Starting Your MTF Transition

There is a dearth of information on the internet regarding transitioning, and therefore, many trans women are still uncertain as to where they must start their journey.

This article discusses the steps one can undertake to efficiently transition into a woman. This can be used as a framework, which you can tweak based on your specific needs and requirements.  

Firstly, find a community. This is important because they will function as your support system and assist you throughout the process.

Since they have experienced all this before, they can empathize with you and provide actionable advice that you can leverage for a more seamless transition.

In addition, the trans community will be more open to hearing about your experiences and less judgmental, which can make the process less overwhelming.  

 

After that, it is a good idea to choose a name. In the initial stages, there is no need to commit to a name. You can merely try out different names and experiment until you find one that clicks.

An effective method is to make a spreadsheet, try a name for a short period, and then choose another if it doesn’t work out. 

You should then consciously try to make new friends to see the kind of friendships you are able to forge.

Peer support is of utmost importance when you begin to transition as you need a close inner circle that can support you on your bad days and just assist you through the process of transitioning. 

 

While going to therapy is optional, we also highly recommend  trying it to see if it works out for you.

Transitioning can be emotionally taxing and therefore, it becomes particularly crucial to seek any form of support that you can get.  

When you finally decide to come out, ensure that you first come out to your closest friends whose support you can count on.

You can also come out to your friends in the community in order to practice what you are going to say to others. Coming out the first time is always the hardest, and as such, you must do so with people you can completely trust.  

 

While coming out to your friends, also remember to inform them about your pronouns. This way, you can begin transitioning socially. 

You can then start shopping for your clothes. You can even ask your girl friends for their old clothes or visit your local thrift store in order to purchase many outfits at a reasonable price.

It is then time to visit a doctor and seek a prescription for hormones, so you can get started on HRT.

It is also recommended to begin laser hair removal at around the same time, since during the initial stages your body hair is still dense and thus, it is easy for the machine to target and burn your hair.

But after a few months into HRT, your hair thins down a little, which makes laser removal less effective. It takes around 20 sessions of laser therapy to remove your hair completely.  

 

Since you would have begun transitioning already, you might consider coming out to your family at this point.

Even within your family, you should come out to each person individually to mitigate tensions and ensure that you do not feel overwhelmed.  

For trans women, voice is of utmost importance, which is why voice training is a step that cannot be skipped. Ideally, begin doing this on day one of HRT. That way, as the therapy effects progress, your voice will simultaneously change as well. 

You can then focus on figuring out your style and your makeup looks. You can watch YouTube videos to learn how to apply makeup and experiment with it whenever you can. 

It might be a good idea to come out at your workplace at this point. Introduce them to your new name and pronouns and ensure that you remain patient while they adjust to these changes.

You can then begin to sort out your legal paperwork, such as changing your name and pronouns on your driver’s license, and so on.

 

The last step in this process includes surgeries- bottom surgery, breast augmentation, vaginoplasty, facial feminization surgery and so on. You can determine which ones you require, since not every trans woman might want to undergo each of them. 

We hope this article has provided you with a good framework to begin transitioning. Good luck!!

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