Krystal’s Gender-Affirming Surgery Journey (Part 3): Preparation, Recovery, and Finding Peace

In part three of Krystal’s three-episode series on Demystifying the Transgender Journey, Wendy Cole and Lynn Murphy welcome back Krystal following her recent gender-affirming surgery at Mount Sinai in Manhattan. Krystal explains how her dysphoria and safety concerns led her from considering surgery to realizing she needed it, how she chose her surgical team, and the lengthy requirements involved, including letters, BMI goals, tucking, and extensive hair removal. She describes the emotions and logistics of moving up her surgery date, the hospital experience, early recovery challenges, and key post-op care such as swelling control and long-term dilation. Krystal shares that post-surgery she feels “normal,” calm, and at peace, reflecting on gratitude, womanhood, and what trans perspectives reveal about gender.

Video Content Mentioned in this Episode:

Pt 1 of Krystal’s Story on DTTJ:

https://youtu.be/o-EMMRsf3bk

Pt 2 of Krystal’s Story on DTTJ:

https://youtu.be/LroRkCwUiJo

“Born To Be” Documentary on Mount Sinai:

https://www.borntobefilm.com/

For more information about Krystal Franqui:

https://www.instagram.com/krysfran2472

https://bsky.app/profile/ember83.bsky.social

For more information about this project:

https://www.thetransgenderjourney.com

https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/demystifying-the-transgender-journey/id1799458202

https://www.facebook.com/thetransgenderjourney

https://womenwhopushthelimits.com

To contact Wendy:

MeetWendyCole.com.

https://www.facebook.com/wendycolegtm

https://www.youtube.com/@wendycole8326

https://www.linkedin.com/in/wendy-cole-gtm

Krystal Franqui on Dysphoria, HRT Relief & Choosing Visibility (Part 2 of 3) | Demystifying the Transgender Journey

In part two of Krystal Franqui’s three-episode series on Demystifying the Transgender Journey, Krystal describes years of trying not to transition by using detailed mental stories and intense hobbies like Civil War reenacting to distract from dysphoria, until COVID-era stress triggered severe panic attacks and breakdowns at work. After starting therapy and being diagnosed with gender dysphoria, she began HRT in 2021 and describes rapid improvements in mood, relationships, and mental clarity, alongside losing a job after coming out to HR. Krystal shares her family’s reactions, including supportive children and an accepting mother, recounts early experiences of gender euphoria, and explains being trans through analogies like a pebble in a shoe and describing color to someone born blind. She also explains why she chose visibility and education over going stealth.

For more information about Krystal:

https://www.instagram.com/krysfran2472

https://bsky.app/profile/ember83.bsky.social

For more information about this project: https://www.thetransgenderjourney.com https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/demystifying-the-transgender-journey/id1799458202 https://www.facebook.com/thetransgenderjourney https://womenwhopushthelimits.com

To contact Wendy: MeetWendyCole.com. https://www.facebook.com/wendycolegtm https://www.youtube.com/@wendycole8326 https://www.linkedin.com/in/wendy-cole-gtm

In Part 1 of this 3-episode series on Demystifying the Transgender Journey, hosts Lynn Murphy and Wendy Cole introduce Krystal Franqui, a 42-year-old woman who affirmed her gender four and a half years ago, is married, and has two adult children. Krystal describes early childhood discomfort with her body, neurodivergent diagnoses (ADD and later autism), isolation at school, and a pivotal dream and puberty experience that intensified dysphoria and depression. With little representation or support in the late 80s and 90s, she tried to “learn” boy behavior by masking and creating rules for what boys could say and do. She joined the Navy in 2001 to prove “manhood,” deployed on an aircraft carrier, and later worked in civilian aviation, still feeling socially out of place. Around 2006 a counselor raised “gender identity disorder,” but family resistance led her to repress it for 15 years, using elaborate internal stories and intense hobbies to cope, ending as COVID approached.

For more information about Krystal:

https://www.instagram.com/krysfran2472

https://bsky.app/profile/ember83.bsky.social

For more information about this project: https://www.thetransgenderjourney.com https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/demystifying-the-transgender-journey/id1799458202 https://www.facebook.com/thetransgenderjourney https://womenwhopushthelimits.com

To contact Wendy: MeetWendyCole.com. https://www.facebook.com/wendycolegtm https://www.youtube.com/@wendycole8326 https://www.linkedin.com/in/wendy-cole-gtm

Transitioning Later in Life: Stephanie Donnell on 10 Years of HRT, Surgery, and Living Openly

In this episode of Demystifying the Transgender Journey, hosts Lynn Murphy and Wendy Cole interview Stephanie Donnell, a lifelong electronics professional and YouTuber who completed her transition about 11 months ago at age 66 after more than a decade of medical transition. Stephanie shares early experiences of dysphoria and cross-dressing in an era with anti–cross-dressing laws and little language or representation, her 43-year marriage and her wife’s acceptance, and the step-by-step realities of transition: support groups, informed-consent HRT, orchiectomy, extensive hair removal, WPATH letters, weight-loss requirements, gastric bypass and panniculectomy, and a long path to vaginoplasty. She discusses workplace experiences, unexpected changes from progesterone, safety and authenticity, and the importance of empathy, visibility, and better public understanding of sex vs. gender.

