Tuesday 16 December 2014

Say Hello to Sophie...

Back in March I came out as being both bisexual, and femandrogyne. “Femandrogyne” refers to my gender identity, and it is one of many non-binary gender identities which are out there. “Androgyne” refers to someone who doesn’t feel fully male or fully female, but somewhere in-between. “Femandrogyne” refers to someone who is somewhere in-between male and female, but is leaning more towards the feminine side.

I recently decided to take an important step in dealing with my gender identity, in order to feel more comfortable and happy. And that step is to start living part-time under a feminine identity, by the name of Sophie.

I’m not going to be Sophie all of the time. I will still be Karl at work, and with my family. But, outside of these situations, I will be living as Sophie.

What this means in real terms is that I will start dressing in a feminine way, and I’m going to experiment with growing my hair longer. Recently, I shaved my beard off for the first time in 14 years. One day later I remembered why I’d stopped shaving in the first place – it’s really uncomfortable, and the results don’t last long. And so I’ve decided, in order to be comfortable, I’m going to keep the beard, but keep it very short. That way I don’t notice it’s there. (And, hey, if it works for Conchita Wurst...)

I’m also going to adopt the name Sophie, and so I would appreciate it if you call me this from now on (outside of work and family situations, where I will still be Karl), and use feminine pronouns when referring to me. But don’t worry if you slip up, it’s an easy thing to do. Even I may slip up on occasion (those of you who know me well know that I sometimes refer to myself in third person, and I may slip up these occasions).

With regards to social media, Facebook’s strict naming rules mean that my account there will only be safe there if the name I have on it is my legal name, and so I will still be Karl there, although the name Sophie will appear there as another name. However, on Twitter, I will be changing to Sophie, and my new Twitter handle will be @SophieKGreen.

Please note that I’m not, and have no plans, to ever undergo surgery, or have any other medical intervention to alter my body.

Please note that this isn’t any sort of sudden decision. I have been feeling this way for literally decades, but have been keeping it hidden until this year. It’s only now that I feel more comfortable about being true to who I really am.

I know that this may take some getting used to, it certainly will for me. But I hope I will have your support in doing this. I’ve already told some of my friends about this, and I’m pleased to say that they are all fine with it.

Many of you will know that I also have a girlfriend. I spoke to her about this before I told anyone else, and she is fine with it, and I love her very much.

So, there you have it. I’m Sophie now. I hope and trust you’re all able to respect that, and that I can be happy with who I am...

3 comments:

sheridan said...

Hi Sophie!

Unknown said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Unknown said...

Hey Sophie,
I would just like to say I am so very proud of you and that you have decided to start embracing who you really are. It's a wonderful and very brave thing to do and I respect you even more so for it.

I have known you a relatively short period of time, a little over a year, and I am so glad I am around to see who you were, a person called Karl at the back of the coffe shop and to see your journey as Sophie, a hopefully, more confident and assured person who is starting to feel comfortable in their own skin.

My only regret, is that in a few months, I will miss a huge chunk of watching you become even more happy within yourself and your journey to becoming the person you want to be. I know we'll keep in touch while I'm away so here's hoping I won't miss too much.

You may change your name, your pronouns, the way dress whether or not you have long hair, but please don't feel you have to change who you are and that is one of the most kind, generous, welcoming people I know! And yes, I will still ensure everyone knows the aim of any game is to not let Sophie win, although, you do make it hard teheh. 😛

Best of luck on your journey and I'll see you very soon Sophie!