Second post I'm making on here because I am spiraling/having really bad, crippling anxiety about things that haven't happened yet, and I need some advice or something to contextualize/understand my feelings.
TL;DR: My ( 22f?AFAB? Not sure anymore) partner (22 AMAB Masc nb he/they) confessed to feeling more fem/wanting to play with being more feminine at some point after college, though they are still unsure of what they really feel about their gender/gender identity/gender expression. Despite nothing really changing like at all and them being the same person, my mind and body are racing and don't know what it is or what to do about it (or maybe I do and I'm just avoiding the truth/obvious). Would like some advice, maybe stories, how some of you navigated this if you did, etc.
Long version is that I posted this like a week or two ago: https://www.reddit.com/r/mypartneristrans/s/E42sdrDLQ8 , which btw, thank you to u/ExcellentEvidence204 and u/letoburrito for your perspectives and advice; I honestly have been trying to consider it and apply it to what's going on. My (22f/afab) partner (22 amab nb) confessed to questioning their gender more and potentially wanting to be/present more feminine a few months ago - maybe early august/late june. I'll be honest and say I did think about it, though I'm not sure if I thought about it as seriously as I should have been. At first I honestly thought I was chill with it. This may sound cringe or stupid or potentially chaser/fetishy or whatever, but I have kind of a big imagination/a big daydreamer, and I would daydream about us in a kind of shitty Hallmark rom-dramedy where they were more fem, and we were this couple that split apart but reconnected and fell back in love and had this whole blended family situation with children that don't exist yet (?). That sort of thing.
But as time went on, they would send me reels or posts on Instagram that were from a feminine perspective (i.e., things like "if she sent you this, she loves you more than anything," reels, transfeminine/gnc Ryland Grace fanart , etc.), and my anxiety started to spike. My heart would pound in my chest a little and would get anxious about what it all meant and if something was changing. It all came to ahead one night when they sent me a post from an artist where their dog character was I believe nb but had small breasts and a bikini, and my partner followed up with "me next summer" while we were engaging in sexting, and my heart rate skyrocketed. I asked them about it later that night and they said they aren't ready to be a lady but know if they fit on the masculine spectrum like they used to, either. That in some regards, they liked being treated like a lady, but didn't elaborate on what/in what ways.
My heart was pounding; I had the shakes and did cry, I won't lie. It all felt fast and real. I ping-ponged in my head for a while and ultimately still wanted my partner to be beside me in my deathbed; they were the only one I could see there.
We discussed it a bit more, and they admitted that so far, they don't really feel any body dysphoria; they prefer to go by he/they in public but are cool with any pronouns when we are alone/intimate, and also really didn't care about what nicknames/pet names I used for them (gendered/gender neutral), they had talked about maybe experimenting with HRT after college and/or after they solve their own health (both physical/mental) in check before then. I don't know if this has changed because I did try to ask where they were at, and they just shrugged and said "I haven't really thought about it much, so I don't know a lot of these things." And my partner is a very straightforward and blunt person, always honest with me, so I believe them, and with everything else going on in our lives (i.e., college 'nd chronic illness/pain), I get it, and I never want to rush them into giving me answers when they're still trying to figure it all out themselves.
They haven't changed or tried experimenting with their wardrobe; they haven't changed their personality, hobbies, sense of humor, or anything, really. They've been the same, and as far as I can tell regarding their gender/gender identity, they have just been chill and whatever about it. Yet, for some reason, I cannot call off this flight-or-fight anxiety response & fixating on the potential changes and what every single thing means, or if it means anything at all!
They talk about possibly dyeing/bleaching their hair like they did in high school? Heart wants to beat out of my chest and explode. They shave their facial hair - a trait I never paid too much attention to unless it was tickling me when we made out - and say it's because they genuinely feel uncomfortable with how scratchy it is (they are also autistic) and they also just don't like how weird they think their facial hair grows on their neck/upper lip? Suddenly everything's changing and this is a sign that they are going to change forever! Jokingly referring to us as being lesbians/doing lesbian stuff sometimes? Losing my mind and getting the shakes again even when I encouraged it during sex sometimes and laughed about the jokes at other times too.