For more about Stephanie Donnell:

https://www.facebook.com/stephanie.donnell.4

https://www.youtube.com/@radiodf

Transgression: A Mental Health Advocate Investigates the “Real Trans Agenda” in Saskatchewan | Todd Rennebohm

Hosts Lynn Murphy and Wendy Cole interview Todd Rennebohm, a Saskatchewan-based mental health advocate, author, and podcaster who created the eight-part documentary podcast series “Transgression: My Search for the Real Trans Agenda in Saskatchewan.” Todd shares his background with lifelong mental health and addiction struggles, a suicide attempt, treatment and sobriety, and how a widely shared letter sparked his advocacy and led to his podcast “Bunny Hugs and Mental Health.” He explains why trans-related policies in Saskatchewan compelled him to investigate, how he built trust with the trans community through allyship training and consultation, and what he learned about the diversity of trans experiences, the political motivations behind Bill 137, “Parent Bill of Rights,” and the mental health impact of limiting information and support for youth—especially in rural and Indigenous communities.

For More About Todd Rennebohm:

https://bunnyhugspodcast.com/

https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/transgression-my-search-for-the-real-trans-agenda-in/id1841926991

https://www.instagram.com/bunnyhugspodcast/

Sometimes Daddy Cries: Rennebohm, Todd, Stueck, Jessie: 9780228834670: Amazon.com: Books

For more information about this project:

https://www.thetransgenderjourney.com

https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/demystifying-the-transgender-journey/id1799458202

https://www.facebook.com/thetransgenderjourney

https://womenwhopushthelimits.com

To contact Wendy:

https://www.MeetWendyCole.com

https://www.facebook.com/wendycolegtm

https://www.youtube.com/@wendycole8326

https://www.linkedin.com/in/wendy-cole-gtm

Intersex, Identity & the “Four S’s”: John Schindler on Surgery, Secrecy, Shame, and Silence

In this episode of Demystifying the Transgender Journey, Lynn Murphy and Wendy Cole interview intersex advocate John Schindler, who explains what intersex means, how variations can involve hormones, chromosomes, and gonads/genitals, and why non-consensual infant surgeries remain a civil rights issue. John shares their personal medical history, including early surgeries, a missing or atrophied pituitary, participation in an NIH human growth hormone program, and delayed puberty until testosterone treatment at 20, which shifted their identity from asexual to gay. John discusses frequent misgendering, coming to identify as intergender and non-binary, and the “four S’s” of the intersex experience: Surgery, Secrecy, Shame, and Silence. John also describes how speaking publicly supports families and students, references research on intersex biology and cancer resistance, and highlights resources including Intersex Friends and Families and Organization Intersex International.

For More Information about John Schindler and organizations mentioned in this episode:

Email John: jpjscogar@gmail.com

https://www.facebook.com/groups/747602648624184/

https://oiiusa.org/

https://genderequalityny.org/

https://www.seaofvisibility.com/

For more information about this project:

https://www.thetransgenderjourney.com

https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/demystifying-the-transgender-journey/id1799458202

https://www.facebook.com/thetransgenderjourney

https://womenwhopushthelimits.com

To contact Wendy:

https://www.MeetWendyCole.com

https://www.facebook.com/wendycolegtm

https://www.youtube.com/@wendycole8326

https://www.linkedin.com/in/wendy-cole-gtm

Danielle Miller: Transitioning Later in Life, Single Parenthood, and Living Authentically | Demystifying the Transgender Journey

In this episode of Demystifying the Transgender Journey, hosts Lynn Murphy and Wendy Cole interview Danielle Miller, a transgender woman who shares her lifelong awareness of feeling female, a dysfunctional childhood, and the secrecy and fear that shaped her early years, including being threatened and later locked in a psych unit misdiagnosed with multiple personality disorder. Danielle describes marrying twice while trying to suppress her identity, raising her son largely alone after divorce, and building a successful HVAC business in Yuma, Arizona. She explains discovering transgender resources later in life, beginning HRT, changing documents, transitioning gradually at work despite family hostility, and celebrating milestones including bottom surgery and upcoming rhinoplasty. Danielle discusses support from friends and employers, her close bond with her son and grandchildren (who call her “Papa-rina”), dating after surgery, safety concerns, and her wish that people stop labeling transgender identity as mental illness.

For more information about this project:

https://www.thetransgenderjourney.com

https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/demystifying-the-transgender-journey/id1799458202

https://www.facebook.com/thetransgenderjourney

https://womenwhopushthelimits.com

To contact Wendy:

https://www.MeetWendyCole.com

https://www.facebook.com/wendycolegtm

https://www.youtube.com/@wendycole8326

https://www.linkedin.com/in/wendy-cole-gtm

Raising Gender-Expansive Kids with Love & Autonomy | Kali Robinson (Mother of a Trans/Nonbinary Child)

Hosts Lynn Murphy and Wendy Cole interview Portland writer and mother Kali Robinson about raising three gender-expansive children, including oldest, who came out in kindergarten after a peer said only girls wear dresses, prompting a supportive teacher to teach pronouns and helping classmates adjust quickly. Kali describes treating gender like left-handedness, giving kids autonomy over clothes and pronouns, and doing regular check-ins while letting them lead. She discusses supportive school structures such as gender-neutral bathrooms and a trans affinity group, her own early grief and anger about trans safety in the U.S., and how she learned through community, books, and firsthand narratives. Kali shares strategies for building confidence, kindness, and safety skills, thoughts on puberty and blockers, and advice for parents and communities to normalize gender diversity through love, curiosity, and conversation.

For more information about this project:

https://www.thetransgenderjourney.com

https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/demystifying-the-transgender-journey/id1799458202

https://www.facebook.com/thetransgenderjourney

https://womenwhopushthelimits.com

To contact Wendy:

https://www.MeetWendyCole.com

https://www.facebook.com/wendycolegtm

https://www.youtube.com/@wendycole8326

https://www.linkedin.com/in/wendy-cole-gtm