Happy Transgender Day of Visibility! Today is a day when we celebrate each other, and share the joys and triumphs, we’ve experienced as transgender, non-binary, and gender-expansive humans. In a world of backlash, ignorance, disinformation, and violence, it can be hard to see through the fog of all that, and realize what’s truly amazing about this experience. I believe in the light of all of that, it’s pretty amazing how we show up on a daily basis for our lives and do truly experience joy along the way.
I realized in sitting down to write this, that I’ve never formally come out or stood up on TDOV to be recognized as a member of the community, so I wanted to share a little bit about myself and a few of the joys I’ve found on my journey.
A little about me, I’m Dr. Shawn Giammattei, a clinical, family psychologist, gender specialist, author, trans health researcher, professor, mentor, and international speaker. I am also the founder and CEO of the Gender Health Training Institute, the TransFamily Alliance, and a small group practice. I am a queer-identified transgender man and am married to my spouse of 34 years. Today my life is full of joy and beautiful connections with friends, family, and an awesome team that supports my work.
I also want to make it clear that the journey hasn’t always been easy. I currently live a fairly privileged life, yet I got here through some pretty heavy trials, including struggles with addiction, homelessness, violence, PTSD, and quite a lot of internalized transphobia. While my gender journey starts at three years old, the possibility of authentically embodying my gender was outside my awareness until my early 30s.
When I had that epiphany moment and realized my experience was a transgender experience I tried to ignore it, but eventually allowed myself to explore authenticity and find out where that would land. It ended up landing in a place where I ended up fully blending into society and not being recognized as trans, which I find to be a double-edged sword.
I initially approached this by being stealth (as they called it then) and just trying to quietly live my life and build my practice. That period was quite isolating and lonely in many ways. In 2016, that approach became untenable after the Pulse Nightclub shooting. It became very clear to me that I couldn’t be silent and quietly work in the background.
Little did I know that coming out fully and authentically in every area of my life, as scary as that is, was one of the most beautiful things I could do for myself. It pulled me out of all the boxes and compartments I was trapped in and empowered me to live fully, authentically, and unapologetically. It allowed me to step fully into my mission of being a bridge across differences to build connections and heal separations. It allowed me to better hear the stories and feel into the experiences of others who were different from me. I have realized when I am fully authentically me, that I’m much better at everything I do; and even more so, I don’t feel isolated and alone because others don’t feel like they’re kept at a distance.
The more I work with the transgender community and our families the more I realize how amazing and beautiful we all are, and what a gift we are to the world. I truly hope you see that in yourself as well. And if you’re struggling, please know we’re here for you and that you are truly beautiful.
Dr. Shawn Giammattei
Happy Transgender Day of Visibility! Today is a day when we celebrate each other, and share the joys and triumphs, we’ve experienced as transgender, non-binary, and gender-expansive humans. In a world of backlash, ignorance, disinformation, and violence, it can be hard to see through the fog of all that, and realize what’s truly amazing about this experience. I believe in the light of all of that, it’s pretty amazing how we show up on a daily basis for our lives and do truly experience joy along the way.
I realized in sitting down to write this, that I’ve never formally come out or stood up on TDOV to be recognized as a member of the community, so I wanted to share a little bit about myself and a few of the joys I’ve found on my journey.
A little about me, I’m Dr. Shawn Giammattei, a clinical, family psychologist, gender specialist, author, trans health researcher, professor, mentor, and international speaker. I am also the founder and CEO of the Gender Health Training Institute, the TransFamily Alliance, and a small group practice. I am a queer-identified transgender man and am married to my spouse of 34 years. Today my life is full of joy and beautiful connections with friends, family, and an awesome team that supports my work.
I also want to make it clear that the journey hasn’t always been easy. I currently live a fairly privileged life, yet I got here through some pretty heavy trials, including struggles with addiction, homelessness, violence, PTSD, and quite a lot of internalized transphobia. While my gender journey starts at three years old, the possibility of authentically embodying my gender was outside my awareness until my early 30s.
When I had that epiphany moment and realized my experience was a transgender experience I tried to ignore it, but eventually allowed myself to explore authenticity and find out where that would land. It ended up landing in a place where I ended up fully blending into society and not being recognized as trans, which I find to be a double-edged sword.
I initially approached this by being stealth (as they called it then) and just trying to quietly live my life and build my practice. That period was quite isolating and lonely in many ways. In 2016, that approach became untenable after the Pulse Nightclub shooting. It became very clear to me that I couldn’t be silent and quietly work in the background.
Little did I know that coming out fully and authentically in every area of my life, as scary as that is, was one of the most beautiful things I could do for myself. It pulled me out of all the boxes and compartments I was trapped in and empowered me to live fully, authentically, and unapologetically. It allowed me to step fully into my mission of being a bridge across differences to build connections and heal separations. It allowed me to better hear the stories and feel into the experiences of others who were different from me. I have realized when I am fully authentically me, that I’m much better at everything I do; and even more so, I don’t feel isolated and alone because others don’t feel like they’re kept at a distance.
The more I work with the transgender community and our families the more I realize how amazing and beautiful we all are, and what a gift we are to the world. I truly hope you see that in yourself as well. And if you’re struggling, please know we’re here for you and that you are truly beautiful.
Dr. Shawn Giammattei
