WHAT IS A TRANSGENDER PERSON?

To start, keep in mind I am not an authority figure on transgender people! I've just done an excessive amount of research on the subject. You can skip to the sources by clicking here.

A transgender person is, in the simplest terms, someone who does not fully identify with their birth gender. Often the term transgender is used for people who identify with the opposite gender, i.e. male to female or female to male transgender people, however transgender people can also identify as a whole host of other genders that fall outside of the gender binary. Some transgender people do not identify with any gender, or may identify with multiple labels. While a transgender person understands that they will always be their biological sex, they may undergo hormone therapy or surgery to better fit with the gender they identify with. Others may not undergo medical changes, and both are equally valid.

Gender dysphoria is the medically recognized term for people who experience a mismatch between their gender identity and their birth gender. Gender dysphoria has been studied for a long time, first appearing in the DSM-III in 1980 under the term "gender identity disorder". The most effective treatment for gender dysphoria is transition, whether it be social or medical. Transition and social acceptance has repeatedly been shown to significantly lower transgender suicidal ideation rates.

Transgender people are not the same as intersex people, though intersex people may also identify as transgender! Intersex people are people that are born with biological features that do not fit conventional male or female standards. This includes having different sex chromosomes, gonads, genitals, and hormones than what is considered the "standard". While I am not in a position of authority to speak on intersex people, here's an article that provides some more info!

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Some quick facts:

Transition is the safest and most effective treatment for gender dysphoria!

• 80% of transgender individuals reported significant improvement in gender dysphoria
• 78% reported significant improvement in psychological symptoms
• 80% reported significant improvement in quality of life
• 72% reported significant improvement in sexual function

[source: "https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/19473181/"]

"Based on the follow-up interview, more than 90% were stable or improved as regards work situation, partner relations, and sex life"

"86% were assessed by clinicians at follow-up as stable or improved in global functioning."

[source: "https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10508-009-9551-1"]

The transgender suicide rate does not increase post transition! Suicidal ideation rates drop from 67% pre-transition to 3% post transition.

"Being able to transition made my life worth living and gave me hope for the future. On balance I feel stronger in myself since transition. I also feel like I’ve let go of a big secret I was carrying around which takes some of the pressure off and makes me feel like I’m living life more genuinely"

[source: "https://psycnet.apa.org/record/2014-49363-001"]

The actual transgender suicide rate also does not exist, in spite of the false "40%" statistic that many people are fed.

Children are not being medically transitioned! Young adolescents are not able to access hormone therapy beyond puberty blockers, which have existed for a long time, been thoroughly studied, are reversible, and have no adverse effects. Allowing children to socially transition has also correlated to positive impacts on their mental health. Socially transitioned children show levels of depression and self-worth that does not differ from cisgender children.

"These findings are in striking contrast to previous work with gender-nonconforming children who had not socially transitioned, which found very high rates of depression and anxiety."

[sources: "https://www.jaacap.org/article/S0890-8567%2816%2931941-4/fulltext", "https://assets2.hrc.org/files/documents/SupportingCaringforTransChildren.pdf", "https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0306453020301402", "https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0306453015000943"]

Transphobia is real, and lowering rates of transphobia significantly improves the mental health of transgender people.

[sources: "https://www.totaljobs.com/advice/wp-content/uploads/Transgender-employee-experiences-survey-report-2016_Totaljobs.pdf", "https://bmcpublichealth.biomedcentral.com/counter/pdf/10.1186/s12889-015-1867-2.pdf", "https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5996383/"]

Being transgender is not anti-science. Gender dysphoria has been excessively studied, and simply looking at actual scientific papers can prove that to you.

Here are some organizations and institutions that support the existence of transgender people:

• American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry
• American Academy of Dermatology
• American Academy of Family Physicians
• American Academy of Nursing
• American Academy of Pediatrics
• American Academy of Pediatrics
• American Academy of Physician Assistants
• American College Health Association
• American College of Nurse-Midwives
• American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists
• American College of Osteopathic Pediatricians
• American College of Physicians
• American Counseling Association
• American Heart Association
• American Medical Association
• American Medical Association
• American Medical Student Association
• American Nurses Association
• American Osteopathic Association
• American Pediatrics Association
• American Psychiatric Association
• American Psychoanalytic Association
• American Psychological Association
• American Psychological Association
• American Public Health Association
• American Society of Plastic Surgeons
• Canadian Institute of Health Research
• Endocrine Society
• GLMA
• Humans Rights Campaign
• National Association of Nurse Practitioners in Women's Health
• National Association of Social Workers
• National Commission on Correctional Healthcare
• National Institutes of Health
• Pediatric Endocrine Society
• Royal College of Psychiatrists
• Scientific American
• Society for Adolescent Help and Medicine
• Stanford Medical
• United Kingdom's National Health Service (NHS)
• United Nations
• World Health Organization (WHO)
• World Medical Association
• World Professional Association for Transgender Health

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