covered so it's not fun. I know barbers are open but with how South Carolina's cases are spiking I don't think it's safe. I also have the long nail issue. My nails grow super quickly so if I don't take care of them every few days they start to bother me. 

 

I haven't had a the issue with my ears being pierced though. I never wanted them pierced, but I got it done just to make my sister shut up because she always bugged me about it the entire time we were at the mall and I was tired of it. I practically never wore earrings besides the first 8 weeks or whatever you have to keep them in and a few formal events. I think the fact that I pretty much never wore them helped keep me kind of forget about it so now they're kind of like just another weird bump. I also think some guys look good with earrings, but I personally don't think they fit my look.