“I didn’t quite look like the other girls. I was curvy and had a big chest. I stood in front of the mirror in my grandparents’ bathroom, analyzing the shape of my body. I was peeling off an old layer of me and discovering the depth of my true identity.”
‘I started binge eating. ‘Do you want to be a boy?’ I was so ashamed of being the ‘fat friend’ of the group.’: Transgender man struggles through eating disorder on road to self-acceptance
‘A friend broke up with him after he was outed to her as trans.’: Mom of 11-year-old trans son shares ‘frightening’ story
“The child’s parent who dropped her off chastised me (out of earshot of the kids) for having a pride flag outside my house and asked me to ‘not talk about inappropriate matters with his daughter.’ My heart literally couldn’t handle it.”
‘What did you do to my child?! She’s telling me she’s our SON.’ That was the angry text I got from my ex-wife.’
“‘Do I need to start calling my beautiful little girl my son?’ First, while crying, I sent an admittedly angry reply back. Then I went back inside, dried my eyes, and woke her up. I knew my daughter was ‘different’ for a long time.”
‘He’s just a tomboy. He’s going through a phase.’ At the age of 2, my son began showing a fierce rejection of all things female. It didn’t enter my mind that my child could be trans.’
“She said something along the lines of, ‘Please be careful with waiting to allow your child to transition. That can be dangerous.’ And then she proceeded to tell me why.”
‘When you were born, I vowed to love you no matter what. I will continue to do that.’ I returned to school for the first time, as myself.’: Trans woman finally ‘living her truth,’ ‘I will never regret choosing my happiness’
“To others, I was in need of fixing. All my behaviors were deemed ‘wrong.’ In an attempt to make me more masculine and ‘grow out of it,’ I was placed in sports. I feared what I would face if I decided to be true to myself.”
‘I still love you.’ When he was 13, he told me he was pansexual. I wasn’t sure what steps I should take as his mother, or even what an appropriate response was.’: Mom of pansexual son encourages others ‘to celebrate our similarities and differences’
“I wanted to prove to Adrian that there is support for him beyond what he saw. Most people have heard that a number of transgender people will attempt suicide. Regardless, this is simply not a risk I was willing to take.”
‘I want you to know about the intrusive, vivid nightmares I have about my child being laughed at. Ridiculed. Assaulted. Murdered.’
“I want you to know about the nights I lay awake, helpless and shaking. I want to tell my story of our family, who fiercely love someone being attacked and can do very little about it.”
