I first started with people I felt safe enough around, in this case it was actually within my work environment because I wanted to establish a safety network there as I did it.
Find a moment, get the persons attention, “hey can I share something with you?” And you have a chance to take some breaths and stabilize while they change their attention. No sense turning back, but you could, though throwing myself in the deeper end like this has been working. It’s easier to steel one’s resolve when facing it for real versus just living it out in your mind.
“Sooo I’m trans, I go by
<pronouns>
, I’m kinda new at this. “
For many people I had an added comment of like “I really admire
<aspect or quality>
in you” etc and it puts this into a share realm for them. I’ve tied them to me with something like that and it kinda opened all the conversations.
It helps that I did this working in an education environment so literally everyone is educated adults. I did select people in small waves and did it bit by bit and it kept getting easier to speak out loud, share, open up and start actually living….
Didn’t take long from there to find and feel support, then take the plunge fully.
Let’s just say, the one I’ve worked at had it’s own team but someone once upon a day wanted to chop that and buy proprietary software….. then personally tweak it for use so it’s not even updated with the purchased software.
All the while half or more staff still struggle with Google Suite and general technology across ages.
She was from the extremist party which conservatives merged all right leaning parties they could to keep Alberta oil and gas proud and run by rich elite in the USA.
Also conservatives keep having investigations over corrupt internal politics and cheating for leadership within; and they keep firing anyone who probes.
Much of Alberta is polar opposite but rural and oil and gas peons keep pushing for their own demise without understanding or intentional hatred.
Was reconnecting with a cousin of mine, she and I got along well enough in youth but didn’t live in same city. We both had a kid at this point and started connecting because of that.
I was early in transitioning. She was in the process of her own diagnosis. Brought up some of our similarities and got me thinking about it more seriously.
Did some self testing online and was like “ah, so probably yes”
I found a fitness trainer who also happened to be autistic, agender, and have other mental health credentials. On our first consult, among other things, just deadass said I should test for autism because I was autistic according to them.
So anyways I got myself assessed within a few months of those two occurrences…. Back in December.
Here I am, AuDHD and trans (statistically accurate) and I lived past 18 (yay!)
I expect to see blue ones on lawns, fences, and littering the city over the next year or more. That’s common here. The other parties clean up pretty fast. Conservatives and their supporters trash the world.
I don’t mean to hurt anyone with me shortening my words, I’ve been getting lost in my desire to write more and liked how I wrote it.
I’ve been on my own rough journey, I was lost in my armor well up til I hit 30’s, I remember the moment I saw my self for the first time and everything started making better sense. Going out there and becoming myself was just that. I had to go out of my comfort zone, challenge my fears and make that next step to figuring myself out and becoming me. My life didn’t start when I got married, when we had our first kid. It started when I came out to myself. All those were just layers of connection on top of my self. I didn’t know my self, so I just used my 「Autistic High Masking Magic」 to make a shell and navigate the world with no self guided direction.
Premium comment, and yes to much of this to some variety.
Go out there and become yourself. Being the new you and taking care of that new human, whether better self care or different self care, is a learning curve but the best way to go forward.
You’re always helpful and intelligent, ily💖