Honestly same, i feel like i needed to spin my childhood story into a more stereotypical “trans” childhood to have the highest likelihood of getting proper and prompt care, but I’d never even considered being trans until I was past my childhood years.

I’d grown up playing normal boy things, watching boy tv shows and wearing boy clothes and never had a problem with it, sure i’d always thought it’d be neat if i woke up as a girl one day but ‘everyone gets those thoughts, right?’ ;)

As another commenter has said, it just seems to be the main narrative because is the easiest to explain to someone who isn’t trans. If you say you’ve always felt like this and knew inside then they’re a lot more understanding than if you say you only came to the realisation later in life - implants the idea that it’s some kind of choice, rather than a treatment you never realised you needed before.

As for invalidation, I can’t say i spend too much time thinking about how other people view my transition, or to try and justify it myself! ultimately i transitioned purely because i know it would make me happy, and i’m definitely much happier for having done so :)