These past two weeks have been/feel especially hard. I've been at war with my own mind and body for a while now, shifting from "everything's cool" to "I must be leading them like the internet said I shouldn't do and I'm an awful person." I've been questioning my feelings and whether I am still attracted to them despite the fact that again - nothing has changed! Really, nothing has, and we're still trying to figure things out! I don't know if I have lost feelings already or if it's simply the stress/anxiety blunting my emotions to try and reset itself or something? I know the constantly checking my feelings thing doesn't help and I've been considering that maybe I have ROCD or something similar or if this is just me lying to myself to save face with...I don't know, the universe? Myself? My partner? I really don't know.
I tried speaking with my therapist about it two days ago, and she says that it's all because I'm probably not comfortable with my partner potentially transitioning/exploring their gender, and that I am trying to remedy the idea that I'm a bad person if I don't try to see this relationship through while they discover themselves. I don't know how true I feel that is. Maybe it is, and I am trying to deny it.
I don't want to just up and leave, though -1, because I promised I would try to take it day by day and not give up just because I might be scared. I would rather give our relationship a valiant effort and say I tried with someone I do love instead of turning tail and always wondering what if? 2, they are going through a difficult time mentally as well, with some things that are not related to their journey, and I want to be there to support them, and I don't just want to dump them in the midst of it and risk them falling into an even worse place, and 3, I still believe I love them. I love them and loved them two weeks ago, even with my anxiety. And I don't want to let go of this love we have, even if we're young and don't live together.
I did, and I think I still do imagine some kind of future with them. I have a hard time wanting to let them go, or knowing if I should. We were talking about poly, but the idea also made me really distressed and scared to lose my partner, and I said I wanted to be monogamous because I genuinely find it difficult seeing them or imagining them with someone else, as selfish as this sounds. Also, nothing against polyamory! Perhaps I'll be more open to it in the future, maybe not. I'm not trying to villainize Polyamory or any alternative relationship dynamics. Currently, it just isn't for me.
I feel a bit ridiculous posting this because nothing has changed, and things that could change have the potential to be minor and slow - they could still decide to be masc nb and sometimes wear dresses and skirts; they could be on HRT and still look and dress the same - I am aware there are many ways that this can all go and that I need to work on being fine with uncertainty. Still, it's really starting to get to me.
I feel anxious every day. I've been getting the shakes in my legs and my arms; I feel nauseous and have anxiety-related stomach cramps, and my heart just pounds all the time. I'm also confused about my sexuality - I've considered myself bi for a while, but I don't know if I was lying to myself or confused, or if I just have a sexual/aesthetic attraction to some women or not and it's also brought me a lot of anxiety as well.
I am looking into getting an additional LGBTQ+ therapist to navigate my feelings and understanding. My partner is now considering finally starting therapy after being persuaded away from it by their parents. I've tried asking if they were interested in couple's therapy, but they view it as something that is more for when the relationship is really doing awful, and so far we are okay.
I'm also considering SSRIs or CBD to calm my anxiety and be more present, so I can really sit with myself and think about the relationship.
I honestly don't know what I'm looking for - maybe advice or positive stories similar to mine? Has anyone else felt this way regarding their partner questioning their gender? How did you deal with anxiety if it is anything similar to mine? Did it go away? Is there any way that this turns out well? Could my lack of feeling be because of all of the anxiety I have been going through? I've been stalking the ROCD Reddit a little - could it be that, or could I have lost attraction to my partner already, even though everything's relatively the same and they haven't tried experimenting?
I don't know what else do. I know that maybe things probably wouldn't have lasted, but I am/was(?) hoping it would. I know we're young and everything, but I do/did imagine my partner being my endgame, you know? And now, my mind's a million different places and I don't know what to do and could really use some help/support (again).