{"id":2516,"date":"2020-05-13T13:56:23","date_gmt":"2020-05-13T13:56:23","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/livingstonesministries.org\/help4families\/?p=2516"},"modified":"2026-04-14T06:20:41","modified_gmt":"2026-04-14T06:20:41","slug":"finding-comfort","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/livingstonesministries.org\/help4families\/finding-comfort\/","title":{"rendered":"Finding Comfort"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<div class=\"wp-block-uagb-container uagb-block-ca5ff7a6 alignfull uagb-is-root-container\"><div style=\"font-size:24px\" class=\"has-text-align-center has-link-color adobe-reg-italic wp-elements-85a8a21107b8ee66b96e773a6aa630b7 wp-block-post-date has-text-color has-web-light-green-color\"><time datetime=\"2020-05-13T13:56:23+00:00\">May 13, 2020<\/time><\/div>\n\n<h2 style=\"color:#ffffff;font-size:45px;font-style:normal;font-weight:600;text-transform:uppercase;letter-spacing:4px\" class=\"has-text-align-center has-link-color proxima-font wp-elements-8489a226fd32958d683121eb2fa02d00 wp-block-post-title has-text-color\">Finding Comfort<\/h2><\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-uagb-container uagb-block-13581e7a alignfull uagb-is-root-container\"><div class=\"uagb-container-inner-blocks-wrap\">\n<p class=\"adobe-reg blog-link has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-ac6346dcc0ee04bba1efa1b61923e60d wp-block-paragraph\" style=\"color:#1a1a1ab3;font-size:18px;letter-spacing:0px\">Everyone is on a journey of self-discovery. For me, that journey involved a period of crossdressing\u2014and also in finding comfort in God\u2019s deep love.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"adobe-reg blog-link has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-a6517935cd62130a0a21fab65992c2a0 wp-block-paragraph\" style=\"color:#1a1a1ab3;font-size:18px;letter-spacing:0px\">The first incident I can recall of moving in the direction of crossdressing was at about age 8, when I painted my face, as if I were a woman wearing makeup. A bit later, at a scout pageant celebrating knights of old, we wore outfits that looked like dresses. I wore mine again at home, and when I did it felt more like a dress to me. Following that episode, for several years, I secretly wore clothing from my mother\u2019s closet.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"adobe-reg blog-link has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-3d8108c7ff69e5d64f042c1b2ab4bf6f wp-block-paragraph\" style=\"color:#1a1a1ab3;font-size:18px;letter-spacing:0px\">Later I discovered how to create a feminine shape with many pairs of pants and paddings of socks and stockings under suitable undergarments. I spent an enormous amount of time putting on makeup; I was obsessed with the thought of becoming a girl. I was simultaneously terrified at the thought of being caught and also excited by the risk that I might be discovered. Once I ventured out into my parents\u2019 garden, but I was confident no one saw me. In drama club, I avoided being asked to dress as a girl in plays, but I secretly thought I could do it better than the boys who accepted the challenge.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"adobe-reg blog-link has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-6718a38e6d5ad19e57ebbfceb13b1325 wp-block-paragraph\" style=\"color:#1a1a1ab3;font-size:18px;letter-spacing:0px\">I enjoyed the thrill in the risk of being caught, even the frantic hiding in the bathroom when my mother came home early, and then stealthily sneaking the clothes back where they belonged. The pleasure I felt while dressing up becoming linked to sexual feelings in my adolescent years, and that reinforced my desire and satisfaction.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"adobe-reg blog-link has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-43197408cc766a45193e6e88717a4b19 wp-block-paragraph\" style=\"color:#1a1a1ab3;font-size:18px;letter-spacing:0px\">What would it be like to be a girl, I wondered. My relationships with girls were not at all successful. I was a confused boy, seeking comfort inside.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"adobe-reg blog-link has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-a645b7f803cfffda1c0a27e9f3745ebf wp-block-paragraph\" style=\"color:#1a1a1ab3;font-size:18px;letter-spacing:0px\">Why did it start? A key moment may have been when my mother told me, \u201cIf you had been a girl, we would have called you Natalie.\u201d My stepsister had died at age 4, causing my mother deep anguish. So I tried to replace that lost daughter in an effort to make Mother love me and to end the physical punishment she inflicted on me. Dad was quiet and withdrawn and did nothing to help me.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"adobe-reg blog-link has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-a65120a34006a01695f310fa299fbcd4 wp-block-paragraph\" style=\"color:#1a1a1ab3;font-size:18px;letter-spacing:0px\">Mother once asked me, \u201cCan I ask you something personal?\u201d I answered no. I think she suspected I had some kind of gender confusion. But I was determined to keep the secret that had me locked up in shame. In my teen years, I worried that if I ever got drunk I\u2019d reveal my secret. That never happened.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"adobe-reg blog-link has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-439cffab79cc377c62a5e751cfce83b2 wp-block-paragraph\" style=\"color:#1a1a1ab3;font-size:18px;letter-spacing:0px\">When I left for college at 18, I mostly quit crossdressing. I never brought any women\u2019s clothing of my own during those years. But I did sometimes borrow garments from lodgings where I stayed. I always returned them undetected. Throughout that period of my life, my urge to cross-dress continued to conflict with my fear of being caught.