Regarding coming out -- I have told three people during my lifetime so far: my second husband who had no problem with it, at least it seemed that way -- we used to pretend sometimes that I was a paraplegic or that he was (but he wasn't very good at pretending, so it didn't work that well). I don't believe it had an adverse effect on our marriage; I never got the feeling he thought I was a devil-spawn or anything. We split up for other reasons.

Then I told my best friend, who had just divulged to me that she was (is) a lesbian and into piercing, so I divulged to her my fantasies of being crippled. She also had no problem with it and even wondered why I had such a hard time telling her (I stammered for quite a while before getting it out).

Finally I told my current husband, who also seems to have no problem with it, but he didn't say or do much about it until the other day when his back was out and I found him in bed, waiting for me without his pants on, pretending to be a paraplegic, telling me he couldn't move his legs, and so on. I became extremely aroused and, during sex, came to orgasm before he did, which had never happened before. He told me afterward that he hoped I enjoyed my fantasy--I told him I had-very much.

It was just after that that I started thinking about this quirk again and checked out the web for possible sites (paralysis, paraplegia, braces, etc.) and found your site and more. I was shocked-amazed that others shared this fantasy and had shared it on the web-I literally rocked in my seat. The next day I told my husband that I wasn't alone with my fantasies. He said, jokingly and not, that he wouldn't have married anyone who wasn't "normal". I guess it was his way of telling me that I was okay, that he accepts me the way I am, and I really appreciate that, even if he isn't too happy about my finding the web sites and pictures and stories so intoxicating (so much all at once after so long!).

I believe I have been lucky in my choice of friends and mates-it might not be that easy to tell others-you probably have to be a good judge of character. I've never told my mother, for example, since she often seems preoccupied with how people walk, whether or not they're crippled, and I've sometimes wondered if she shares my fantasy or if her mentioning it helped it to occur. I haven't shared the fantasy with her; I don't believe I will.

If I were to label myself, I'm probably a pretender, not a real wannabe; I also am partly a devotee of disabilities both real or imagined. I would enjoy being able to really experience paraplegia or lameness for a while, as long as I could revert eventually...

One month later:

This span of thirty days has been a very interesting one. I have now come to grips with that "quirky" part of me to a degree I would never have believed possible. It feels good, it feels right, it feels free. At the same time, I find that I am somewhat consumed by "these" thoughts a good portion of the time, and I want to spend all my time surfing the web, looking for more and more, reading books again that deal with paralyzed people, people who've had polio, or who live with other types of disabilities that cause them to have to wear braces, use crutches, and so on. My mind has been so taken with the thoughts that have come rushing to the surface that I've been finding it difficult to think of anything else.

My first reaction was that the flood would subside; I didn't close the gate but let it out. My work suffered as I spent more time thinking about how my legs felt as I pretended they were paralyzed; I fashioned "braces" from pieces of metal that I wore under pants so only I knew they were there; I spent quite a lot of time limping around, just getting the feel of all of this back again. It was like suddenly being a child again!

It has been a month now, and things are finally beginning to come back to a sense of normalcy. I still wear my "braces" nearly every day now, as I am no longer afraid of doing it and it makes me feel good and doesn't hurt anyone. I stopped surfing the web so much and concentrated more on work, and stopped typing until all hours with those on the #legbraces (in IRC) chat for a while. I think now I can balance it better; but I admit I still yearn to find a way to get "real" braces now and keep thinking about where I could go to use them without seeing anyone I know. It will come. If I get them, I'll find a way.