Hi everyone!
Today we are going to understand Gender
Dysphoria. (Gender dysphoria is a term that describes a sense of unease that a person may have because of a mismatch between
their biological sex and their gender identity. This sense of unease or dissatisfaction may be
so intense it can lead to depression and anxiety and have a harmful impact on
daily life).
A person named “Bobby”.
Bobby is biologically defined as a
male, which is a gender that has been assigned to him. But, growing up, Bobby
realizes that he does not feel comfortable being recognized as a male in
society. Also, he doesn’t feel comfortable with his body and the gender roles
which are assigned to him. After consulting with a psychiatrist, he recognized
that he is living with a condition called Gender Dysphoria.
Let’s learn more about this
condition. Gender dysphoria involves a conflict between people's physical or
assigned gender and the gender with which they identify. Let’s first clarify
what the terms gender, assigned gender, and gender dysphoria are.
Ø Gender denotes the public and usually legally recognized lived
role. Biological factors combined with social and psychological factors
contribute to gender development. Assigned gender refers to a person’s
initial assignment as male or female at birth.
Ø It is based on anatomy and other
visible physical sex characteristics.
Ø Gender dysphoria is a term that refers to an individual’s discontentment
with their assigned gender.
People with gender dysphoria may be
very uncomfortable with the gender they were assigned, sometimes described as
being uncomfortable with their body or with the expected roles of their
assigned gender. This gender conflict affects people in different ways. It can
change the way a person wants to express their gender through behavior, choice of
dress, and self-image. Some people may cross-dress, some may want to socially
transition, while others may want to medically transition with sex-change surgery
and/or hormone treatment. If a psychiatrist determines that the patient has at
least 2 of the following characteristics for at least six months, they can
diagnose the patient with gender dysphoria:
1. A marked incongruence between
one’s experienced/expressed gender and primary and/or secondary sex
characteristics
2. A strong desire to be rid of
one’s primary and/or secondary sex characteristics.
3. A strong desire for the primary
and/or secondary sex characteristics of the other gender
4. A strong desire to be of the
other gender
5. A strong desire to be treated as
the other gender
6. A strong conviction that one has
the typical feelings and reactions of the other gender
Treatment options for gender dysphoria include counseling, cross-sex
hormones, puberty suppression, and gender reassignment surgery. For many
children, the feelings do not continue into adolescence and adulthood. While
some children express feelings and behaviors relating to gender dysphoria at 4
years old or younger, many may not express feelings and behaviors until puberty
or much later. But, in general, a child’s treatment typically involves a
multidisciplinary team of health care professionals, which may include a
pediatrician, a psychiatrist, a pediatric endocrinologist who specializes in
hormone conditions in children, and an advocate.
Treatment may focus primarily on affirming psychological support, understanding feelings and coping with distress, and giving children a safe space to articulate their feelings. It is important to note that Gender dysphoria is not the same as gender nonconformity.
Gender nonconformity is not in
itself a mental disorder. The critical element of gender dysphoria is the presence of
clinically significant distress associated with the condition. The Sexual and
Gender Identity Disorders Work Group was concerned that removing gender dysphoria
as a psychiatric diagnosis from the DSM5 would jeopardize access to care.
Replacing the condition’s former
name of gender “disorder” with “dysphoria” in the diagnostic label is more
appropriate with clinical sexology terminology and it also removes the
connotation that someone is “disordered.” Ultimately, the changes regarding
gender dysphoria in the DSM-5 respect the individuals identified by offering a
diagnostic name that is more appropriate to the symptoms and behaviors they experience
without jeopardizing their access to effective treatment options.
With all these support groups and
the available treatment options present, Bobby can finally feel content about
his emotions and thought processes and live life how he deserves.
Helping current and future
clinicians focus to learn to retain and thrive
Thank You