'TikTok influencers made me think I was transgender - now I'm de-transitioning'
- 10 months ago
A teenage girl says she is de-transitioning after being influenced to wrongly identify as a boy by TikTok users.
Ash Eskridge, 16, started transitioning into a male when she was 13 years old.
She said she was feeling depressed at age 12 and influenced by 'social media influencers' who made her think she was trans.
Ash got her name legally - going by Greysen - and socially transitioned - which involved getting a new wardrobe and cutting her hair.
Once she turned 16, Ash started taking testosterone and her voice became lower.
Ash said she realised she made a mistake in April after feeling "unnatural" having body hair and a low voice and began de-transitioning this year.
She said she thinks influencers on TikTok made her want to transition after they said how transitioning saved their life.
Ash, a student, from Missoula, Montana, US, said: "I saw a bunch of stuff on the internet and wanted to fix myself the way that those people have been fixed.
"I saw TikTok videos by influencers saying how that transitioning saved their life.
"I was struggling and wanted it to save my life too.
"My family were very confused - my life had been really girly and I never showed any dislike of being a girl.
"They were very supportive of me but they never thought it was right for me but they stood by me regardless."
When she was 13 years old, Ahs told her mum, Darcy Eskridge, 46, how she wanted to transition.
Darcy, a secretary, said: "She told us she was trans. It was after Covid and she was at home a lot.
"She started spending too much time on TikTok, watching influencers who were saying how they went through the same thing.
"How they had transitioned and it made them happy.
"We questioned Ash and pushed back.
"We told her we would accept her for who she is but how we didn't feel this was the right path for her."
After two and a half years as living as a male Ash started taking hormones and she grew body hair but said it felt "unnatural".
Ash said: "My voice dropping didn't feel correct. When the voice started dropping it made me feel uncomfortable and the body hair felt really gross.
"It was a big build-up of that and I missed being a girl - I was missing the way I was perceived in society.
"My breaking point was when I had a dream that I was a girl and I thought 'I can't do this anymore'."
In April 2023, Ash told her family how she had made a mistake and wanted to de-transition.
Darcy, said: "She came to us and said how she made a mistake.
"She told us how easily influenced she was by social media.
"There was a lot of shock from us but also a sense of relief as we never thought it would be the best path in life for her.
"As I said, there was a shock but we supported her, we always supported her."
Both Ash and Darcy said it has been a "tough road" as Ash has lost friends since deciding she wanted to de-transition.
Ash Eskridge, 16, started transitioning into a male when she was 13 years old.
She said she was feeling depressed at age 12 and influenced by 'social media influencers' who made her think she was trans.
Ash got her name legally - going by Greysen - and socially transitioned - which involved getting a new wardrobe and cutting her hair.
Once she turned 16, Ash started taking testosterone and her voice became lower.
Ash said she realised she made a mistake in April after feeling "unnatural" having body hair and a low voice and began de-transitioning this year.
She said she thinks influencers on TikTok made her want to transition after they said how transitioning saved their life.
Ash, a student, from Missoula, Montana, US, said: "I saw a bunch of stuff on the internet and wanted to fix myself the way that those people have been fixed.
"I saw TikTok videos by influencers saying how that transitioning saved their life.
"I was struggling and wanted it to save my life too.
"My family were very confused - my life had been really girly and I never showed any dislike of being a girl.
"They were very supportive of me but they never thought it was right for me but they stood by me regardless."
When she was 13 years old, Ahs told her mum, Darcy Eskridge, 46, how she wanted to transition.
Darcy, a secretary, said: "She told us she was trans. It was after Covid and she was at home a lot.
"She started spending too much time on TikTok, watching influencers who were saying how they went through the same thing.
"How they had transitioned and it made them happy.
"We questioned Ash and pushed back.
"We told her we would accept her for who she is but how we didn't feel this was the right path for her."
After two and a half years as living as a male Ash started taking hormones and she grew body hair but said it felt "unnatural".
Ash said: "My voice dropping didn't feel correct. When the voice started dropping it made me feel uncomfortable and the body hair felt really gross.
"It was a big build-up of that and I missed being a girl - I was missing the way I was perceived in society.
"My breaking point was when I had a dream that I was a girl and I thought 'I can't do this anymore'."
In April 2023, Ash told her family how she had made a mistake and wanted to de-transition.
Darcy, said: "She came to us and said how she made a mistake.
"She told us how easily influenced she was by social media.
"There was a lot of shock from us but also a sense of relief as we never thought it would be the best path in life for her.
"As I said, there was a shock but we supported her, we always supported her."
Both Ash and Darcy said it has been a "tough road" as Ash has lost friends since deciding she wanted to de-transition.