Kristin Beck Kristin Beck ( born Christopher T . Beck , June 21 , 1966 ) is a former United States Navy SEAL who gained public attention in 2013 when she came out as a trans woman . She published her memoir in June 2013 , " Warrior Princess : A U . S . Navy SEAL ' s Journey to Coming out Transgender " detailing her experiences . Beck served in the U . S . Navy for twenty years and is the first openly transgender former Navy SEAL . " The Atlantic Wire " , " Salon " , and " Huffington Post " have speculated that Beck ' s story may lead the Department of Defense to revisit its policies against transgender people openly serving in the US Military . Early life . Beck grew up on a farm . As early as the age of five , Beck was drawn to feminine clothes and toys , but was pushed into masculine roles by her conservative parents . Before transitioning , Beck married twice , and has two sons from the first marriage . She recounts in her memoir how her gender dysphoria contributed to her inability to emotionally mature while being in a male body , and added conflict to her sexual identity , although she never really felt she was gay . Additionally her career as a Navy SEAL kept her on missions away from home . This led to an uncomfortable realization one day when on a visit to see the children , who went with their mother , they stated to Beck that she had taught them that friends were more important than family , so the visit didn ' t materialize . Navy career . Beck served for 20 years in the Navy SEALs as a man , and took part in 13 deployments , including seven combat deployments . Beck was a member of the United States Naval Special Warfare Development Group ( also known as DEVGRU ) , a special counter - terrorism unit popularly ( but inaccurately ) called SEAL Team Six , and received multiple military awards and decorations , including a Bronze Star and a Purple Heart . Beck told Anderson Cooper she wanted to be a SEAL because they were the " toughest of the tough . " Beck retired from the Navy in 2011 and began transitioning " to make his body match his identity " by dressing as a woman . In 2013 , she began hormone therapy , preparing herself for sex reassignment surgery . During an interview with Anderson Cooper in early June 2013 , she stated that she never came out during her military career , and that " No one ever met the real me . " After coming out publicly in 2013 by posting a photo of herself as a woman on LinkedIn , Beck received a number of messages of support from her former military colleagues . " Warrior Princess " . Beck co - wrote " Warrior Princess " with Anne Speckhard , a psychologist at the Georgetown University School of Medicine . Speckhard was doing a study on resilience of the U . S . Navy SEALs , that is , the coping mechanisms employed by SEALs to deal with their intense job demands . Speckhard first met Beck at a counter - terrorism conference . After Beck agreed to discuss coping mechanisms , a follow - up meeting took place in a gay bar , with Beck now dressed in female attire , to Speckhard ' s surprise . A five - hour meeting led to Speckhard agreeing to help Beck write her life story . In the book , Speckhard notes that Beck had a desire to die honorably " so that he wouldn ' t have to wrestle anymore with the emotional pain that stemmed from the lack of congruency between his gender identity and body . " In her introduction to the book , Beck writes : " I do not believe a soul has a gender , but my new path is making my soul complete and happy . . . I hope my journey sheds some light on the human experience and most importantly helps heal the ' socio - religious dogma ' of a purely binary gender . " " OutServe Magazine " praised the book , calling it " one of the smartest and most important books of the year . " The Huffington Post noted that while the " don ' t ask , don ' t tell " policy was repealed in 2011 , the ban on openly transgender people serving in the U . S . armed forces still remains . Days before the release of " Warrior Princess " , Metro Weekly ' s Poliglot column reported that the Pentagon had celebrated LGBT Pride Month in a memo while avoiding mention of transgendered military personnel ; the Pentagon memo read in part : " We recognize gay , lesbian and bisexual service members and LGBT civilians for their dedicated service to our country . " " The Atlantic Wire " posited that the book could " lay the groundwork for even greater inclusion in the armed forces , " and " Salon " stated that Beck ' s military credentials may " lead the Pentagon to revisit its policy against trans service members . " While restrictions on sexual orientation have been lifted , restrictions on gender identity remain in place due to Department of Defense regulations ; transgender Americans thus continue to be barred from joining any branch of the military .