James, Canada (he/him)

“I am a trans man and I am also Christian.”

Was there a definitive moment you realized you were trans? How old were you?

I was around 11 or 12 when I realised that most people did not have the relationship with femininity that I did. Up until that point I had found it easy enough to adapt and dress and act like a boy but as I was getting older that was getting much harder. I hit puberty and it felt awful. Female puberty felt like a tight, ill-fitting suit.

How soon after did you start to make changes? What were these changes?

At 11 I started going by she/they, and then they/them, then they/he, then he/they, and finally he/him. It took about two and a half years to cover the full spectrum of pronouns (excluding neopronouns) and nobody was surprised when I made the final switch to he/him. I was really lucky to have parents and a community who supported this, though I think my parents were relieved when I finally landed on he/him for good. I started T when I was about 15 and it felt completely perfect and natural. Sometimes I have a hard time remembering that it's the T that makes me more masculine. I feel illogically that it would've just happened naturally eventually.

Have these changes started to make you feel more comfortable in your life and body?

In every way yes.

What would you tell your younger self? Would you do anything differently?

I would tell him to just bite the bullet and go straight to he/him instead of trying to hold onto my femininity in the way that I did. I wish I had been able to accept that I was a man-- or a boy, at the time.

Is there anything else you'd like to share?

I am a trans man and I am also Christian (Episcopalian, specifically). I want people to know that between me and my own faith, I find it incredibly easy to be trans and Christian. God made me trans. By transitioning and living as myself, as a man, I am following His word, following the guidance from Him that he put within me.

Have the gender-affirming steps you’ve taken impacted your overall happiness and sense of well-being?

Yes.