Mom stands up for trans stepson who has been 'treated horribly since coming out' by his dad

It is challenging to follow your heart in such a judgemental world when society tries its hardest to put people into a box and force them to follow decades-old norms. Unfortunately for many, the identity they are boxed in becomes claustrophobic because of lack of support, especially if a person is from the LGBTQ+ community. The U.S. Transgender Survey revealed that 39% of the individuals in the community face psychological distress. It happens due to the unacceptance and discrimination they face in everyday life, especially from their close ones. People must support them when they begin their challenging journey of self-acceptance. It is what u/Resident-Step-2917 did for her stepson, but was blamed for crossing boundaries. She shared the entire story on Reddit.

The stepmother begins the post by sharing how her 13-year-old stepson recently came out as transgender to her and her husband. While the stepmother was very understanding and supportive, his father "was not open to it." Moreover, he constantly brought his spirit down with mean tactics. Some of which were using "she/her pronouns when referring to him and talking to him."

On her part, the woman has tried to make her husband understand the boy's point. She has suggested he take part in a support group for parents of transgender kids and gain more information but to no avail. She has warned him that this "treatment of his son is only going to blowback on him later, but he's convinced that 'it's just a phase'." Unfortunately, this situation is more hard on the son, as the father is his primary guardian. A few years ago, his mother, due to drug abuse, lost a lot of her rights to him and at present, is involved in the custodial battle. Therefore, she cannot help him in this case or get him out of this environment.

To celebrate his identity, the boy wanted to get a haircut and asked his mother, who, despite her desires, refused because she knew the father would document this in the custody case. As a last resort, he went to his stepmother. Though hesitant at first, she supported him. She wrote, "I couldn't look at this child who has been treated so horribly since coming out and just wants to feel more comfortable in his identity and say no." The woman took the boy to a barber shop and he got a buzz cut. He was happy with the result, but the father was furious.

Since the incident, the father has been infuriated, refusing to discuss the situation and sleeping on the couch. The stepmom's own family members have criticized her for stepping over boundaries to help the boy. Her take is, "I would rather take him to a professional than have him cut his hair himself and come to resent living with us and me for never sticking up for him even though I've told him he has my support every step of the way of his journey." She came on Reddit to get a third-party view of the situation.

The comments section was clearly on her side. u/megidio believes there was no harm done in this situation from the stepmother's side and wrote, "NTA - the only boundary being crossed is him misgendering his son. Also, it's hair... It literally grows back." u/taylor_harvey commented how the stepmother's actions were crucial in this situation, "NTA you're supporting the kid that's all that matters. Accepting trans kids is suicide prevention!"