I live in the wrong body: everything there is to know about gender dysphoria
To understand gender dysphoria, we need to make some clarifications upstream and try to understand the various facets of our sexuality. Let's start with some basic concepts and their meanings:
- Biological sex: biological belonging to the male or female sex.
- Gender identity: primary identification, which occurs from the first years of life, in relation to the categories of masculine and feminine. When we talk about gender identity, we are referring to a choice.
- Sexual orientation: It can be heterosexual, homosexual or bisexual and describes the erotic and affective drive towards someone.
- Transgender: person who goes beyond the definitions, expectations and roles attributed to their gender or biological sex.
- Transsexual: a person who feels that he belongs to the opposite sex in a constant and lasting way, which is why he begins a transition process that generally ends with a surgical reassignment.
Gender dysphoria concerns these areas and traces a complex identity profile that emerges in a completely spontaneous way from the first years of life. As it happened in this very particular family:
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What is gender dysphoria?
Gender dysphoria is the condition in which a person has a strong, persistent, flare-up feeling of belonging to the opposite biological sex to the one he / she possesses. Put simply, a dysphoric feels that he is living in the wrong body, since in all respects he feels that he belongs to that of the opposite sex. We are talking about a person in whom, practically, biological sex and gender identity are not in harmony. This situation has little to do with sexual orientation. Be careful, in fact, not to make confusion: the condition of gender dysphoria does not have to do directly with sexual attraction towards the same sex, but more with the modality in which one places oneself with respect to gender and biological identity. transsexual (be it MtF - from male to female - or FtM - from female to male) is that person who has accepted and understood this dimension of his and who begins a path to regain his serenity. dysphoric people: their "disharmonious" condition implies a great psychological suffering, also due to reasons of difficult family and social acceptance, which often leads to depression, isolation and, in very serious cases, suicide.
Gender dysphoria: causes and when it occurs
The causes of gender dysphoria have to do with the complexity of the elements that make up this condition. Over time, studies have changed their approach by attributing this condition to both biological and psychological causes, in conjunction with the concept of gender identity.
Gender dysphoria can manifest itself from the first years of life, or when one's gender identity begins to form and express itself. In fact, already between the ages of 3 and 4, some children manifest their perception of gender in a completely natural and spontaneous way, often also through play. A disharmony between biological and gender identity manifested in the first years of life is not necessarily associated with dysphoria, which in order to be such must present itself consistently up to a "more adult age.
Symptoms of gender dysphoria in children and adolescents
The symptoms of gender dysphoria can manifest themselves from the first years of life, but then persist over time.
In children it can manifest itself like this:
- tendency to identify as belonging to the other sex
- tendency to call oneself and be called by a name of the other sex
- constant attempt to pass himself off as belonging to the other sex
- tendency to prefer clothes, games and toys generally attributed to the other sex
- tendency to socialize more with people of the other sex
- rejection of the norms attributable to one's own sex, type of the way to urinate
- problems of social interactions.
In adolescents, on the other hand, we have these symptoms:
- very strong desire to be of the other sex
- tendency to feel the same impulses as the other sex
- total rejection of their genital organs and management methods
- rejection of other parts of the body that identify biological sex (such as breasts or hair)
- tendency to dress and behave like the other sex
- difficulty in social interaction
- depression, isolation, self-distress.
The "cure" of gender dysphoria
Gender dysphoria is not a disease, on the contrary, the first definition of this condition, or gender identity disorder (DIG), has been modified precisely in order not to stigmatize a situation by attributing it to a state of disease. that those who are dysphoric find themselves in a situation that, like it or not, must be changed: both to reunite with themselves and their true nature, and to prevent the psychological discomfort that derives from this condition from turning into depression, fear and isolation Gender dysphoria must be followed under many aspects, from the psychological to the hormonal one and, finally, if the transaction is to be terminated definitively, also from the surgical one.
The support of relatives and friends
A dysphoric child, just like an adolescent, who spontaneously and naturally manifests his condition of disharmony between biological sex and gender identity, must be welcomed and listened to. We should learn to understand that we have many mental, social and cultural patterns that do more harm than many personal conditions. The adolescent who lives this condition can also go through periods of great difficulty, including depression, isolation, self-harm and, in some cases, suicidal tendencies. But love for children, as well as for siblings or friends, must teach us that, regardless of our sexual identity, we are all human beings with the right to be what we really feel.
