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!

Staying young


Charlize

Recommended Posts

  • Forum Moderator

I was recently listening to a radio interview on NPR about change and how it affects the brain as we age.

I got me thinking and that can cause problems.

I am so happy when someone hears my age and says with seeming honest surprise "no way!". I almost kissed him when a new doctor came into the room and turned to go saying he was there to see a 67 year old woman. It is so pleasing that a bit of makeup and a good wig can take years away.

The question i'm asking myself is whether since change seems to keep our brains functioning longer i have also been doing that through transition. I can't think of a bigger change. Many days have been puzzles as i find my place in the world. Is it making my mind younger as well as the perception others have of my body?

I've faced fear, shame, and ridicule and found peace, acceptance and love. Maybe this transition thing is a fountain of youth. If so hope it keeps working because i'm not going back just for a double dip.

Hugs,

Charlize

Link to comment
  • Forum Moderator

Good for you Charlize :)

Change keeps perspectives fresh, wiliness to learn and grow, even at a latter stage. I can't imagine what I'd be doing if I did not change, 6 years ago I felt I was dying, my soul was dying inside, my body was following. Transition for me gave me a fresh start and liberated me, a chance to grow in new roles, those roles gave me new applied knowledge, a place to express myself in new ways, ways that were long suppressed. This is life long learning, this was not the easy way, but in those struggles, I reached higher. Exercise and HRT combined with regular Dr visits, have given my body and mind a fresh start. I feel young, I am young at heart, and have more energy and zest for life than I ever had. My peers have told me I look younger to them, maybe hormones do help, maybe it's that glow your skin takes on, dunno.

Be well, be free

Cyndi -

Link to comment
  • Forum Moderator

I so agree Caharlize. Five years ago I was old. And I didn't like it. I see friends locked in to ways of thinking because it is hoow they thought before and they are in ruts. So many people my age talk about how much better things used to be.

In fact a man I was working with as a volunteer setting up for a bicycle race was talking about how much better it used to be for everything. I grinned and just said not for me. I love information -now when I need an answer I don't have to comb through 5 sets of encyclopedias and hope I can find it at the library if I don't find it there. The world is at my fingertips.

And I like that now it is so much harder to hide the truth from people because there are so many sources that the history we are taught no longer reflects just the way wee like to pretend it was.

Five years ago I didn't feel like it was my world anymore. Now I do. Now I know age is irrelevant except for collecting social security - I am invested in the world now. In today. Not yesterday. And I plan to keep it that way till the day I die. Transitioning gave me a life I never really had in a sense. And that makes it all fresh and new And I think that makes me young. Involvement and enthusiasm. With the experience to appreciate just how lucky I really am.

Johnny

Link to comment
  • Forum Moderator

Thank you Cyndi and JJ for sharing the enthusiasm and joy you have found in your lives. Perhaps that is one of the main reasons i feel younger. I'm like a kid in a candy shop....so much to do and so many sweet choices i can make just because i'm finally free to be myself without the fear and shame i always lived with.

Hugs,

Charlize

Link to comment
  • Forum Moderator

I think a lot of it is outlook. A year ago, before I was ready to accept who and what I am, I was getting old. I felt old, and was resigned to it. Now that I'm coming to grips with myself as female inside, I'm finding a happiness deep down that I've never felt before. I'm not hiding from myself, I'm slowly becoming me more and more. I've noticed I'm no longer thinking how "old" I am. I feel younger again. And when a co-worker asked how old I was and I told him, his eyes popped open and his jaw dropped. He said he would have never guessed I was that old. Made me feel really good, so I can imagine how that doctor must have made you feel. It's nice to be young!?

Timber Wolf?

Link to comment
  • Forum Moderator

Change?

I tend to re-invent every few years so it is one of my concerns that my transition (as far as it may go) may only be part of this (seriously).

I don't think so!

My attitude to life is to be versatile and prepared to think as anyone. I do approach things as a child, teenager, adult or even elderly person if it helps me to a solution. My aim in life is to get answers and solutions to problems and am not afraid to be me and totally think outside the box to get there. My idol in this is Joe 90 (see old TV).

It may sound strange or silly but it has helped - I get answers and am not vegitating! (maybe just does not help with my street cred :unsure: )

As such old? your choice!

