Black Wolf's Lair

Re-posts, Links, Life, Likes, & Random thoughts of a Queer Butch MTF Pagan. Basically you never know what you are going to find here because neither do I...

[determined-mind-deactivated2025]

[girlwhorpsalot]

I needed this.

[mentalmentalhealth]

Thank you to all the people who posted this so I ended up seeing it. I really needed this right now. Thank you!

[aro-ace-christian]

Yeah… Not gonna lie… I cried…

[muslimintp-1999-girl]

We need more people like this

[armillary-spheres-lover]

Goddamn it stop making me feel human

[dreamsrainandwitchythings]

The therapist I wanna be.

[positivelyqueerace]

Text in the image:

“I’m a therapist and keep this poster in my waiting room, apparently it’s saved a few lives.”

I don’t like the phrase “a cry for help.” I just don’t like how it sounds. When somebody says to me, “I’m thinking about suicide. I have a plan: I just need a reason not to do it,” the last thing I see is helplessness.

I think your depression has been beating you up for years. It’s called you ugly, and stupid, and pathetic, and a failure, for so long that you’ve forgotten that it’s wrong. You don’t see any good in yourself, and you don’t have any hope.

But still here you are: you’ve come over to me, banged on my door and said, “HEY! Staying alive is REALLY HARD right now! Just give me something to fight with! I don’t care if it’s a stick! Give me a stick and I can stay alive!”

How is that helpless? I think that’s incredible. You’re like a marine: trapped for years behind enemy lines. Your gun has been taken away, you’re out of ammo, you’re malnourished, and you’ve probably caught some kind of jungle virus that’s making you hallucinate giant spiders.

And you’re still just going, “GIVE ME A STICK. I’M NOT DYING OUT HERE.” “A cry for help” makes it sound like I’m supposed to take pity on you, but you don’t need my pity. This isn’t pathetic. This is the will to survive. This is how humans lived long enough to become the dominant species.

With NO hope, running on NOTHING, you’re ready to cut through a hundred miles of hostile jungle with nothing but a stick, if that’s what it takes to get to safety.

All I’m doing is handing out sticks.

You’re the one saying alive.

[ultimate-science-nerd]

I legit cried at this. I’ve needed to hear it put this way. Bless this post.

[tea-rabbits]

Every time I see this post I stop to read the whole image. It always helps — even on the good days.

Because it wasn’t weakness. It wasn’t shameful to seek help. It wasn’t pathetic to “cry for help”. I was looking for a stick, be that from myself or from someone else. I was trying to find a way out. I was trying to heal myself.

[aurora-nerin]

this is fuckin incredible. 

[irondad-not-ironsad]

I’m sorry if I repost to many of these, but if it could be someone’s “stick” then it’s worth it

[lsleofskye]

Tree of Life 🌳 | juusohd

[kamalaharris2020]

[bingutop]

You are trapped in an elevator with the person on your lockscreen. Who is it?

Reblog with who you get stuck with~

[bwpkeeper]

Welcome to Night Vale

[dajo42]

if you dont have me on facebook you are probably not missing out on any posts but the comment section is important too lmao

I went to the Renaissance faire dressed as a warrior.  I had a real sword with me, too.  I was standing (in character) next to a sword-fighting ring, where kids of all ages got the chance to pick up a sword and challenge the champion.  Some woman walks by, with her little girl.  The girl starts walking towards the ring, saying she wants to fight.  But the mom pulled her away hella sharply, and was like, “That’s for boys.”  You don’t want to be a BOY, do you?”    And the girl looked around and saw me.  I think she thought I was a boy; I had my hair in a ponytail, and was wearing a hood.  So she comes up to me and asks me, “Do you think girls can be fighters, too?”  And her mom looks like she’s silently gloating.  Like she thinks I’m going to say no.  So I take off my hood, untie my hair so that it flows freely, and kneel before her.  And I’m like, “Milady, anyone can be a fighter.”  I swear, the look on that mother’s face made my day.

