Hey guys! So, I'm having a hard time finding a good way to explain to my (very religious) parents and family that even though I'm a boy, I really really enjoy dressing like a girl and wearing makeup and all that. This is something I've been trying to work up the courage to tell them for about two years now and I just keep getting cold feet because I'm afraid of how they'll react to it and what they might do after I tell them. I dunno....I just don't know how to approach the situation. That's where you guys come in: I need some advice from you on what to do. Please, I really need your help.

They have to accept the real you. If it were me, i would tell them, and give them a time to accept it. But since your parent's are religious, they might not understand. You have to have a friend to help you work this out! Just believe in the turn " what happens is the past. The future matters now'

Hey there. I would advise you to wait until you move out and start living on your own or with a partner. Most of the time religous families don't accept that their children have tastes different to theirs and most of them are not willing to open their minds. But that is just my opinion. Sorry for a late reply XD, but anyway, good luck.

It'll be very hard to tell them...
How about keeping it a secret? I mean why do you want to tell them ?
And do you also like to walk around wearing girl clothes?

Hmm, making it a secret will be hard, since its bound to be found out some time later.

Okay, first off: Im transgender (MtF) myself, I had to out myself at some point too, but my mom was open minded anyway, so it wasnt a problem.

Now, you have two problems, one youre not aware of yet.

1: You have to figure out whether you actually are transgender, or just enjoy crossdressing the same way another person enjoys playing with train sets.
Best question to ask yourself is whether, after taking anything related with your body out of the equation, whether you are a boy or a girl at heart. If the latter, you should definitely consider transitioning. Be advised that transitioning takes quite some time, depending on how badly authorities and doctors will want to stand in your way, and also brings in its own mountain of problems. Plus it is impossible to keep it a secret if youre transitioning.
If you just want to crossdress, carry on as before.
You probably havent asked yourself that before, but I know from myself that crossdressing is often just a symptom of being transgender.

2: How to go about it with your parents. It would be good to know your age to understand how dependent you are on your parents, however its probably safe to assume youre under 18. Either way, I have two major suggestions:
a) Tell a friend first. Preferably someone who isnt religious and likely to accept you either way. That way you have someone you can talk to about it, and just that will give you a ton of new insights into the topic, that you can draw on in any potential argument or when youre just outing yourself and trying to explain it to your parents.
b) Find a way to make them understand what that means on terms they understand and relate to. I dont know how religious you are, I for one am not at all, but it is still good to be able to think within that mindset. Religious people bend their own rules quite often when they cant reconcile their faith with reality, but act with strictness when it comes to others being, lets say, gay.
Best example I can give, especially if you turn out to be transgender: They will argue that this is the body god has given you and that you should accept it that way, because thats what god wants. Simplest way to counter it is to take their idea, and move it one step further and flipping it on its head: God didnt only give you your body, but also the sense of being the wrong gender, for what reason you can only speculate. Might be a test of whether your parents will still love you regardless of who you really are underneath the surface.
That kind of counterargument.

Anyway, Im sure you will figure it all out. You are smart and well composed in your wording, so you really have a good chance.

I know this might not be what you want to hear, but honestly if your parents are very religious, telling them this could get you into a lot of trouble. It's tough to hear but I don't think you should tell you parents this or at least wait until you move away from them and don't have to live under the same roof as them. It's sometimes hard to see how insane or stubborn your parents can be. I'm not saying that your parents are insane, but from personal experience, it's difficult to see how irrational parents are sometimes until you have some space away from them. I'm not saying this because I'm trying to hate on parents or something, but parents are people too and unfortunately many people are irrational.

That's just my opinion though and obviously I am not as familiar with your parents as you so you'll have to gage the situation yourself.

I wish the best of luck.

Prepare your escape route before telling them XD. As in buy a apartment or house to live in if your parents kick you out. Save enough money and get a job. Something like the beginning of tarting your own life, living alone, do stuff alone until you find a partner... *Thumbs Up* GOOD LUCK, I'm voting for your safety XD

Sometimes it's best when certain people don't know certain things.

But then its much much worse when they (they also think that they deserve to know everything) found out what you've been hiding from them. especially when they raised you to not hide things from them.