Teddy, United Kingdom (he/ae/xe)

“The events in my transition have made me the person I am, and I wouldn't change that for the world."

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

I always knew I was different. I felt from a very young age that I fit in better with the boys than the girls, and I was never stereotypically "girly" anyway. I remember crying at a birthday party because I won a silly little competition and my prize was a knock-off Barbie doll, because I just didn't want it. Then in secondary school, my best friend came out as non-binary, so I threw myself into research, and it turns out I found myself too.

I also realised properly in 2019 that I was trans, after Dan Howell and Phil Lester posted their coming-out videos. Their coming-outs made me realise that I liked boys, and that I was a BOY who liked boys. At this point, I was 14, but I didn't properly come out as trans until I was 16.

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

I cut my hair short at a very young age, but I just thought I was butch. Then I discovered the concept of gender, and things started to make sense. I kept my hair short, but leaned more into masculine styles. I also started dyeing my hair at age 14 (blonde at age 13, pink at 14 for a few weeks, then no more dye until I was 15, at which point I went red) and this has formed a huge part of how I express myself. I also started experimenting with a more androgynous and eventually more masculine style of clothes, and got a LOT of piercings. I changed my name when I was 17, and I'm also due to start taking testosterone within a matter of weeks or maybe even days of writing this (yay!).

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

Definitely! The further I get in my transition, the more comfortable I start to feel in expressing femininity, because people finally see me as a feminine man rather than a butch girl.

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

It's okay to be confused, just follow your heart and eventually you'll end up in the right place! And it's okay to take time to figure yourself out, there's no rush. I wouldn't do anything differently - the events in my transition have made me the person I am, and I wouldn't change that for the world.

Is there anything else you'd like to share?

Don't let anyone else define you. This is your transition journey, nobody else's, and only you get to call the shots.

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

Yes.