[maneth985]

[luxgalador]

This post was good but then it got better

[celticshenanigans]

Okay, this is a slight topic diversion, but in response to the above comment. I’ve volunteered at the CT Ren Faire for years now. For the last 5 or so I’ve worked in the game section, and we have a game similar to the above comment called “Smite the Knight”. I’ve been in the ring before, it’s a ton of fun getting to run around with the kids. The main goal is entertainment. Have a good shtick, keep the crowd engaged, and let the kids have a good time.

In both work and observing, I have learned something about kids. A lot of parents try to get their boys to go fight. Of the young ones that do, they tend to be shy. You get the ones who just swing the boffer swords around with no regard for life, but, mostly, they’re reserved. It’s adorable. I mean, they’re kids.

But the girls. THE GIRLS. Holy crap. I swear, the pinker the dress, the more taffeta and glitter…the more intensity. I remember, the first year I worked there, one girl came in, grabbed the biggest sword she could, and WENT TO TOWN on our knight. Lifted it over head, let out this primal scream and mowed him down. Homeboy is 6′2″, she was FIVE. And once he was in the fetal position (He was fine. It was for show.) on the ground, she stopped, put her foot on his chest, and yelled “I AM A FIERCE PRINCESS!!”. Later in the day when she walked by a couple of us yelled “Ah! It’s the fierce princess!” and she stopped and flexed. It was the best, and I will never forget that girl.

[complete-in-ix-deactivated20230]

OH MY GOD IT’S BACK YES

[the-ironhobbit-deactivated20170]

This has improved since last I reblogged.

[tinierpurplefishes]

I taught karate for like 5 years, and the girls were always, pound for pound, better than the boys. Even the girls who didn’t really want to do it and were only there because their parents made them were better than like 95% of the boys.

[shadesofmauve]

I was playing fiddle at a ren faire, and two little girls were really enjoying our set. After quite some time one of them walked up to me and shyly offered me her star tinsel tiara, because she “didn’t have any money. And this protects you from trolls!” I said “Thanks, that’s really sweet – but what about you? Don’t you need protection from trolls?”

At which point this six-ish-year-old girl whips out her certificate from the axe throwing booth and says “Nah, I’m fine.”

I still have that tinsel tiara. It’s draped over my modem. I figure it’ll protect me from the most trolls that way.

[callmebliss]

I am not in the habit of reblogging a post and slapping an “it got better” on there BUT I SAY GOTDAMN

[did-you-know]

A 5,000-year-old tree in Scotland is giving itself a sex change. The male Fortingall Yew has been producing pollen for as long as scientists have been studying it, but in 2015, the tree suddenly sprouted berries in a rare occurrence that means at least part of the tree is now transitioning to female. Source Source 2 Source 3

[thepunksink]

I support trans grandma tree 

[thefingerfuckingfemalefury]

Bigots: transgender people are unnatural!

Trans Tree: what u just say

[sandandglass]

[natalie-mars]

I don’t reblog much, but this is too well said not to.

[themayfieldtreasury]

This always gets a reblog.

[bwpkeeper]

"My Heroes" - A Halloween PSA

I'm not crying. You're crying... :'(

[whatmountains]

TRANS WOMEN: HERE'S SOME SHIT YOUR DOCTOR WONT TELL YOU ABOUT HRT

1. Progesterone: not for everyone, but for many people it may increase sex drive and WILL make your boobs bigger. Also effects mood in ways that many find positive (but some find negative). Most doctors won’t prescribe this to you unless you ask. Most trans girls I know swear by it.

2. Injectible estrogen: is more effective than pill or patch form. Get on it if you can bear needles bc you will see more effects more quickly.

3. Estradiol Cypionate: There is currently a shortage of injectible estradiol valerate. There is no shortage of estradiol cypionate. Functionally they do the same shit.

4. Bicalutamide: This is an anti-androgen that has almost none of the side-effects of spironolactone or finasteride. The girls I know who are on it are evangelical about it.

