[intro music]
Chase: Hello, everybody, it is me - Chasey Poo! Today
I am
going to be talking to you about how being trans is not a mental illness. And a lot of people have been asking where I
get my shirts from, so this one - I'll put the link in the description below. It says "All genders are valid".
Alright, huntys. Let's get into this! So, first of all - this might cause a fight online between me and some other youtubers. Who knows!
Because I know that there are some people out there who are trans and who believe that being trans is a
mental illness. Okay. I'm not saying medical condition, here,
I'm saying a mental illness and I kind of wanna
bring it out into the open - my way of like how I feel about this topic and how I think and you know,
my view on things because I want people to get my side of the story as well and kind of understand where I'm from because
maybe it's different for everyone. And you know what - if you believe it's a mental illness that's on you. That's cool.
You do you. I really - that's your life, man. I don't care.
You know, that's you. But for me, personally, it is not a mental illness.
Now, if you're gonna ask me if being trans is a medical condition, well, here's the thing,
okay: In order for things to be covered by insurance and stuff like that, you need to have a diagnosis of gender dysphoria and
that is a medical condition,
alright. And there are people who are very medicalised in the trans aspect and identify more as transsexual and
go on hormones and have surgery and go stealth or just, you know,
identify as transsexual and just kind of don't really like put themselves out there as trans. Like, they just have a medical condition.
They - that happens to be trans like they happen to be trying - or like they don't even identify trans.
They just happen to have a medical condition and it's called gender dysphoria and the treatment for that was to transition. Now
for me, personally, I don't see that as a medical condition.
I did need medical intervention in order to help me be comfortable in transition. But,
for me personally, my trans identity is more
identity-based, I guess, is... is how I could explain it.
I - I do have a diagnosis for gender dysph - actually gender identity disorder because I'm old
umm.. and I transitioned a long time ago, but it
It makes me feel good that there are, you know, two three different schools of thoughts and we could kind of openly discuss them. So,
trans not being a mental illness is
controversial. Why? So I think that there are people out there who want it to be a mental illness, ah, because that way
it's it's more of a
valid thing maybe for some people where they see that it's in the DSM, and they get diagnosed, and there is treatment.
So there's like you have depression? Treat it with antidepressants, you know?
So it's like it's a valid thing and it's real it's concrete here scientifical evi - scientifical? Hm -
Scientific evidence. Sorry. Umm...
so that, I could understand that point of view. But... to say that it is a mental illness I feel is extremely
stigmatizing to a lot of people in the community who don't see it as a mental illness at all. Look
I have a lot of mental illnesses. I was recently diagnosed with PTSD, OCD,
ah, generalized anxiety disorder and
BPD traits, okay.
And I've known I've had those things for years and I just now got a diagnosis and if you want more about that,
there's more videos on my channel about my diagnosis and stuff like that
if you really want to know more.
But, ah, the point is that I have these clinical kind of
diagnoses to help me and and having those diagnoses have helped me because now I have therapy.
I have access to different types of therapy that I wouldn't have had without this diagnosis.
So for me,
I completely understand that but,
the thing is that all of these issues and mental illnesses that I have are very - they're mental, and it-it's all like
there is something wrong with my brain and I need to fix it.
That's what it feels like,
and now my point of view on being trans is that there's nothing wrong with my brain and I don't want to fix it, because for
me I like being trans and I can understand people absolutely go lose their mind when I say that. And I don't represent the whole
trans community. I'm representing myself, Chase Ross. I love my trans identity. I love my trans body. I love my trans self.
I love my trans friends. I love my trans life. I have been growing up in this trans
bubble for the last ten years and I have learned to embrace myself and love who I am
and to see the thing that I love the most be seen as a mental illness?
The thing that I love the most - it's not the thing that I love the most about me,
but it's a very big aspect of my life that I love to embrace and I like to do that,
I embrace my trans identity and
it makes me feel good to talk about it and to be open and to educate people who you know are super confused and don't
know what's going on? So for me,
I see it as like an educational thing and as a,
as an identity thing and something that I've learned to love and learn to embrace in myself.
So I don't like that being categorized as a mental illness because it makes it seem like you want to fix me.
And there is nothing that needs to be fixed in me. I-I'm fine the way that I am trans-related
Okay, obviously, I need to get - I need to deal with OCD and PTSD because those things are really not fun.
But...
in terms of my trans identity,
there's nothing that needs to be fixed. And I can understand some people can lose their mind because they're like
"But you say you have dysphoria,
but now you like being trans and you like your body and you don't want to be fixed. That doesn't make any sense."
You know what?
That's that's how you think and that's fine.
Okay, the way that I think is different and you know
we're allowed to coexist in this world together to have different thoughts.
Especially if we're both trans, who cares?
Umm... for me,
it - it's really it's it's
I'm allowed to have dysphoria. And I do have dysphoria about my hips, about bottom stuff, that I want bottom surgery.
But, I still don't see it as a mental illness.
I see it as there's a
disconnect between the way that I see myself, and the way that I am, and the way that my body is,
and as the years go by the dysphoria has changed from top to bottom to hips to top again to bottom to -
needing top surgery to not needing top surgery to needing top surgery. Going on T, going off T.
Like, I've just kind of gone where my body has told me to go and I've really listened to myself and my brain and
what I need... and
to call that a mental illness makes me feel
bad - and I know that's like that's not a good excuse for this whole video like "and you make me feel bad
so don't do it", but I just don't like that association because
I have never felt more sane?... I guess.
Um...
Then when I found out I was trans and learned to embrace my identity. And to me that was a super important kind of
realization that I can be trans and I can love my body and I don't have to see it as something that is a disorder,
even though I'm diagnosed with gender identity disorder, back in the day.
Um...
It's something that you know, and I know you gonna be like "well
you're you're messing up with scientific fact that they call it gender dysphoria. It's in the DSM. It's a mental illness."
You know what cool, okay, they had gay in the - they had gay in the DSM
They did horrible therapy to make gays not gays, you know what I'm saying?
Just because it was doesn't mean it always has to be and it's right.
So for me,
not that I'm actively
trying to like
pursue and change the meaning of words...
No,
rhis is just how I live my life and I like to share it online and maybe someone else feels like me, cool.
If everyone else feels not like me that's cool too because I am living in this bubble where I'm happy, and that's all that really matters.
Anyways, what do you think about this topic? Let me know in the comments below and I will see you later!
Have a great day, bye! [click]