1. This site uses cookies. By continuing to use this site, you are agreeing to our use of cookies. Learn More.

Causes of gender variance/physical symptoms

Discussion in 'Gender Identity and Expression' started by lymanclark, Nov 12, 2014.

  1. lymanclark

    lymanclark Guest

    Sorry, this is gonna be long and kinda jumbled...

    So this is kinda related to an earlier thread, "Physical Trans* Clues". Recently, I was thinking about myself - questioning myself: "am I REALLY trans*, since I was such a feminine kid? (Well, sort of, anyway...)"

    I talked to my mom, and she thinks I'm just a lesbian tomboy. Actually, she thinks I'm probably a confused STRAIGHT tomboy. According to her, I have to be a girl, since I was born with a perfectly healthy female body. "Not like the guy from Middlesex!"

    But... DO I? I was looking at myself in the mirror when it hit me: I've got a pretty MALE bone structure. My shoulders are the broadest part of me, my hip bones themselves are narrow, my back is broad and my breasts are really small. Ever since I hit puberty, I've had a tendency to grow a distinct mustache; there are quite a few long hairs on my chest around, ahem, certain parts of the breasts; I even have a slight but distinct happy trail. The women in my family, though, are all pretty dang hairless. I've also got a deep voice, thick brows and prominent ridges... So on and so forth.

    Another thing is my period. It's generally very light, though it started out heavy, and doesn't last too long. There also seems to be a 6-week stretch between them, not the customary 4-5 weeks. Oh, and JEEZ they're painful :help::help::help::help: My mom, on the other hand, had heavy/painless ones.

    So, well, the point of THAT crazy jumble is this: what if I do not, in fact, have a healthy female body? What if I'm not entirely physically female? OR (perhaps more logically) what if I have an 'excess' amount of testosterone, as compared to most FAAB people, and have been this way since puberty?

    Anyone else in a similar situation?
     
  2. DoriaN

    Full Member

    Joined:
    Jun 5, 2011
    Messages:
    1,106
    Likes Received:
    8
    Location:
    Canada
  3. MissMiri

    Regular Member

    Joined:
    Nov 6, 2014
    Messages:
    288
    Likes Received:
    0
    Location:
    Elkhart,Indiana
    Sexual Orientation:
    Bisexual
    yeah i have the arm thing too and i dont think thats normal for a girl so there maybe something wrong with me
     
  4. the awful tower

    Regular Member

    Joined:
    Nov 7, 2014
    Messages:
    21
    Likes Received:
    0
    Location:
    In the middle of nowhere, UK
    Sexual Orientation:
    Gay
    You're probably right, in some form or another. I'm pretty much like you, being five foot eight stretching on nine (not even done growing yet) and 7.5 in shoe size I'm well above the UK national average for a women, my shoulders are broad compared to my hips and no real fat has ever appeared on my hips, in fact, there is a clear line where my hips (all bone) give way to my thighs (which are quite meaty).
     
  5. DoriaN

    Full Member

    Joined:
    Jun 5, 2011
    Messages:
    1,106
    Likes Received:
    8
    Location:
    Canada
    People come in all shapes and sizes, don't throw the baby out with the bathwater.

    If a man has wide hips or a woman a strong jaw, it really means nothing.

    All it does is potentially make a transition smoother.
     
  6. MissMiri

    Regular Member

    Joined:
    Nov 6, 2014
    Messages:
    288
    Likes Received:
    0
    Location:
    Elkhart,Indiana
    Sexual Orientation:
    Bisexual
  7. DoriaN

    Full Member

    Joined:
    Jun 5, 2011
    Messages:
    1,106
    Likes Received:
    8
    Location:
    Canada
    In our excitement to validate ourselves we should be wary of hastily running into snares and pitfalls~

    It's easy to overthink and be like OH MY GOSHI WAS BORN WITH NO ADAM'S APPLE IT'S A SIIIIIIIIIIIIIGN.


