Deconstructing my own Gender Bias

I'm a 37 year old woman who is finally trying to deconstruct my own Gender Bias and recently discovered the fantasy romance genre.

As is typical for a lot of women it started around puberty. I never really felt comfortable in my own skin, I was a wider set girl with small breasts and I didn't feel particularly feminine. Years of bullying ensued so I closed myself off, not outright rejecting femininity but not exactly embracing it either (Gender specific clothing but no make up). I became pretty much the epitome of 'not like the other girls'.

It's taken me until recently to start rejecting this way of thinking because ultimately I did like a lot of things that are stereotypically 'girly'. I started watching the trashy romance TV shows (Bridgerton, Harlots, Outlander), embracing my love of musicals (I now have my own personal shelf dedicated to musicals) and as of last year reading fantasy and romance novels. It's been quite freeing not comparing myself to women I used to mock for being so stereotypically female. It's also nice having a partner who is supportive and willing to indulge my love of these things by buying dvds of musicals and TV shows.

It's still hard to not fall back in to this way of thinking as this all started during COVID but it's a little easier to not have to hide a part of myself. So I want to say thank you to everybody here who shares this love and for recommending lots of books for me to indulge myself in.