Body Image
Body image refers to the way you perceive yourself.
In relation to being trans, body image can change over the course of your transition. It’s often worse before you start transitioning, and then much better afterwards or during.
This doesn’t have to just mean medical transition. It can also include socially transitioning, for example, such as changing your name and using different pronouns, which could then make you feel much better about the way you’re perceived within society.
If you do medically transition, your body will start to look like what your brain expects it to, which makes you more likely to have a better body image than you did pre-transition, as your body finally looks the way it’s supposed to.
Working on body image is difficult as a trans person, especially when access to medical care is so lengthy and difficult.
Not only that, being trans is intertwined with so many other identities and issues, that it can be difficult to untangle them all and figure out what to deal with first.
Overall, transitioning, whether that be social, medical, or legal, are all things that can help you feel better about your body and the way you see yourself.
They all take time, but with a lot of effort and a good support system, you can work on improving your body image with various methods, and therefore become more comfortable and confident as your true self.
