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The term “transgender” refers to a person whose sex assigned at birth (i.e. the sex assigned by a physician at birth, usually based on external genitalia) does not match their gender identity (i.e., one’s psychological sense of their gender). Some people who are transgender will experience “gender dysphoria,” which refers to psychological distress that results from an incongruence between one’s sex assigned at birth and one’s gender identity. Though gender dysphoria often begins in childhood, some people may not experience it until after puberty or much later.
People who are transgender may pursue multiple domains of gender affirmation, including social affirmation (e.g., changing one’s name and pronouns), legal affirmation (e.g., changing gender markers on one’s government-issued documents), medical affirmation (e.g., pubertal suppression or gender-affirming hormones), and/or surgical affirmation (e.g., vaginoplasty, facial feminization surgery, breast augmentation, masculine chest reconstruction, etc.). Of note, not all people who are transgender will desire all domains of gender affirmation, as these are highly personal and individual decisions.
See more on symptoms, & treatment
Most people are familiar with the term LGBT—lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender. The acronym increasingly includes the letter Q, LGBTQ, referring to queer and/or questioning individuals. The terms queer and questioning are important because they encompass a larger number of individuals who identify as having same-sex attraction and behaviors.
People with serious mental illness exposed to direct-to-consumer advertising (DTCA) of medications are more likely to stop taking their medications than those not exposed to the advertising, according to new research published in Psychiatric Services in Advance.
Despite increasing public awareness and discussion about mental illness and substance use disorders, stigma is still a major barrier to many people seeking treatment. New research has identified communication strategies that are effective in reducing stigma and increasing public support for policies and programs benefitting people with behavioral health conditions.
Occurs on the last Wednesday of each month from 5:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. (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. ome people who use this term do not consider themselves as matching a binary gender category of either strictly male or female. In addition, new terms such as gender non-conforming, 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 affirmation or confirmation (historically referred to as sex reassignment). Some transsexual individuals may identify as transgender, although many 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 Gender Dysphoria 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. ... More
About the Experts:
Jack Drescher, M.D.Clinical Professor of Psychiatry, Columbia UniversityAdjunct Professor, New York UniversityTraining & Supervising Analyst, W.A. White Institute
Jack Pula, M.D. Psychiatrist in private practice in New York City
Eric J. Yarbrough, 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?”.
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SEPT 29, 2020
Early care leads to better mental health for transgender youths, study findsNBC News
Transgender children who receive gender-affirming medical care earlier in their lives are less likely to experience mental health issues like depression and anxiety, according to a new study published in the journal Pediatrics.
SETP 28, 2020What Even is Nonbinary?
The Good Men Project
The definitive guide of questions cisgendered and trans people have about nonbinary people. Like with many trans people, I had to become an expert in my identity once again. It became exhausting. I started to compile a list of all the questions people asked me, and I wrote my answers down. This article is that list.
SEPT 25, 2020
Little Girl review: Film offers the nuance often lost when considering gender dysphoria and transgender experienceINews UK
Sébastien Lifshitz’s documentary provides an intimate examination that should inspire compassion in even the most narrow-minded viewer. Cutting through the polarizing headlines and social media debates, the film sensitively focuses in on the trans experience through one child’s struggle to be accepted as a girl in her home of north-eastern France..
Physician Reviewed
Jack Turban, M.D., M.H.S.November 2020