Hey guys, For my physiology class we had to do an essay on a disorder, so i chose GID as it affects me personally. Just wanted to share it with you guys, and see what you think of it It’s a Boy/ Girl Thing: When children feel “trapped” in the wrong body. Should a man cut off his own penis a psychiatrist may call him schizophrenic, but if he is able to convince a doctor to do it for him, one may call him transsexual. Conflicts between a child’s biological gender and the one they feel like “inside” can be a tough concept to grasp for any parent, but just imagine what it must be like in the mind of child. At around the age of three children develop a “gender identity” or sense of themselves in regards to being male or female. Usually this goes hand-in-hand with their own gender, but sometimes that little girl would rather play with guns and cars, and that little boy with dolls and dresses. There is this confusion amongst and within them and they feel “trapped” in this body that isn’t right, they feel uncomfortable in and have a strong desire to change and behave in same manners as the gender they identify themselves as. This is Gender Identity Disorder of Childhood (GIDC). An official examination and diagnosis is performed by psychiatrists who specialise in gender issues, after ruling out the possibility that these feelings could be as a result of something else such as a birth defect or intersexual condition. This is when the reproductive organs or sex chromosomes of an individual fall outside the exclusive of male and female. The exact cause is unknown, however several theories have tried to explain it, including an imbalance of hormones while the child develops in the womb, such as testosterone. Research has also showed influences from parents and the way they interact differently towards different genders, these are known as social-environmental factors. when it comes to discussing treatment options, there is alot of debate and concern amongst parents of when it is a good time to intervene when a child approaches them, or if this is just a phase to “grow out” of, how can they trust the young child to make a huge decision like this, they could end up a regret. Family behaviour therapy is the first step to try to change the childs ways and feelings. If this doesn’t work hormones are used to delay puberty so to give the child more time to work through these self conflicts, although there are ethical issues surrounding these. Once the child reaches its teens, hormonal therapy becomes less of controversial issue as it is unlikely that their feelings will change. Only a small percentage of children diagnosed with GID decide to fully transition as adults, however adult homosexual relationships have a strong link with GIDC. Having explored the concepts of Gender and gender identity, and how a child develops an understanding of these with age, it can be noted that Gender Identity Disorder should not be confused with homosexuality, even though there is a big correlation between GIDC and adult homosexuality. A better classification of this phenomenon is Gender Dysphoria, as to be described in the updated 5th edition of the DSM. The attitude towards Gender Identity Disorder/ Transgenderism as a mental disorder needs to change, as evident from research done over numerous decades.
This I don't understand at all...through my own ignorance. It would be nice if Trangender people would respond. I am being genuine and not sarcastic. I met some cross dressing people before, quite by accident and became some what more educated...can we do this with the Transgender people. I recently saw Chaz(?), Cher's daughter/son...and don't understand for one moment...she was so cute when she was little. And I can't imagine that the medical profession can make a penis? The whole thing seems Sci Fi to me.
Alright.. As for age, it's not always around 3. It can be at any age, really. Just look around these forums. There's proof enough. Although alot of us might have played with toys known to the other sex, it really doesn't make much of a difference between who has GID and who doesn't. It's more of the feeling that something isn't quite right: That you're not the sex you were assigned. You should also list and maybe briefly explain some of the other genders, such as Genderqueer, Genderfluid, Androgyne, Bigender, Pangender, Agender, etc. Some people even have their own gender, or just give up on labels and just say "whatever" (I did that for a few months). You should also note that those who were transgender (at least transexual) were found to have brain structures that matched brain structures of the gender they identified as (this is, in particular, a ratio between the right brain vs left brain) Also, nitpicking, but the hormones you refer to would be androgens, not testosterone.
I like it think it is well explained. But some of the points are a bit more variable than that, like that we fit gender roles at the age of 3, this isnt necesserly true but belived by psychologists that it is somewhere around that age. Some people live as their own gender all their child life without anyone noticing anything odd then decided they are trans in later life. But i like they way you've linked it to homosexuality. Thats a contraversial thing but personally i belive there is deffinatly a link there. I cant wait to do gender in my psychology class we havent got to that yet.
I can tell you that being a boy growing up was very "normal" boy like. I liked video games, blocks and sports, I also liked dolls, dressup, and shopping (though only with my sister) though as I got older I did less and less of the non-normal gender activities this was the main thing that my mom had trouble with, why I liked guy things, but wanted to be female so I hate the stereotype that relates gender likes and gender identity even though I've never felt completely like one of the guys, with my friends I always felt fine, for the most part, I was me with them I was a guy, so I tried to be a guy Worked for awhile, sort of As I grew older, the direction my body was going in felt wrong, I started to hate my body more and more, started around age 13 Ok, so if you want to talk more or ask more questions, reply here or write on my wall ^.^ key thing to keep in mind, all transgender deal with it differently some hate their bodies, others don't some like stereotypical likes and others dont some like to flaunt it others are more conservative some are gay or straight, or bi etc before, then after can be any can want to rid themselves of parts or not its hard to write about it due to the variety of peoples experiences though one thing that all transgender have in common, ... we all have GID
I sure didn't notice I was any different at age 3. I like a lot of people didn't really get the feeling I was different until 12 or 13, around the start of puberty. Sure I would sneak watching Powerpuff Girls and Sailor Moon, but does that really imply you are trans? I believe they just use hormone blockers actually. See, I really don't understand the argument that it isn't a mental disorder. I feel like people just wanted to see this changed to act more accepting of transgender people, which is all fine and good, but I can't of actual logical reasons on how it isn't a disorder. Many individuals also identify as neither male or female though. Not trying to criticize, just trying to be helpful >.<
