An Australian woman has revealed the moment she came out as transgender at 24 after knowing she was a woman since she was a young child.
Imogen Loxley Smith, 27, from Sydney is a customer service officer who knew something ‘wasn’t quite right’ when she watched The Wizard of Oz every single day during preschool.
‘I resonated and related to Dorothy so much. Being a sad and lonely girl wanting to escape her restricted, ordinary, black and white life,’ she told FEMAIL.
‘That’s when I first realised I was assigned the wrong sex at birth.’
Now she has over 50,000 followers on Instagram who tune in for her impressive makeup skills and her honest take on life but for a long time she struggled with who she was.
Imogen Loxley Smith, 27, from Sydney is a customer service officer who knew she had been assigned the wrong body when she watched The Wizard of Oz every single day during preschool
‘I resonated and related to Dorothy so much. Being a sad and lonely girl wanting to escape her restricted, ordinary, black and white life,’ she told FEMAIL
Imogen said the first time she ever felt comfortable in her body was when she was 16 as she had a female friend who always loved and supported everything that she did.
‘We used to go to vintage stores and I would always buy the most extra and glamorous things: fur coats, sequin dresses, high heels – all the most girly and glamorous items,’ she said.
‘I was 24 when I first came out as trans to my close friends, and I did that first before I came out to my family.
‘I received lots of love, support and acceptance from my friends which gave me the confidence to come out to the rest of my family too.’
Imogen said the first time she felt comfortable in her body was when she was 16 years old as she had a female friend who always loved and supported everything that she did
She started transitioning in November of 2015 but didn’t start taking hormone replacement therapy (HRT) until January of 2016.
Since then she has had botox and fillers and is saving up for facial reconstructive surgery and body work.
‘I have been working my a** off in a 9am to 5pm Monday to Friday job for the past four years to save and pay for it all,’ she said.
‘Luckily for me, the HRT has responded incredibly well with my face and body so far, so I don’t need to get as much work done when the time comes around.’
Her mum has been particularly supportive as the 27-year-old said she has loved her unconditionally throughout it all.
She started transitioning in November of 2015 but didn’t start taking hormone replacement therapy (HRT) until January of 2016
Since then she has had botox and fillers and is saving up for facial reconstructive surgery and body work
Imogen was experimenting with female clothing and makeup long before she came out as transgender.
She was dressing androgynously between the ages of 17 and 19 but was introduced to the drag queen culture when she started dating her first serious boyfriend at 20 years old who was a drag queen himself.
This then eventuated into Imogen becoming a drag queen as well.
Imogen was experimenting with female clothing and makeup long before she came out as transgender
Her mum has been particularly supportive as the 27-year-old said she has loved her unconditionally throughout it all
No outfit, amount of makeup or compliments from my friends would ever be enough to make me feel comfortable and confident in my own skin
‘That’s when I properly learnt how to dress feminine and paint my face. I always had softer and more feminine features, so it was easy to paint my face to look like a ‘real’ and pretty woman. I always wanted to be in drag, 24/7,’ she said.
Imogen said that when she went by the name Luke she felt ‘lonely, miserable, defeated, painfully self-conscious and insecure’.
‘It would literally take me hours to prepare myself (physically, mentally and emotionally) for a night out,’ she said.
‘No outfit, amount of makeup or compliments from my friends would ever be enough to make me feel comfortable and confident in my own skin.’
Imogen said that when she went by the name Luke she felt ‘lonely, miserable, defeated, painfully self-conscious and insecure’
‘It would literally take me hours to prepare myself (physically, mentally and emotionally) for a night out,’ she said
She found that she would have to get herself drunk to even be able to converse with people or look them in the eye.
The customer service officer would avoid cameras like they were the plague as having her photo taken would make her anxious and angry.
This was because Imogen knew that when she would eventually see the photos she wouldn’t be seeing the person that she was inside.
‘My life was exhausting, being Luke was a degrading chore. Every single day was a struggle and at times, the idea of not being alive anymore was the only thing that would make me happy,’ she said.
‘I’m proud to say that I have not felt that way since the 9th of December 2015 – the day that I finally came out to the world as Imogen.’
When the customer service officer went by Luke she would avoid cameras like they were the plague as having her photo taken would make her anxious and angry
Imogen said that what people don’t understand the most is that gender and sex are two completely different things.
‘Just because I was unfortunately not born with female genitalia, it doesn’t make me any less of a woman right now,’ she said.
Imogen thinks the LGBTQIA+ community in Sydney and Australia has always been incredibly loving, supportive and understanding of her, her transition and her journey.
But unfortunately she said not everybody in the community likes or accepts her.
Imogen said that the thing that people don’t understand the most is that gender and sexuality are two completely different things
‘Just because I was unfortunately not born with female genitalia, it doesn’t make me any less of a woman right now,’ she said
‘What they think about me is out of my control and is none of my business. The future is looking positive and bright, mainly because that is what I am choosing for it to be,’ she said.
‘I want to live as the best and most authentic version of myself – physically, mentally, emotionally, spiritually, financially and successfully.’
Imogen said anyone who is going through a similar experience shouldn’t let the expectations and opinions of other people affect their decisions.
‘It’s your life, not theirs. Do what matters most to you; do what makes you feel alive and happy,’ she said.
‘Don’t let the expectations and ideas of others limit who you are. There is more to life than pleasing people. There is much more to life than following others’ prescribed path.
‘There is so much more to life than what you experience right now. You need to decide who you are for yourself.’