Born identical twins, Wyatt and Jonas Maines may share the same DNA, but their gender identification was entirely different.

Now at the age of 14 they are brother and sister, as Wyatt’s transition to Nicole is well under way.

The twins’ story was told in the Boston Globe, telling of bullying at their first school and eventually a lawsuit that lead them to moving to a different town.

Growing up, while Jonas loved Spiderman, Wyatt favoured pink tutus and beads. One Halloween, Jonas was Buzz Lightyear, while Wyatt wanted to be a princess – his mother compromised with a prince costume.

One time, Wyatt appeared in a sequin shirt and his mother’s heels. His father Wayne turned around saying, “You don’t want to wear that.”

“Yes I do,” Wyatt replied.

“Dad, you might as well face it,” their father recalls Jonas saying. “You have a son and a daughter.”

It was this early declaration that marked the beginning of a journey that the Maines family couldn’t have imagined embarking on. The process of remaking a family of identical twin boys into a family with one boy and now one girl has been at times heartbreaking, but ultimately an inspiring journey a child’s courage and the transformational power of love.

For a while, the twins’ parents Wayne and Kelly Maines struggled to know whether they were doing the right thing for both children. Until recently there was very little help for children in such situations, but now a groundbreaking clinic at the Children’s Hospital in Boston helps families deal with the medical and emotional issues arising from having a child who doesn’t identify with the gender he or she was born into.

The Children’s Hospital Gender Management Services Clinic uses hormone therapies which halt puberty in transgender children, blocking the development of secondary sexual characteristics such as facial hair that will then make the eventual transition into the opposite gender less difficult, painful and costly.

The Maines family felt compelled to share their story, hoping to help fight the deep stigma often associated with transgender youth and ease paths trodden by other children who, without help, would often suffer depression and isolation.

“I have always known I was a girl,’’ says Nicole, now aged 14 “I think what I’m aiming for is to undergo surgery to get a physical female body that matches up to my image of myself.’’

Nicole’s final step of her journey into womanhood will be gender reassignment surgery, an operation that doctors generally won’t perform until the child has turned 18, which is the age of consent for the medical procedures. Nicole admits she is excited about the idea of surgery, even though she is still a little worried about the results and the pain that might also come from such an operation.

It was during a weekend retreat sponsored by the Trans Youth Equality Foundation that she developed her first crush on a boy. Over the years the family has become close to several transgender adults which has also given Nicole a opportunity to see some that have been happily married. There is a long road ahead for Nicole, but she admits she feels she is on the right path.

“Obviously my life is not going to be as easy as being gender-conforming, but there are perks like being able to get out there and do things that will benefit the [transgender] community,’’ she says. “I think every thing’s going to turn out pretty well for me.’’

Wayne was recently asked to speak at GLAAD’s Spirit of Justice dinner in Boston where he was introduced by Nicole. He recounted a young Wyatt asking him “Daddy, why can’t boys wear dresses?’’ Wayne hated to tell his son that society wouldn’t accept it. Today when Nicole asks her father what he thinks of a certain dress she’s wearing, he returns a typical father response: “That dress is too short. Go change your clothes.’’

You can read more about Nicole’s inspirational journey at The Boston Globe.

I believe it is so important that stories like this are shared, to continue to break down the stigma often associated with transgender youth. It is truly a touching story of endurance in the face of adversity.