Transgender question

People don't choose to be transgender.

 

Short answer, people don't "choose to go transgender", and by transitioning, they're being their true selves. They're changing their bodies to reflect the person they really are.

 

First of all, MerBear's right. Secondly, why did you choose to be bisexual? Why did I choose to be gay? The answer to that: we didn't. Why did I choose for my favourite colour to be orange? I didn't. Why did I choose to like vanilla and strawberry ice cream but not green tea or vanilla? I didn't.

Sometimes things and people just are the way they are.

Word.

And Maddy's right, too.

 

word. haven't heard that in forever.

 

Also, just a reminder: I know this question is inflammatory. I know it could be upsetting for some of EC's trans members, and it's fine to be upset by it. Just in advance, though, don't reply to this with attacks.

 

Transsexuality/Gender dysphoria has long since been SCIENTIFICALLY and MEDICALLY proven to exist and to not be a choice. I think your first comment was a little hypoctrical considering you are bisexual and most likely wouldn't be happy if someone said 'why do people choose to be bisexual? i think they should just remain naturally heterosexual."

GENDER is a biological fact. It exists in the brain.
SEX is the body's physical represenation of gender. (your sexual anatomy, whether you have male organs or female organs) ie most men will have a male gender and have a male sex, penis, prostate etc.

Gender dysphoria is caused when the sex does not match the gender in the brain.
The brain is the first part of the human body to develop, which means gender develops in the brain long before physical sex. Certain factors may cause the brain to develop normaly in a male gender for example, but the baby will have the chromosomes of a female body and therefore they will be transgender. The brain is male, but the body is female. and vice versa for trans women, where the brain is female but the body is male.
People that have gender dysphoria will often feel complete disconnection from their physical body/sexual organs. This is because the human brain has a 'map' of the body, this develops while child is still a fetus. JUst like how your brain knows that you have hands and legs and you have the ability to move them, your brain also has a map of your body that pertains to your gender. So a baby with a male gender will have an internal brain map of a male body. SO for a trans man their breasts and female organs will seem unnatural and foreign, same goes for trans women. there have been numerous reports of trans women who as young children attempted to cut off their penis at the ages of around 6-10 due to their dysphoria and sensation of it feeling completely unnatural. this is because their brains are female and hence have a map of a female body in which a penis does not belong.

TRANSITIONING is a treatment for gender dysphoria so that victims of the condition can live healthy and happy lives and fix their bodies to match their brains.
Trans men may choose to have chest surgery to remove female breasts and create a male chest. they may also choose penis reconstruction, hysterectomy etc and hormon treatment to put them through male puberty.
likewise trans women may choose to have surgery to create a vagina, estrogen to allow them to grow breasts and other surgeries to make them feel comfortable in female bodies.

There is no way of changing one's innate gender because it is in the brain, just like sexuality is in the brain and there is no way to make a gay man straight or a straight man gay.
Sexuality and gender are also completely unrelated.
meaning trans men and women can be bisexual, gay, straight etc just like non-trans men and women.
When a transgender person chooses to transition, they are becoming their NATURAL selves.

A trans man is a man.
A trans woman is a woman.


I hope that this has 'spelt' it out for you as much as possible.
There are many online resources for learning about transsexuality and i suggest you should have read through them first to gain some basic understanding before making a post that could potentially cause someone to feel upset and judged. I understand you are just seeking knowledge on the matter but you should also be sensitive to the feelings of others.

 

Huzzah VikingBeard!

 

Just a note on terminology:
The opposite of "transgender" is "cisgender," - the state of full comfort with one's birth sex and all its implications.

"Transgender" and "transsexual" aren't exactly the same thing. Some people are transgendered, but not transsexual -- that is, they experience lasting discomfort (dysphoria) with their birth sex, but can't or won't do transition. (Some people found other more-or-less healthy ways to cope with dysphoria that work for them. Some people genuinely don't want to be either male or female, or believe they're in some sense both, some have medical problems that prevent them from having hormones and/or surgeries...)

They may still fully or partially cross-dress, wear things like breast binders (to hide breasts) or breast forms (to hide their lack of breasts) prefer not to be referred by gendered pronouns, or million other things most cisgendered people don't do.

Recently, "trans*" (with asterisk) gained popularity as an inclusive way to refer to all varieties of people who aren't cisgendered.

And, just in case: Yes, some trans* people are OK with the words used in porn to describe transwomen, and casually use the T-word or the S-word themselves... Don't do it. Because quite a few people would be really, really, REALLY offended when a cisguy does that for no good reason.

 

Yes. As vikingbeard so excellently explained, some people experience strong feelings that their inner and outer selves are mismatched. Body alterations are important for a lot of trans people, but they aren't what makes a person trans.

For example, mentally I feel like a guy. Have for as long as I can remember, so it's the way my brain naturally works. I have had no surgeries, and no hormones, but if I can I will jump at the opportunity. I'm still trans without altering my body, because my brain tells me I'm assembled wrong.

As for what does make a person trans, nobody really knows, just like how nobody really knows what makes a person gay, or bi. It's just in the genes I guess.

---------- Post added 24th Jul 2013 at 06:22 PM ----------

Also, yes, never use the t-word or the s-word. Personally, I'm comfortable saying the t-word in reference to myself, and if other trans people were to use it while talking to me I'd likely find it endearing if their tone suggested it was intended that way, but these words are generally inflammatory.

 

I don't believe people choose to "go transgender" just like people don't choose to be gay, lesbian, bisexual, and straight. That would be like asking a straight man why they dress like a man, he would probably say something along the lines of, "that's who I am." It's the same with a transgender person, that's who they are and that's who they want to be.

 

One thing that helped me figure it out is the analogy of amputees. You know how many amputees have phantom limbs? These are caused by having part of the brain designated to feeling your left arm, when in fact you don't have a left arm.

From what I understand, many transsexuals have a similar issue, except with gendered body characteristics.