Hello! I just recently transitioned from non-binary to a transgender female. Do I have to wear female clothes? I don’t feel like wearing clothes that a female should wear. Does this still make me transgender? Even if I did wear female clothes, my parents wouldn’t allow it. This is making me nervous, as I don’t know if I’m still considered a transgender female if I don’t wear feminine outfits.
Logan
Hey Logan!
Thank you for trusting AlterHeros with your question.
From what I understand you identify as a woman and are wondering if you have to wear “women’s” clothing.
You don’t feel like wearing feminine clothing but you’re afraid it will invalidate your identity if you don’t.
The short answer is: you can dress however you want regardless of your gender identity!
There’s this little tool called The Gender Unicorn, if you want to check it out. It helps people understand that gender identity and gender expression aren’t necessarily linked. Gender expression is the way you choose to express yourself through your appearance, meaning your clothing, your make-up (or lack of), your hair, etc. Dressing up and appearing a certain way doesn’t dictate your gender identity! So you can absolutely identify as a woman and not dress in feminine clothing.
Society will tell you that women need to dress a certain way and follow certain standards. The most important thing is to be true to yourself and to choose whatever makes you confortable, regardless of what society tells you. You are allowed to express yourself however you want. Trans women don’t owe femininity to anyone; they are free to dress however they want just like cis women.
You seem to know pretty well what you want, so keep wearing whatever makes you confortable! If you have other questions, please don’t hesitate to write again.
Best of luck!
Anaïs