Chaz Bono has been through a lot, and being the child of a major music star and actress in Cher hasn’t made things much easier. He’s always been in the public spotlight, and that can be difficult even at the best of times.

However, few stories are more inspirational than Chaz’s is. In 2011, at age 39, he began his transition to the male gender. Cher has always been supportive of her beloved son, though things weren’t easy in the beginning.

In fact, Cher had problems with her son being gay at first. According to Chaz, she went “ballistic” when she found out.