One thing that may have made Mike’s decision so difficult is that he worked in such a male-dominated profession. One thing I learned in my own transition is how much authority and respect one can command simply for being male, especially among other males. Some who transition simply cannot, or at least find it very difficult to, give up that privilege, especially if significant parts of their professional and personal reputations rest upon it.

I hope that he will find peace that he could not find in this life.

I have been one of those who have been blessed to have transitioned well in my life and within my job, also a very male dominated profession a Mercedes Benz technician.

I tried my very best with years of torment, pain and guilt, and with the lose of lossing my wife and daughter, who I love deeply, but the choice was for me as I sat with the thoughts of ending my life, so that my family wouldn’t have to deal with this and me with ending my pain.

Just the thought of my daughter finding me was to much, I made the choice to live and hoped and prayed that someday they would realize it was better for me as Diane and to live, then Bill dead. Thank God for my son Brian, he has ony love in his heart and has given me my strength.

My condolences to Mikes Family

Maybe one day the pressure society puts on people that are different will cease but for now it still crushes way too many wonderful people. I am very active within the Faith community working on the issue of acceptance and understanding of the great diversity of God’s creation. I do this in the hope of relieving some of this pressure and ending the circulation of total mis-information about us. God does not look on the outward appearances, but on the heart and people need to follow that lead. Simply put I preach that nobody ought to die or face ridicule because of who they are! How many more must die?

In the few times I have doubted myself in the process of transition I simply have to take a moment to look back at the misery I was in and I know I could never go back to living as a man, but then I did not have the pressures of being so public both before and after and then going back. I really am sad that Mike never found real peace in his own skin – everyone deserves that in their life.

Goodbye Mike. May God grant you that peace now.

For people, who have transexual medical issues, in the end for many it comes down to, can I continue living like this if I can never be me, and for many that answer is no.
And going through this in the public eye makes this that much harder.

The other day I read an article from the Boston Hearold. The headline began “Tranny…..” And so people dealing with transsexuality get such ridicule even from the places that are suppose to report news and events, without their bigoted slant added, but that just seems to never happen out there for people with transsexualism.

Until the day when there is more education happening, sadly there will continue to be sad events like suicide, horrendous murders, firings, beatings, disowning and more to those out there who have transsexualism. Even in the general gay/lesbian community can we find bigotry towards women and men who have dealt with transsexualism. Michigan Women’s Music Festival is aprime example of that, where they openly say they do not think the women are women, and to be consistent by the way they act, they say the same about the men, who are welcome.
Many gay men look at men who have gone through transsexulism won’t give them the time of day, and the very idea that “one of them” might attend one of their bath houses?

We see it from other minorities as well. And to me the one thing a minority always has the same as another is that they face more challenges then those who are not minorities.

Yep much more education needs to begin, and begin younger. We already see younger people coming to self acceptance, and to their credit we are seeing families stand behind them, unike days of the past.

A beginning in that education is learning and reminding others that be they are woman, with a transexual background, men, with a transexual background, the thing to remember is they are women first, they are men first.

Transsexualism is only but a small part of the person, much like a disability, or even eye colour is.

They are always people first.