I had a transgirl as a client today. Her mom was with her. She was 16 and it was obvious she was trans which was to be expected because I found out she had just started hrt and transitioned a month ago. She was so nervous and obviously uncomfortable. She kept her eyes on the floor and her whole body seemed to be kind of...clenched is the word I guess. So her mom took me aside and told me her daughter was transgender and was that going to be a problem. I told her absolutely it would not. Then she asked if I was sure because her daughter didn't need to be hurt or embarrassed. I assured her that wasn't going to happen. The girls name was Brianna. I felt so bad for her because she had such a scared look in her eyes. I told her everything was fine and tried to get her to relax and she did a little bit. After we decided what to do with her hair she told me she had just transitioned and she was afraid she would never look like a real girl. I told her that hrt took awhile to cause noticible changes and the longer she was on it the softer her features would get. She asked how did I know that, did I know someone who was trans. I don't ever tell people I'm trans. It's just something I don't do. But in this case I figured it might help her to be more comfortable so I told her I knew how long hrt takes to cause changes because I was trans myself. It was amazing how she just brightened. She started actually making eye contact and speaking to me instead of mumbling and staring at the floor.
She shared some of her experiences with me and I have to say I felt really bad for her. The kids at school had given her such a awful time that her mom had taken her out and started homeschooling her. Her mom and dad had been divorced for a while and when her dad found out she was trans he had told her not to ever call him, that he never wanted to see her again and that she was dead as far as he was concerned. She has a 18 year old brother who calls her a freak, ->-bleeped-<-ot and ->-bleeped-<-. And she said he's even slapped her around a couple of times. I wanted to cry. That was so AWFUL! I can't imagine a father being like that to his child. And it just is unthinkable that her own brother would be that cruel to her and unimaginable that he would hit her! If my dad or brother ever did stuff like that to me I don't think heartbroken would even cover how I would feel. It's just so sad!
She had thick beautiful hair a little past shoulder length. It just needed cut a little. So I cut really long layers into it so it would frame her face and I cut long bangs into it. One of her passability issues was that she used a headband to pull her hair back off of her face and forehead. Then I put a few highlights in it. Fixing her hair made a huge difference. Then I waxed her eyebrows which had been a little on the thick side. That also made a big difference. A guy I work with, Adam, had been watching all that. Adam is a very talented make up artist as well doing hair. He came over and introduced himself to her and told her he had some time to kill before his next appointment and would she like for him to do her makeup. He did an amazing job on her makeup. Another passability issue for her was that she had a very masculine jawline. He really minimized that with shading and contouring. She looked so good. She still wasn't entirely passable but instead of knowing immediately when you saw her like when she first walked in, you would have to stop and think about it a minute. She was so happy with how she looked. I told her to remember that she had only been on hrt a month and that she would look much more feminine after she had been on it a while. After she's been on hrt for a while and maybe does some voice training I have no doubt she will be very passable.
Her mom was happy with how she looked and took pictures of her. I told her about Susan's and that there was a section for younger members and the SO section if her mom wanted to join too. Except for that horrible meeting I attended the one time, she's the only trans person I've met in person. That kind of surprises me because it's not like Denver is a small city. Anyway, I'm glad I could help her a little.
Julia
