there's a really common trend and cycle that i see with trans people who are really early into transitioning(either with coming to terms with their identity or starting hrt)that i don't think gets talked about enough where the early excitement actually leads to impostor syndrome.

this may actually seem to be counter intuitive, but it is a pattern that i have consistently seen and it makes sense once you think about it. near the beginning there's all this excitement and confidence over the new-found feelings, lots of exploration, happiness, and overall-

just a lot of things that are happening. this, of course, doesn't last forever though as things eventually settle down compared to the initial rush of feelings/things to do, and because brains can't be constantly excited. this is what often leads to the impostor syndrome because-

people will compare how they are feeling post-rush to how they were feeling during the initial rush and they'll think "well i don't feel like that anymore, so surely i must be faking it! am i even really trans???"

the answer of course is "yes, you're still trans" because most-

trans people don't feel constantly excited over the idea of being trans, as the novelty wears off and fades back into normal(just that it's a new normal with ideally a new certainty of identity). you don't have to stress about being trans 24/7 to be trans, it can just be a thing.

likewise, people often experience a similar thing when they are fresh on hrt where much of their dysphoria is alleviated rapidly (such as not staying up until 3am overthinking life ever single night), and so then they think that because they now lack dysphoria they're faking it.

this is understandable, but when you take a step back and look at the situation, the hrt is clearly doing its intended job of making you feel better! the lack of dysphoria doesn't mean that you were actually faking everything, it means that hrt is working, silly!!!

let alone the fact that you don't need to be consciously or actively experiencing dysphoria to be trans, the broader issue here is the belief often pushed by cisnormative media that The Trans Experience™ is one rooted entirely in continual and constant suffering. this is untrue.

i obviously am not blaming a freshly-realized trans person for the transphobia that they have picked up and internalized by nature of existing within a cisnormative society, but recognizing the origin of these thoughts and feelings is highly important before they can be tackled.

i could probably go more into depth in that regard (the lack of a universal trans experience) but that's for another time since this thread's long enough.