His Struggle with Gender Identity Is, Unsurprisingly, Reflected in His Fursona

Dear Papabear,

I have been having this certain itch in the back of my mind for a while, now which has formulated from other things within it. As I have slowly made my steps back into the fandom over a couple of months, there has stresses over my latest fursona. 

I was born a male, but over the last year or two, I have been feeling different, and I know you have probably heard this a good few times. I have been feeling a slight uncomfortable feeling with my male image, and often refusing my masculinity. I have pictured an exact female version of myself, and it has caused great happiness within myself. 

These feelings have leaked into my creation of older fursonas, with my male ones often being rejected by myself for their simple masculinity and being males themselves. I began to create some female ones, but then came my intense fears of being judged for such. Is it so wrong to make a fursona of a different sex I was born of? I feel really happy with my current fursona, but the opposite gender fear is really getting to me. 

Thanks!
​
TurnWall (age 17)

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Dear TurnWall,

Our fursonas are often an expression of our inner selves, so it is not surprising at all that your struggle with gender identity is reflected in your fursona. There are many people in the fandom just like you, so you will have no problem being accepted by other furries, I should think. Heck, such gender transformations date back to the beginning of the fandom with the famous Robert Hill and his bambioid fursuit, which made appearances at Confurence in the 1980s. His main fursona was Vawlkee, a rather effeminate wolf-morph, and he liked to draw hermaphroditic bears based on Disney characters like Baloo.

Probably the most appealing thing about the fandom is that it is about the freedom of expression, which relates to everything from artistic to sexual expression. When we are free to show how we really feel and think, it brings happiness, as you have experienced with the creation of your new fursona.

Your nervousness is the result of societal pressures from the world's mundane community. You shouldn't listen to the mundanes. Look how badly they have screwed up this planet. Instead, make connections to your own kind: furries, especially those who, like yourself, are exploring their sexual and gender identity.

The more you do so, the more you surround yourself with others who feel the same as you, the more comfortable you will be, and the happier, too!

Hugs,
Papabear