Previously I promised myself I wouldn't change my name anymore, but I wondered if anyone went by a male and female name (perhaps being genderfluid, bigender, etc) went by two completely different names. The reason why I ask, is because I've always loved the name Matthew, and was considering using it, the only reasons why I'm hesitant is because 1) I have a cousin with that name and 2) it's not at all similar to my given name. The other name I was considering that is close is Matthias, but would that be too confusing? I know you can choose whatever name you want, but I don't want to confuse people too much either.
Currently, that's what ive been doing, as i saw that was a thing that a lot of people were doing on some of the support groups i was first on FB. on days where i don't feel dysphonic as crazy, im ok with my birth name (Jasmine) while most other times, i have been trialling my other name, Elliott (thought i don't think its fitting very well... but same time i need to be considerate that i cant be too picky) They are two very different names, but personally i haven't found a genderfluid type name that i really like as of yet. Then again, i am still questioning as it is, so i am a little indecisive at the moment. Hopefully that was useful
1) That could get confusing at family reunions. Maybe chose Matthew but go by Matt or another nickname when the family gets together. 2) I don't think that should hold you back. A lot of people choose names that are very different from their birth names. Mine only have a single letter in common and it's not even the first one. Like you said, you can choose whatever name you want, even if it will confuse some people at first. Once people get used to the new name things should be fine.
There are people who do it. That was kinda my plan when I used to identify as genderfluid. I knew I needed a name for days when my birth name made me dysphoric, and I ended up picking Jesse, which frankly I only like as a guy's name, so I had a name for guy days and my birth name for girl days. For me, it didn't work. I knew it would feel like too much of an imposition to ask people to switch back and forth between names, and there were too many days when I didn't want people to be referring to me by a name that was distinctly male or distinctly female. I needed a single gender neutral name, which is how I ended up going by my last name as a nickname for quite a while (and still do). It might have worked better for me if I'd chosen a name I thought of as clearly male which had a really neutral nickname and then switched back and forth between those two. It's definitely doable, it's just not for everyone. Think about whether you would feel like it's too much of a hassle for other people (I wouldn't complain if someone asked me to switch the name I use for them, but that didn't stop me from worrying that it would be too much for me to ask for) or if you would be bothered by not having a gender neutral name to use.
