Week 1

19 | he/him/his | in academy

[firefightingwhiletrans]

about me/what this blog is about

tl;dr: this blog is a way for me to show other trans folks my personal experience going into fire protection services

Hello!

I'm a nineteen-year-old student about to start his first year of firefighting academy.

I also happen to be transgender.

The purpose of this blog is to document my experience going through firefighting academy, in hopes of providing some guidance for those who follow me. I've barely ever heard of transgender people in this profession, and when I do, it's highly sensationalized. I want this to be raw, real, and enlightening.

I also want to make it clear that this isn't going to be a universal experience. This is my life. It could be just like someone else's. It could be completely different someone else's. Your millage will vary.

I'll try my best to make at minimum weekly updates. We'll see how long I can stick to that. I have classes four days a week, a part-time job, and other commitments in my life, so set your expectations low and your hopes high.

WHAT TO EXPECT:

The nature of this field and also this blog can and will be triggering for some folks. Below is my content warning tagging system, while I'll update as needed. If you need something tagged, shoot me an ask or an email.

#CW_transphobia #CW_death #CW_injury #CW_graphicdesc [a text description that is graphic in nature, i.e describing an injury] #CW_graphicim [an image that is graphic in nature, i.e an injury. i don't think this will ever get used, but it's here.] For the sake of my safety, the identifying information I give here will be VERY limited. You can call me Fin. This is not a name I use anywhere but here. I won't be posting any images of myself. I won't be sharing my location, aside from the fact I'm located in the United States in the Pacific Northwest.

If you want to contact me, you can do so by submitting an ask or an email. My email is accessible through carrd.

As of posting this, my first class starts in 13 hours. I'm excited. I'm terrified. I'm ready to see where this next year takes me.

[firefightingwhiletrans]

Week One

Week one was, in short, a roaring success.

I had emailed my instructors beforehand, and they all had a positive response to my gender identity and my desire to remain stealth, at least for the time being. I've made a good impression on my instructors, I've made friends, and I'm optimistic about my future in fire.

That said, I've learned a couple things.

First, binding with KT tape isn't going to be sustainable long-term. It was incredibly euphoric to have a flat chest without having to wear a binder, but my awareness of it never faded into the background like it does with a binder. Additionally, my chest looked like a crime scene after removing it. The skin is raw and sensitive, but there's only a few blisters on the sides. I'm switching to proper Trans Tape, and I'm hoping between that and the healing salve, taping will prove to be sustainable. I can't do the intense workouts required of me in a binder, so if it ends up being more the the same I'm just going to have to deal with raw, sensitive skin for the foreseeable future. Here's hoping things work out.

Secondly, I need to have some kind of snack before working out. And electrolyte drinks are a must. Day one of working out, our trainer threw us right in the deep end, and I was maybe five minutes from upchucking by the end of it. It was intense, we were all struggling, but we cheered each other on and made it to the end without anyone passing out.

The academy I'm in is run out of my local college, and is a two year long AAS program. I'm really excited to see where these next two years are going to take me!

-Fin