Jareth Nebula wants to raise awareness for those who feel like they're from another planet - and officially identifies as a genderless alien.
Nebula, 33, was born female, but transitioned to male when they were 29 years old, changing their name to Jareth (inspired by David Bowie's character in the Guillermo del Toro film Labyrinth).
Now though, the Washington receptionist feels as if they not only don't feel tied to any particular gender, but doesn't really identify much as a human either. Instead, Nebula thinks of themself as an alien with no gender, describing themself as "otherworldly".
"After coming out as transgender and believing I had finally found myself, I realised I was wrong, they explained. "I wasn’t male or female, or even human. I don’t think or feel like humans. I can’t really explain it to others – I’m simply otherworldly. I didn’t feel comfortable as either gender or even anything in between. I know I’m stuck in a human form and that’s how I’m perceived by others – but to me, I’m an alien with no gender."
Jareth has felt like they don't belong in the crowd for quite some time. It was an issue that plagued them for the longest time, and followed a diagnosis of Ehlers-Danlos syndrome (EDS). EDS is a condition that affects skin and joint connection tissue, and as a result of the illness, Jareth had an increased range of mobility, as well as extra stretchy skin.
"The condition [EDS] means I can pop my joints out on purpose, which was a fun party trick when I was a kid," Jareth, who wished not to disclose their birth name, explained.
Dubbed Mr Elastic by their doctors, Jareth suffered from chronic pain. "I get to a chiropractor once every two weeks and see a physical therapist once a week, as well as smoking medicinal marijuana for the pain – but there is currently no cure for EDS," they said.
Jareth initially described themself as a "hyper-feminine female" and even modelled in their teens, by their late 20s, Jareth decided to transition to male, and began hormone treatments right away, changing their sense of style toward something more masculine and getting their breasts removed in surgery.
But Jareth found they were no more comfortable living as a man than they were living as a woman, stating:
"I thought being a trans man would solve all of my issues and inner battles with finding out who I was, but I wasn’t as happy as I expected to be. I felt like I was trying to fit into someone else’s box. I didn’t want to be constrained – that’s when I discovered what agender was."
Jareth considers themself to be neither male nor female and - although they are happy to be referred to as 'he' or 'him' - feels as if living as an alien would be more suited to how they felt on the inside.
"I’d always been obsessed with aliens, too, and what it means to be extraterrestrial, so the idea of being an agender alien fit perfectly as an identity for me," explained Jareth, before revealing the body modifications they have undergone to fully commit to being a genderless alien.
"To feel less human, I have a huge circuit board tattooed on my face – which makes me feel more android and disconnected from humanity. I don’t have nipples, as I had them removed during my top trans surgery. I shave off my eyebrows and have lip, septum and nose bridge piercings."
Unfortunately though, not everyone is on board with Jareth's latest transition - they explained that, although their family understood and welcomed their transition from male to female, they were less supportive of them identifying as an alien.
"My family still see me as a trans man, because they don’t understand what agender or alien really means. I have online friends who support me, but offline is harder. Not everyone understands – but that’s okay. I don’t expect them to get it, I only want acceptance."
"People treat me like a freak because I’m an alien, but it’s a completely valid thing to call yourself," Jareth added, revealing they have suffered from abuse online due to their appearance.
They're happy with how they look, however, and try to brush it off the best they can, stating: "I’m happy with who I am and will continue to become more alien-like every day."
