Jesf Benedict was born in Gary, Indiana in 1963. Much later they were medically diagnosed as a “chimera hermaphrodite”, which means that they were born with both male and female genitalia that have separate DNA. Their parents disagreed over which gender to assign them, and divorced after a violent fight. Starting at 4 months old, Jesf underwent multiple painful surgeries to be raised as a boy without their knowledge or consent. Growing up, they regularly got in trouble for not being masculine enough. 

In high school, Jesf skied competitively, and dreamed of joining the Marines and becoming a pilot. Unfortunately, a severe tractor accident the summer after their freshman year put them in the hospital for 3 months and led to them losing all their toes on one foot, thwarting their piloting dreams. Doctors told Jesf they would never walk again, but Jesf defied the diagnosis and returned to competitive skiing within the year.

At 17, Jesf moved from their family home to Denver, Colorado to work in banking, where they excelled. The bank sponsored their way to the US Olympic tryouts, where they were offered a spot, but realized after their previous near-death experience that they wanted to keep their options open. 

Jesf only dated girls in school, and was terrified to realize at a neighborhood party in Denver that they felt attracted to a man. They didn’t act on it, because they adamantly believed that being gay was a sin. Jesf continued to date women, and experienced more than their share of relationship issues, including the death of two ex-girlfriends by suicide.

After so much grief, Jesf met Susan on a church retreat in Texas. When church members expressed disapproval over their romantic relationship, Jesf and Susan walked out of church and went to the bar down the street. They got married soon after, Susan got pregnant, and they’re still happily in love and close with their son. Jesf’s father in law ultimately came out as gay, and Jesf became accepting towards the LGBTQ+ community.

In their late 30s, Jesf started experiencing unexplainable bouts of extreme pain. Doctors prescribed one strong opioid after another, and Jesf struggled with addiction withdrawal whenever the pills were discontinued. One doctor was convinced that Jesf had Lyme disease, and after conducting a thorough examination of their body in search of a tick, revealed to Jesf that they were born with a vagina. Jesf could not accept the news and refused to consider it for years, despite their recurring pain.

Jesf eventually found a doctor who dug up their medical history and realized that their pain was due to hormonal complications from early menopause, likely due to the poorly performed surgeries Jesf underwent in childhood. Jesf was infuriated at how much suffering their doctors’ and parents’ secrecy caused them. Luckily, Jesf was able to get the hormonal treatments they needed.

Jesf started blogging and created a social media channel named “The Original Intersex Connect Live,” building an online community for intersex folks to meet and support each other. They also started working at the LGBT Center of Southern Nevada as their Intersex Liaison, helping to normalize intersex children and advocate for their right to participate in school and sports.

Throughout our interview, Jesf brings our attention to the present-day state of intersex issues. They discuss ongoing tensions between the intersex community, trans community, and LGBTQ+ community as a whole. They provide advice for intersex youth on how to navigate life’s hardships, and affirm the intersex community that they are lovable and normal.

Bio Author: Alex Riefe