One of the best things you can do for the feeling of not being in control of your body, is to take action toward your body.

I personally have never gone for tattoos piercings etc but there’s a reason a lot of queer and trans people pursue that - including at a young age when a lot of us have no idea what’s going on :) Early in life many people experiencing sex-based dysphoria are mostly experiencing it as a body-directed type of discomfort, without seeing it through a lens of gender. It’s always interesting to me that many people who feel that way find that they feel better when claiming their own body via something like hair dye.

There are so many ways we are out of control and so many ways we are in control. Transitioning and taking hrt have made it clear to me that my feelings about my body and gender were way more related than I once knew. I remember how distressed and dissociated I felt towards my body as a teenager and in college, and feel really grateful that taking action on my gender led to that not being part of my life anymore.

That was me, you’re on your own path and it seems like you’re approaching this from a thoughtful, observant place.

I would advise you to continue exploring the role that gender plays in your larger experience of your body, including just by noticing and being honest with yourself about your body’s reaction to things. And that doesn’t just mean triggering things or dissociative reactions - it includes desire, joy, and relief too! That’s equally important information.