cate mcgregor is a group captain in the royal australian air force .
she spent 40 years in the army , most of those under the name malcolm .
in 2012 , mcgregor stopped ` functioning ' as a man and lived as a woman .
she tried to resign from the office when her transformation became public .
her resignation was refused by former chief of army david morrison .
mcgregor believes mr abbott was n't given the credit he deserved for publicly embracing her and risking a wedge within his own party .
she addressed the national press club on wednesday as part of a women in media series .