Yellowjackets star Liv Hewson has opened up about coming out as nonbinary and undergoing top surgery.

In a new interview with Teen Vogue, the 27-year-old Australian actor revealed they feel “more alive than ever” after having the gender-affirming procedure. Hewson, who plays Vanessa “Van” Palmer in the Showtime drama, said they underwent top surgery last year.

“I cannot tell you the complete, fundamental shift that I have felt in the year since having surgery,” they told Teen Vogue. “I knew that I wanted top surgery for a decade; it’s the longest I’ve ever thought about doing anything.”

The actor admitted that they’ve had the clinic’s website bookmarked on their laptop for five years, but the surgery felt like “this impossible mountain”.

“To have that be in the past now, I stand differently, I walk differently, I carry myself differently,” Hewson added. “It feels different in my body than it ever has. I have just never been happier. I’ve never been more centered. I’ve never felt more stable and present and alive. It’s the best thing I’ve ever done for myself. It’s taught me a lot.”

The Santa Clarita Diet star also shared that the surgery’s recovery process, which can take at least six weeks, also taught them how to accept help from others and care for their own body.

Female-to-male (FTM) or female-to-non-binary (FTN) top surgery is a type of procedure that involves removing the breast tissue, allowing for a more masculinised chest.

Hewson, who is nonbinary, explained how the term “immediately” clicked for them when they first came across it at 16, and began asking their friends to use they/them pronouns. Now, nearly a decade later, Hewson said they’re “done feeling any shame or apology” about their gender identity.

“This is true about me, so why would I spend any time hiding or prevaricating around that or feeling shame and grief about it?” they said. “This is who I am, and that’s actually wonderful. Not only is it not a problem, it’s a good thing, and it deserves space. I deserve to be in the world as much as anybody else; so do all nonbinary and trans people.”

However, there are some critics who have voiced their negative opinions about Hewson’s decision to get top surgery. Speaking to Teen Vogue, Hewson called out those who’ve criticised their nonbinary identity as having a “disgust reaction”.

“When people talk about gender-affirming surgery using words like ‘mutilation’, that’s not very nice. Is that how you think about people who’ve had surgery for other things?” they said. “It’s a disgust reaction, and I do not take disgust into account as a legitimate point of discourse. I don’t have to entertain it and I’m not going to. It’s a waste of everybody’s time, it’s knee-jerk, it’s not grounded in reality, and it’s not useful.”

Last April, Liv Hewson made headlines when they decided not to submit themself for 2023 Emmy consideration due to the awards’ gendered categories. “It would be inaccurate for me to submit myself as an actress. It neither makes sense for me to be lumped in with the boys,” they told Variety at the time. “I can’t submit myself for this because there’s no space for me.”

In the United States, hundreds of bills have been introduced in state legislatures impacting the LGBT+ community, specifically targeting trans and nonbinary people, according to the Human Rights Campaign. Out of 220 bills, more than 75 have been signed into law, and at least 19 states have enacted policies banning gender-affirming healthcare for young trans people.

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