Jesse Sullivan | Before & After | His Full Transformation

TikTok sensation and trans advocate Jesse Sullivan's story of transformation began at a very young age, and some of his earliest memories are of feeling extremely jealous of his brothers. Growing up as a girl in a family of 8 siblings, Jesse came from a very large and religious conservative family that never stopped him from telling his parents things like, I feel like a boy. Problem was, whenever he'd admit to those feelings, his mother would always downplay the moment and tell him he was simply a tomboy. A phase he would inevitably grow out of. Even back then, however, Jesse knew he was different. He explained to PopSugar, The reality is that I never did grow out of that. It was something that bothered me every single day. I was in the wrong body. Throughout his early adolescence and into high school, Jesse Sullivan tried to conform to gender norms. As a teenage girl, he had a boyfriend and did all of the typical stuff his other girlfriends were doing. Then he got pregnant. Jesse never considered putting his baby up for adoption or considered abortion. Instead, he was determined to raise the most incredible human being he possibly could. As a senior in high school, the idea of having a kid was understandably terrifying, and when he graduated that year, he already had a big belly. Then, at the age of 18, he gave birth to a baby girl named Arlo. It's bad enough being a teenage parent on your own, but the fact that Jesse was also struggling with his identity made everything even more difficult. Jesse had not yet come out in any capacity before Arlo was born. He wasn't even aware that he was transgender, but he was experiencing dysphoria surrounding his assigned gender. It wasn't until after Arlo arrived that he decided to come out as gay in the hopes of setting a positive example for his child. He described this moment of realization to PopSugar, telling them, I remember I was looking at her as a baby, and I was like, if I'm going to raise this child and I want her to grow up to be whoever she wants to be, I have to be that. For the next few years, Jesse's life became much easier. He began dressing more masculine and finally felt a bit like his genuine self. Soon enough, he was identifying as non-binary and stopped thinking about how much he disliked the sound of his voice or the look of his breasts. That lasted for a little while, then every negative feeling he ever had returned with a vengeance. That's when Jesse entered another difficult period of his life that lasted up until a few years ago, when he finally began sharing his story with others. Jesse Sullivan officially came out as a trans man just a few months before the coronavirus pandemic confined most of us to our homes for a long period of time. As you might expect, the timing of how that played out would create some unexpected twists in his story. At first, the strong queer community in which he had found himself in LA supported him without any hesitation, but once the pandemic struck, Jesse was separated from the people who understood him best as he sheltered in place with his family. When Jesse came out to them as trans, needless to say, he didn't get the response he was looking for. After opening up and telling his family the truth, they weren't very accepting of the news and then he was stuck living with them. Without getting to experience any of the small daily validations he sometimes received from the outside world, Jesse turned to TikTok looking to form connections. At first his videos were devoted to memes and delicious apple pie recipes, but eventually he felt the need to do more, especially after he began receiving comments or DMs from others. In particular, a 13-year-old trans kid who was struggling in life without any guidance. That's when Jesse realized that not only did he want to do more, he needed to do more. So Jesse revealed every detail of his story to his followers, including the fact that he was a trans man who had previously given birth. Sharing those moments provided him with the confidence he needed to take the next step, transitioning. He started slowly by microdosing his testosterone so that it wouldn't have a harsh effect on his body, which meant most of his changes were subtle at the beginning. It wasn't until he was about 4 months into the process that he started to take a full dose of testosterone. Shortly after, he started feeling more and more comfortable in his own skin. He described this, It took him about a year to tell his daughter about what he was undergoing. He had already come out to her before, but now that he was officially transitioning, it felt like a bigger deal. One day while sitting in Jesse's room, he was simply honest and told her about the process. His daughter's reply was exactly what he had hoped for. He revealed, Since then, Arlo has had more questions and Jesse has answered them as honestly as he can so that she always feels comfortable asking him anything. She might have messed up his pronouns for a little bit, but now Jesse says she never does anymore and even corrects others if they mess up. But as comfortable as Jesse might be sharing this story with his daughter, when it came to other people, things weren't so cut and dry. When he was getting ready to share his full life story over on TikTok from his teen pregnancy to transitioning while raising a daughter, Jesse Sullivan was wracked with nerves, especially because it meant that he would have to show images of himself from