LGBTQ - Today, we're going to talk about the 'T', Transgender, so stay tuned.
So like I said, today we're going to talk about the 'T', in the LGBTQ
-It's an acronym that people use,
If you don't know what it is you can google it - there's tons of information
But, what I want to talk about today, is transgendered.
Now, I have many of you who have talked about having these feelings, having this experience yourself.
And I want to clarify some things for you.
So Transgendered actually means and diagnostically speaking with the DSM 5
is called Gender Dysphoria, its not called Transgender,
Transgender is not a mental disorder or a disease, it doesn't have a diagnosis.
Now Gender Dysphoria Disorder is pretty much what it sounds like;
You're Dysphoric - you're sad or upset about your gender.
Now the way to discribe it is, that for at least six months,
you feel that the person you were born,
(so I was born a girl), is incongruent with how I feel about myself,
(I feel, like I'm a boy), so what you actually are physically, genetically speaking,
and how you feel are different.
And so obviously, we're going to have that internal 'Ahh! It's uncomfortable, I don't like it'
And it can happen in adults, it can happen in children.
Often times in children we see it where
they will have no interest in playing with the stereotypically girl or boy toys,
and they want to play with the things that the opposite sex would play with.
And children would even say things like
like little girls will sometimes want to pee standing up like dad,
and they'll say 'Oh, I'm going to get a penis later on, when I'm older'
Because they feel like they are supposed to be a boy, and they should be a boy.
Or guys feeling like they should be girls.
And there is an amazing book, um, it's called 'As Nature Made Him',
and it's about a story, if any of you want to look it up and read it, it's a wonderful story,
it's sad and dark, but it's a story about this.
And the story is just about this guy, he was born as a boy,
had a botched circumcision and his parents decided to make him a girl.
And it kind of shows us that you just can't do that, like he always knew that he was supposed to be a boy.
So lets say this is something that we have been dealing with,
and this is something that has made us really uncomfortable for a long time.
Then what do we do?
Now, there are a couple of things that we can do,
The first thing being, and most necessary, is seeing a therapist.
It can feel so good to finally express this, to finally talk to someone about it.
If you live in a city centre,
there are some great LGBTQ communities, and Therapists, and Psychiatrists,
and Doctors, and Churches, and whatever you are interested in,
they have their whole community that's there to support you, help you understand what's going on,
and to better get you where you want to be.
And so I would encourage you to seek out a therapist who works in that community,
and has a greater understanding of that.
The second thing being, there are gender reassignment surgeries.
That's not to say that you necessarily have to have that,
but for some people, that's what gives them the most Dysphoria.
In the DSM it talks about people feeling the worst,
when those kinds of options are not readily available.
So, I would definitely look into that, because it's something that could really help out. You know?
And like everything, the more we talk about it,
the more we talk about it with friends and we get a support system, there are groups,
the more we get involved in, then the less power these 'secrets' hold over us.
Wouldn't you agree?
And also, to debunk the confusion
A Transvestite, is not a Transgender,
And Transvestite, or Transvestism which it is called in the DSM,
is something totally different.
Which is someone who, gets sexual arousal out of dressing like the opposite sex.
So that is like a whole other thing, it has nothing to do with Gender Dysphoria Disorder.
So I hope that kind of clears things up
and gives you a guided path to help you figure out who you are and what's best for you.
Guess what, we have our own community of people ready to support and help share their insights.
So obviously leave your comments below if you have any experience with this
You can follow me on twitter, you can follow me on tumbler,
I post my own photos about my life, hello, on instagram, it's 'KatiMorton1', you've got to add a little '1' at the end.
I also have google plus, and you want to make sure you add that, so that if you actually leave comments,
then I can comment back and I can reply.
And all that stuff that's wonderful about the community, can happen.
And don't forget katimorton.com
because there are chat rooms, and you can friend one another, and message one another,
and you can get the support that maybe you have been looking for and you didn't know it even existed.
Subtitles by the Amara.org community