Laylah Beattie: Ireland has transformed itself when it comes to gender recognition

Irish supports for transgender people have improved radically since she first began looking for help with her own journey, writes Laylah Beattie

Laylah Beattie: "Worldwide there are many trans actors, many TV shows with trans storylines. There is a diverse range of trans people being represented in the media." Picture: AP Photo/Daniel Ochoa de Olza, FILE

I was 17 years of age, watching a documentary on my laptop when the realisation hit me. I was a girl, and I’d been one all my life. 

This realisation, unsurprisingly brought with it a number of emotions, the main one being desperation. I was desperate for this to be remedied. I’d lived my entire life as a boy and it was wrong. I turned to where every teenager goes in times of confusion. The internet.