Hi, I& #39;m a girl.

My name used to be Samuel Elliot.

I used to have an enormous beard.

I fathered a child.

I& #39;ve sung tenor and bass.

My body hair used to be like a forest.

I played on boys& #39; sports teams as a kid.

But I& #39;m a girl.
My names, appearance, relationships, and social roles have changed since I came out as transgender.

They align more, now, with who I really am.

It& #39;s such a relief.

And I& #39;m so relieved and looking forward to these things continuing to change to better align with who I am.
I don& #39;t know who needs to hear this.

But the fact that I used to have a boy& #39;s name doesn& #39;t mean I& #39;m a boy.

The fact that I used to have a beard doesn& #39;t mean I& #39;m a boy.

The fact that I& #39;ve previously been treated, socially, as a boy doesn& #39;t mean that I& #39;m a boy.
The fact that I (for now) have a penis doesn& #39;t mean I& #39;m a boy.

I& #39;ll say that again.

The fact that I (for now) have a penis doesn& #39;t mean I& #39;m a boy.
I am not defined by my genitals. Even if, for most of my life, society named and shaped and treated me based on my genitals.
I& #39;m a girl.

My name is Samantha Elisheva (Shuli Elisheva in Hebrew).

I keep my face smooth.

I& #39;m a mom.

I& #39;m training my voice to sing more femininely.

I& #39;m undergoing body hair-removal.

My friends, family, and colleagues call me a girl.

But none of that makes me a girl.
I don& #39;t understand the scientific complexity of sex and gender.

I& #39;m not sure anyone really does.
I didn& #39;t choose to be a girl.

I didn& #39;t choose to be transgender.

In fact, I didn& #39;t want it. I fought it. I denied it. I tried to ignore it.

The first thing I googled, after finally realizing I might not be cisgender, was:

"What if I don& #39;t want to be transgender?"
I am a girl.

It is wired into my body.

My body was born with mixed signals. It produced male organs. But it also, for whatever reason, is also so fundamentally female that I suffered such emotional torture and anguish until finally accepted this truth that I am a girl.
My current feminine name and appearance don& #39;t make me a girl any more than my previous masculine name and appearance made me a boy.

I am taking actions to make my name, appearance, and other aspects of my life align with the fact of my being a girl.

But regardless, I& #39;m a girl.
I don& #39;t know who needs to hear this.

But if it& #39;s you, please know:

Gender is not defined by genitals alone.

Nor is it a choice.

It is deeply embedded, somehow, in our bodies in ways that still have yet to be scientifically understood.
Being transgender is not a choice.

It is a biological/genetic/etc fact of our existence that can either be accepted or denied, but it& #39;s still a fact.

Even if we don& #39;t yet understand it.
Hi, I& #39;m a girl.

My name used to be Samuel Elliot.

I used to have an enormous beard.

I fathered a child.

I& #39;ve sung tenor and bass.

My body hair used to be like a forest.

I played on boys& #39; sports teams as a kid.

But I have ALWAYS been a girl.

I& #39;m only just now living it.
You can follow @ShuliElisheva.
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