I'm attracted to trans women

After years of confusion and shame, I'm ready to stop hiding the truth about my desires -- and I'm not alone

Published October 22, 2013 11:00PM (EDT)

     (<a href='http://www.shutterstock.com/gallery-563137p1.html'>lekcej</a> via <a href='http://www.shutterstock.com/'>Shutterstock</a>)
(lekcej via Shutterstock)

A version of this story originally appeared on The Weave.

I never thought I would have to come out about being attracted to women. But that’s the funny and sad position I’m in these days. Although I don’t see anything different about my sexual orientation, most people do.

About four years ago, I was an exchange student in Thailand, a country known for its large, open transgender population. While most men avoided trans women, I saw no difference between them and cisgender women (women who were born biologically female). I was attracted to trans women, in other words, and I spent the next three years of my life in confusion and shame.

The heteronormative world in which we live had successfully convinced me that being attracted to transgender women meant I had a fetish. I began questioning my sexuality and even my masculinity.  I didn’t even know what to call my sexual orientation.  Finally one day, after hours of searching, I came across two terms that described what I was feeling. Trans-attraction and trans-orientation. Neither one is official or common, but their use is growing due to the increasing demand for a way to categorize people who are attracted to transgender people. When I saw these words, a feeling of relief washed over me: I was not alone. I don’t always describe myself as trans-attracted, but the label helped me feel like I had a place in the queer community and it helps others unders...

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By Thomas Matt

Thomas Matt is a Global Studies major at St. Lawrence University. He's studied in Thailand twice, where he became interested in issues concerning gender and sexuality.

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