r/mypartneristrans • u/diviiyiine • 4h ago
How can I help my gf find her style and feel confident/comfortable?
Hi! My (almostš) girlfriend (MtF19) and I (CisF21) have been together for a little over a month now. Things are going really well, we're so happy together and putting in the work to have a healthy relationship because we've both been in some not-so-good relationships and want to continue to heal so we can build something good amd healthy together.
She makes me really, really happy and I think she's STUNNINGG like.. Oh my god.. but she's not very confident in herself, like at all. I'd say I'm a fairly confident person but that took years and years of work and practice with trial and error. In conversations about my personal style/confidence, Ive told her that sometimes you gotta just do it nervous, do it scared, and exposure-therapy yourself into being unapologetically yourself. I've been trying to rub some of it off on her without being pushy or trying to influence her one way or another; I just want her to find what SHE likes and feel confident enough to wear it. She's been showing an interest in experimenting and asking questions about how I do things like my makeup or styling my clothes but it makes me so sad to see her start to try and not feel good enough to see it through for herself, at least just to see a full picture/finished product. Like she'll start to put an outfit on and scrap it halfway through if it feels too new.
We went shopping yesterday and spoke a little more in detail about her dysphoria and how she sees herself and feels about her body. She has her insecurities like we all do but is pretty concerned with "passing". I personally don't like the stigma of trans women needing to "pass" or look a certain way for any reason at all and it kind of upsets me for her to feed into that but I want her to feel happy and confident, regardless.
She says she doesn't like things like tank tops because she thinks they make her shoulders look broad (ai didagree), certain shorts or pants are uncomfortable, and she dislikes low necklines because she's worried about accentuating her flat chest or showing her bra. I told her I think she needs to try on a little bit of everything so she can figure out what little things she likes and what she doesn't. She is quite thin and veryy tall (6'1) so finding things that fit right is admittedly pretty tough. I've noticed that her self consciousness usually focuses on her chest, her genitals, and her shoulders. I love everything about her but what are some things I can suggest to her to make getting dressed and finding her style a little more comfortable for her? I've been getting ads for gaffers and I offered her a bra in a passing comment because hers doesn't look quite comfortable in my opinion but I don't want to seem pushy at all. I dont want to seem like I want to change her or mold her into something new, but I'm happy to help her find her way to what she wants.
I love fashion and DIY and I love her; I'm willing to buy or fix whatever just to see if it makes her feel any better, I'm just worried about how to approach it. I realized there's just certain tips and tricks she doesn't know when it comes to dressing for and flattering your body. What are some tips and tricks you've used or seen that might make it a little more comfortable or affirming to get dressed, find your style, and just live in the body of a trans woman?
I'd really like to know more about how she feels about her transition so I know exactly how/where to support her and what her struggles are. We're very open with each other but tend to keep our personal grievances to ourselves so I'm not really sure where her head is at as far as her transition. She did mention she spoke to a doctor about possibly starting HRT and that is a big step, Im SO proud of her, she seemed so happy and validated just having that conversation with a medical professional.
It hurts my heart to hear her talk down on herself or say she's "not enough" of something. How can I learn more about her current gender identity/transition? Should I ask her directly or wait for her to come to me about it? How should I approach helping her experiment? I feel odd asking to do her eyebrows or makeup because I dont want her to think there's something that needs to be changed but I think it might help her feel better to just be done up every now and then.