Trans folks are asking: What everyday moments give you gender euphoria?

Gender euphoria can come where you least expect it. That includes mundane, everyday moments at work, at home, and out on the town. Now, on a Reddit thread titled, “What is something that surprised you with how much gender euphoria it gave you?” trans folks are sharing the small gender-affirming moments that make all the difference.

Several folks recalled times that strangers correctly assumed their genders without asking.

“I held the door for an older gentleman to get into the store,” one person wrote. “He looked at me bewildered and took the door from me, held it for me, and said ‘No, please, ladies first.’ OH MY GOD.”

“When my voice passes on the phone,” added another.

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“The doctor asking me if I’m pregnant or breastfeeding,” commented a third. “I really didn’t want to tell her I’m trans because it was so nice having her see me as a cis woman.”

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Those moments also happen at work, folks said. “No longer being asked to pick up heavy things in the office,” one person commented. “That’s a job for strong young men.”

Another commenter remembered a time they weren’t even trying to appear feminine, and were still gendered correctly as a woman by clients.

“I had an appointment with a new customer. Normally I boymode for work still for safety,” she explained. “Anyways, this couple sees me, I introduce myself and they both look confused. Then I see the wife’s hand snap up, smack her husband’s back and she hisses ‘I thought you said the inspector was a man! It’s just like you to get a woman to take on a tour around the house!’”

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Some trans folks also pointed to times they played into gendered stereotypes. For example, one trans man said he found picking up the tab on a date especially affirming.

“I’m ftm, and something about getting the check and paying makes me feel so manly and like a Big Strong Provider,” he wrote. “I’m always surprised by how much gender euphoria it gives me!”

Another commenter agreed that people assuming he’s good with tools and cars feels great, even if reinforcing the gender binary isn’t the goal: “Employees at the hardware store and mechanic shop talking to me like I know what I’m doing,” they wrote.

Others recalled more intimate moments from their everyday routines. “Brushing my hair,” wrote one commenter. “I used to feel so ashamed of wanting anything that could possibly be interpreted as girly that I didn’t even own so much as a comb before my egg cracked.”

“That,” agreed another, “and gathering my hair up and putting it in a ponytail.”

“My armpit hair growing back after I was forced to shave it,” added a third commenter. “Kinda weird but whatever.”

Those affirmations can come from friends and partners, too. “Last week I was walking next to my boyfriend with the sun behind us,” one person recalled. “Our shadows on the sidewalk in front of us, his was square, my shadow had curves. Euphoria to the max!”

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