What you need to know about Gender Dysphoria!

One of the most pressing issues that members from the Trans community face nowadays, is the stigma and fear that they have towards self-acceptance. The feeling that transgender people start to have, and what makes them sense that there is something going wrong with their bodies, is called gender dysphoria.

Gender dysphoria (GD) is the distress a person experiences as a result of the sex and gender they were assigned at birth. People who feel gender dysphoria state that they feel uncomfortable with their bodies. This feelings are usually recognized during puberty. Another problem that comes along with it is the acceptance of gender roles that society pushes them into.

These individuals can face other problems in their daily lives due to their inner conflict, between the perception that society has on them and their inner self. These conflicts infleunce the behaviour of these individuals. Some of the trans members, who state that they sense gender dysphoria, start to cross-dress, some others go further by starting the hormonal therapy and gender transitioning.

For many years gender dysphoria was listed as a mental disorder, but the awareness and different studies conducted on that, pushed the World Health Organization (WHO) to depathologize the gender dysphoria. Instead, WHO included it in the list of Gender Identity disorders. Eventhough it is not considered a mental disorder anymore, gender disphoria can severely affect the health. It can cause symptoms like: anxiety, depression and other mental health-related problems to the behavioral development of these persons.

Studies show that approximately 71% of people affected with gender dysphoria suffer from mental illnesses. These individuals should be provided with psychological consultation from health professionals. These professionals should follow closely these cases, starting from the psychological consultation to the hormonal therapy/ Sex Reassignment Surgery, providing these individuals with accurate information. These specialists are necessary for the well-being of people who feel gender dysphoria and with the support of society and legal mechanisms, transgender people can easily “fit” in with the gender identity that they identify with.

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