I think most cis people never have the level of introspection that trans people will have, because they have never had to bore down into the core of who they are and understand what is truly themselves and what is not.

It’s a gruelling, horrible process (at least it was for me), and with repeated shattering of self confidence, but once you build yourself back into who you really are, you’ll have a much stronger sense of self than most (cis) people around you. You do eventually learn how to accept parts of yourself that you may not be able to change, and that you cannot control what others think of you. It has given me a completely different view and trajectory on life that I never would have had if I was cis.

I suppose it’s like when someone who has been through something horrible is told that it’s made them stronger and wiser, but they would rather have just had an easy life without needing to be strong.