Chaz Bono Sex Change

Chaz Bono

Who would have thought that Chastity Bono, the adorable little girl in frilly dresses that we saw on television, would struggle with her identity? Course, who was talking about this stuff then. She was a Hollywood child with privilege and the daughter of Sonny and Cher, but at puberty, Chastity felt ‘betrayed’ by her body, by her changing ‘contours’ and developing breasts. By the age of 18, confused and depressed, she knew she was in the wrong body and, to her mother's anguish, declared herself gay.

Chastity was now a lesbian, but that was a compromise because she still didn’t feel ‘right.' It wasn’t until she was introduced to a transgender community that she finally realized this was what she wanted to be: a fella. She had surgeries that would remove feminine bits and turned herself into the male figure she wanted to be.

Is it natural to feel one was born the wrong sex, or is it an environmental anomaly? Many transgender individuals feel unusual from the time they're young kids, but others may start sensing the difference in puberty, perhaps later. Psychologists say that when transgender people become aware that they are at odds with their bodies, they may feel perplexed and emotionally conflicted, as Chastity felt.

Being the daughter of Sonny and Cher and being in the public eye couldn’t have made it easy for Chastity, particularly when her parents divorced. Cher disparaged Sonny and soon after, started dating younger men with pimples, like the ruthlessly teased bagel bagger Ron Camilletti. 

Cher

Chastity is now Chaz and has had the required plastic surgery to become fully male. He’s living with his girlfriend of the past seven years, who is currently struggling to accept that the Chastity she once loved is now the hulking Chaz in sweats.

Cher also had a difficult time accepting both changes. However, Cher is not one to cast stones  because although she hasn't changed her sex, she’s changed just about everything else - her eyes, her nose, her teeth, her breasts, her stomach, her ribs, her butt and her face is stretched tighter than the front of Pamela Anderson's t-shirt. She may not have changed herself into a man but surely the plastic surgery nightmare that is Cher is far more alarming than the lumbering suit and tie that is now Chaz.