I’m Monica Prata,
Gender Expression Specialist and Founder of the Field of Gender Expression Care. 

I partner with healthcare systems to design and implement Gender Expression Care programs. I also work directly in group workshops and with individuals to help them actualize their identity through gender expression.

 

My Mission

Helping TGNB people live freely, safely, and robustly.

Transgender healthcare policies are under attack.

GEC provides a supportive non-surgical, non-hormonal pathway to authentic self-expression, improving overall health, safety, and wellness.

  • Part of my mission is to expand understanding, awareness, and compassion around gender and identity.

    In addition to media appearances, I also offer talks and workshops to organizations that want more inclusive practices and to be industry leaders in supporting transgender rights.

    See More of My Media Work

  • I am the Gender Expression Specialist at Kaiser Permanente.

    I was sought out to work with their team of surgeons, therapists, and other leaders in the transgender health space to build a first-of-its-kind GEC Program that assists patients in externalizing their authentic selves. This program builds a bridge between in-office care and the real lives of patients.

    If you are a Kaiser Permanente member, click the button below to visit our Transgender Care page, join our Gender Expression Care workshop series, or book a 1:1 session.

    Learn More

  • Because healing and wholeness can’t happen in a vacuum, I offer Gender Expression Care in a workshop setting.

    These workshops allow the members to learn from others in their community and experts such as speech pathologists and physical therapists. Members build relationships that last well beyond the eight weeks of the workshop.

    Learn more about groups

 

 My Story

You could say that I’ve taken a
non-traditional route to success.

But I’ve been consistent. Ever since I was a kid, I’ve been unafraid to speak up about injustice and dared to go my own way–even at the risk of being unpopular.

 
Featured

How it started

My career in Gender Expression Care began when I worked as a M.A.C. make-up artist at Nordstrom in the mid-’00s. I recognized my clients' coded language when they asked for beauty and fashion tips “for their girlfriends.” Unlike many of my colleagues at the time, I happily styled my male-presenting clients. Before long, clients would seek me out by name, and I developed a loyal client base.

How it evolved

I was passionate about helping my clients and searched for ways to meet their needs. There were “image consultants”; however, they often relied on caricatures of femininity that were hypersexualized and without nuance. I knew my clients well and recognized that the existing resources were ill-fit to help them find the genuine authenticity and self-definition they sought.

How it grew

In 2008, I launched Nouveau She, a 1:1 coaching service to help individuals develop self-acceptance and empowerment. In 2010 I moved to San Francisco and joined Dr. Ousterhout, a world-renowned pioneer in facial harmonization surgery. There I learned the anatomical differences in bone structure between male and female faces, which allowed me to apply a scientific underpinning to my aesthetic approach. With these insights, I developed the first-ever Gender Expression Care program.

In 2013 I moved to New York City and opened my GEC practice in the West Village. There I worked 1:1 with clients worldwide on every aspect of their social gender expression. I was invited to speak at transgender conferences nationally and internationally. By doing so, I gained recognition for my contributions to the transgender community. I was fortunate enough to garner attention from international media outlets, giving me a platform to be a speaker on Gender Expression Care and its critical role in holistic transgender healthcare.

Where I am today

In 2019 I joined Kaiser Permanente to test the Gender Expression Group Workshops concept. When the pandemic hit, we shifted the workshops to a virtual platform, which enabled us to welcome KP members from all over Northern CA. At that moment, the demand grew exponentially. The group environment gave patients a source of support when isolation and mental health issues were at an all-time high. 

From there, we collected feedback and built a measurement tool to assess the efficacy of the model and recognized it as an essential component of overall health for our TGNB clients. We were privileged to be invited to speak about our work at USPATH, WPATH and EPATH and to have our paper “Gender Expression Care: The Next Horizon in Transgender Health” published in NEJM Catalyst.

My private practice is still active, but my primary focus is on growing the Gender Expression Care workshop program and providing education and consultation to healthcare companies who want to add GEC to their comprehensive transgender healthcare suite.

 

What’s Next?

Make Gender Expression Care the gold standard for modern transgender healthcare practices everywhere.

My dream is for GEC to be available to everyone. I will continue to partner with healthcare systems, large and small, to help them integrate it into their offerings.

I will continue to advocate for groups as critical components of care. I’ve seen first-hand the value of social connection in this journey and see a future beyond the 1:1 model that is typically employed today.