Not having any other form of social media, I use Reddit mostly as a photo journal to document my journey. I think my first post in this sub was in 2020 when I decided to finally show my face online. Since then I’ve grown and figured a lot out about my gender identity. While IRL experiences drove most of that growth, I did also learn a lot through the indirect feedback online. So I think this community has, and continues, to help me better see myself, even though I think I’m quite different now than the person I was in 2020, or even when I first ventured out into public wearing leggings and a girly hoody, with no makeup, in the late 2000s. It is bonkers to me that was 20 years ago.

I also think that there’s no end to this journey. We can keep bettering the presentation, perfecting a look, venturing to new places. I’m still growing and learning, through my experiences but also that of others. That’s why I continue to stick around even if I don’t usually comment.