Transition in childhood

[k_alanis (imported)]

I do know that I was quite aware that my penis was missappropriated to me at a very young age, way pre-puberty, and that hasn't changed some 40 yrs. on. A doc like that and some modern attitude could have salvaged my life. Kids can know quite well what their true gender is, sexuality and orientation notwithstanding.

[twaddler (imported)]

"especially when it comes to color."

I know! Men's clothing generally lacks the vibrant colors I love. :O

[Danya (imported)]

k_alanis and I agree on the differences among gender, sex and sexuality. Beyond that, I sense a conflation in some posts of the meanings of gender (who you are at your very core, regardless of physical plumbing) and sex (restricted to gential identification). Some seem to be implicity equating the now often disparaged and narrowly defined term 'transsexual' (e.g., male to female persons) with the much more broad and inclusive current understanding of transgender identities.

I want to point out that gender is considered by enlightened clinics and researchers to be, at a minimum, a continuum and possibly even multidimensional. Yes, there are certainly men who like to wear some women's clothing and have no desire to change their sex.

Sex (i.e., genitals), however, is not the same thing as gender although in many or most people the two fairly closely coincide at least to the extent that the person is comfortable in his or her own skin. Most typically, for example, male sex fits in with a soul and spirit that is very comfortable presenting as a masculine gender.

What I read from official type sources, including information from the University of Minnesota Program in Human Sexuality (I see professioinals in the program there), shows a recognition of everything from straight male cross-dressing (with absolutely no desire to change sex, i.e., genitals) through male to female and female to male 'transsexuals' (those transgender folks who wish to openly express their true gender identity and match their genital sex to that) as forms of transgenderism. Then there are the transgenderists, who wish to present as the opposite gender and sometimes take advantage of cross-gender hormones but have no desire at all to change sex.

[k_alanis (imported)]

So well said Dayna. Yes, the trans-spectrum is broad and complicated. For this reason the task set before mental health professionals who have interest in dealing with gender issues is extremely difficult especially regarding children. I really wish something could have been done for me as a child, but I realize that is a tall order to fill even by todays standards. I just hope that children who are now in the situation I was when I was a child can be spared the disfiguring and utterly dispairing effects having there bodies flooded with the wrong hormone. The genital issues, I think, can be brought into line as adults.

[k_alanis (imported)]

Oops! Danya, so sorry I mistyped your name. Darn dislexia.

[joanne-f (imported)]

When I was growing up I knew I was a girl but I didn't have the courage to openly admit it to anyone or wear girls clothing (though I really wanted to). I use to constantly fantisize about being allowed to go to school in a girls uniform and when no one else was at home I would wear my sister's clothes. I don't know what would have happened if I had openly worn female clothing, considering I was living in a rural area at the time. I've recently seen a documentary about transgendered children and I admired their courage. In a way I was a little bit jealous that I couldn't have been more open about my gender when I was their age. I think if a teen boy wants to wear girls clothing and actually says they want to live as a girl, I don't think anything's going to change that. It's not something you do or say on a whim, especially considering that they are going in the opposite direction to what is considered socially acceptable by many people.