[naidje-deactivated]

@euryale-dreams

[joyeuse-noelle]

Are there HRT medications that don’t increase blood clot risk? I’m already at risk because of my blood pressure, and my doctor won’t prescribe HRT that increases clot risk while I’m on the medication - and I may never not be on the medication.

[euryale-dreams-deactivated20201]

Absolutely.

The concerns surrounding venous thromboembolic events as a side-effect of hormone replacement therapy can mostly be traced back to one particular study known as the Women’s Health Initiative. This study was an enormous undertaking which, unfortunately, demonstrated significant adverse effects of the hormone therapies studied. As a result of this the use of hormone replacement therapy in postmenopausal cis women was dramatically reduced as the medical community began to question whether or not the therapy caused more harm than good.

Naturally, trans women have been suffering from this fall-out ever since.

What physicians seem to fail to recognize is that the study examined a very specific hormone regimen which was, arguably, outmoded at the time the study was conducted: It examined the use of conjugated equine estrogen (Premarin) with or without the use of medroxyprogesterone acetate. Neither of these drugs is regularly used for the treatment of transgender women.

The estrogen most commonly used to treat transgender women nowadays is 17β-estradiol either in pill form or in the form of a sticky patch that you apply to your skin. Esters of estrogen (e.g. estradiol valerate) are also sometimes used either in a pill form or as an intramuscular injection.

Transdermal estradiol patches are the gold standard when it comes to treating women who are at high risk of a venous thromboembolic event. It simply does not increase the risk of developing a venous thromboembolism. The only thing you should keep in mind is that patches are not always well tolerated because of the lifestyle changes required to keep them from falling off and the fact that they tend to irritate the skin.

Fortunately, oral 17β-estradiol appears to be safe, regardless of the increased risk. At least one large study has shown that the use of oral estradiol in trans women is not associated with venous thromboembolic events. An individual woman’s risk would need to be substantial in order to contraindicate the use of oral estradiol.

For those who have significant risk of venous thromboembolism because they have had a previous thromboembolic event, because they are paralyzed, or because of some other factor it is good to know the relative risk between oral and transdermal estrogen. The latest research indicates that the use of transdermal estrogen lowers your risk of a thromboembolism to 80% of what your risk would be using oral estrogens.

It’s difficult to find hard numbers regarding the relative risk of venous thromboembolic events with regards to hypertension. The best I could find after an hour or so of searching was this study regarding VTE in lung cancer patients. Hypertension increased the risk by a factor of 1.8.

However, to put that into perspective being of African descent increases your relative risk for deep vein thrombosis by a factor of 1.3 when compared to Europeans. Europeans are, themselves, at increased risk when compared to Asians and Pacific Islanders by a considerable margin: a four-fold increase.

I should point out that being ‘male’ is also a risk factor for developing a thromboembolism and hormones are likely to be a contributing factor. Also, menopause is another serious risk factor. Given this information it is likely that the use of transdermal estradiol will lower your risk of thromboembolic events significantly.

As far as the anti-androgen is concerned: The primary use for spironolactone for cisgender people is as an antihypertensive.

Even if the risk of thromboembolism was truly significant with modern hormone replacement therapy it wouldn’t justify what your doctor is doing to you. The fact is that mortality in the transgender community from suicide–caused in part due to the lack of access to hormone therapy–is substantial. The quality of life lost when a trans woman is denied hormone therapy is substantial. The fact that your doctor does not appear to be taking this into consideration when they weigh the risk of thromboembolism against not receiving necessary medical care is deeply concerning.

I strongly recommend that you seek a doctor who is more sensitive to your medical needs as a transgender woman.

Edit: Fixed a minor, but embarrassing, error.

[whatmountains]

oh wow this is so helpful & good info

[blackthorn-and-iron-deactivated]

Everyone who cares about transfem people please reblog this

[thetolerantleft-deactivated2017]

this was really fucking helpful

[blkwlw]

I know a lot of trans women dont have acess to information like this and its very helpful.

