Demystifying the Transgender Journey

A Relationship Transitioning Too: Jessika and Adrienne on Late-Life Awakening, Love, and Doing the Work

In this episode of "Demystifying the Transgender Journey," hosts Lynn Murphy and Wendy Cole speak with Jessika Janene, a transgender woman whose “egg cracked” during the 2020 pandemic, and her wife Adrienne Wehr, as they discuss transitioning later in life and how a partnership changes too. Jessika shares childhood indicators, a sudden moment of clarity that led to rapid social and medical transition, and the need to live authentically despite fear, describing it as a “freight train.” Adrienne describes caregiving for her mother while supporting Jessika, the grief and emotional complexity for partners, and the importance of truth, community, therapy, and spiritual practices. They reflect on advocacy, challenges with friends and family, finding support groups, and a poignant moment of acceptance from Adrienne’s mother near the end of her life.

© 2026 Key Innovative Solutions, Inc.

For more information about today’s guests:

Jessika:

https://www.instagram.com/jessikajanene1/

https://jessikajanene.com

https://www.facebook.com/jessika.janene

 

Adrienne:

https://www.instagram.com/adriennewehr/

https://adriennewehr.substack.com/

https://www.facebook.com/adrienne.wehr/

 

For more information about this project:

https://www.thetransgenderjourney.com https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/demystifying-the-transgender-journey/id1799458202

https://www.facebook.com/thetransgenderjourney

https://womenwhopushthelimits.com

To contact Wendy:

MeetWendyCole.com.

https://www.facebook.com/wendycolegtm

https://www.youtube.com/@wendycole8326

https://www.linkedin.com/in/wendy-cole-gtm

Pastor Lynn on Raising Two Transgender Children: Faith, Advocacy & Inclusive Love | Demystifying the Transgender Journey

In this episode of "Demystifying the Transgender Journey," hosts Lynn Murphy and Wendy Cole interview Pastor Lynn, an ordained Lutheran minister and mother of two adult transgender children, Robin and Emily. Pastor Lynn shares how Robin came out at 12 as transgender and later identified as non-binary, and how her early mistakes—doubting Robin’s name, struggling with pronouns, and expecting her child to educate her—pushed her to seek resources, connect Robin with queer youth groups, and prioritize a safe, affirming home. She describes securing gender-affirming care, navigating school and camp bathroom restrictions, and supporting Emily’s later transition at 19. Pastor Lynn also explains how mistranslation and proof-texting shaped anti-LGBTQ readings of the Bible and how she now advocates more visibly within faith communities.

 

Works Mentioned in this Episode:

1946: The Mistranslation That Shifted Culture directed by Sharon Roggio

The Transgender Child: A Handbook for Families and Professionals by Rachel Pepper and Stephanie Brill

© 2026 Key Innovative Solutions, Inc.

For more information about this project: https://www.thetransgenderjourney.com https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/demystifying-the-transgender-journey/id1799458202

https://www.facebook.com/thetransgenderjourney https://womenwhopushthelimits.com

(c) 2026 Key Innovative Solutions, Inc.

To contact Wendy: MeetWendyCole.com. https://www.facebook.com/wendycolegtm https://www.youtube.com/@wendycole8326 https://www.linkedin.com/in/wendy-cole-gtm

Michelle’s Transgender Journey: Surviving Trauma, Finding Faith, and Living Out Loud

Demystifying the Transgender Journey Hosts Lynn Murphy and Wendy Cole welcome Michelle, a transgender woman with multiple advanced degrees and an eidetic memory, to share her story of identity, resilience, and freedom. Raised in a small DC-area town by a Pentecostal minister father, Michelle describes realizing she was female as a teen, coming out at 15, and being brutally abused and forced back into the closet for decades. During a later divorce, therapy with a transgender therapist helped her name her experience and come out as a woman born transgender; she quickly began hormone therapy and pursued gender-affirming surgeries while navigating dysphoria and dysmorphia. Michelle discusses family reactions, parenting a teenager exploring identity, rebuilding community after a church relationship ended, and finding an affirming church nearby. She emphasizes humor, supportive “tribe” building, and not giving up after surviving multiple suicide attempts.

© 2026 Key Innovative Solutions, Inc.

