Jender Jumping into No Return.

Early in my life I was afraid to jump into the female gender too completely. What if I never got back?
Of course more went into it such as family etc. Bottom line is that after a big night out of the closet, three times out of four I didn't want to go back.
I was grumpy with all around me and generally just difficult to live with because I was having a difficult time living with myself.
As I rationalized and rethought my gender situation a reoccurring thought came up. If I went too far, could I even find the closet again. Did I want to make that huge "jender jump"? Obviously I felt like a daredevil stunt person getting ready to jump over the Grand Canyon. Scared to death.
The problem becomes a monster is usually chasing us to the brink and it's tough to find the best place to jump.
Absolutely no easy answer here no matter what label you identify with: Cross dresser, transsexual, or transgender.  Some of us take a series of small jumps and others take the huge leap to SRS quickly.
I took the smaller jumps. Not right, not wrong-just my direction over the jump.
Whatever decision you decide to make, only was thing is certain. Most unknowns are never as good or as bad as imagined.
The stronger you are, the better you jump!

Selfish versus Self Preservation

Name me one person in the transgender, transsexual or crossdressing community who hasn't faced the terrible prospect of telling others. As they say in the "old country" that "ain't happenin".
Recently I had a chat with person who was just starting to come out of the closet in her mid 30's. She said she seemed to be following the same path I have been on.
After I apologized, kids came into the discussion. As in many instances she attributed two broken relationships to her transgender leanings and now was worried about her teenaged daughter.
Very shortly the "S" conversation came up. When is it not selfish to be put yourself in self preservation mode for the sake of yourself and your off spring.
Of course it's a highly personal question and one only each of us can answer.
As many of us have discovered, we can only be cornered so many ways by an affliction which is not going away. Something has to be done. It's not being selfish-it's reality.
As a pure observer I believe kids today are much better equipped to deal with a transgender or transsexual parent. The older people around them are the problem.
So if there is a path to success in this situation, it's having the proper amount of material or discussion to present yourself in a true manner.
One of the tougher problems is to present your transgender status as a real part of you while not being a victim. What I mean is don't act like this has been a huge struggle your whole life. (Even though it has.) BUT it has been and will be a part of you hidden from the world.
You need to try to open a dialogue in  which the child needs to know both of you will be better off under the new gender situation. A huge motivator at this point in time is trust. You are trusting your offspring with the issue.
Finally, while it's good to never push too hard, it's never good not to try some gentle followups.
The child needs to know this is not something that is just going away.
Good luck!

Mina Caputo a Year Later

From Loudwire:

Against Me! singer Tom Gabel has been in the headlines this year as he undergoes the transition from male to female to become Laura Jane Grace. But if she needs someone to talk with about being a rocker undergoing such a change, she might want to reach out to Life of Agony‘s Mina Caputo.
Last July, the longtime metal vocalist known as Keith Caputo revealed that he was making the transition from male to female and would be known as Mina Caputo. The musician tells Noisecreep.com, “I got a lot of grief for it, but it was nothing compared to the years of pain I went through not being open about the way I felt inside.

Over and over again I can't express how positive all of this is for the transgender community. Every baby step we can take becomes larger when a public figure comes out and tells the world he or she is transgender or transsexual. 
When the trans person involved is a younger public person, then the impact is even larger.