@Willow So this story came together over time, but the short story is that I knew I was Sophie the evening I had accepted that yep, I really was a girl.

But in hindsight, I think the reason I knew so quickly was because I had been Sophie for as long as I have been around. Sophie was always a name I was drawn to. I always especially liked my kids’ friends who were named Sophie. When I would hear a song that was sung by a Sophie; or titled, or contained the name Sophie in the lyrics, something inside me always stirred. Even in my Christian days it was Sophia, the divine feminine, that I connected with.

And I think it’s because I always knew. This is who I am. This is my name. And I was trying to make that known, even though it wasn’t really breaking through.

It took me decades to admit it to myself and speak my name out loud. But I am SO glad I was finally heard!

@Impossible_PhD This pisses me off on so many levels as a budding social science researcher who hopes to do research on trans/nonbinary communities. Obviously, the whole “let’s violate all research ethics so we can push our political viewpoint" angle is awful enough. But this also makes it so much harder for legitimate, ethical researchers to get participants who will trust us enough to participate in solid, peer reviewed research. And in the end that contributes to the information black hole that the trans community continues to do its best to fill.