Summer Mendes was told by doctors that her transformation would cost £8,000 and, fed up of living her life in the wrong body, she was forced to give up her flat to live in the cafe she once owned.

The 47-year-old slept on her work’s sofa every night and worked seven days a week to try and make a living to save for her operation.

Now she has opened her heart up about the battle and is desperate to raise cash so she can be in the body she was always supposed to be in.

“It was hellish,” Summer, of Johnstone, said. “I worked as a chef and became very successful over the years, but all of my money was taken away by a business partner and I had to start from scratch again to try and survive.

“I opened up a cafe in Glasgow but I made nothing from it. I was living day to day but I was determined to try and save so I could become me — Summer.

“For almost three years I lived my life in the cafe, seven days a week. When I eventually left that life it was difficult to adapt.” At just three-years-old Summer — originally known as Marc — knew she was meant to be born female.

But it wasn’t until she was in her 20s she began to embrace her true identity by growing her hair and wearing women’s clothes.

“I was in a few relationships and I was always honest about who I was, but they kept telling me I had to dress as a woman in secret,” Summer revealed.

“I hid who I was just to please other people for such a long time. I was deeply depressed.

“When I first opened up the cafe in Glasgow, I struggled every day to survive but I was determined to make enough money for my operation.

“This was back in the 1980s when I left school so you had to have operations like these private back then.

“I tried to save up the money and hid in my world of cooking but I was never, ever happy.

“I ended up having to live there, I had to choose between a flat or being myself. It was the hardest time of my life.” Fed up of living a lie, Summer finally plucked up the courage to close down her cafe and start a new life.

She slept on a friend’s sofa for a number of weeks before deciding to make her transformation as Summer.

In 2013, she officially underwent treatment to become a woman. She now works as a successful psychic medium in Variety Stores in Glasgow, Argyle Street.

But she is still tormented daily by the fact she is still on the waiting list for a sex change operation and is now battling to raise cash to go private.

Summer told The Gazette: “I go to the Gender Clinic every week but it’s a very long process.

“I feel like I’ve waited all my life for this and it’s hard to wait any longer.

“It’s taken me such a long time to build up the courage to be me but it’s time for me to take the next step.

“My goal now is to raise enough money to go private and become the real person I was always supposed to be.” Summer, who is using laser treatment to remove her facial hair, also thanked members of the public who contacted her after reading her story in The Gazette this month to praise her courage in speaking out.

And she also praised former celebrity athlete and Kardashian clan stepdad, Bruce Jenner, for recently coming out about his transition to become a woman.

The former Olympian, 65, has previously been alleged to be seeking gender reassignment treatment with a preference to be named ‘Brigitte,’ and now a new report claims his ‘goal is to be a woman.’ Summer said: “I think it’s really brave of him to come out at the age of 65.

“He must have gone through hell hiding his true self for all that time. It’s about time we sent a positive message of the transgender community.” Speaking of the flurry of support she received on Facebook, Summer beamed: “A lot of people were saying well done, you’re so brave, so amazing, I was quite shocked.

“Now I want to try and find a way to stop transgender people from being scared to be who they are. I’ve read a lot of hard done by stories, a lot of doom and gloom, but I think it’s time I spoke out about the fact that you can be happy and be yourself without being scared to death.

“Reading these horror stories will only set you back a few more years. If anyone has transgender issues I’d ask them to come and talk to me and I’ll help them. I’m living my life now.”