An English transgender woman who was born a man now wants taxpayers to foot the bill for her to revert to her original gender because she finds being a woman "exhausting".

Chelsea Attonley, who was born as a boy called Matthew, said she is tired of wearing high heels and putting on make-up, the Mirror reports.

"It is exhausting putting on make-up and wearing heels all the time. Even then I don't feel I look like a proper woman," the 30-year-old said.

Ms Attonley said she also suffered from depression and anxiety since she changed her gender seven years ago after receiving encouragement from glamour model Katie Price.

She said when she met Price at a nightclub in 2007 she urged her to "go for it".

Ms Attonley said it gave her the confidence to seek gender reassignment surgery after a doctor had rejected her initial bid for a sex change.

But Ms Attonley said a lot has changed since her pre-surgery days as a drag queen.

"I have realised it would be easier to stop fighting the way I look naturally and accept that I was born a man physically," she said.

"Now I have decided I want to live as Matthew, I am desperate to have my FF-cup boobs removed.

"I can't afford to have them done privately, so I am hoping to have the op on the NHS."

Ms Attonley said she has also considered having a penis reconstruction and has started having testosterone injections to begin the process of becoming a man again.