The happy story of my transgender coming-out
PARKER MARIE MOLLOY, AUG 23, 2013 03:30 PM -0700

Into adulthood, I self-identified as male. I tried to "be a man" by doing what I considered "manly" things...

I kept up the "guy" act until the age of 26. I went out with women. I chain-smoked cigarettes and drank too much and disengaged from the world. Dating was fairly easy, as I was only ever attracted to girls. The challenge was to appear happy while tamping down the ever-present anxiety that something was horribly wrong with me...

Finally, in May 2012, I realized that I couldn't continue denying who I am... Nervously, and without much idea of what our next steps should be, I told my partner of four years what was going on in my head. I told her of the darkness that surrounded my life, of the sadness and anxiety within me. I told her that I was scared...

I figured she would leave me, and take a huge chunk of my heart with her, but she stayed. I couldn't believe it. She knew my deepest, darkest secret, and she did not run away. She wanted to discuss what we should do as a couple. This was not a death sentence. This was just a new challenge.