Wednesday, January 9, 2013

Good news for my friends, but am I so conflicted

I have two very dear friends who will likely read this blog.  They will know who they are and they should know that I care for each of them a great deal and in no way wish to diminish our friendship or how happy I am for them for the recent turn of events in their lives, however since this is my blog to discuss my feelings openly, I hope they'll permit me to do so without taking anything I say personally.

I met both of them several years ago when my dysphoria was beginning to flare up after my mom died, and I went looking for support.  All three of us were looking for ways to cope with our dysphoria without taking the dramatic step of transition.  I have loved these two friends and have really benefited from their love in turn over the years.  However, this week, I feel I have lost both of them... or rather that I will lose them both.  I should say that they do not know one another so what happened was very coincidental. 

This week I discovered that both of them will no longer have any issues with their dysphoria.  One of them, after losing those close to her, has chosen to transition and has surgery in just a few weeks in preparation to going full time.  The other had a profoundly religious experience and feels cured of the dysphoria completely.

Honestly, I couldn't be happier for either, but I am torn as well.  These two beloved allies were my two best go-to people if I needed help, as I hoped I was for them.  But now neither of them are walking the path I walk.  They will be able to move on, while I remain behind and alone in my walk.  Granted, I don't believe that either will abandon me, but since neither will be actively going through what I go through, talking to them will be little different than talking to others who are not walking my path.

The worst part about it is, both of them feel they know what is best for me.  Now they would never say it, and frankly I don't blame them for feeling this way.  Both have their own reasons to feel that I am lost and deceiving myself, and that the answer to curing my dysphoria is to go the way they did. 

One of them wants me to return to my church, wants me to return to faith, and to rely on the strength of God and the church to help me through this difficult time so God can help me to have the strength to resist the temptation to transition while helping me maintain a level of peace within.

The other sees much of herself in me and wonders if I am not just deluding myself into believing that I can control my dysphoria and feels I am sacrificing too much of what I want for others.  She believes that transition might ultimately be my path - my only path.

Both have extremely, EXTREMELY valid reasons for believing the way they do, and in a way both are probably right.  There is no precedent set for a person to live without transition with dysphoria as bad as mine and I will likely fail at it and end up transitioning or killing myself.  Additionally, support for the church probably would help me deal with my dysphoria,and it is possible that God may miraculously cure me too should I return fully to the fold.

Despite this, I cannot accept either's advice.  Were I to accept either's and truly act on it, it would likely cost me my marriage.  I cannot explain it fully here, but I truly feel it would.  I truly love my partner, and don't wish to lose her.  If staying with her keeps me from church, or from being myself through transitioning, then I choose her.  Maybe I'm an idiot, maybe I'm truly deluded, maybe I'm being deceived by Satan, or maybe just co-dependent, I don't know.  But it doesn't change the fact I will do almost anything to keep her.  Even turn down the very loving and kind advice given by two people who I care for and who care for me a great deal.

I am sad, because I feel it is only a matter of time now before I lose them both just as I lost my first true transgendered friend once she went full time and moved away.  In the end, despite how close we were, she moved on, and while I am happy for her, I feel very alone.  I do know other non-transitioners, but I am not as close to them.  Perhaps it is time I broadened my horizons.

To my two friends who are reading this, know that I don't want to lose either of you, and I don't mind if you are blunt with me, I never have.  I expect that you will keep giving me good advice when I ask for it so long as you are in my life.  I hope I can return the favor.  I wish the two of you ALL of the happiness in this world and in the next.  I hope I can achieve a measure of the peace you both have.

I love you two.

6 comments:

  1. Does the one I know want you to resist transition?

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    1. Transitioning might mean being unable to have temple blessings so it is generally discouraged. But the friend has never said 'resist' to me directly.

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  2. I haven't gone anywhere, and I don't plan to. If anything, I owe the Lord more now than I ever have, and I believe that includes not abandoning my friends who I know still labor under the terrible burden of GID.

    I can't promise you that you will have the same experience I did. I don't even know why I had it. And if you have true faith in Christ, it should draw you closer to your spouse, not farther away.

    I don't know what the "ultimate" answer for you is. But I will say to you as I always have that I believe that Jesus Christ can lead you there. He loves you. He does not delight in your pain. He wants you to find true, deep, abiding joy and happiness. And I'm afraid He's the only one who can show you where to find it. There are no easy answers with GID.

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    1. I sincerely hope you are right. Thank you for your comment.

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  3. Although my circumstances aren't exactly the same as yours, our mutual friend was also one of the first people *I* reached out to when I began my journey of non-transitioning acceptance last year. And, like you, I too had very mixed feelings of joy and melancholy when I heard about his experience. So very happy for him, sure, but it seems so arbitrary! There are so many other trans Mormons who try their very hardest to be faithful in the face of dysphoria, only to struggle with it their entire lives.

    I do feel, as does our friend, that making a place in your life for renewed church activity may indeed lead to greater happiness and peace. But I also understand how uncomfortable our church services can be to someone who doesn't fit the rigid gender expectations, because I feel it myself every Sunday. So I don't know what to tell you, other than to take everyone else's advice with a grain of salt, and follow your heart.

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  4. I can no way relate to the journey you undertake or the hurdles you encounter, but I hope you always know that God loves you no matter what any religion says about it.Peace be with you and good luck Kate!

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