My guest this time is Tate Smith – an award-winning trans activist, consultant, and speaker. Tate’s accolades include being named one of Attitude Magazine’s 10 LGBTQ+ Trailblazers To Watch Out For In The Future, and in 2022 he was selected as a LinkedIn Top Voice, and nominated for PinkNews’ Community Role Model.

He speaks on topics including the effects of testosterone, intersectionality, family and workplace acceptance, toxic masculinity, men’s mental health, trans male menopause, male privilege and more.

I confess, before this interview my understanding of trans lived experiences was fairly minimal. Tate shares with us his transitioning journey – starting aged 16 when he first realised his discomfort living in a female-presenting body was something that he could do something about, through coming out to friends and family, going back into the closet for two years, and then undergoing surgery and testosterone therapy. 

Tate explains gender dysphoria, and a little of the physical, mental, and financial toll of waiting to transition (opting to do so privately instead of waiting many years to be seen on the NHS).

He also explains how hormone therapy propelled him headlong into an early menopause, something that neither he, nor the medical professionals he saw were prepared for, and a topic that is not really spoken about in the trans community. Tate is now working with NHS researchers to develop practical guidance for GPs, to help others who go through this in future.

We discuss the steps that workplaces can take to be more inclusive and how we as individuals can be trans allies (see some of the resources he mentions, listed below). We also talk about how parents and carers can best support young people in their lives that come out as trans or express curiosity about transitioning.