Tracy

Link to comment

I also noticed a change in the vein of feeling younger. Transition is in many ways a re-birth and things in my life were just there and it felt like one day was like all the rest. I was going through the motions but not feeling ALIVE.

Now that I am "alive" i always look forward to the next day and enjoy memories of the days that past.

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   4 Members, 0 Anonymous, 126 Guests (See full list)

    • Davie
    • VickySGV
    • Abigail Genevieve
    • Susie
  • Recently Browsing   0 members

    • No registered users viewing this page.
  • Forum Statistics

    • Total Topics
      80.7k
    • Total Posts
      768.4k
  • Member Statistics

    • Total Members
      12,029
    • Most Online
      8,356

    Selkimur
    Newest Member
    Selkimur
    Joined
  • Today's Birthdays

    1. Anyatimenow
      Anyatimenow
      (23 years old)
    2. Aria00
      Aria00
    3. Ava B.
      Ava B.
      (24 years old)
    4. Claire Heshi
      Claire Heshi
    5. CrystalMatthews0426
      CrystalMatthews0426
      (41 years old)
  • Posts

    • Abigail Genevieve
      I have read numerous accounts of trans folk no longer being welcome among evangelicals.   I am here for help and fellowship not to rebuke anyone.  I can take a pretty high degree of insult, etc., and you haven't insulted me, to my recollection anyway :) and I usually let it go.  But I thought I would let it all out there.   I am sure I disagree with you on numerous issues.  I appreciate other people's viewpoints, including those who radically disagree with me.  Intellectual challenge is good. One thing I appreciate about @MaeBe.
    • Abigail Genevieve
      Congrats!
    • Sally Stone
      Post 8 “The Ohio Years” We moved to Pittsburgh because of the job with US Airways.  The job involved classroom instruction and simulator training, but no actual flying, so I kept looking for an actual pilot position.  A year after signing on with US Airways I got hired to fly business jets.  The company was located in Cleveland, Ohio, but I was flown commercially from my home in Pittsburgh to where my aircraft was located, making it unnecessary to live near company headquarters.    My flight scheduled consisted of eight days on duty with seven days off.  Having seven days off in a row was great but being gone from home eight days in a row was difficult.  For the first few years the flying was fun, but after a while the eight flying days in a row, were taking their toll on me.  Those days were brutal, consisting of very long hours and a lot of flying time.  Usually, I came home exhausted and need three days just to recover from the work week.  Flying for a living is glamorous until you actually do it.  Quickly, it became just a job.    After five years as a line captain, I became a flight department manager, which required we live near company headquarters.  That meant a move to Cleveland.  Working in the office meant I was home every night but as a manager, the schedule was still challenging.  I would work in the office all week and then be expected to go out and fly the line on weekends.  I referred to it as my “5 on 2 on” schedule, because it felt as though I had no time off at all.   About the same time, we moved to Cleveland, my wife and I became “empty nesters,” with one son in the military and the other away at college.  Sadly, my work schedule didn’t leave much time for Sally.  Add to the fact that while Cleveland is an awesome city, I just never felt comfortable expressing my feminine side.  Most of my outings, and believe me there weren’t enough, occurred while I was on vacation and away from home.   One of the most memorable outings occurred over a long weekend.  I had stumbled across an online notice for a spring formal being held in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, hosted by a local trans group there.  I reached out to Willa to see if she was up for an excellent adventure.  She was, so I picked her up and we drove to Harrisburg together.    The formal was held on Saturday evening and we had the absolute best time.  It turned out that organizers were a group named TransCentralPA.  Everyone was wonderful and I made a lot of new friends that evening.  We learned the spring formal was one of the group’s annual events but for the following year, instead of a spring formal, the group wanted to do a local transgender conference.  That local conference would become the Keystone Conference, and I would attend every year for the next 12.  My move to the west coast was the only reason I stopped attending annually.  I went to the first annual Keystone Conference as an attendee, but in subsequent years I served as a volunteer and as a workshop presenter; more about those in the next installment.   For my Cleveland years, the Keystone Conference would be my major outlet for feminine self-expression.  Yes, I did get out on other occasions, but they were too infrequent.  The managerial job just didn’t allow me the freedom I needed to adequately live my feminine life, and my frustration level was slowly, but steadily on the rise.  