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Caitlyn Jenner, formerly Bruce, has been talking about her "fantastic" trip to New York City when she was cheered to the rafters by revelers at Pride, telling fans how great it felt to be surrounded by new friends from the transgender community. The former Olympian said the experience was so enriching that she "could never go back" to being Bruce.
She made the remarks on her new website, which she said crashed because there were so many comments and questions from well-wishers.
Caitlyn Jenner shares a photo calling for an end to bullying on her new website Photo: caitlynjenner.com
In response to one fan who asked her what her favorite part of being Caitlyn is, the 65-year-old said: "I packed for the first time – as just Caitlyn, nobody else – which is the first time I’ve ever done that.
"I was gone for five days and had such a fantastic experience with all of these girls who have all been through the same thing. We had so many stories to tell. We had so many things that we were all dealing with.
"It was just truly a liberating experience. I knew then that I could never go back."
During her visit to the Big Apple for Pride, it became clear that the reality star had assembled a formidable posse of glamorous trans friends including Dirty Sexy Money actress Candis Cayne, Filipina model Geena Rocero, actress Trace Lysette and performer Kate Bornstein.
Caitlyn was asked by another fan when the point came that she felt she had to transition. The I am Cait star replied: "I firmly believe that there are intensity levels of being trans. For example, a boy at a young age – four or five-years-old – might refuse to wear guy clothes and will only wear dresses.
"Not as a one-time thing or as just dress-up play, but insistently, every day saying, 'I’m a girl'. They can’t – and won’t – hide their true identity, even at that young age. Then there are others, like me, who can (kind of) live with it for a long time, even though it’s very uncomfortable."
The I am Cait star with Candis Cayne, Chandi Moore, Geena Rocero, Allie Hoffman, Trace Lysette, Barbara Carralles, Kate Bornstein and Sam Feder Photo: Instagram @caitlynjenner
The world's most famous transgender woman said there was "no information" about the issue years ago so she kept herself distracted with other activities. "I had all of my diversions – sports…this…that…married…family – but after 65 years, here I was right back with the same problems that I had when I was 10 years old and I had to finally do something about that."
She hopes that the publicity surrounding her will help others in the future. "It’s been both eye opening and difficult to see firsthand what so many members of the trans community have had to go through just to be themselves," she wrote. "I hope to help raise awareness of these hardships so that it becomes a less painful process going forward."
Caitlyn finished off by saying: "The future looks bright. I knew that my transition would get some response, but I certainly never expected all of this. It’s honestly been incredibly positive."