How can I identify a transsexual person?

Many transsexuals feel that the sex assigned to them at birth does not accurately reflect who they are. According to medical science, transsexuals have a "gender identity disorder," with the word "disorder" implying that something is wrong with them. Some transsexuals prefer the term "gender dysphoria" because they feel that they were born in a body that doesn't match who they are inside. Others feel that both of these terms are stigmatizing. Many transsexuals take hormones; undergo sex reassignment (plastic reconstructive) surgery, breast reduction, or a mastectomy; and go through intensive retraining on how to walk and talk and present themselves as the gender that they feel inside. Medical science has developed the ways of creating a vagina out of male genitals (called vaginoplasty) and creating a penis and scrotum out of female genitals and skin grafts (called phalloplasty). Surgery and hormones may help some transsexual women and men achieve a better fit between their bodies and identities, but these medical interventions also carry significant health risks and may impair sexual functioning.

Find out more about this book: Our Bodies, Ourselves: A New Edition for a New Era

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