{"id":40472,"date":"2025-04-22T07:27:13","date_gmt":"2025-04-22T07:27:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/40472\/"},"modified":"2025-04-22T07:27:13","modified_gmt":"2025-04-22T07:27:13","slug":"i-was-threatened-with-electric-shock-therapy-as-a-little-boy-for-wearing-a-dress-but-now-im-free","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/40472\/","title":{"rendered":"‘I was threatened with electric shock therapy as a little boy for wearing a dress – but now I’m free’"},"content":{"rendered":"

Samantha Wolsey was just six years old when she walked downstairs to show off her dress to her dad, just like her sisters, but the little boy was taken straight to a psychiatristNews<\/a><\/p>\n

Beth Kirkbride<\/strong> and Alison Graves<\/strong> Lifestyle and Features Editor<\/p>\n

06:00, 22 Apr 2025<\/p>\n

\"RealFormer builder Billy was threatened with electric shock therapy for wearing a dress as a child but she’s finally living free as Samantha<\/p>\n

A former builder who was threatened with electric shock therapy<\/a> for wearing a dress as a child has finally come out as a transgender woman<\/a> in her 60s.<\/p>\n

Pensioner Samantha Wolsey, 69, previously known as Billy, first wore a dress at the age of six but what happened next stayed with her for the rest of her life. Her father took her to see a psychiatrist<\/a>, who shockingly suggested electric shock treatment.<\/p>\n

\u201cI felt absolutely superb when I first put a dress on (as a child). But my dad hated it, because he\u2019s always wanted men in his life. That\u2019s realistically what messed me up.\u201d<\/p>\n

READ MORE: Three grim things monster left home with after butchering second girlfriend<\/a><\/p>\n

She said: \u201cI managed to get out of the room, and I turned around to my dad and said, \u2018If you want that shock treatment, lie on it yourself\u2019. I said, \u2018It\u2019s you who bloody needs it and not me\u2019.\u201d<\/p>\n

One of 11 children, with six brothers and four sisters, Samantha refused this treatment and continued to cross-dress over the years. In 1978, still living as Billy and working as a builder, she met Denise, now 66, in a pub, who would go on to become the love of her life.<\/p>\n

When Samantha first told Denise about cross-dressing, Denise did not believe her \u2013 until she dressed up and showed her. Samantha recalls Denise saying: \u201cYou look OK from your neck down, but that bloody wig, what you\u2019ve got on, it\u2019s absolutely disgusting.\u201d<\/p>\n

Despite initially criticising the wig, Denise began bringing home bags of feminine clothes as a gesture of support for her partner\u2019s hobby.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen I came home from work, there was a carrier bag with all sorts in it \u2013 bras, knickers, you name it,\u201d Samantha told PA Real Life.<\/p>\n

SHOCK NIGHT<\/strong><\/p>\n

One night in the 1990s, Samantha went out with some male friends while dressed as a woman under the guise of raising money for Children In Need.<\/p>\n

She was attacked from behind at a taxi rank in Leigh, resulting in severe injuries and taken to the hospital, where she “lost all (her) teeth\u201d, prompting her to keep her identity hidden for years and only dress in women\u2019s clothing behind closed doors.<\/p>\n

That changed in 2010, however, when Samantha and Denise went on holiday to Spain, and Denise surprised Samantha by packing a suitcase full of women\u2019s clothing. \u201cI started unpacking it, and I said, \u2018Have you given me the wrong case here?’\u201d Samantha said. \u201cDenise said, \u2018No, why?\u2019 I said, \u2018It\u2019s all women\u2019s clothes\u2019. \u201cShe said, \u2018Yeah, that\u2019s the whole idea\u2019. There were even bikinis in there!\u201d<\/p>\n

The couple continued to holiday in Spain, Greece<\/a> and Turkey over the years, with Samantha feeling free to indulge her feminine side. Tragically, in 2014, Denise developed paraneoplastic syndrome \u2013 a rare immune response to a tumour in her chest \u2013 giving her a six-month life expectancy.<\/p>\n

After 18 months, she was still alive, defying initial expectations, so she moved into a care facility in Wigan due to her needs. In 2020, Samantha moved into one of Belong Wigan\u2019s independent living apartments to be closer to her wife, and it was here that her life really changed.<\/p>\n

Staff supported Samantha to properly come out as transgender <\/a>and live authentically for the first time in her life \u2013 and now she wants to encourage others to do the same, regardless of age or past struggles.<\/p>\n

While Samantha still loves Denise, their relationship has shifted to a friendship \u2013 even though Denise would be willing to have sex, Samantha feels unable to fulfil that side of their relationship because of her wife\u2019s diminished capacity.<\/p>\n

Out of respect, Samantha says she does not want to explore other romantic relationships while her wife is still alive. \u201cIf my wife wasn\u2019t here, I might go for a relationship as Samantha,\u201d she explained. \u201cBut because my wife\u2019s still here, I don\u2019t think I could. I\u2019d feel guilty.\u201d<\/p>\n

Living at Belong gave Samantha the confidence to dress as a woman in public for the first time after being attacked. One evening in 2023, she dressed up as Samantha and claimed it was \u201cfor a fancy-dress party\u201d.<\/p>\n

The next day, a staff member encouraged her to be herself, and from that day she has embraced her identity full-time, with other residents given an opportunity to attend a Q&A about her transition.<\/p>\n

\u201cEverybody, as far as I know, has accepted me,\u201d she said. Only one of Samantha\u2019s brothers still visits her, but her friends are all supportive.<\/p>\n

Her friend Giovanni had long suspected Samantha\u2019s identity, joking that he always noticed her loitering in the women\u2019s section when they went shopping, seeing through her claims that she was \u201cjust looking for Denise\u201d.<\/p>\n

In 2023, Samantha legally changed her name through deed poll, costing her \u00a3200. She said she spends her pension getting her nails manicured and has an extensive collection of 40 dresses and 30 wigs, and she delights in wearing heels.<\/p>\n

She now feels proud to be part of the local LGBTQ+ community, even participating in Wigan Pride. Looking back, Samantha regrets not transitioning earlier \u2013 and may have considered surgery if she was younger \u2013 but remains proud of her journey.<\/p>\n

She hopes her story will inspire others to embrace their true selves, regardless of age. \u201cIf you want to do it, go for it,\u201d Samantha said. I\u2019ll be there if you want to talk to somebody.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Samantha Wolsey was just six years old when she walked downstairs to show off her dress to her…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":40473,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4317],"tags":[1951,23033,105,2207,11207,2603,218,617,1408,18745,16,15],"class_list":{"0":"post-40472","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-mental-health","8":"tag-bikinis","9":"tag-children-in-need","10":"tag-health","11":"tag-hospitals","12":"tag-life-expectancy","13":"tag-love","14":"tag-mental-health","15":"tag-pensions","16":"tag-therapy","17":"tag-transgender","18":"tag-uk","19":"tag-united-kingdom"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@uk\/114380436195305440","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/40472","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=40472"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/40472\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/40473"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=40472"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=40472"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=40472"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}