ransvestia

Twenty-four years ago I married a wonderful woman. The desire to cross-dress that had been with me since childhood was markedly reduced during our courtship and I believed my problem would be finally ended in the fulfillment of marriage. The usual story. Within a few months after marriage I was frantic to dress again and the intensi- ty of the desire had reached frighteningly new heights. We lived in a tiny apartment with no place to hide a feminine wardrobe. There was no way out except to tell my wife. After several weeks of trying to broach the subject, I finally waited for a quiet time together and then gently and briefly told her of my problem.

My wife was terribly shocked. Numbly she mumbled a few words of dismay. It seemed like her radiant love, her dreams, her hopes all died a little as she sat there in disappointment and confusion. It was obvious too that she was angry that I had withheld this information from her prior to marriage. My request for permission for occasional dressing was unthinkable to her. During the next few days she withdrew into a shell of despair and silence. I had broken her heart. Riddled with guilt and anguish I offered to get psychiatric help im- mediately.

By contacting the Denver Medical Society I was able to find a wise old psychiatrist who after a few hours with me was able to define the problem and recommend a solution. He had treated a number of transvestites during his long career and said that a cure was unlikely. Surprisingly, he suggested I accept the feminine side of my life. He recommended I dress periodically in the privacy of my home, entering into the role of womanhood as deeply as I desired for a few hours once or twice each month and thereby find relief and prevent the problem from worsening. This is remarkably similar to the FPE approach of to- day. He felt this was a practical way to handle the problem and that if I followed his advice with discretion, good judgment and restraint, it would have no seriously adverse effect on our marriage. He left the details up to me. Whether or not my wife got involved or witnessed my dressing didn't matter but it was important that she accept this solu- tion in principle, and he offered to meet with her to assist in un- derstanding and acceptance.

I went home to my wife in high spirits. But she refused to accept this solution, refused to even accept the psychiatrist's invitation to meet with her. She felt that the whole thing was too repulsive and dis-

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