143 - With Open Minds and Bodies

The Fox and the Phoenix

In this episode, Julie asks Savannah how her experience was going to therapy for the first time... as Savannah. Sure, Chuck has been going to therapy for a while now, but this marked the first time the therapist asked Savannah to make an actual "wig to heel" appearance "on the couch". They touch on the actual session experience, the nervousness Savannah felt about showing up for the first time, her concern for receiving validation and acceptance as a serious male-to-female gender diverse individual, and the feelings of being seen and heard in her feminine persona. Julie and Savannah round out the episode for what makes, in their opinion, a good mental heath professional dynamic with the feelings of safety and the ability to be vulnerable being paramount.

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SAVANNAH HAUK is the author of “Living with Crossdressing: Defining a New Normal” and “Living with Crossdressing: Discovering your True Identity“. While both focus on the male-to-female (mtf) crossdresser, “Defining a New Normal” delves into crossdressing and relationships and “Discovering Your True Identity” looks at the individual crossdressing journey. Her latest achievements are two TEDx Talks, one entitled "Demystifying the Crossdressing Experience" and the other "13 Milliseconds: First Impressions of Gender Expression". Savannah is a male-to-female dual-gender crossdresser who is visible in the Upstate of South Carolina, active in local groups and advocating as a public speaker at LGBTQ+ conferences and workshops across the United States. At the moment, Savannah is working on more books, blogs, and projects focused on letting every crossdresser–young and mature–find their own confidence, expression, identity and voice.

IG @savannahhauk | FB @savannahhauk | FB @livingwithcrossdressing | web @livingwithcrossdressing.com

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JULIE RUBENSTEIN is a dedicated ally to transgender community and the certified image consultant and co-owner of Fox and Hanger. F&H is a unique service for transgender women and male-to-female crossdressers that creates customized virtual fashion and style “lookbooks”. Julie intuitively connects with each client to find them appropriate clothes, makeup, hair, and shape wear all in alignment with their budget, body type, authentic style and unique personality. Julie also provides enfemme coaching and wardrobe support. Julie has made it her life’s work to help MTF individuals feel safe and confident when it comes to their female persona, expression and identity.

IG @Juliemtfstyle | FB @foxandhanger | web @FoxandHanger.com