AceShowbiz - Josie Totah has said that life was "so difficult" before she came out as transgender. Starting her career as a child with appearances on TV shows such as "Jessie" and "Glee", the 20-year-old actress, who was born male and was formerly known as J.J. Totah, admitted that she felt "trapped" and "traumatized" while living as a boy.

"It was really difficult because I was being told, 'You shouldn't go outside with nail polish or with makeup unless you are ready to be fully out,' and I just wanted to be myself," Josie spilled. "And at 12 years old, not being able to do the smallest things that affirm who you are was incredibly difficult, and having to feel the burden that the world isn't able to accept me."

"I'm not able to leave the four walls of my house being the person I felt like I was meant to be and that is such a trapping, traumatizing feeling and it makes life so difficult," the "Saved by the Bell" star went on admitting.

However, Josie went on to explain that she is now "grateful" to be able to help others with her celebrity status and explained that her platform was "worth everything" she went through before coming out.

"I'm so grateful I'm able to be someone who people can look up to," she told E! News. "It's worth that risk and it's worth all the experiences and s**t that I went through. Because I'm able to make people feel less alone by being myself and I'm so incredibly proud of that. It is literally the greatest privilege of my life to hear that from people."