Welcome to Inclusion Bites, your sanctuary for bold conversations that spark change. I'm Joanne Lockwood, your guide on this journey of exploration into the heart of inclusion, belonging and societal transformation. Ever wondered what it truly takes to create a world? Remember, everyone not only belongs, but thrives. You're not alone. Join me as we uncover the unseen, challenge the status quo and share stories that resonate deep within. Ready to dive in? Whether you're sipping your morning coffee or winding down after a long day, let's connect, reflect and inspire action together. Don't forget, you can be part of the conversation too. Reach out to jo.lockwood@seechangehappen.co.uk to share your insights or to join me on the show.

So adjust your earbuds and settle in. It's time to ignite the spark of inclusion with Inclusion Bites.

And today is episode 176 with the title the Courage To Be Seen. And I have the absolute honour and privilege to welcome Ayce Kyptyn. Ayce is a somatic sexologist on a mission to help others explore their identity and authenticity through deep healing and embodied self expression. When I asked Ayce to describe his superpower, he said it is being able to hold a compassionate space for others exists fully and truthfully. Hello, Ace, welcome to the show.

Hey, Jo, it's nice to be on the show with you today.

So whereabouts are you in the world? From that accent, I'm guessing you're not in the uk.

No, I'm originally from the Midwest of the United States, but I live in Boulder, Colorado.

Boulder, Colorado, Wow. Is that. That's near the Grand Canyon?

Always a way. But we got the Rocky Mountains here and so I'm an avid jeeper, so I enjoy being outdoors, doing a lot of trail rides. So this is the perfect place for.

Oh, that sounds awesome. That's loads of fun. Wow. Never been to Colorado. It's on the list. On the list, but yeah.

Well, I got a place for you to stay if you come. So let us let. Let me, let me know.

Ah, well, there we are. We've got a date. Yeah. Give us sometime when it's possible. Yeah, let's see what we can do. So, Ace, a somatic sexologist. I mean that. I'm just.

I'm just intrigued. Hopefully if you're listening to this, you're intrigued as well and you've had an interesting life journey, discovering yourself and I guess you're using some of that as a. As a lever to help others. So do you want to give us a bit of your story?

Yeah, absolutely. So in 2022, my life fell apart. I lost everything. I lost my job, my family, my career. Like I had a 20 year career as a professional theologian. And I was let go due to a reorganisation and it was completely out of the blue and I was just building a custom lake house and so I went, oh, no, like I no longer have an income to afford the place that I live in. And basically what happened was my life was thrown into chaos. And from that I started questioning and critically thinking about how I lived my life for the first 38 years.

And I realised that I wasn't being authentic to who I am. I was doing what everybody else in this world wanted me to do. And I think a lot of us do that. You know, we go to school, we get a job, because maybe our parents said, hey, this is the path you should take, but it's not necessarily the path that you wanted to take or I wanted to take in life. And so in losing everything, I started to critically think about how I got there and what I actually wanted to do with my life. And so as I was sitting on my therapist's couch, it became really clear to me that I was trans and I had lived a life as a female. I was an executive leader and that was all gone. And so I was like, how do I want to rebuild my life? And in such a way that I'm actually happy and enjoying the lifestyle that I have.