It amazed me how adversely not being able to express the feminine half of my personality was affecting my happiness.   However, a major life change was upcoming, and while it would prove to be a significant challenge in many ways, the events would ultimately benefit my female persona.  First, my mom and dad got sick.  They were in and out of the hospital and required personal care.  My wife and I did our best but living in Cleveland, we were too far from them to give them the support they both needed.  Second, I was experiencing serious job burn out.  I decided I need to find another job and I needed to be closer to my parents.    Things changed for the better when I got hired by an aviation training company as a flight simulator instructor.  I would be training business jet pilots.  The training facility was located in New Jersey, which put us much closer to my parents, and the work schedule was much better for quality of life.  Most importantly, this life change would help Sally re-emerge and once again flower.    Hugs,   Sally       
    • Mmindy
      I made a living talking about bulk liquids in cargo tanks transportation as a driver and mechanic. Safe loading/unloading, cleaning and inspecting, as well as emergency response scenarios.   Hazmat and fire behavior in the fire service as well as emergency vehicle operations and safe driving. "It was on fire when they called you. It will be on fire when you get there." Arrive ready to work. I could also talk about firefighter behavioral  heath and the grieving process.   The real fun thing is I can do this for people who are not Truck Drivers or Fire Fighters. Girl Scouts, Boy Scouts, Citizen Tax payers about Public Safety Education.   I love public speaking,   Mindy🌈🐛🏳️‍⚧️🦋
    • Mmindy
      Congratulations to the mom and family @Ivy on the addition of another child.   Hugs,   Mindy🌈🐛🏳️‍⚧️🦋
    • MaeBe
      Congrats to you and yours!
    • Ashley0616
      YAY! Congratulations on a granddaughter!
    • Ashley0616
      I recommend CarComplaints.com | Car Problems, Car Complaints, & Repair/Recall Information. A lot of good information
    • LucyF
      I've got Spironolactone ___mg and Evorel ___mcg Patches (2 a week) going up to ___mg after 4 weeks 
    • Ivy
      Got a new Granddaughter this morning.  Mother and child (and father) are doing fine. This makes 7 granddaughters and one grandson.  I have 2 sons and 6 daughters myself.  And then I  switched teams.  I think this stuff runs in the family. Another hard day for the patriarchy.
    • Ivy
      Like @MaeBe pointed out, Trump won't do these things personally.  I doubt that he actually gives a rat's a$$ himself.  But he is the foot in the door for the others.   I don't really see this.  Personally, I am all in favor of "traditional" families.  I raised my own kids this way and it can work fine.  But I think we need to allow for other variations as well.   One thing working against this now is how hard it is for a single breadwinner to support a family.  Many people (I know some) would prefer "traditional" if they could actually afford it.  Like I mentioned, we raised our family with this model, but we were always right at the poverty level.   I was a "conservative evangelical" for most of my life, actually.  So I do understand this.  Admittedly, I no longer consider myself one. I have family members still in this camp.  Some tolerate me, one actually rejects me.  I assure you the rejection is on her side, not mine.  But, I understand she believes what she is doing is right - 'sa pity though. I mean no insult toward anyone on this forum.  You're free to disagree with me.  Many people do.   This is a pretty complex one.  Socialism takes many forms, many of which we accept without even realizing it.  "Classism" does exist, for what it's worth.  Always has, probably always will.  But I don't feel like that is a subject for this forum.   As for the election, it's shaping up to be another one of those "hold your nose" deals.
    • Ivy
      Just some exerts regarding subjects of interest to me.
    • Ivy
      Yeah.  In my early teens I trained myself out of a few things that I now wish I hadn't.
    • Abigail Genevieve
      I was thinking in particular of BLM, who years ago had a 'What We Believe' section that sounded like they were at war with the nuclear family.   I tried to find it. Nope.  Of interest https://www.politifact.com/article/2020/aug/28/ask-politifact-does-black-lives-matter-aim-destroy/   My time is limited and I will try to answer as I can.
    • Ivy
      Well, I suppose it is possible that they don't actually plan on doing what they say.  I'm not too sure I want to take that chance.  But I kinda expect to find out.  Yet, perhaps you're right and it's all just talk.  And anyway, my state GOP is giving me enough to worry about anyway. I remember a time when being "woke" just meant you were paying attention.  Now it means you are the antichrist. I just don't want the government "protecting" me from my personal "delusions."
  • 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...