Sex.co.nz

What’s wrong with wearing women’s clothes?

Nothing, presumably, if you’re a woman … but if you’re cage fighter Alex Reid, then a lot more is at stake.

According to tabloid reports, manly-man Alex wears lipstick and heels to transform into his alter ego “Roxanne” and has done so since he was a teenager.

Like most cross-dressing men, Alex is as straight as they come. He’s currently dating glamour model Jordan.

So why do straight guys like to dress in women’s clothes?  We set off to find out.

If you’re a straight guy who likes to dress in women’s garments, you’re in good company. American basketballer Dennis Rodman has showed up in public in drag, and Red Hot Chili Peppers frontman Anthony Kiedis isn’t averse to dressing like a woman on stage.

In fact, cross-dressing and music seem to go together like Vegemite on toast. Bands Queen and Twisted Sister have unleashed their inner “queens” on stage, and artists Prince and Marilyn Manson are noted for costumes that are just a bit too frilly/loud/extravagant to be menswear. Heck, even grunge king Kurt Cobain of Nirvana wore women’s clothing!

But don’t assume that these guys are dressing like girls because it makes them feel turned on.

Some men simply enjoy the theatrical nature of high fashion. Others like the “acting” aspect of pretending to be someone else. Still others do it to shock.

In addition, dressing up as a woman functions as ritual or as a rite of passage in some societies. It can also function as a disguise. In the movie “Some Like It Hot” (1959), Joe and Jerry dress up as women in order to gain entrance to an all-female band.

So not all cross-dressers gain sexual pleasure from wearing women’s clothing, but there are certainly some who do.

Men who get sexually aroused from wearing women’s clothing are considered to have transvestic fetishism.

It only occurs in men, and specifically only straight men.

So, contrary to popular belief, there’s nothing “gay” at all about wanting to wear women’s lingerie. On the contrary, it’s more likely to be proof that a guy is straight!

Transvestic fetishists are unlikely to be seen dressing in women’s garments outside the privacy of their own home. So, men like Dennis Rodman or Dame Edna, who cheerfully appear in public in drag, most likely do NOT have a sexualized attachment to women’s clothing.

Wanting to wear women’s clothing is not a sign of gender confusion, either. It doesn’t mean that a man wants to be a woman or was born into the wrong body.

Rather, men who have a sexual fetish for cross-dressing do so because of the good feelings they get when thinking about or trying on women’s clothing.

Perhaps they feel this way because of the thrill of breaking a taboo, or perhaps they simply like the feeling of silky fabrics against their skin. There are many normal, understandable reasons that wearing women’s clothing might feel good to a man. It doesn’t mean that he’s “perverted.”

In fact, some critics have challenged the notion that any of us should be prohibited from wearing certain items of clothing simply because of their association with a certain gender. After all, can’t women wear “boyfriend jeans” and their boyfriend’s old t-shirt? If women can dress up in men’s clothing, why should men be prohibited from dressing up in women’s clothing?

The biggest challenge for transvestic fetishists is being accepted by their loved ones. Because of the misunderstandings concerning this fetish, a man’s girlfriend or wife may become extremely upset when she finds out that her partner has been trying on her lingerie. As a result, many men have to hide or repress their fetish, causing feelings of guilt and shame.

If you’re curious about transvestic fetishism, check out this blog by Robyn Summers, a British man (with a girlfriend) who celebrates his pleasure in dressing in women’s garments: Transillusions.