#almost made a random lighthearted comment calling myself insane but actually i refuse to do that on this one. thats the whole point of this

[felidthing]

yknow. at this point ive spent roughly half of my life experiencing gender dysphoria and i can tell you it feels exactly the same when it comes to species. i'd argue ive been species dysphoric longer than ive been gender dysphoric. and i cope with it on this barest minimum level mostly because what i want just isnt possible- species-affirming medical care doesnt exist- and because of the stigma surrounding even the most surface-level identification with non-human animals.

and its not something im safe from in trans communities, the idea of nonhuman people are scapegoated by trans people and transphobes. "if we let kids identify as any gender then what if kids start identifying as animals?" vs the famous threat of "making a mockery" of trans people. i am trans people. im transgendered. i have transitioned. my experiences with gender and species are nearly identical. huge communities all over the world have made themselves known and worked to live their lives with the gender identity and presentation they feel is correct and comfortable. why is there a barrier when it comes to species?

"well you see, its weird to identify as nonhuman" okay, cool. its weird to identify outside your assigned sex and gender, too. its a mental illness to experience distress about your gender, and a lot of people still consider it a mental illness to be nonconforming at all, let alone seek medical intervention about it.

im not asking for everyone to flip their animal switches from no to yes. i just wish i could talk about this more freely without worrying about being alienated by my peers or institutionalized by the people with power over me