hi friends

i'm lex - they/them - your friendly neighbourhood nonbinary boydyke

and im fundraising for top surgery :')

this has been a long time coming. like. a LONG time.

i've witnessed so many friends and loved ones and people i know go on their own gender journeys, gently encouraged people to use that name, try those pronouns, get their surgeries, access those hormones - i've put my ten pounds in the pot over and over. i think it's finally my turn.

i find it hilariously difficult to ask for help. it feels incredibly vulnerable to ask for support on this scale, to ask folks to give Me money at a time when everyone is tight and everyone is struggling. every penny truly is a kindness i find it difficult to fathom, it makes me tear up to think about (literally - tears in my eyes as i type this lol, it's the pisces moon in me)

every share and every donation means the world and i truly cannot thank you enough for even having a look at this page.

im currently working a less than London Living Wage job, and i've been trying my utmost to save on my own but it just isn't possible for me at the moment, and it would take me who knows how long to save the amount i need to have this surgery that, obviously, is going to change my life.

i haven't allowed myself to think it would be possible for me for so long, have found every reason it won't or can't happen, and every obstacle has felt too insurmountable. but. i've decided it is time. time for me to feel comfortable in my body. to be able to dance and swim and wear clothes that feel Good and just to live, freely and comfortably, and feeling like Me.

i can't wait for the first time i can go out and lift my arms above my head and dance, without a care. i have never done that. and i want to. movement is a massive part of my life and my practice as an artist and a theatre-maker, and im excited to be able to give myself fully to it, to be comfortable to move and create and exist in front of people and share in the things i love.

anyway, the long and short of it is - i have allowed myself to Want and i am Ready. the thing i need now is the money so that i can get this surgery without waiting another decade.

so, thank you for being a part of making that happen.

and thank you to my loves and the support network i have around me that has held me this far and loved me through every evolution and all the steps i needed to take to get here. there's a long way to go. it feels terrifying and exciting and Possible. how wild.

i simply cannot wait to finally be "flat like a prince" for real, as my 4-year-old sister once said to me whilst trying to work out how i disappeared my boobs one time (spoilers: i just put my binder on)

forever one of the most affirming things anyone has ever said to me. i love her so much.

ANYWAY

thank you, thank you, and thank you again <3

ps ~ i also run a small business and am using that to raise funds in addition to this. check out @ManosQueer on instagram for our original lino prints, stickers, cards, and more and please also give us a share / follow too! much love xx

pps ~ GFM has said that beth is the beneficiary... promise it's for me lol they're my amazing wonderful partner and donations will be held in an account under their name for *reasons*, im sure you can understand! but fear not, beth will be keeping their nipples :)