The Power in a Name

(Please read "Changes for the Better" before reading this post.)

During the summer of 2015, I decided that it was time to get my name changed.  I started to get some funny looks in the men’s bathroom, and people kept asking me if I belonged there.  I came out to my supervisor via text message because I was too much of a coward to tell her how I felt in person.  My supervisor called me into her office the next day and told me to tell her in person what I had told her over the phone.  I was extremely nervous when I told her that I was transgender.  She then sent an e-mail the human resources department asking if there was any policy regarding transgender individuals.  It turns out that I had to get my name legally changed in order for me present myself as my true gender at work.  This requirement seemed logical at first, but I began to lament due to all the bathroom issues I was having. 

The name change process in the state of Maryland was not too much of an obstacle to overcome.  I was not able file my paperwork with the court until the middle of June.  There were only three different forms to fill out in order to change my name.  I filled out the main petition for a name change.  An individual needs to explain why he or she would like to change his or her name.  The notice for a name change is used for advertising your new name in the press.  If anyone objected to my name change petition, then then he or she would have had fifteen days to file a claim explaining why my name should not be altered.  The order for a name change had to be signed by a judge.  The name change process no longer required an individual to go before a judge in person for the name change petition to be granted.  The processing fees ended up being seventy dollars for the completion of all the paperwork. 

I received a letter regarding the status of my name change in the mail a month after I filed the petition.  The petition ended up being denied due to bad hand writing.  I was extremely angry when this event transpired.  The press seemed to be able to read my hand writing, so why was the court being so rigid in regards to my petition.  I went back up to the court at the start of the next week to find out what had happened.  I told one of the civil clerks that my handwriting looks a little funky due to having Cerebral Palsy.  I was advised to go to the free legal center on the first floor, and that the people there might be able to assist me further. 

I went down to the free legal center and spoke to a woman regarding the problem I was having, and she helped me out with how to get passed this bureaucratic issue.  She was not allowed to write for me because that would have been against the rules.  The handwriting issue was finally resolved, and I submitted my amended petition to change my name.  I got a letter in the mail a week later stating that my name change had been granted.

The whole name change process was not anywhere near as bad as I thought it was going to be.  The hiccup regarding bad handwriting was just stupid, but there were no major issues in this whole process.  Everything was straightforward and simple.  All I had to do was fill out a couple of forms, and that was it.  I was very happy to be finished with this part of my transition.  I could now move on to my next big adventure.