Man Chronicles His Emotional Transition Into Becoming a Woman Over the Course of a 17-Month Hormone Treatment | 22 Words

Selgal, a student from Ohio, shared a personal collection of images from her transition from male to female over the course of 17 months of HRT.

Selgal began growing her hair out in preparation while still living as a male but didn't start using hormone replacement treatment until she turned 18 and went to college.

via: Imgur

Realizing the big changes that would make her look feminine would take time, she started documenting her transition in monthly selfies.

via: Imgur

Three months into treatment, she said she was "feeling depressed" but was slowly beginning to feel more like her true self.

via: Imgur

Then suddenly, a year in, she began to see real, noticeable changes.

via: Imgur

 With help from the HRT, her breasts grew, facial hair disappeared, and finally, even her jawline softened.

This rare smiling photo shows her happiness at how her appearance was evolving into something she recognized.

via: Imgur

Her face became softer and more feminine with the additional estrogen.

via: Imgur

But even a year into the process she wasn't entirely secure in her new body, and still wore gender neutral clothing to avoid scrutiny. 

via: Imgur

At thirteen months,  she joked that she still looked like a "grumpy dude" as she entered her second year of HRT.

via: Imgur

Things took a turn between 13 and 14 months, and she started to really feel the tide changing. Happiness was beginning to bubble up to the surface.

via: Imgur

After 14 full months of treatment, her feminine features had emerged. Coupled with her beautiful long hair and more feminine clothes, she finally felt comfortable dressing and living as female.

via: Imgur

And with a sense of humor! She joked under this image that she was finally starting to "get cute" after 14 months of treatment.

via: Imgur

By 15 months, she truly looked like a different person.

via: Imgur

It was also at this point that she started to wear more feminine clothes.

via: Imgur

After 16 months of treatment, there was barely a hint of her former masculine features left — and there was a smile.

via: Imgur

And at 17 months, she started to wear makeup and dresses out in public, now much more confident in her looks.

via: Imgur

 "It's never too late to change who you are," she said. "Happiness is real, you just have to be willing to risk anything to find it."