Article1

My name is Stephanie Snowden, My goal and hope here is to share just some common sense stuff from a transgenders point of view, hoping to illistrate to the mainstream public some of the issues that we face everyday and ways to deal with those issues by just getting through the daily routine of life. To honestly show people that we are really no different than most poeple. That we too have dreams, goals and a appreciation for life that is often taken for granted.

Hopefully, I will be able to past on a few tips that will help someone through their day just a little better.

Let me start by sharing with you where I am at today. It is important to remember that people change just as life does and I guess you can say I am making a really big change. But this change has shown me a whole new path in life that I wasn't expecting, sure I knew things would be different but I never thought that it would be like this and I love it.

So I am enjoying a journey very few dare take, the freedom it is showing me is a wonderful new experience of discovery and even some unexpected funny moments. Just as an example, I got carded one night and refused service because they thought I was trying to use some poor guys' id. By not getting bent out of shape over it and using some humor it turned out to be not only ok, but it was pretty funny too.

Another incident was just before I came out at work, I was leaving the men's room when this guy was going in and he stopped at the door, looked at me and then looked at the sign and then back at me with this really confused look on his face. I figured that was when it was time to come out. I guess in that incident literally.

I was reading a journal posting from a couple years ago just after I'd started my transition and just said to myself "I can't believe how much my life has changed for the better since then." I am now living full time as a woman. I know that my transition has hurt and confused some of those close to me and that they are having their issues with it, but even then they're being as supportive as can be expected and for that I am very grateful.

What is really surprising and really cool part is that I have had almost no backlash from my transition from society in general. I just live my life as any woman would and go about my daily life as normally as possible. I think that people see this and realize that we really aren't all that different than they are, so it somehow becomes "ok" or "so what" in their mind. I occasionally see the little smirk or chuckle on someone's face, but I don't let it bother me to much because I know what I am doing is outside of what most people understand and it is unique.

This is important to recognize, because it allows me to be myself just as we all should be able to be ourselves. But this is also an empowerment and it is what gives me the additional strenght to just go about my daily routines and business without freaking out about not passing or blending in, even though I have been told by many that at first they thought I was a natal woman but then realized that I wasn't and by then it didn't matter to them.

I've legally changed my name and I'm getting all of my other stuff changed over to reflect these changes of the woman that I am today.

My work place has also been just fantastic and very supportive about my transition. The company has a very strong diversity policy and with my "coming out" I'm being told that I will be included in many of the future diversity planning areas which I am very excited about being a part of.

Outside of work I've gotten very involved in the Transgender community as being a fairly outspoken supporter for transgender rights and inclusion, but I'm not really a radical type of person or what you would call a activist. My approach is more low keyed that has seemed to open more doors on the subject when it comes to dealing with different organizations and people.

This approach has even won an appeal over my medical benefits in which my provider has now covered some of my treatment and the company is now in the process of revisiting its medical coverage's for changing its medical benefits for us worker bee's to include transition coverage. The union that I belong to is on my target list over their inclusion policy and is one of my near future goals to work on. I am in the process of writing and almost done with a workshop program for helping organizations develop "workplace transition and inclusion" policies based on common sense and local and state laws.

There's a transgender conference called the Northwest Transgender Conference (see the listed link) in the planning stages for my area of the country. I am trying to be as involved in that as possible given my work schedule and hopefully I will be invited to present my workshop there. So one of my goals on doing these articles is for it to be a source for people to learn more about Transgender issues instead of just seeing what little stuff that they do see in the media.

The reactions of my co-workers was what totally surprised me. Some of these folks I have known for over 10 years, to some it was a surprise, but to others it wasn't and almost all have been totally supportive and happy for me.

The really cool part about this is that I never realized just how many friends that I did have that really cared about me. All have said that with my coming out they have seen a much happier and complete person and that is so true because I am not leading a double life any more.

Some of my co-workers have said that they would be very interested in reading more about the workplace topic, so I am considering either a seperate site to address this issue.

There are those that aren't as supportive or ok with this and they have their reasons. Whether they be family or otherwise, they're entitled to their opinions just like we all are.

I very often comment that Transgender issues are very much like politics and religion, everyone has an opinion about it and they are entitled to it. Just as I am entitled to mine.

The main difference is that this literally affects my life and I need to fix it. I know that I'm not saying anything new here because thousands of others have experienced the same emotions that I am and even though it is a lot later in my life than I would like, it's still the greatest thing I've ever done.

So please feel free to leave a note with your thoughts, experiences or questions. I will answer questions either publicly here or if you'd rather have a answer privately please include an e-mail address and I will send the answer to you.

Who knows you just might wind up being a great topic in an article or presentation.