I LOST HALF MY WEIGHT AND BECAME A WOMAN
Pinning a purple flower into her bleach blonde hair, pretty Ava admired herself in the mirror. She had every reason to be proud. In the space of a year, she had lost an incredible 17 stone. Her weight dropped from 37st 1lbs to 19st 7lbs, and she slipped into a dress before gazing at her newly svelte figure. With her smokey eye makeup and black skater dress, she could have been glamming up for a night on the tiles with her girlfriends. Instead, it was Halloween, 2013, and Ava was hiding a huge secret. Born a boy named William, it was the first time she had ever dressed as a girl – and everything fell into place.
Other great stories
CALAMITY AIRSTRIP 15 YEARS ON
FIFTEEEN years after it was closed pictures by a British teacher show the calamity Hong Kong airport that was closed for being too dangerous .
SHIVERING SQUIRREL
THIS LITTLE squirrel tries to keep himself snug as snow starts to fall around him .
WOMAN'S SKIN TURNED SILVER AFTER TAKING NOSE DROPS
An American woman whose skin turned silver after using nose drops is warning people of the dangers of medicines containing the metal .
WAVES FROZEN IN TIME
Beautiful turquoise waves rise and fall in a series of stunning images taken along the coastline of south-eastern Australia .
BABY GIVEN THREE PER CENT CHANCE OF LIFE COMES HOME FOR FIRST TIME
A baby who was given just a three per cent chance of survival at birth has beaten the odds to come home - even though docs told his parents to abort him 12 times .
CLOSE ENCOUNTERS OF THE BUG KIND
THIS alien-like bug would look more at home in outer-space but it can actually be found wriggling around here on Earth .
FRIENDS REUNITED
IT'S the iconic TV show that influenced a whole generation in the 1990s .
LONDON 2012: FUNNY OLYMPIC BAGS SAY 'THEY'RE ALL ON STEROIDS
While the various controversies rumble on regarding transport, security issues and overly-officious copyright enforcement, a couple of designers is saying what we're all thinking about the Olympics - and putting it on bags .
ADORABLE PENGUINS HATCH AT UK ZOO
HOPPING onto the scales, these adorable baby Humboldt penguins are ready for their first weigh-in .
CUDDLY TRAVEL BUNNY IS STOLEN AFTER JOURNEY AROUND THE WORLD
An intrepid explorer hopes to be reunited with his travel partner, after his cuddly toy companion was stolen .
SURPRISE BABY: WOMAN REVEALS SHE DIDN’T KNOW SHE WAS PREGNANT UNTIL SHE SAW HER BABY’S HEAD CROWNING
A woman has revealed how she didn’t know she was pregnant until she saw her baby’s head crowning .
MONKEY LOVE
PUCKERING up and enjoying some quality time, these are the most lovable monkeys on the planet .