Leyna Bloom

 

From Elle Australia:

"Along with being a pioneering model, Leyna Bloom is an actress, dancer and activist for both the LGBTQI+ and black communities. Her modelling career started in 2014, and by 2017, she was one of the few openly transgender models in the industry, walking at New York Fashion Week. In the same year she also became the first openly transgender model of color to appear in editorial for Vogue India. Adding to her collection of 'firsts', in May 2019, her feature film debut in Port Authority at Cannes Film Festival marked the first time a trans woman of color held a leading role in a movie featured at a major film festival."

The Bridge

 After writing yesterdays Cyrsti's Condo post which primarily dealt with the possibility of facing negative treatment when and if you are forced to enter an assisted living facility. I received feedback

In the meantime, yesterday afternoon, I attended a virtual meeting on the subject hosted by Equality Ohio and Rainbow Elderly Alliance of Dayton, Ohio. Essentially, what I found out was I wasn't alone in thinking about building a bridge to jump off of (when considering my future). Survey's taken have revealed the same concerns from a very large percentage of transgender individuals. I liked the surveys because they were careful to separate transgender women and men from the other segments of the LGB community. It turns out, many "gender expansive" (new term) individuals had been discriminated to the extent of even being denied equal health care and power of attorney's. 

I wish I could provide you all with some sort of positive here but the only thing I can come up with is, certain groups are working to help us with education programs for assisted living facilities. The major problem is we, meaning the LGBT community, have few legal resources as far as the government goes.  In many parts of the country. Which unfortunately will not change or even get worse with the latest Supreme Court appointment.

As Michelle wrote in and said: hopefully I will never get close to the bridge to jump off of (and have to enter an assisted living facility. )

And Susan Brooks added this comment : "Like you, I am a senior in the transgender community and I am concerned that I might have to return to the closet in my later years. Now that I have entered my 70s, those later years are much closer than I would prefer. I'm fortunate to live in an open minded region of a very closed minded state. So, elections, such as the one we're enduring right now, have consequences that definitely can hit home.

As you say, don't jump off the bridge before you get to it."

Thanks for the comments. I am trying desperately to bury my bridge parts in the closet!

Back to Being Old

After the brief moments of remembering my past military experience, yesterday was also time to snap back to the present. After I went to a virtual transgender - cross dressers meeting last night, it seemed I spent the whole day on the laptop. Of course it included the time it took me to go through all my emails and the time it took to write a blog post. 

Mixed in with all of that was a LGBTQ virtual webinar on aging issues I watched late last week. I came away from it with at least the sense others shared my concerns with conditions we face as we age. Specifically in assisted care facilities and/or nursing homes. Messages came in from political figures such as Sherrod Brown (Ohio Democratic Senator) and the Mayor of Dayton, Ohio. I also learned more about a group called "Sage" which presents seminars to assisted living groups. 

I am also going to attend another seminar summit meeting today on nearly the same subjects. It's called a "Workshop for LGBT Elders and their Caregivers." Hopefully I will learn about any rights the elderly have may have. 

As I say over and over again, I am so paranoiac about having to de-transition and go back in the closet as I face getting older. I am in a different place than many transgender individuals because I have chosen not to have any surgeries at all, plus no facial hair removal. Take me off my hormones (which is also a possibility) and I am stuck dealing again with the worst aspects of my gender dysphoria.

I am fortunate though I have a strong support group around me. 

Through it all, I keep telling myself not to build a bridge to jump off of before I need to.