his female-presenting past. His concern extended beyond his own worries of being bullied, trolled, or harshly judged. He was also concerned that some of these videos might be triggering for people with gender dysphoria. But TikTok's supportive queer community helped convince him to push ahead regardless. When a video slideshow of photos of his transformation set to home by Edward Sharp went viral around election time in November 2020, Jesse knew right then and there how important what he was doing was. Not just to him, but others. Now he has nearly 3 million followers on the platform who lovingly embrace video clips of he and his daughter in addition to reenactments of real conversations that he's had about being trans. He's also providing advice to parents on how to raise understanding children by exposing them to non-traditional families. Of course, some people are always going to have a mindset that you simply can't change, but instead of shutting down when confronted by those individuals, Jesse simply steps up and uses the opportunity to educate. In his largest scale attempt to do just that, Jesse appeared on My Transparent Life, a documentary that detailed his life experience of being trans while also raising Arla. Shortly after, he went to Instagram official with reality star Francesca Farago, a woman who appeared on Netflix's Too Hot To Handle and Perfect Match. After dating for a year, these two have now gotten engaged and Francesca shared the moment in May of this year with a photo carousel from their special night together. Now that he's finally achieved the happy ending he's so long gone after, Jesse Sullivan will continue to provide a voice for the voiceless while informing others about the very real stakes involved when it comes to discovering your true self. For now however, that'll bring this before and after to a close. Thanks so much for watching, and before you head off, consider answering the following question. What's the most honest conversation you've ever had about yourself with your children? Let me know if you've ever been able to open up as freely as Jesse has with Arla in the comments below. Otherwise, like, subscribe, and turn on your notifications to make sure you don't miss our next episode. My name's Kara, if you'd like to check out another story of transformation and discovery, be sure to keep watching, because coming up next is our look into the life of Chrissy Schlapeka. I'll see you all next time. Bye! In nature, a caterpillar always begins life as a tiny and forgotten thing before blossoming into a vibrant, eye-catching butterfly. The same could be said for social media influencer Chrissy Schlapeka. She went through a metamorphosis of her own, transforming from a college student struggling with her identity into a pink-haired, self-proclaimed bimbo who is currently dominating the TikTok algorithm. As a child, Chrissy grew up hyper-feminine and was often mocked by her classmates for being both outspoken and loud. She once described this experience to Lithium magazine by telling them, I was never fully taken seriously in school or public group settings. I was always made fun of for being the bimbo girl, the dumb girl. She's got nothing behind those eyes. Stuff like that. Other people might not have believed in her, but Chrissy Schlapeka has always known that she was destined to entertain. As a youngster trying to find where she fit in the world, she gravitated towards musical theater. But her big break wouldn't come from performing on stage. After realizing she wasn't quite as interested in theater as she thought she was, Chrissy dropped out of college and found herself working three dead-end jobs to pay rent. Then she began her transformation into who she is today with what will become the first of many tattoos. Despite the fact that she'd always been intimidated by needles, Chrissy decided to get her first ink in an attempt to do something meaningful for herself while being trapped in a toxic relationship. Soon after, she stopped denying her queerness to herself. She explained to Logo TV, I just remember sitting on my bed one day and being like, yeah, I'm queer. Like that's what it is. And saying it out loud, it was just kind of a weight lifted off my shoulders. Chrissy has since come to realize that there are many fluid layers to her sexuality and gender identity, which means she tries awfully hard not to limit to herself to just one label. That's why she uses both she and they when it comes to her pronouns. Chrissy's older brother Kevin is also queer and started using he, they pronouns with their family before Chrissy did. Something that helped pave the way for her in kind. Reflecting on a sequence of events, Chrissy told Logo TV, Seeing them do it and be so confident and go and pursue their dreams and to be who he really is, did encourage me and allow me to realize it was okay for me to do that too. Chrissy never directly came out to her family and said she just openly began posting about her life online and knew that they would eventually find it. It took time for her parents to understand, but they've since come to accept their daughter for who she is. Other extended family members, well, they haven't been as kind. Not that that's going to stop Chrissy from turning the family name into something more famous than it's ever been before. As COVID set in all around the world in early 2020, Chrissy found herself still trapped in an abusive relationship, one in which she had lost any aspect of herself. But after getting