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Georgina Beyer has tragically passed away, aged 65. As the world’s first openly transgender Member of Parliament and mayor, Georgina Beyer was a trailblazer and champion for the LGBTQIA+ community.
Diagnosed with chronic kidney failure in 2013, the ex-Waitarapa MP and Carterton mayor was then preparing to go off dialysis for her scheduled kidney transplant when it was cancelled due after she was also diagnosed with heart disease in 2016. After a successful transplant in 2017, Georgina considered a return to politics.
In late 2017, Georgina caught up with Judy Bailey to talk about her life – read her interview here
Read on for one of our last interviews with Georgina:
On her 58th birthday, Georgina Beyer received the best present ever – the offer of a donor kidney. It was one of the greatest moments of her life. “I sat there and howled tears of gratitude,” recalls the world’s first transsexual mayor and MP, who has suffered from chronic kidney disease since 2013. “Thank God! I’d been on the donor list for years and my friend, who I know through the gay scene in Wellington, was ready to go through this gruelling process to save my life.
“We’d had mutual friends pass away recently and he told me, “I’m sick of losing friends prematurely.” To be gifted something like that was incredibly humbling and a relief. It was a huge gesture.”
But just two months into the six-month process of preparing for a live organ donation, Georgina’s good news turned sour. In January, the former politician was hospitalised with breathing problems and her doctors discovered that she had cardiomyopathy, a disease that meant her heart was only pumping at 32% capacity. That soon dropped to just 22% and any hopes of a transplant were dashed.
Currently undergoing gruelling haemodialysis, Georgina says having the choice to die is “empowering”.
“We had everything all lined up, but suddenly it was brought to a grinding halt,” Georgina tells Woman’s Day. “With my heart not working properly, they couldn’t put me under anaesthetic because I might not come back. I was disappointed. I didn’t deal with the news well. It means we’re running out of options. We’re now grasping at straws.”
Before the bombshell news, Georgina was undergoing peritoneal dialysis, which meant she was hooked up to a catheter at her Wellington home for half an hour, four times a day. She’s now had to switch to haemodialysis, which involves at least three gruelling five-hour sessions at the hospital each week.
“It’s five hours of lying in bed and it usually takes a day to get over each time,” sighs Georgina. “I watch a lot of Dance Moms and The Real Housewives to kill the time. The doctors hope it’ll improve my heart condition, but it’s anyone’s guess whether it will. Already I’ve been asked to consider my options. That’s confronting.”
Her Dancing with the Stars days are over (far left, with Candy Lane and Carol-Ann Hickmore).
If this new method of dialysis doesn’t improve her heart function, Georgina isn’t sure that she wants to continue the treatment. Doctors have informed her that she’ll likely survive only two weeks without it. “It’s the stark reality of life or death,” she says.
“It’s sobering, but I didn’t cry, break down or go crazy when they told me. When crises occur, I tend to snap into a sensible frame of mind and put aside emotion. After all, as a mayor, I had to face floods and other natural disasters.”
She’s surrounded by good friends who always tell her “to pick life”, but Georgina says frankly, “I could easily go off the dialysis. The doctors want to put a fistula into my arm, but I’m already maimed and mutilated enough, with lines into my stomach and chest – that’s why I can’t bare my cleavage! I’ve had enough of that. How much more am I prepared to tolerate?”
Unhesitatingly, Georgina continues, “I’m prepared to die. I’m not scared. If it all ended sooner rather than later, I’ve had an amazing life. And I’ll be 60 in the not-too-distant future. I can’t exactly go back to flipping burgers at McDonald’s – that’s not a reason to live. At the moment, I’m not in mind-blowing pain, but if it got bad enough, I might end it.
“I’m single, with no dependents, responsibility or family, so I’ve got the luxury of making that decision by myself. And having some control over choosing when I should let go is empowering. It’s almost like euthanasia, of which I’m very supportive.”
Georgina will soon start writing her will, but she says, “I haven’t got a lot to distribute.” After leaving Parliament, she struggled to find employment and had to sell her assets to survive.
She’s since been forced to sign on to the dole, a process she describes as “shameful and degrading”. But despite the doom and gloom of these “end-of-life issues”, Georgina can still laugh about her illness, which has seen her drop over 20kg.
She jokes, “At least with my clothes on, I’m looking better. I used to be a chunky girl, but now I’m down to a more healthy 64kg. I’m a size 12 to 14, which is even better than when I was on Dancing with the Stars, although I don’t have the strength to ballroom dance. People will see these glam pictures in Woman’s Day and think I’m faking it!”
Jokes aside, Georgina remains hopeful that the haemodialysis will improve her heart function and lead to a kidney transplant – and help her get back to the active lifestyle she loved.
She smiles, “It’s definitely made me feel better and given me the chance to look toward the future. I haven’t given up hope just yet.”
