Short version, I wanna change my names (first and middle two) sometime this year to something more audibly enby. I have a bunch of stuff I think sounds neat, but is that all it needs?

Like it feels fake at some level, or like an affectation. I don’t know what names resonate with me or if they’re even supposed to. I feel like this is a common experience so maybe I could get some advice?

I do want names that stand out, but also ones that don’t make me sound full of myself, but…also need something that resonates with me and I’m so confused and lost i-spil-my-jice

  • Erika3sis [she/her, xe/xem]@hexbear.net
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    3 months ago

    My number one advice is honestly to talk to someone you know in person. Give them a narrowed down list of name ideas, but be open to them coming up with new ideas based on your list. It’s a lot harder to feel full of yourself if you weren’t the one that picked the name, and it’s a lot easier to tell if you resonate with the name if you’re hearing it from someone else.

    If you have no-one you can talk to in person, then I and other Internet strangers are open to hearing your name ideas.

    My other bit of advice is to write. Pen names, self-inserts, and similar can be a good way to test out different names. The stakes feel lower because you aren’t naming yourself, you’re naming someone who is Totally Not Yourself, and naming other people is always easier than naming yourself.