For more information about this project: https://www.thetransgenderjourney.com https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/demystifying-the-transgender-journey/id1799458202

https://www.facebook.com/thetransgenderjourney https://womenwhopushthelimits.com

(c) 2026 Key Innovative Solutions, Inc.

To contact Wendy: MeetWendyCole.com. https://www.facebook.com/wendycolegtm https://www.youtube.com/@wendycole8326 https://www.linkedin.com/in/wendy-cole-gtm

Intersex: The Hidden Reality, Forced Surgeries, and Why Sex Isn’t Either/Or | Demystifying the Transgender Journey

In this episode of Demystifying the Transgender Journey, hosts Lynn Murphy and Wendy Cole focus on intersex experiences with guests Vickie Boisseau (Organization Intersex International) and Jim Costich (retired medical lab professional and speaker). They explain how intersex has been historically pathologized and deliberately hidden, discuss the lack of adequate language and the conflation of sex and gender, and challenge the cultural insistence on a strict binary, emphasizing “all/and” rather than “either/or.” Jim shares being born in 1957 with ambiguous anatomy, being sent to a gender clinic at 14, and later discovering at 44 that he has a vagina. Vickie describes being surgically altered starting at eight months, undergoing 14 failed hypospadias repairs, hormone interventions, partial androgen insensitivity, and a later adult amputation and ovotestes removal. They criticize non-consensual infant surgeries, note intersex is common but rarely discussed, and recommend books by Hida Viloria, Sharon Preves, and work by Cynthia Mulit.

 

For More Information about Vickie Boisseau:

https://www.facebook.com/vickie.boisseau 

Elder A. Vickie Boisseau - Intersex Campaign for Equality IC4E | LinkedIn 

https://www.instagram.com/vickie2spirit 

 

For More Information about Jim Costich:

https://www.linkedin.com/in/jim-costich-34919340

https://www.facebook.com/jim.costich/ 

https://jamescostich.substack.com/

 

Writers Mentioned:

Katrina Karkazis

Hida Viloria: Intersex and Identity: The Contested Self

Sharon Preves

Cynthia Mulit: "Intersex Experiences, Activists' Perspectives, and Counseling Implications"

 

For more information about this project:

https://www.thetransgenderjourney.com

https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/demystifying-the-transgender-journey/id1799458202

https://www.facebook.com/thetransgenderjourney

https://womenwhopushthelimits.com

(c) 2026 Key Innovative Solutions, Inc. 

 

To contact Wendy:

MeetWendyCole.com.

https://www.facebook.com/wendycolegtm

https://www.youtube.com/@wendycole8326

https://www.linkedin.com/in/wendy-cole-gtm 

From Role Playing to Role Model: Dr. Grace Kinsley Finds Joy in Community Care and LGBTQ Visibility

In this episode of Demystifying the Transgender Journey, hosts Lynn Murphy and Wendy Cole speak with Dr. Grace Kinsley, a retired locum GP in Nova Scotia and trans woman who knew she was not a boy at age six but hid for decades, describing puberty as terrifying and living behind a “mask” until a “transition or die” moment at 55 amid extreme stress and suicidality. Grace shares how she came out to her wife Sandra (who supported her immediately), faced resistance from her mother, began socially transitioning right away, and started HRT five months later after WPATH assessments, describing profound physical and emotional changes, increased confidence, and sustained joy. She discusses gender-affirming surgery in Montreal, her advocacy with GSAs and queer youth, safety in public spaces, and the importance of education, science-based care, and empathy for both transition and detransition.

 

For more about Grace Kinsley:

https://www.facebook.com/grant.kinsley

 

For more information about this project:

https://www.thetransgenderjourney.com

https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/demystifying-the-transgender-journey/id1799458202

https://www.facebook.com/thetransgenderjourney

https://womenwhopushthelimits.com

 

(c) 2026 Key Innovative Solutions, Inc. 