    (Totally not making fun of myself btw)
     
  8. Ronin

    Regular Member

    Joined:
    Mar 8, 2013
    Messages:
    308
    Likes Received:
    0
    Location:
    Canada
    Gender:
    Male (trans*)
    Gender Pronoun:
    He
    Sexual Orientation:
    Questioning
    Out Status:
    Some people
    The way your body looks is absolutely zero indication of whether you are a man or a woman - in every sense. If it was, no one would be trans. There are fully and happily transitioned men who are short with narrow shoulders - doesn't make them any less of men. There are tall and broad-shouldered women who are happy with their transition - same applies, they are women. What matters to all of them the most is what they feel they really are. Your worries could be easily checked with blood tests for hormone levels and karyotyping. Might be good to know what's going on if things seem unusual. But it won't make you any less of a man or more of a man regardless of what things end up being if that's how you identify. :slight_smile:
     
    #8 Ronin, Nov 12, 2014
    Last edited: Nov 12, 2014
  9. lymanclark

    lymanclark Guest

    Yeah, I've got sharp hips. My thighs touch because my hips are so narrow (only the tops of my thighs are vaguely curvy - and even then, there are cisgender males with more curves than me). My upper half, above my waist, is a little short, and my back and shoulders are quite broad (I have a bony medium frame). My breasts… man, there are cisgender males with gynecomastia who have larger breasts than me. There are prepubescent ten-year-old girls with larger breasts than me. They haven't really grown at ALL ever since they first appeared, which I'm quite thankful for.

    At roughly 5'3", I'm pretty short - but I feel like that's more due to the fact that I'm a lactose intolerant vegetarian/skimpy eater than to my genetics. I think I was actually average/maybe a little tall as a kid. My feet are a US size 7.5, UK size 5.5 - I think that's slightly larger than average for an Indian FAAB person.

    Bottom line: the hair, the build, the voice… if they're all due to extra testosterone - well then, I've had extra T for SEVEN YEARS now - at least since I hit puberty. Actually, my mom once said that some of my behavior when I was a baby sent up a red flag for her; she thought I had an adrenal problem.

    So… what do you think might be causing this? I mean, I DO get periods, albeit really irregular and painful ones, so I doubt I have a sex chromosome abnormality* - but there HAS to be something causing my (presumably) constantly high levels of testosterone…



    *Although I DID read that roughly 25% of female-appearing hermaphrodites/intersex people CAN get periods… but I'm not sure whether I trust that source

    ---------- Post added 12th Nov 2014 at 06:23 PM ----------

    Oh yeah, I completely agree. I'm short myself :grin: I'm not sure I can get a blood test/karyotype - I live with my parents and they'd be like "wtf Lyman stop being a hypochondriac"…
     
  10. MissMiri

    Regular Member

    Joined:
    Nov 6, 2014
    Messages:
    288
    Likes Received:
    0
    Location:
    Elkhart,Indiana
    Sexual Orientation:
    Bisexual
    mew maybe you could be a little physically intersex idk
     
  11. lymanclark

    lymanclark Guest

    Yeah, I was wondering about that - but idk, the chances are SO low...
     
  12. MissMiri

    Regular Member

    Joined:
    Nov 6, 2014
    Messages:
    288
    Likes Received:
    0
    Location:
    Elkhart,Indiana
    Sexual Orientation:
    Bisexual
    but if you were that would be the cutest thing
     
  13. lymanclark

    lymanclark Guest

    LOL well I don't know about that - BUT it might be easier to transition, maaaaybe...

    I doubt it, though. It's such a rare condition, and I DO menstruate, albeit weirdly... Why would I have consistently high T levels, though?
     
  14. lymanclark

    lymanclark Guest

    (I'm reviving this: anyone? Sorry if it's annoying, I'm just really curious, but I can't see a doctor about it...)
     