her first tattoo scrawled on her body, Chrissy found the necessary courage to end this relationship. After breaking free from her abuser, Chrissy felt the need to shed the skin of her previous life because it no longer felt like her true self. Soon after getting Divine Feminine tattooed across her ribs, Chrissy began her quest to take over social media. Many years earlier, the first social media page Chrissy ever created for herself was a Webkinz account where her username was happy1114. From there, she'd branch out onto much more popular platforms such as Instagram and TikTok, the latter of which is where she's steadily built her audience to where it is today at an astounding 5 million followers. What originally started as a means for her to pass the time during lockdown almost immediately turned into something much more. Not long after her first post, Chrissy went viral for posting a reenactment of an uncomfortable encounter she had with a stranger at Walgreens. When she checked her TikTok the next morning, she was shocked to discover her video had received more than 500,000 likes. After that, she dove head first into the platform by simply being herself. She's even earned recognition for having a speaking voice with an uncanny resemblance to that of pop star Ariana Grande, something that Chrissy has leaned heavily into by entertaining her fans with impersonations of the singer on a regular basis. Many of Chrissy's videos centre around her identity as a member of the LGBTQ plus community. She's admitted in the past she didn't always have a place where she felt safe enough to be the most authentic version of herself, but with content focused on self love, bisexual pride and sexual liberation, Chrissy has now managed to shed the chrysalis of her past and spread her wings further than anyone would have imagined possible. Today you'll find Chrissy expressing this newfound confidence in her TikTok videos by wearing bold outfits and makeup, which is to say that she's never one to shy away from bright colors or patterns. While Chrissy is finally sure of who she is, that isn't to say the rest of the world is always supportive. Like many social media influencers, Chrissy has to contend with trolls and hateful comments, most of which always seem to come from men. The good news is that Chrissy actually enjoys responding and by doing so in a sarcastic way, it helps her take comments less personally. Most notable of everything Chrissy has accomplished, however, is the bimbofication of TikTok. Chrissy officially introduced bimbo talk on the platform through a video in which she answered the question, who is the Gen Z bimbo? Her fanbase then picked up this idea of bimboism and ran with it, asserting themselves as hyper-feminine, outspoken and sexually liberated individuals who refuse to be regulated by anyone. Chrissy never referred to herself as a bimbo until her followers began to do so lovingly. Instead of using the term in the derogatory sense that proliferated the early aughts, Chrissy's community of fans have recontextualized the word to establish themselves as an inclusive, queer subculture open to anyone who finds confidence in expressing femininity. And now that she's been dubbed Queen Bimbo, there's no going back. As much of an institution as Chrissy Schlapeka has become on TikTok, she's gearing up for yet another important step in her career by looking to become a pop singer. Chrissy has wanted to be a singer since she was a little girl, but she's never really had a chance to spread her musical wings. Now she's having the time of her life, writing music like her hit track, I'm So Hot. But don't think for a second that Chrissy is just going to forget about all her fans on TikTok. If anything, she's looking to synergize both careers by having them play off one another. She explained to Inc, My brand as a musician is very similar to the brand I have on TikTok. I just want to be a little pop star party girl and that's the kind of vibe I'm giving. I'm obviously very heavily influenced by Slater, as well as Rebecca Black, Lady Gaga, and Ariana Grande. And while Chrissy might be best known for her larger-than-life personality, flamboyant outfits, and her deep-seated appreciation for boobs, she's more than ready to show her fans how talented she is, sonically speaking. Chrissy is creating this music for her teenage self, the one who struggled with who she really wanted to be. She told Inc, I want my music to reflect back and pay tribute to the girl I was in high school, because she really needed a big hug. It's really still in the works, but I guess that's the best way I can describe what I'm doing right now. I think it'll be really relatable to a lot of people who've had to find themselves all by themselves. In the meantime, she will continue to share her meaningful real-life experiences with her millions of followers so that they can navigate themselves through similar situations. Alright, everyone, that's gonna bring us to the end of this before and after about Chrissy's transformation from a closeted bisexual teen to the TikTok bimbo she is today. Before you head out, consider answering the following question. What's one derogatory word from the past that you'd repurpose into something more ethically and socially meaningful? I never thought I'd see bimbo reinvented as something positive, but I'll take it. Give me some even better ideas in the comments below. Otherwise, like, subscribe, and turn on your notifications to make sure you never miss an episode.