What is Transgender? Many people have spoken about having a tough time accepting a person since the way they sexually identify themselves is different. Being identified as transgender has become a highly controversial topic around the world and part of the population does not quite understand why the people that identify themselves as transgender choose to do so. Some people do not believe in what it means to be transgender and let their opinions on the topic change the real meaning of the term. The Merriam-Webster dictionary explains the term Transgender as “relating to, or being a person whose gender identity is opposite the sex the person had or was identified as having at birth”. This is basically just stating that a person that …show more content…
When they reach an age where they are considered to be able to assemble reasonable decisions they can start the process of transitioning, which is the process they use to match how they feel to their appearance. It can start by changing their hair, clothing and name to using hormones and surgery. Every person’s way of changing is different, not all transgender people have the same process. Some choose not to change anything in their appearance but still ask to be spoken to as if they were the opposite sex and others change everything about themselves to the point where it isn’t even noticeable that they were once a different sex. The part that confuses the majority of the people that are not transgender or don’t quite understand what it is, is when they speak to someone they thought was a certain sex and are asked to refer to them as the opposite sex. For example, meeting someone that appears to be a man and asked to refer to him as she/her. This can be especially confusing if a family member is going through a transition. Family members tend to be the most affected by a transgender in the family, they do not know how to react or how to help because they are most likely the only transgender in the family. Being transgender is not a choice, it is a feeling and almost all people that are transgender are unlikely to be able to feel happiness or find peace in life if they are not who they feel they truly are meant to be. A few people don’t quite understand the
What does it mean to be transgender? transgender people see themselves as a male or a female, despite being born the opposite sex. While making that transition some individuals take hormone therapy and have surgery to help feel like the gender they want to be but not all take hormones or have a surgery. In 2012 the HRC Foundation had done a survey of the LGBTQ youth and about 10 percent of the respondents had identified themselves as transgender or as another gender (Understanding the Transgender Community).
There are a few different types of transgender people, but the main two are female-to-male (FtM) and male-to-female (MtF). For FtM transgender people, typical treatment includes hormone replacement treatment, breast removal surgery, and some trans men also opt for surgery that gives them a phallus. For MtF transgender people, typical treatment includes hormone replacement treatment, breast augmentation, facial reconstruction surgery to look more feminine, and some trans women opt for a surgery that changes their genitals so they will have a vulva. All of these procedures are cosmetic and some of them are even used for cis-gender (person whose gender matches the sex they were assigned at birth) people. “Cosmetic surgery is a unique discipline of
Not all transgendered individuals desire a sex change. However, if a client wanted a sex change, a psychologist must verify if the change will have a positive effect on the patient’s psychological well-being. In an interview I had with a trans-gendered companion, she stated that she would not go for a sex change until the time was right. Her reason was that if she was to have the sex change now, she would endanger her friendships with many people. While this reasoning didn’t come from a psychologist, the resultant sex change must be beneficial to the client or else the operation is useless and will cause more detriment to the individual’s psyche. After medical treatment, hormone therapy is used to get rid of secondary sexual characteristics. In addition to hormone replacement therapy, clients may get surgery for breasts, genitals or other sexual characteristics; clients can also just use hormone therapy alone so that they can alter their bodies to appear more like their self-identified gender.
Some people are unaware of the process for transgenders to become a different sex. Normally first they first meet with a mental health doctor and make a diagnosis, then create a plan. usually meeting with these therapists they will receive documentation to start hormone therapy with a doctor. After sometime on the hormones, they have surgery. Normally a male to female transition is cheaper, easier, and more of an efficient surgery. After this
To understand this problem better, one must first know what identifying as Transgender signifies. Being Transgender is when one does not identify with their biological sex, it is a feeling you can get as early as two or three years of age (“Gender and Gender Identity at a Glance”). Being
From the time they are brought into this world their parents as well as themselves must struggle to find their sexual identity. Now on there other hand transgender people are born with either male sexual organs or female sexual organs. They feel as if they are one stuck in the other one 's body, but nonetheless it is a psychological desire within the person 's conscious which seeks to become the other gender. It 's perfectly fine to push for what you believe in but it 's a totally different ball game trying to get everyone else to believe to.
