Woman Shares How She Found Out at the Age of 11 That She Was Born ‘Biologically Male'

At 11, one girl discovered that she would not have children or even go through puberty like many of her female friends would. However, when her mother shared why, she was told to keep it a secret.

A TikTok user named Lyss took to the platform to share her story about how her mother told her she would never be able to have children or go through puberty like an ordinary little girl.

Her mother's revelation confused Lyss, who was eager to experience puberty. Lyss, 11 at the time, was shocked when her mother told her why she would never be able to do any of these things.

Lyss' mother told her that she was born "biologically male" but was told to keep it a secret from her friends and family, which she did for many years until she shared the story on TikTok recently.

What Is Lyss' Story?

Lyss shared that when she was younger, he mother had sat her down at their dining room table and told her they needed to have a serious talk. During this talk, Lyss' mother told her she had been born with male anatomy but that she should keep that fact to herself.

Being so young and finding out that she was born with both male and female anatomy caused Lyss distress, and she joked of the moment she learned about this for the first time:

"The wallpaper on the wall started to melt off."

Lyss's mother presented her with a folder of medical information accumulated to confirm that Lyss was intersex, meaning that a person was not distinctly male or female.

Although her mother offered support, she also told Lyss the information should remain private. Lyss's doctors also told her her gender was something she should not freely share with others.

She confirmed that for most of her life, she had taken her mother and her doctor's advice, but then, after years of keeping the secret, she quipped:

"And now, I'm a grown adult, talking to strangers on the internet about how I was born with balls in my belly."

Many people in the video's comments section wondered what it meant to be intersex, as Lyss had termed it, and why her mother would tell her to hide that fact from the people around her.

In her next video, Lyss explained that her mother had been right when she insisted her daughter keep her gender a secret.

What Happened When Lyss Shared Her Gender?

Lyss confirmed that her doctors and her mother had been right when they told her she should keep her gender to herself because she had been bullied when she shared it with others.

When Lyss discovered her gender, she found it impossible to keep it a secret, so she went to school and told her friends about it. Her friends then told everybody else, and she was bullied.

Although the bullying eventually stopped as she got older, Lyss received an outpouring of love and support for her videos. Many people told her that because of her, intersex children wouldn't feel so alone. Another person shared:

"I'd love to hear your opinion on how you think parents should handle this."

Many people have told Lyss that sharing her story was incredibly brave and that they admired her for sharing something so personal. Not only does Lyss share her story on TikTok, but she also has an Instagram page and a website dedicated to her journey of being intersex.

While Lyss' TikTok is filled with videos of her talking about her life as an intersex person, her Instagram is more light-hearted, with Lyss often sharing memes and funny photos of herself. She also uses the platform to empower herself by showing off and being proud of her body.

Lyss' website is dedicated to helping other people who have had trouble feeling comfortable in their bodies. She is now a coach and yogi who does meditation sessions, which can be booked through her site.

While Lyss learned that she would never be a mother in the traditional sense, another man changed his gender so he could be his children's mother. Read the full story here.