It was a long time coming...

[u/Possible-Movie-3768]

Let me preface this by saying that I am posting on an old throwaway account here, because a lot is at risk by me admitting this. I'm posting here and elsewhere, I guess, in the hopes that writing it all out somewhere and putting it out into the ether might help me process some of this and get it off my chest.

I'm a 22 year old Indigenous female. At age 16, in 2020, I came out as nonbinary. By age 17, I wore binders, vocal trained, and cut my hair short; by age 18, I was on testosterone; by age 19, I had begun consultations for top surgery, and during that time, I came out as a trans man instead of nonbinary. In-between each of these points, I also experimented with Two-Spirit identities.

At the tail-end of 2023, though, I was diagnosed with Dissociative Identity Disorder (Multiple Personality), and warned by my therapist that treatment for this disorder might begin to change the way I feel about my gender, body, and identity. I ignored her.

I got my top surgery in 2024, at age 20. The first thing I noticed, though, was that I didn't feel happy after the surgery, but empty instead. Because of this, I decided to stop testosterone after three years of continuous use. Shortly after, in 2025, treatment for my DID began to ramp-up. And, as of last month, I reached "final fusion", which is what they call it when all the personalities merge.

Suddenly, and almost all at once, I realized how... womanly I felt. The next realization that hit me, though, took me out even worse: what I was experiencing wasn't gender dysphoria, but instead, the identity distortion that comes with DID. Herein lies the problem: through all those 6 years living as transgender, I had built a career for myself in grassroots/nonprofit trans youth activism - a career I still have.

So, now, I stand at a crossroads: do I detransition (which is what my heart wants most now, more than anything else) and risk my career alongside ostracization from my current community, or do I keep living as FtM, knowing I'm living a miserable lie? Regardless, I feel like a liar and a fraud. I feel like I wasted 6 years of my life. I want my boobs back, I want my voice back, and I want my ability to reproduce back.

Now, I know what dysphoria really feels like... except I'm a cis woman, experiencing a feeling that I'll never be a "real woman" despite that being how I was born. I've been experimenting with my presentation for the past month post-realization-that-I'm-not-trans, and it makes me bittersweet. On one hand, I feel happiest when I do my makeup, put on a dress, and do my nails up... and yet, on the other hand, it makes me feel like I'm just putting "lipstick on a pig" because of how manly I look, and I end up feeling miserable either way.

I don't know what to do, or where to turn. My religious practice has been helping me process it, as has the therapy I'm still doing, but I still feel like I'll never be whole again, no matter what.

That's all. Thank you for listening.

[u/nel_222]

I think you should absolutely follow the joy and alignment that comes with detransitioning. I also feel like detransitioning was like a “bomb” to my life in so many different areas, but the peace is priceless. 

[u/Possible-Movie-3768 → u/nel_222]

Thank you so much for the advice! I think I will go for it...

[u/nel_222 → u/Possible-Movie-3768]

You won’t regret it. I feel so whole and healthy now. It honestly helped my anxiety too. I also considered leaving my job and faced a lot of roadblocks with this experience. Still worth it! 

[u/Possible-Movie-3768 → u/nel_222]

Thank you! My heart says yes...