What it takes to keep independent queer trans health journalism going

Hey there advocates and allies,

Every week, I send you research summaries, policy analysis, and interviews that you can't find anywhere else. Today I want to talk about what it takes to keep that work sustainable.

I started Well Beings News because I was tired of watching healthcare providers, researchers, and advocates struggle to find reliable information while policy attacks escalated and misinformation spread through mainstream sources. This newsletter exists to cut through the noise and deliver the evidence-based reporting you need to do your work effectively.

But here's the thing: independent journalism costs money, and I need your help to keep this sustainable.

Two Simple Goals

Right now, I'm asking for support around two specific needs:

Monthly subscribers to cover basic operations ($250/month)

and

Annual + lifetime subscribers for equipment ($1000 total)

The monthly goal covers basic infrastructure—hosting, email service, my Zoom subscription, transcription and notetaking, graphic design software, a very modest marketing budget, and all the other tools that keep this newsletter running.

The equipment goal is to address the fact that my laptop is dying. My Chromebook has not been able to update for months, and that has started impacting my ability to use the aforementioned tools, especially on days, like when I subluxated my shoulder last month, when I cannot be at my desk. I need reliable equipment to keep investigating, interviewing, and reporting, whether from bed or on location reporting or coworking.

As you may have noticed, paying myself is not included in that monthly goal. Yet. We’ll get there! For now, I need to know that I won’t be spending money out of my own pocket to keep this newsletter going out to you 3x a week. I’m working on this project full-time, while doing other work to supplement my household income as best I can. I need your help so I can make this work: my work, the work.

What Your Support Makes Possible

Yesterday, I published I Used to Feel Fat, a vulnerable reported essay on dysphoria under diet culture, available to all subscribers, because I believe this information needs to be accessible. As you know, paid subscribers get all of our weekly reporting, including deeper analysis and exclusive resources.

This weekend, subscribers will get a Queer in Practice interview about navigating the grief of coming out later in life—the kind of nuanced conversation about queer experience you won't find elsewhere.

Next week's subscriber-only reporting focuses on the connections between dysphoria, dysmorphia, and disordered eating—an under-researched intersection that affects many of our communities—diving deeper into the interviews and resources mentioned in this week’s essay.

And I’ll be releasing a desperately-needed resource to our library next week as well: a comprehensive gender-affirming care reference sheet exclusively for Professional Members. Think of it as your quick-reference guide to the evidence you need to advocate for patients or counter misinformation.

Limited-Time Lifetime Memberships

As part of this reader raise, I'm bringing back lifetime memberships at a massive 50% discount. Only offered a few times a year, at a regular rate of $596, existing subscribers can get full Professional membership for life, for only $298. I'm only offering a handful of these, and they won't be available again until our end-of-year sale.

What I Need From You

If you've been thinking about upgrading, now's the time. If you're already a paid subscriber, thank you—you're making this work possible.

These aren't huge numbers, but they make all the difference for independent journalism. Help me keep reporting the stories that matter to our communities.