Meet the Groups Improving Transgender Healthcare in Colorado.
October 30, 2019
Local organizations Transformative Freedom Fund and Denver Health want to make sure transgender individuals are getting the care they need.”
Marvyn Allen’s life revolved around the binder. For many years, Allen wore the skintight piece of clothing, which flattens the chest, to achieve a more masculine appearance—even, at times, while sleeping. Then one day, the apartment building’s fire alarm sounded. “My wife was there, and my cat,” Allen says. “But the first thing I grabbed was my binder.”
So for Allen—who identifies as transgender and nonbinary—receiving a mastectomy in 2015 may have been lifesaving. According to a June survey from LGBTQ advocacy nonprofit One Colorado, 41 percent of transgender individuals contemplate suicide. Allen also struggled with such thoughts: “I was wholly consumed with how uncomfortable my body made me feel. Now, I can think about the rest of my life.”