If you found this guide and don't have any experience yet, chances are you're still unsure about your identity and are looking for some direction. A good goal to have is to be your authentic self, and feel comfortable expressing yourself fully whenever you can.

It's a good idea to set up an appointment with a therapist, since they can provide more individualized care. Try and find one who specializes specifically in gender identity and sees a lot of trans patients. If you have trouble finding a local therapist, or are planning on paying out of pocket and want to save some money, The Wirecutter has a realy great online therapy guide.

If you have no idea if you might be trans, non-binary, or just a crossdresser:

• The way to get answers is through experience, whether it's by proxy or directly. New experiences as the identities you're considering are much more useful to reflect on than your current experiences, although both are useful.
  • If you have a safe environment to experiment with presentation, such as a private room or a cosplay event, start with that, even if it's something small at first. It can be scary, but it's the most direct way of knowing if it's right for you. The presentation guide will help you get started.
  • If you don't have a safe place to try presentation in person, the next best thing is to do it online. It's probably best to make a new username that isn't tied to your real name. VRChat and MMOs are great for this, sometimes social media can also work. If you find it helps, make sure you're still finding a way to present that way in person! It can help you cope for now, but it's unhealthy to rely on it long-term.
  • Anime, manga, TV, movies, and books are also good ways of seeing how things feel, but it's the least direct way. Sometimes things you like in fiction won't be things you like in the real world. Still, if you like self-inserting as female characters, that can be an indication that you should explore those feelings more.
• Sometimes labels can be too confining and can make it feel too much like an all-or-nothing decision. Try and break things down into smaller decisions, ie:
  • Do the effects of hormone therapy sound appealing?
  • Do you want to get rid of body/facial hair?
  • Do I like how my face looks with makeup?
  • Can I try dressing more androgynously? Does it feel more authentic when I do? What about dressing femininely?

If you're just interested in crossdressing, or only want to present female part-time and don't plan on medically transitioning:

• The presentation guide is what you're looking for.
• Some people are definitely happy with this balance, so don't be dissuaded if it works for you, but if you answer yes to any of these questions you might want to consider if fully transitioning would make more sense:
  • Do you find that you can express yourself better when presenting female?
  • If you knew that your coworkers/clients/customers would still take you seriously, would you present female all the time? If so, are there any successful women you could use as a role model?
  • Does the effort behind female presentation feel self-actualizing and liberating, while the effort behind male presentation stems from a pressure to conform?
  • Do you find that you get depressed if you don't present female every now and then?
  • If you knew your family would accept you, would you present female all the time?
  • If you could press a button and wake up fully recovered from all the surgeries you want, would you transition?
  • Would you transition if you weren't afraid of medical complications? If so, have you talked with a doctor to understand how likely that would actually be?
  • Does presenting female feel more authentic, even if your old friends wouldn't see you as a cis female?
  • Would you present female full time if it didn't affect your dating life? Realistically, how much harder would your dating life be?
  • Are you finding that your main reasons for not presenting female full-time are due to practicalities or inconveniences? How many of those would be hard blockers for your life plans? Are those life plans important to you, or are they things you're doing out of social pressure? Would living more authentically help with any of those life plans?

If you're mostly sure you want to medically transition in some way:

• It's okay to have some worries about making the wrong choice. You'll have plenty of time in the first few months to see if it's right for you, the permanent changes don't come for a while. Trust that you'll check in with yourself regularly, and that you'll stop if you decide you don't like it.
• Take a look at the transition guide and set up your appointments as soon as you can. There's usually a pretty long wait to see a doctor, and there's usually some coordination between different professionals involved, so you'll have plenty of chances to cancel if you start to have serious doubts.
• If you haven't already, start reading the presentation guide, it's best to get a head start on it. It'll help you feel a bit more confident about your decision during your first few months of treatment, and by the time the effects become noticable you'll be prepared to socially transition.