Transgender can be defined as a person whose self-identity does not conform precisely to conventional notions of the male or female gender. This self-identity problem can usually be accompanied by numerous forms of treatment to change ones’ physical appearance, and make it more consistent with their identified gender identity. In many cases, the individual can identify with the gender of the opposite sex to the point one believes that he or she is a member of that gender group trapped in the wrong body. This is also called Gender Dysphoria or formerly known as Gender Identity Disorder. The person with gender dysphoria or GD at times does not know that he or she have an actual disorder but more of a general discomfort with his or her biological sex. This also creates complications in their everyday life, when they are unable to interpret their feelings or rationalize problems they experience in a social setting (Gender Dysphoria, 2014).
However, the opposition largely classifies gender dysphoria as a disorder that needs to be cured, like any other severe delusion. They view transitioning as the irrational mutilation of a mentally ill person, and as such, they reject trans people’s identities. Each side calls for extremity though with absolute acceptance or absolute rejection of the identities and paths that trans people choose. I, however, believe that a middle course between the two extremes would be the best road taken when it comes to treating gender
In America today, change is occurring all the time. It seems so simple just to make a change in the world or within ourselves, but in reality, the people of our society are terrified of the idea of change. Change can come in many ways, such as in technology, education, the workforce, etc., but a big change that seems to be an issue in the world today is the idea of change in gender, also known as transgender. Transgender can be defined as, “denoting or relating to a person whose sense of personal identity and gender does not correspond with their birth sex” (Merriam-Webster). People struggle to wrap their head around those who are transgender because it is not what they were taught growing up. Even though being transgender is becoming more and more familiar today, the concept of changing gender is difficult for people to obtain and is negatively impacting society and the workforce today.
Transgender people have certainly pioneered through the journey of acceptance and individuality. For many, this transition can take a toll on them and the people around them. Mentally, this can
When people identify themselves as transgender, they are told they suffer from “gender identity disorder.” Gender identity disorder is defined as “a condition in which a person has been assigned one gender, usually on the basis of their birth, but identifies as belonging to another gender, and feels significant discomfort or being unable to deal with this condition” (Thomas, 2010). One of the leading symptoms of gender identity disorder is gender
To start with, Fields explains what transgender really means. There are two terms which are sex and gender. When it comes to the definition of sex, it is determined by biology such as hormones and anatomy. On the other hands, as to a person’s gender, it is more like the inner feeling of being male or female. Therefore, transgender would claim that their gender and sex are in discord somehow. He also states some of the misperceptions in the light of the issue of transgender. Many assume that transgender are someone who might have different
ey feel. They would also prefer people to call them by the pronouns that feel right to them (e.g. he/him, or she/her). Some individuals may change their physical appearances by getting medical (hormone replacements) and surgical treatments to look like how they think of themselves. The coming out process is where they decide that it's time for them to reveal their true self which can be time-consuming and emotionally challenging. The fear being mistreated by asking offending personal questions may lead to significant distress. The stress or anxiety can lead to the mental breakdown for some who decide to end their lives when not accepted by society. It is very important for transgender people's mental health and well-being to be able to live
Today people are standing together and expressing themselves as who they believe they should be. Coming out as transgender can be hard for the family, the individual, and people around them because not everyone will be able to agree with their choices, whether it was against religion or personal opinion. When someone classifies themselves as LGBT they need a lot of support from friends, family, and society because it is something new to them also. Coming out as being transgender isn’t something someone goes through every week or month it is something that happens once in the individual's life. Accepting someone for who they are is one thing some have difficulties with but accepting someone who is transgender is even harder for some because
People unaware or uneducated about what goes on in someone’s head when deciding a sex change or why they need one don’t understand how difficult the process of it all is. It is literally life or death for someone thinking of changing their lives completely. It is something irreversible. Many think it is a choice, but how can being someone you are not and fixing that be a choice, it is more as a need, just like you and I breathe because we need it to live. Being transgender means having to live through all the bad every single day because they cannot meet their basic needs. The discrimination transgender people face mirrors that of LGB people but in many cases it is worse. Transgenders struggle with identity documents, restrooms and proper health care. Everything males, females, everyone do not have to go through on a day to day basis.