Transitioning from male to female has got to be a bit easier if you’re a drop-dead gorgeous woman, but that doesn’t make us any less happy for model Andreja Pejic who yesterday announced she’s made the switch to female for good and will only be modeling women’s fashion going forward.

The 22-year-old Australian beauty spoke publicly from GLAAD headquarters in New York about her gender reassignment, then later posted this photo to her Facebook page, accompanied by this message:

“I want to take this opportunity to thank all of you for the love and support throughout the years. You’ve all helped me through this journey and I have learned a lot and really come into my own and the response to today’s announcement truly overwhelmed me and reminds me of why I chose to do this publicly. I think we all evolve as we get older and that’s normal but I like to think that my recent transition hasn’t made me into a different individual. Same person, no difference at all just a different sex I hope you can all understand that. I would also like to to reach out to all young gender non-conforming youth out there: I know it’s hard, I’ve been there, but remember it’s your right to be accepted as what you identify with—you deserve the same respect as any other human being on this planet. As a transgender woman I hope to show that after transition (a life-saving process) one can be happy and successful in their new chapter without having to alienate their past. Most importantly differences should not equal divisions, let’s all stand together in union. #betruebeyou”

Pejic has previously earned international attention from modeling men’s and women’s fashions, has appeared on the covers of Elle and NY Mag (among others) and costared with Tilda Swinton in David Bowie’s 2013 music video for “The Stars Are Out Tonight.” She also has a role in the upcoming Sofia Coppola rework of The Little Mermaid.

h/t GLAAD