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Curated and updated for the community by APA
Gender dysphoria involves a conflict between a person's physical or assigned gender and the gender with which he/she/they identify. People with gender dysphoria may be very uncomfortable with the gender they were assigned, sometimes described as being uncomfortable with their body (particularly developments during puberty) or being uncomfortable with the expected roles of their assigned gender.
See definition, symptoms, & treatment
When people share their stories of coping with mental illness or substance use disorder, it can provide inspiration and hope and be a welcome reminder that you are not alone in your challenges.
Most of us have probably heard, or made the suggestion to someone, to “relax, take a deep breath” as a way to help calm down and reduce stress or anxiety. Breathing techniques have long been used as part of traditional stress reduction practices and their use is supported by much research. Practices involving consciously controlling and focusing on your breathing can be powerful tools for relaxation, stress reduction and mental health.
May is Mental Health Month, and the third week in May is National Prevention Week, an annual health observance focused on raising awareness about the importance of substance use prevention and positive mental health. You can join online to view the live kickoff event for National Prevention Week on May 15, at 11:00 a.m. EDT.
Gender Spectrum
PFLAG (the extended family of the LGBTQ community)
What is the difference between transgender and transsexual?
Transgender is a non-medical term that has been used increasingly since the 1990s as an umbrella term describing individuals whose gender identity (inner sense of gender) or gender expression (outward performance of gender) differs from the sex or gender to which they were assigned at birth. Some people who use this term do not consider themselves as matching a binary gender category. In addition, new terms such as genderqueer, bigendered, and agendered are increasingly in use.
Transsexual is a historic, medical term that refers to individuals who have undergone some form of medical and/or surgical treatment for gender reassignment (historically referred to as sex reassignment). Some transsexual individuals may identify as transgender, although others primarily identify as the male or female gender to which they have transitioned.
People who identify as transgender but who do not seek medical or surgical treatment are not transsexual.
Is there a general age that people realize they are transgender or experience gender dysphoria? Can it happen late in life?
Not all transgender people suffer from gender dysphoria and that distinction is important to keep in mind. Gender dysphoria and/or coming out as transgender can occur at any age.
The DSM-5 distinguishes between Gender Dysphoria in Childhood for those who experience GD before puberty. The diagnosis of Gender Dysphoria in Adolescents and Adults can occur at any age. For those who experience gender dysphoria later in life, they often report having secretly hidden their gender dysphoric feelings from others when they were younger.
About the Experts:
Jack Drescher, M.D. Clinical Professor of Psychiatry, New York Medical College Adjunct Professor, New York University
Jack Pula, M.D. Psychiatrist in private practice in New York City
My fourth child is a transgender boy, and I love him. At 2 he climbed up on the kitchen counter when his dad and I were doing the dishes.
He refused to toilet train until we bought him boxers. Desperate for him to toilet train so he could start preschool at 3, we did. We were dismayed to see him freeze when he was asked to use pink scissors or line up with the girls in PE, and mortified to overhear other parents ask each other, “What kind of parents would name a boy Samantha?”. More
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MAY 19, 2017
A federal judge in Allentown, Pennsylvania, has refused to dismiss a lawsuit filed by a transgender woman who claims discrimination by her former employer, Cabela’s Retail Inc., under the Americans with Disabilities Act. U.S. District Judge Joseph Leeson ruled that the ADA protects people with gender dysphoria from discrimination, even though the law specifically excludes gender identity disorder from its protections, report Reuters and the Washington Blade.
APRIL 26, 2017
If you're hearing the term "gender dysphoria" for the first time, or need a refresher on what that means, it's totally okay, because it's actually a relatively new term. Gender dysphoria is a clinical term used to describe the "conflict between a person's physical or assigned gender and the gender with which he/she/they identify," according to the American Psychiatric Association.
MAY 18, 2017
While Nevo's sense of gender dysphoria ultimately led to hormone treatment and breast removal, being conventionally masculine felt wrong. Amid the controversy over the government's Safe Schools program, stories like Nevo Zisin's are crucial in helping us all better understand what it means to be transgender. Finding Nevo traces the stages 20-year-old Nevo went through in coming to an understanding of what it meant to be the person in the mirror.
Resources for Families – PFLAG
ACLU Transgender Rights Campaign
Center for Black Equity
National Queer Asian Pacific Islander Alliance
Gay and Lesbian Advocates and Defenders
GLAAD (formerly Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation)
GLMA: Health Professionals Advancing LGBT Equality - Patient's Page
GLSEN: Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network
Human Rights Campaign
Lambda Legal
National Center for Transgender Equality
National LGBTQ Task Force
Southern Poverty Law Center
Trevor Project
Physician Review By:
Ranna Parekh, M.D., M.P.H. February 2016