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"adobe-reg blog-link has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-71a4b38d84b4d3ce4dc3e0e413b638bb wp-block-paragraph\" style=\"color:#1a1a1ab3;font-size:18px;letter-spacing:0px\">My desire to cross-dress diminished during my mid-20s, and, in my late-20s, seemed to stop when I formed a stable relationship with the woman who later became my wife. I told her about my past habit. Then, when I started to seriously explore having an active Christian faith, I was introduced to a minister, whom I hoped could help me. I hoped my new faith would put an end to my desires. It didn\u2019t, so I fought the desires.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"adobe-reg blog-link has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-15048cbffc3b0a4a8d74e735739511d0 wp-block-paragraph\" style=\"color:#1a1a1ab3;font-size:18px;letter-spacing:0px\">Through the years, my deep shame deep clouded my personality. Through many times of prayer, and meeting with my pastor, I came to understand that God accepts me and does not condemn me. In moments of awareness of the deep love Jesus has for me, I have been able to release the inner pain. It was a pain of withheld love from my mother and my attempt to win her love through a false created self. I have seen how much the heavenly Father wants to show me His love, but struggled to accept it. Gradually, I have come to know that I am an adopted son; my orphaned heart is being healed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"adobe-reg blog-link has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-06e14887aa05e5fb907b3bfe84b01207 wp-block-paragraph\" style=\"color:#1a1a1ab3;font-size:18px;letter-spacing:0px\">There are times when I forget God\u2019s love and acceptance, times when my mind tries to run an old tape. The enemy wants me to feel worthless, outside hope, ashamed. But when I started to have a relationship with God, my life changed. So now I turn my thoughts to what is good and honorable and true. At some point, the living God breaks in to bring me restoration and contentment in knowing I am free. As the hymn says, \u201cHis Grace has brought me safe thus far, and grace will lead me home.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"adobe-reg blog-link has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-28b08d3ff5f8589f237bb4986eaf32d4 wp-block-paragraph\" style=\"color:#1a1a1ab3;font-size:18px;letter-spacing:0px\">If you have a Christian faith, you may know of the Father\u2019s love. If you do not, I pray you will be helped when you find it. I am still on a journey to find my true self. Those early years made quite a mess of my life. But, thanks be to God who give us the victory. Knowing you are loved can bring you into a place of living hope, freedom, and a place where shame is longer present.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"adobe-reg blog-link has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-308fc5f4199ff35f005229d2864d60b8 wp-block-paragraph\" style=\"color:#1a1a1ab3;font-size:18px;letter-spacing:0px\">&#8211; Ricky<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n<div class=\"gsp_post_data\" \r\n\t            data-post_type=\"post\" \r\n\t            data-cat=\"uncategorized\" \r\n\t            data-modified=\"120\"\r\n\t            data-created=\"1589378183\"\r\n\t            data-title=\"Finding Comfort\" \r\n\t            data-home=\"https:\/\/livingstonesministries.org\/help4families\"><\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Everyone is on a journey of self-discovery. For me, that journey involved a period of crossdressing\u2014and also in finding comfort in God\u2019s deep love. The first incident I can recall of moving in the direction of crossdressing was at about age 8, when I painted my face, as if I were a woman wearing makeup. &#8230; <a title=\"Finding Comfort\" class=\"read-more\" href=\"https:\/\/livingstonesministries.org\/help4families\/finding-comfort\/\" aria-label=\"Read more about Finding Comfort\">Read more<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_uag_custom_page_level_css":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2516","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"aioseo_notices":[],"uagb_featured_image_src":{"full":false,"thumbnail":false,"medium":false,"medium_large":false,"large":false,"1536x1536":false,"2048x2048":false},"uagb_author_info":{"display_name":"Denise Shick","author_link":"https:\/\/livingstonesministries.org\/help4families\/author\/denise\/"},"uagb_comment_info":0,"uagb_excerpt":"Everyone is on a journey of self-discovery. For me, that journey involved a period of crossdressing\u2014and also in finding comfort in God\u2019s deep love. The first incident I can recall of moving in the direction of crossdressing was at about age 8, when I painted my face, as if I were a woman wearing makeup.&hellip;","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/livingstonesministries.org\/help4families\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2516","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/livingstonesministries.org\/help4families\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/livingstonesministries.org\/help4families\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/livingstonesministries.org\/help4families\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/livingstonesministries.org\/help4families\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2516"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/livingstonesministries.org\/help4families\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2516\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2520,"href":"https:\/\/livingstonesministries.org\/help4families\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2516\/revisions\/2520"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/livingstonesministries.org\/help4families\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2516"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/livingstonesministries.org\/help4families\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2516"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/livingstonesministries.org\/help4families\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2516"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}