THIS WAS SUPPOSE TO GO IN THE GENETICS THREAD! I HAD A BRAIN CRAMP
Genetics probably play a role in all of this and us. Be one homosexual, bisexual, heterosexual, transgendered, crossdresser and a host of other human traits and idiosyncrasy. External influences and forces probably filter, shape and colour these genetic traits. I do not think it's all ONE or the OTHER.
For myself my desire to feel my feminine side and notably through crossdressing goes back to oh as early as I can recall, maybe age 5. I vividly remember, seeing neighbourhood girls, my sister and my mother dressing in girls/womens clothes and being so feminine, girly or womanly. At age 5 one does not understand this but I so wanted to wear the clothes and at times be very girly. Like it was yesterday I was again about 5 and remember a girl up the block from our house, Dianna who was (A snapshot or short mental video is burned in my mind even to today) wearing a white turtleneck top, royal blue short jumper, white tights and black patent mary-jane shoes... I SO WANTED TO WEAR IT ALL AS SHE LOOKED! Even in my mind today I am propelled back to age 5 and wish it was me and not her dressed as such. AGE FREAKING FIVE! how much or little life experience could have caused me to want to and to today remember it like it was yesterday? No, a part of my character is wired to be and feel a need to dress feminine and let my feminine feelings flow. Another is nurture/life.
Did my upbringing in household culture help shape this base point? Probably. I have a powerful and often kodachrome like memory. I can recall say one day being age 5-6 in the bathroom with my dad as he shaved with his electric shaver and I'd take the plastic cover to his shaver and hop up on the counter and with him looking in the mirror an I'd copy him shaving. Then another day I recall my mother dressing up even though she ALWAYS dressed beautifully as a woman and my sister and I watching her touch up her hair and putting on her lipstick while looking in the mirror and we'd as kids bug her to put lipstick on us. YES as a little boy mom would play and let me get a little lip of her lipstick along with my sister too. Of course it would probably have been licked and wiped off my lips quickly. Did that turn me into a cder? NO! because I liked girl clothes and stuff before this sort of play with my mother.
I recall from age oh 5-6-7-8 playing barbies with my sister, it was fun. It never really crossed my mind that it was oh no, he's gonna be a homo type

'bad' for a boy to do such? Why? because the next hour or day I would then be playing with my bucket of soldiers, hot wheels or match box cars. Or maybe drawing airplanes on paper or playing table hockey with my older brother etc. Hell I even played tea party with my sister and her neighbourhood girl friends, SO WHAT? because I could then later play street hockey with the other boys or we'd be messin about getting dirty another day.
I recall dressing up in my mother's clothes by age 10-11. By that age often we'd , my sister and I would be at home alone as our older brother would baby sit but not harrang us. So at times my sister and I would put on her pantyhose and maybe skirt, we'd try on her shoes, they still fit me back then. It was harmless child fun, but loved it. By age 13-14 though and puberty hitting me I stopped doing such with my sister. But if I was home alone I'd often get into my mother's clothes, pantyhose, a dress or a blouse and skirt and I could still get my feet into some of her shoes, open toed sandals or her slides. My favorite pair she had was a stunning pair of blue suede platform sandals with oh a 4.5-5inch platform wedge heel. I'd be in either my blue jeans or maybe one of my mom's skirts over pantyhose and clasp the straps up. I'd then easily walk around in these delicious for a cding 13-14-15 y.o. boy and look in a full length mirror at how good my body and legs looked in such tall heels. Yes, being in puberty I also learned about masturbation and I'd often masturbate doing this WISHING I WAS A CUTE SCHOOL GIRL! After I'd ejaculate I FELT LIKE CRAP! I as an immature 13-14-15 y.o. would ask, WHAT THE F*K WAS WRONG WITH ME?! We had no Google or internet stuff back then so I could not answer that question except for feeling sick as a teenage boy after doing such. I'd often then over compensate being a teenage boy to cover these feeling too.
Dating in H.S. was not a heavy thing for me, but I loved being with the girls I dated and in puppy dog love. My hormonal boy feelings were there but so to were my feminine and cding feelings. I'd often fantasize about the clothes my H.S. GF's would wear.
Anyways, I feel much of this cding and more tging stuff for many of us here has genetics as a part of it, but also shaped by life around us and people who we share life with. I could see in life, on t.v. in movies or in magazines beautiful women as I grew up and well wonder about or desire to be with them as a teen boy and young man well even today

, but I also would want/dream about to wear the clothes, shoes, boots or put on their makeup and do hair as I saw

It was so confusing but so exciting.
I could go on here but I blathered on too long already. IMO IT'S ALL COMBINATIONS OF GENETICS AND UPBRINGING/NURTURE/CULTURE/LIFE EXPERIENCES!