 

To contact Wendy:

MeetWendyCole.com.

https://www.facebook.com/wendycolegtm

https://www.youtube.com/@wendycole8326

https://www.linkedin.com/in/wendy-cole-gtm

Krystal’s Gender-Affirming Surgery Journey (Part 3): Preparation, Recovery, and Finding Peace

In part three of Krystal’s three-episode series on Demystifying the Transgender Journey, Wendy Cole and Lynn Murphy welcome back Krystal following her recent gender-affirming surgery at Mount Sinai in Manhattan. Krystal explains how her dysphoria and safety concerns led her from considering surgery to realizing she needed it, how she chose her surgical team, and the lengthy requirements involved, including letters, BMI goals, tucking, and extensive hair removal. She describes the emotions and logistics of moving up her surgery date, the hospital experience, early recovery challenges, and key post-op care such as swelling control and long-term dilation. Krystal shares that post-surgery she feels “normal,” calm, and at peace, reflecting on gratitude, womanhood, and what trans perspectives reveal about gender.

 

Video Content Mentioned in this Episode:

Pt 1 of Krystal’s Story on DTTJ:

https://youtu.be/o-EMMRsf3bk

Pt 2 of Krystal’s Story on DTTJ:

https://youtu.be/LroRkCwUiJo

“Born To Be” Documentary on Mount Sinai:

https://www.borntobefilm.com/

 

For more information about Krystal Franqui:

https://www.instagram.com/krysfran2472 

https://bsky.app/profile/ember83.bsky.social

 

For more information about this project:

https://www.thetransgenderjourney.com

https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/demystifying-the-transgender-journey/id1799458202

https://www.facebook.com/thetransgenderjourney

https://womenwhopushthelimits.com

 

To contact Wendy:

MeetWendyCole.com.

https://www.facebook.com/wendycolegtm

https://www.youtube.com/@wendycole8326

https://www.linkedin.com/in/wendy-cole-gtm

Krystal Franqui on Dysphoria, HRT Relief & Choosing Visibility (Part 2 of 3) | Demystifying the Transgender Journey

In part two of Krystal Franqui’s three-episode series on Demystifying the Transgender Journey, Krystal describes years of trying not to transition by using detailed mental stories and intense hobbies like Civil War reenacting to distract from dysphoria, until COVID-era stress triggered severe panic attacks and breakdowns at work. After starting therapy and being diagnosed with gender dysphoria, she began HRT in 2021 and describes rapid improvements in mood, relationships, and mental clarity, alongside losing a job after coming out to HR. Krystal shares her family’s reactions, including supportive children and an accepting mother, recounts early experiences of gender euphoria, and explains being trans through analogies like a pebble in a shoe and describing color to someone born blind. She also explains why she chose visibility and education over going stealth.

For more information about Krystal: 

https://www.instagram.com/krysfran2472 

https://bsky.app/profile/ember83.bsky.social

For more information about this project: https://www.thetransgenderjourney.com https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/demystifying-the-transgender-journey/id1799458202 https://www.facebook.com/thetransgenderjourney https://womenwhopushthelimits.com

To contact Wendy: MeetWendyCole.com. https://www.facebook.com/wendycolegtm https://www.youtube.com/@wendycole8326 https://www.linkedin.com/in/wendy-cole-gtm

In Part 1 of this 3-episode series on Demystifying the Transgender Journey, hosts Lynn Murphy and Wendy Cole introduce Krystal Franqui, a 42-year-old woman who affirmed her gender four and a half years ago, is married, and has two adult children. Krystal describes early childhood discomfort with her body, neurodivergent diagnoses (ADD and later autism), isolation at school, and a pivotal dream and puberty experience that intensified dysphoria and depression. With little representation or support in the late 80s and 90s, she tried to “learn” boy behavior by masking and creating rules for what boys could say and do. She joined the Navy in 2001 to prove “manhood,” deployed on an aircraft carrier, and later worked in civilian aviation, still feeling socially out of place. Around 2006 a counselor raised “gender identity disorder,” but family resistance led her to repress it for 15 years, using elaborate internal stories and intense hobbies to cope, ending as COVID approached.

For more information about Krystal: 

https://www.instagram.com/krysfran2472 

https://bsky.app/profile/ember83.bsky.social

For more information about this project: https://www.thetransgenderjourney.com https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/demystifying-the-transgender-journey/id1799458202 https://www.facebook.com/thetransgenderjourney https://womenwhopushthelimits.com

To contact Wendy: MeetWendyCole.com. https://www.facebook.com/wendycolegtm https://www.youtube.com/@wendycole8326 https://www.linkedin.com/in/wendy-cole-gtm