Chaz Bono Pictures

Cher's daughter, Chastity, says that becoming sober empowered her to start her gender re-assignment surgery.

Chastity Bono, the 40-year-old daughter of Cher and her late husband Sonny Bono, is now living as a man named Chaz Bono. He said he never felt comfortable being a female and knew the time was right to have a sex change.

Chaz says:

"It wasn't a sudden decision. I've been doing therapy for a long time. It's a long process going back almost a decade. I got clean and sober in 2004 and I couldn't have done this before that. I always felt like a male from the time I was a child. There wasn't much feminine about me. I believe that gender is something between your ears not between your legs. That is something I discovered in the early 90s. It was just a long process of being comfortable enough to do something about it. I was turning 40 and I thought it's now or never."

Chaz initiated the process in March by starting male hormone pills. The complete changeover will take some time to progress.

Chaz Bono revealed on Entertainment Tonight:

"I will be changing for about four to five years in total but I'll be on testosterone for the rest of my life. The nice thing about this process is it is slow. I am literally going through puberty."

However, Chaz Bono wouldn't reveal what surgery he would be having, saying:

"That's a personal decision and I don't really feel comfortable talking about anything below the waist."

Here is the official statement from his publicist:

“Yes, it’s true, Chaz, after many years of consideration, has made the courageous decision to honor his true identity.

“He is proud of his decision and grateful for the support and respect that has already been shown by his loved ones. It is Chaz’s hope that his choice to transition will open the hearts and minds of the public regarding this issue, just as his ‘coming out’ did nearly 20 years ago.

“We ask that the media respect Chaz’s privacy during this long process as he will not be doing any interviews at this time.”

Related articles by Zemanta

• Chaz Bono: I love being a man (msnbc.msn.com)
• Chaz Bono: 'My Outsides Finally Match My Insides' (abcnews.go.com)
• Chaz Bono: I love being a man (cnn.com)
• Chaz Speaks! (perezhilton.com)
• Chaz Bono: My Outsides Are Starting To Match My Insides (huffingtonpost.com)

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Technorati Tags: Chastity Bono, Chaz Bono, Cher, Entertainment Tonight, Sonny Bono, Transgender

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