Chloe Cole’s Journey with Gender Identity

Chloe Cole first encountered the transgender community through social media when she was around 12 years old. She describes the people she met there as creative and artistic, often identifying as tomboys or boys in grown-up form.

“These individuals seemed to be discovering happiness and wholeness, especially as they began expressing their identities,” she recalls. Cole was inspired by this transformation, noting how they found affirmation in cutting their hair short and presenting themselves in ways that contrasted traditional gender norms.

However, as she delved deeper into this world, many in the community began undergoing medical procedures, including hormone treatments and surgeries. Cole herself took a drug called Lupron, which, although primarily used to treat cancer, is also known for its use in chemical castration for certain offenders.

“Some facilities use this drug for that purpose, considering other methods too cruel,” she comments. At just 15, Cole went further by using testosterone and underwent a selective double mastectomy, which she clarifies was not related to cancer but a more invasive procedure.

The underlying belief that led her down this path was a theory suggesting that “the brain has gender.” She explains, “While part of the community, there was this notion of a biological basis for being transgender, claiming that some people have brain patterns similar to the opposite sex, although this has since been disproven.”

Cole reflects on her past, expressing a sense of confusion. She felt she was biologically male, misinterpreting her discomfort during adolescence as something more significant, rather than simply being a part of growing up in a female body. “It’s alarming that young people were told their brains were in the wrong bodies,” she adds.