your life were you MOST comfortable with your body?” 67% of respondents think the desire to lose weight can carry a stigma now, and almost half said they would not be
“GROWING UP AS
A BOY IN OHIO,
it was never an is-
sue to have my
shirt off. It was just
part of being as-
signed male. But
once I began ex-
ploring woman-
hood in my teens,
and then eventual-
ly transitioned,
all of a sudden it
was illegal to show
the exact same
nipple. Trans wom-
en, and women in
general, have so
many constraints
placed on their
bodies. That’s why,
for me, being na-
ked on my own
terms is liberating.
When I was young-
er, I don’t think I
knew what a happy
life looked like. And
happiness is still
something I have to
work at. It’s a daily
practice for me to
love myself and
love life. I’ve gone
through a lot of
pain and crying
moments, looking
in the mirror at my-
self and wondering
why and what to
do next. I’m still
on that journey of
self-acceptance
and loving my body
for all of its curves
and imperfections
and everything
that makes me
me, which I think
is something that
every woman
struggles with.”
—TLactress, Transparent and
Hustlers; trans activist“We’ve been
told as trans
people not to
exist, and there’s
something
about being
naked that
is so powerful
and natural.”
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