Meet the US Soldier who is Now a Transgendered Woman

        A former U.S. Marine is sharing her experience of transitioning from a 238-lb. man to a woman. 

Sona Avedian, formerly known as Matthew, says her identity crisis started when she was a child. 

"When I was just 7 years old, my mom caught me cross dressing," Avedian, 33, says in her transition video, which has over 1.6 million views. "Devastated and ashamed, it turned into my deepest, darkest secret for 23 years."

Afraid of what her family and friends might think, "I hid behind the mask of a U.S. Marine," she says. "I felt so alone, nothing seemed familiar anymore." 

For nine years the Michigan native worked overseas as a Marine. She married a woman, welcomed a daughter and "overcompensated" for her true feelings with a large beard and a big truck. 

"I became 238 lbs. of sadness," she says. "I was exhausted and I could no longer hide." 

In 2012, Avedian came out as transgender and began her transition. She started taking hormones, received laser hair removal treatments and got breast implants. She also lost 98 lbs. by cutting out fast food and picking up yoga. 

Now amicably divorced from her wife, living in Texas and working as a Lyft and Uber driver, Avedian told Caters News Agency, "Personally I'm much happier, I don't have any conflicts with who I am. I am definitely a tomboy and that's okay. Before I couldn't stand myself and I couldn't interact with people." 

"The wife, the child, cars, guns, the Marines, everything – I have zero regrets," she says. "It was part of my journey."