[bwpkeeper]

The only thing I like to add to lists like this is to also keep in mind that anti-androgen (spiro and such) is not always that necessary.  Helpful in the start, especially before starting estrogen, but keep in mind that in a body that generates testosterone, higher levels of estrogen automatically turn off testosterone production.  It is how the body regulates T production.  High levels of T get converted into E which tells the body to turn off further production of T till the levels of E drop.  Since you are taking E, meaning the levels of E won’t naturally drop, will keep the T production turned off / to a minimum.  

So basically, if you are able, it is fully possible to only need to take E and skip the anti-androgens.

[sosuperawesome]

Herb Witch Boxes and Mortars and Pestles by Ancient Hearts Shop on Etsy

See our ‘witch’ tag

Follow So Super Awesome: Facebook • Pinterest • Instagram

[xphandelionx]

Witch Goals

[malaise-forever-deactivated2018]

[mylifeasanamericanwitch-blog]

There is magic everywhere...just close your eyes and open your heart ♡

[purpleirishkiss-deactivated2017]

[bwpkeeper]

Sometimes not even on purpose...

[witcheshaven]

[ithelpstodream]

never forget

[nineprotons]

“Got the morbs” should be a thing.

[breelandwalker]

Victorian slang is AMAZING, and select phrases really need to make a comeback.

“Bitch the pot” - Pour the tea (HOW RELEVANT IS THIS!?)

“Bang up the elephant” - Absolutely perfect; super stylish

“Well, that’s shot the bale” - Something that has missed the mark entirely

“Church-bell” - A woman prone to gossip

“Chuckaboo” - A dear friend, a bosom chum

“Beer and skittles” - A great time (see also: Irish Gaelic “craic”)

“Butter on bacon” - Something overdone or too extravagant

“Cupid’s kettle drums” - Breasts, particularly large ones

“Gigglemug” - A cheerful smiling face

[thecuriousviolet-deactivated201]

All of these??? Make me smile??? They’re so weird and wonderful I love them??? Especially bitch the pot because that’s something I could totally hear myself saying…that and chuckaboo

[thebibliosphere]

I worked in a Victorian tea house in my youth and I’m telling you, you haven’t lived till you hear a the 98 year old lady (this was some 15 years ago) utter the words “bitch the pot” because it was what they used to say when the tea house first opened and it just sort of stuck through all the generations.

[bwpkeeper]

Hello there! We’re Valid, a bunch of queer people making stuff for queering life. We’re best known for our jewelry, featuring flags of various queer and gender variant communities – from asexual to transgender. When one of our founders started questioning their gender, we started to notice that tucking options were... not great. They were either expensive and not really functional, frighteningly expensive and on backorder, or a nightmare of DIYing and guessing at sizes. Post Secondary is here to fix that. We’ve spent over a year designing and testing an undergarment designed explicitly to comfortably conceal a phallus all day long, even in fairly extreme circumstances. We call them Alex. Alex doesn’t have any weird, chafing seams. Alex isn’t designed by a cis-guy with a fetish. Alex is made from breathable fabric, so you don’t overheat. Best of all, Alex is priced so that poor trans folks can actually afford to own them. Right now, we have a fully functional Alex prototype. We've done extensive testing and we’re happy with how it fits and how it functions. We need your help to get Alex in the hands of the folks who need it, because we’ve run into a few problems. Problem 1: There is almost no market research on transfeminine or gender neutral folks out there. We know how many we need for our minimum order, but we don't know if that will be enough and what sizes are most wanted. By buying here, you'll help us get a better idea of what to produce for our first run. Problem B: The clothing industry works on an economy of scale. The more we initially order, the more affordable each pair becomes. Our goal is to make Alex as affordable as possible. We're using Indiegogo to spread the word about Alex even further, so that folks who otherwise never would have heard about Alex can get a pair of their very own. Trans and gender nonconforming people have enough struggles. Finding underwear that they can wear all day and still be cute shouldn’t be one of them.