Today is my first birthday since coming out publicly! Things have been going incredibly well for me recently, and I thought it would be good to reflect on the past seven months and look at how far I’ve come.

Presentation

I am so much more comfortable presenting feminine than I was back in January, even back in May. I’ve been shopping in the women’s section almost exclusively since graduating. I’ve gotten comfortable with eyeliner, foundation, and lipstick. I got new glasses that are a gorgeous ruby red color, and my hair is growing longer (though that is taking much longer than I would like).

The changes I’ve experienced on HRT have all been incredible, but there’s still so much more to change, which will only take time. I’ve gotten increasingly more dysphoric over my facial hair; my beard shadow never really goes away, and my stubble in noticeable by midday rather than evening, ever with the closest shave. Laser hair removal is a process that I’m actively exploring, but it’ll take around six months to really get to the point that I want there.

I have trouble keeping my voice at a feminine range/resonance for long periods of time, and I’m not super happy with how it sounds, but it’s very good considering I haven’t done any actual voice therapy. I still have issues with mirroring and dropping my voice when around my boyfriend or other people with deeper voices, which can be frustrating.

Support

Almost everyone around me, my friends, family, and other people I interact with on a regular basis have been incredibly supportive. My family has quickly adjusted to using my name, or at least an agreed-upon gender neutral nickname when in the company of people we know might be less accepting. I got my first girl-themed birthday cards earlier this week and very happily cried for a bit. I went to a friend’s wedding in April, and everyone was so kind.

There were issues with a professor during my last semester, but my classmates 100% had my back and were quick to correct him and make sure I was okay if he misgendered me. My other professors were all excellent, though, and I really enjoyed working with them on my research project.

As I alluded to in the previous section, my legal name change process is (kind of) complete! I became (officially) Ruby Sullivan on June 10th, one year to the day after my best friend’s legal name change, as well as my parents’ anniversary. I’ve gotten my new driver’s license, new credit/debit cards, new health insurance cards, and my name has been updated on most of my bills. While it will base a few more weeks until my new social security card is in, my record is being updated, which means I’ll be able to get a new passport soon.

Misc. Good Vibes

I completed my first marathon as staff for Power Up With Pride! We blew our previous donation record out of the water, from $17K to a new record of $21.5K. This was due, in part, to a last minute donation incentive for team/staff to read the entire script of The Bee Movie if we reached a total of $20K raised for The Trevor Project.

In other speedrunning-related news, I ran at the Alternate Platform Day marathon, did commentary for my friend Jaxler for the GDQ Hotfix show Never Before Seen, and will be running WitchWay for Speedruns 4 Trans Liberation at the end of the month.

I’ve also got some really cool things planned that I’ll hopefully be sharing soon.

Until next time! Take care, be safe, and be you. ❤️