That's a good question! :-) Here's a fuller picture for all the context:

• I knew at some level as a kid that I was a girl, although I never had the words for it. There were signs during early childhood, and during my teen years, but I was punished for expressing myself in a feminine way growing up and so I repressed it until I couldn't anymore.

• I accepted I was transgender in August of 2018 shortly after turning 26. I almost immediately feminized my appearance as much as I could - literally over a weekend. Shortly thereafter I started seeing a therapist for gender dysphoria, and that winter I started laser hair removal.

• I started hormone replacement therapy in January of 2019.

• I "went public" and only went by Erika from that point forward in March of 2019.

I'm so grateful I did all this - it turned my life right-side up!