FORT MEADE, Md. (AP) — Bradley Manning wants you to call him Chelsea Manning. A day after being sentenced to 35 years for leaking military and diplomatic documents to WikiLeaks, the former Army intelligence analyst says he wants to live as a woman named Chelsea, and hopes to begin hormone therapy as soon as possible. He made the announcement in a written statement to NBC’s “Today” show:

“I am Chelsea Manning. I am a female. Given the way that I feel, and have felt since childhood.

“I want to begin hormone therapy as soon as possible.”

“Starting today, you refer to me by my new name and use the feminine pronoun (except in official mail to the confinement facility).”

Manning’s struggle with gender identity disorder — the sense of being a woman trapped in a man’s body — was key to the defense. Attorneys had presented evidence of Manning’s struggle with gender identity, including a photo of the soldier in a blond wig and lipstick sent to a therapist.