  15. the awful tower

    Regular Member

    Joined:
    Nov 7, 2014
    Messages:
    21
    Likes Received:
    0
    Location:
    In the middle of nowhere, UK
    Sexual Orientation:
    Gay
    CAH, in it's mild form, could explain a lot of your symptoms/features, see here: Congenital Adrenal Hyperplasia | Health | Patient.co.uk, it is often characterised by girls developping masculine features and odd period patterns, and it affects (in it's mildest form, which doesn't always desplay symptoms) roughly 1 in a 1000 people, so while uncommon, it's not actually that rare.

    But, even if that's the case, it doesn't really "explain away" being transgender, it's never been tied in any way to women affected becoming transgender, and likely isn't a real "cause", and your body's masculinity is probably more likely to be a lucky genetic quirk, rather than a "cause". But, I've always thought that it could be possible that having a masculin body could affect girls on a psychological level, maybe not causing, but possibly contributing to them becoming transgender.

    If wanted a cause, as such, then you should probably look at the brain, it's been found that transgenders brains more closely resemble those of the gender they identify with, rather than the one they were assigned at birth, it's true, look it up on the internet, :slight_smile:
     
  16. lymanclark

    lymanclark Guest

    Thanks! I might see a gynecologist sometime soon... Guess I should bring this up.

    Yeah - the problem is, though, that I have Aspergers, so my brain's gonna be weird as hell anyway :grin: I FEEL that it's be more masculine, though
     
  17. jay777

    Regular Member

    Joined:
    Jul 16, 2014
    Messages:
    1,599
    Likes Received:
    0
    Gender:
    Female (trans*)
    Sexual Orientation:
    Lesbian
    I have seen women that really look like a man without hrt.
    And they behave like that and like it that way.

    Transgender is a spectrum... its up to each one...


    generally, if in any doubt consult a doctor...


    Periods
    I'd prefer organic vitamins...


    (*hug*)
     
    #17 jay777, Nov 13, 2014
    Last edited: Nov 13, 2014
  18. MissMiri

    Regular Member

    Joined:
    Nov 6, 2014
    Messages:
    288
    Likes Received:
    0
    Location:
    Elkhart,Indiana
    Sexual Orientation:
    Bisexual
    i agree also i hope u dont feel bad at the gynies and i hope they dont run any weird tests on your female plumbing. or shove a knife in said female plumbing to do a papsmear
     
  19. Ruthven

    Regular Member

    Joined:
    Oct 9, 2012
    Messages:
    1,426
    Likes Received:
    0
    eh you'd think maybe you'd have higher T or lower E or sumthin, but that might not be the case

    before startin T my E levels were basically in the average range, and my T was low too, and well my face and body structure definitely leans more masculine/male---like i got some decent shoulders, and my hips i really don't think are wide, maybe a little, but anyway--small chest etc. oh yeah and got some decent facial hair on the jaw area--like y'know the sideburn area runnin from there down

    so yeah, it just comes down to genetics and stuff really. it doesn;t necessarily mean you have higher T or intersex sumthin or other

    i mean, if an indicator of bein a trans male was cuz of how masculine your body is-- i mean that just doesn;t make any sense cuz there are trans males who have bigger chests and hips and narrower shoulders and so on

    your body leanin more masculine doesn't play a part in whether you're trans

    and this i just wanted to say that gender roles and stuff have nuthin to do with your gender.

    we gotta stop conflating gender with gender roles cuz it's just harmful and stupid in general and it also confuses people into thinkin they're trans when they're not (i'm just speakin indirectly here not at you)

    yeeah they don't "shove a knife" in there. apparently they use a tool called a speculum
     
  20. MissMiri

    Regular Member

    Joined:
    Nov 6, 2014
    Messages:
    288
    Likes Received:
    0
    Location:
    Elkhart,Indiana
    Sexual Orientation:
    Bisexual
    my father lied to me then i will never forgive him for stiring such fears inside me