What does it mean to be trans femme? RPDR star Willow Pill recalls struggles of transitioning with chronic illness

RuPaul’s Drag Race (RPDR) star Willow Pill is one of the fans’ favorite contestants on the show. She recently shared a post on social media in which she officially came out as trans femme.

The post read,

“I’m still not sure where I fit on the spectrum, for now I just say trans femme.”

Furthermore, the reality TV star expressed concern regarding the struggles of her transition while also suffering from a chronic illness. Willow Pill has medical PTSD along with cystinosis, a rare genetic disorder that can cause harm to the eyes, muscles, kidneys, throat, and pancreas.

Read the full post here:

Meanwhile, she is happy to be a part of RPDR, where she embraces her gender identity of being trans feminine.

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What does it mean to be trans feminine?

Known as an umbrella term, trans feminine are those who were assigned male at birth but identify with feminity. It is also called trans femme.

In her online post, she said,

"My condition has caused me so much physical and emotional pain that my body became something I always wanted out of. Eventually, hating my body for failing me and hating myself for not being a girl was so constant and intertwined that I felt totally normal."

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Willow Pill underwent FFS surgery last November

Willow Pill’s online post further mentioned that she went through facial feminization surgery (FFS) last November. The drag queen has started a low dose of medication for hormones because she is already on intense medication due to her chronic illness.

Her post read,

“Transitioning with a chronic illness is not simple. Any further medicalization of my body scares me because of my PTSD.”

The post was a follow-up to the Untucked episode that aired last week. In the episode, Pill was questioning her gender and was not entirely sure about her gender identity. Addressing the topic that was shown in Untucked, she mentioned in her Instagram post that the drag queen prefers she/they pronouns as of now.

Willow Pill’s post received support from her fellow queens from RuPaul’s Drag Race. Daya Betty, Kerri Colby, Alyssa Hunter, DeJa Skye, Jasmine Kennedie, Angeria Paris VanMicheals, and Orion Story were among those who commented.

Pill is not the first contestant to come out publicly during the show. This season, Kerri Colby, Kornbread “The Snack” Jeté, Bosco, and Jasmine Kennedie also announced their gender identity.

Pill is a contestant in RuPaul’s Drag Race season 14 alongside seven more contestants. The upcoming episode will air Friday, March 11 on VH1 at 8.00 pm Eastern Time (ET).