Amethysta Herrick, Ph.D.

Amethysta Herrick, Ph.D.

Ami is a transgender woman dedicated to exploring identity and gender. She is Editor-in-an Identity Guide and Founder of The Purplepaw Clan, LLC.

  • Colorado, USA
  • 290 Posts

2023: My Year in Mental Health Failures

It was the best of Ami, it was the worst of Ami

As 2022 drew to a close, I looked toward a bright future in 2023. I was a writer. I was seeing myself for the first

22 December 2023 - Perceiving Our True Selves

Gender Identity Today - now in convenient podcast form!

In today's episode, I speak with Lisa Haukom: a dear friend, photographer, and developer of The Self-Portrait Method - a course designed to help us

The Pathologization of Being Human

The doctor's office called - you have a bad case of identity

In a previous article naming gender dysphoria as part of the typical human experience of developing and maintaining gender identity, I received several comments focusing

15 December 2023 - Role-Playing Games as Identity Discovery

Gender Identity Today - now in convenient podcast form!

Today on the show, I discuss role-playing games with Bill Tucker, an experienced improv actor and tabletop role-playing gamer. Bill and I get philosophical about

The Value of Doing Nothing

How much would you pay for absolutely nothing?

I did not enjoy last week. No, that description is simply too bland. Last week was horrid - worse than the little girl in the

Self-Love Is Easier than I Thought

Sometimes we must battle our own beliefs to accept ourselves

My good friend Morgan Whitten responded to a photograph I posted to social media recently. She called me beautiful, and I had to stifle the

01 December 2023 - Sex, Gender, and Sexuality

Gender Identity Today - now in convenient podcast form!

Today I speak with the one and only Ossiana Tepfenhart, who covered the adult film industry as a journalist and has written on topics from

To Bake the Pie of Identity

And wear it, if possible

I was 13 years old when my father took me to a movie theatre to watch "Risky Business." I was certainly too young to understand

17 November 2023 - Divination as a Path to Introspection

Gender Identity Today - now in convenient podcast form!

In this slightly different show, I engage my witchy side with Miriam Rachel, a medium and tarot reader who writes and teaches how to improve

The Many Faces of Gender Dysphoria

Too bad your mama couldn't give you a good face!

A common assertion among many transgender people is the abject futility of explaining gender dysphoria to cisgender people. In answer, many cisgender people throw up

10 November 2024 - Body, Embodiment, and Identity

Gender Identity Today - now in convenient podcast form!

In this episode, I talk to Caitie Corradino, a Registered Dietician and body worker who explains the connections among body, mind, and spirit. Caitie and

Driving Away the Thought of Self-Harm

Caution: dangerous curves ahead

Not long ago, my mental health deteriorated to the point I believed suicide was the only resolution. It was the worst I had felt since

"I Am Not a Fish" and Other Christian Inconsistencies

Transubstantiation is only the beginning

When describing the distinction between sex and gender, I use an example of a species of fish from the Great Barrier Reef. This species of

27 October 2023 - Art as a Method of Identity

Gender Identity Today - now in convenient podcast form!

Today I talk to Tucker Lieberman, an excellent author and philosopher whose transgender journey took place in part through his creativity. Tucker and I discuss

20 October 2023 - Gender-Affirming Voice Therapy

Gender Identity Today - now in convenient podcast form!

In this episode, I have an informal discussion with my good friend Alison (Dragon) Hiester - because any discussion we have is informal! We talk

Spiritual Energy Shifts from Gender Transition

Those icy fingers up and down my spine

I am a scientist - an Analytical Chemist. As a graduate student, I was taught to consider experimental design, to question data acquisition and processing

13 October 2023 - The Transgender Experience in Türkiye with Döro

Gender Identity Today - now in convenient podcast form!

Today I am honored to share this interview with my inspiring Sister Döro. She speaks under cover of anonymity about being transgender in Türkiye. The

The Neverending Story of Transgender

Life without a ramalamadingdong

I am a very special person. I am transgender. When I was born, a doctor inspected my anatomy and came to a conclusion about identity

06 October 2023 - Observations on Feminism with Kendra Koch

Gender Identity Today - now in convenient podcast form!

Today's episode is about feminism. My friend Kendra and I muse on Western society and feminism's role in it.

REFERENCES:
Dreamers & Doers: https://www.

Identity and the Division of Labor

You scratch my parts, I'll scratch yours

In my introduction to Internal Family Systems (IFS), I closed with Richard Schwartz's statement that there are no bad parts. That statement is at the