Hi guys, it's Emil and this week's topic is trans...
no, "early childhood experiences", that's what it is.
I made a video on my personal channel a while back
called "trans signs as a kid"
and I think it is perfect for this topic.
So, I urge you to go watch that.
I am putting a link in the description below.
So in this video, I am going to talk about basically
the same thing that... talked about.
That you don't have to have shown a certain set of signs
during your childhood to be trans.
Because sometimes people are like
"I don't think I can be trans because I didn't show any signs as a kid"
or "my mom tells me she doesn't understand how I can be trans when I was such a feminine girl"
and I'm a guy..it just bothers me because
First of all
there are
a number of reasons why you would,
for example as a trans guy,
have liked feminine things as a girl,
if you did that.
Now, obviously if you're trans
and you look back on your childhood and you think,
"oh, that makes sense and that makes sense and that makes sense because I'm trans"
obviously that is valid
But you don't have to have had a certain trans narrative in order to be able to be trans.
For example, say a little trans guy/was assigned female at birth,
everyone thinks he's a girl, he thinks he's a girl
he doesn't know anything and he plays with Barbies
and pink things and dresses and all that kind of stuff
and the world validates him and tells him that is what he should like
now, obviously that is going to be something that he's drawn towards
because that is something that gives him a positive experience.
And also, it could be because he just likes
things like that and then your interests change
as you grow up and you don't like those things anymore.
Perhaps because you realized what kind of gender roles
are thrown at that kind of stuff.
Or just because your interests changed because your interests naturally can change.
And also, it's kind of funny because if you have a
little cis boy who always liked playing with pink things
and dresses and liked wearing skirts
and Barbies and...not wearing Barbies, playing with Barbies.
No one's gonna tell him he's a trans girl.
At most, you're gonna tell him he's gay.
Maybe he grows up and it turns out he's straight,
they're gonna be like you just had a phase
when you were a kid.
So in that sense, people realize that it's
just a thing that kids can do and then
you can grow up to be whatever because you change as you grow
because the concept of growth is to change.
And obviously there are feminine guys and there are masculine girls.
And being non-binary doesn't mean you have to be straight androgynous all through.
I think this is heavily influenced by a lot of the
trans stories that are told and spoken about
in the media because it's always, you know,
"Oh this child was always like that
and we just thought they were a masculine girl
and we just thought they were a lesbian
but then it turned out" or something like that
It's always the "classic trans narrative".
And of course some people have that narrative
and that is 100% okay but everyone doesn't.
And everyone doesn't always know that they're trans.
For some people it hits them
and for some people they have hints
and for some people they think they're gay
or they turn out to be a straight trans person
and there's just so many trans narratives
and I don't think that you should look
only at your background for validation.
You should concern yourself with how you are feeling right now
Don't concern yourself with other people's stories or about what is "normal" or "common"
because even if your experience is uncommon, even if it is one of a kind,
which it probably isn't because
there are so many people out there, so many trans people
so many different stories
but even if your story was one of a kind
that wouldn't invalidate it if you still are trans
The only way you can really know who you are inside
is to go by how you are feeling now.
Of course you can look to the past for clues
and you can look to all that for possible validation
that you might find there and for possible explanations
and for things that make sense now that you look back
but don't just look to other people's narratives
and to what other people are saying about their
past and their stories to see if you fit in
because labels aren't made to put you inside a box
labels are made to put words to your experience
your current experience and your current state of being
that's what labels are for
they are for you to say "this is who I am"
and for people to then, through that label,
be able to get a basic concept
of a part of your personality or your life
So, that is my little rant about trans narratives
I just think it's a really important thing to talk about
and I hope you took something from this
I'll see you next week...love you, bye!