Gender - the condition of being male or female - is something that most of us take for granted about ourselves.  Transgendered people don’t have that luxury.  They are individuals who feel from an early age that they are in the wrong body, and have a strong desire to change their appearance and their body in order to become or appear as the opposite sex.

Historically, being transgendered or transsexual has always been classified as a mental disorder.  In the current version of the DSM (Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders) the diagnostic category is Gender Identity Disorder.  In the next version of DSM this is being changed to Gender Dysphoria, which essentially translates to discontent with one’s gender.  Nevertheless it is still considered by the DSM to be a disorder.

This is problematic for transgendered people.  It’s true that there is a much greater incidence of depression and personality problems in this group, but this is largely attributable to the stigma associated with poor acceptance from family and society.  Being labelled as disordered only makes this worse, reinforcing false negative stereotypes.

What transgendered people need is to be accepted as being different without being stigmatized as having a mental disorder.  They need recognition by health policy-makers of the seriousness of their plight, and the provision of equitable access to hormones and to surgical treatment, which should not be considered cosmetic or elective, but vital to their well-being.

If you believe you are transgendered and you are wondering what to do, I suggest making contact with a support group, and talking to your GP about getting a referral to a psychiatrist.  Psychiatric assessment is an important step before any treatment is able to be commenced, especially since some hormone effects are irreversible.

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