Source: mail.google.com<\/p>\n
As an umbrella term, the word transgender implies that an individual expresses his\/her\/their gender differently than his\/her\/their assigned gender at birth. According to the American Psychiatric Association\u2019s Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM\u20135), a transgender individual has a disorder known as gender dysphoria, which entails extreme discomfort accompanied by a range of negative feelings when an individual\u2019s physical appearance does not match the way they feel internally.<\/p>\n
In order to alleviate the symptoms associated with gender dysphoria, individuals often undergo a range of different surgeries as well as taking hormone therapy and estrogen or testosterone blockers. In addition to these measures, individuals often pursue counseling as well as participate in support groups.<\/p>\n
Many transgender individuals do not pursue hormone therapy as well as surgeries, but simply feel they are a certain gender despite the biological reality. An individual\u2019s gender may be more of a state of mind, and may even be interchangeable \u2014 with an individual\u2019s gender identity or expression alternating from male to female on a daily basis.<\/p>\n
As to the physical changes an individual makes to their body in order to appear more like their preferred gender, many eventually undergo sex-reassignment surgery in the final stages of their transition. However, not all transgender individuals find it necessary to have this type of procedure.<\/p>\n
Fortunately, society\u2019s awareness and knowledge of transgender people has greatly improved in recent years. Many social media platforms have begun providing users with an array of gender identity options, as Facebook added more than 50 custom gender options in 2014 for those who do not identify as male or female.<\/p>\n
qnotes<\/strong><\/em>\u00a0met up with Octavia Moore, a transgender woman who began her transition of more than 15 years ago.<\/p>\n Moore said she always knew that she was not a man from a very early age.<\/p>\n \u201cBoth I and family knew that I wasn\u2019t a boy from the time I was knee-high to a grasshopper,\u201d said Moore. \u201cI loved wearing dresses and sashaying around in my mother\u2019s high-heel shoes.\u201d<\/p>\n While Moore always knew that she did not feel like a man, she said she did not make the decision to transition until she went to college. A close friend of Moore\u2019s encouraged her to transition and took her on her first shopping trip to purchase a more fitting wardrobe.<\/p>\n \u201cWhile I hadn\u2019t begun taking hormones yet and had very little breast tissue, the feeling I felt when I put on a bra for the first time was monumental,\u201d Moore said. \u201cWho knew a single article of clothing could produce such an amazing feeling.\u201d<\/p>\n Upon making the decision to transition, Moore began taking hormone therapy as well as testosterone blockers, which in time, altered Moore\u2019s body providing her with a more feminine and curvaceous frame as well as breast tissue. The combination of hormones and testosterone blockers also greatly reduced Moore\u2019s body and facial hair and also softened her voice.<\/p>\n \u201cAfter being on hormones for a few years, I started looking a lot more feminine,\u201d Moore said. \u201cI never really had a lot of body hair, but the hormones and T-blockers really helped to reduce the growth of my facial hair. The muscles in my arms softened up, my waist got smaller, and my hips got wider.\u201d<\/p>\n Many individuals presume that the majority of transgender individuals have a desire to undergo sex-reassignment surgery. However, according to Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD), \u201csex-reassignment surgery, also called gender confirmation surgery (GCS), is only one small part of the transition.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cNot all transgender people choose to, or can afford to, undergo medical surgeries,\u201d GLAAD said.<\/p>\n GLAAD also advises journalists to avoid overemphasizing the role of surgeries in the transition process.<\/p>\n For Moore, having male genitalia does not cause her to experience any type of distress or discomfort, and said it doesn\u2019t detract from her identity of being a transgender woman.<\/p>\n \u201cBeing a woman isn\u2019t all about looking the part,\u201d said Moore. \u201cWhile I do enjoy having a more feminine appearance, I don\u2019t find it necessary to have surgeries in order to feel like a girl.\u201d<\/p>\n Moore said she\u2019s thought about having breast augmentation surgery, but due to her being a diabetic, she decided against it in the end. She also said that she\u2019s fairly satisfied with the size of her breasts and knows plenty of cisgender girls who have smaller cup sizes.<\/p>\n \u201cBreasts nor any other part of my body make me any more or any less of a woman,\u201d Moore said. \u201cFor me, it\u2019s more about how I feel on the inside, regardless of how I look on the outside.\u201d<\/p>\n When asked about her thoughts on sex-reassignment surgery, Moore replied, \u201cit\u2019s never even crossed my mind.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cFor one, the surgery is so expensive, most middle-class people, like me, can\u2019t afford it,\u201d said Moore. \u201cAnd, more importantly, there are so many possible complications that can arise after someone undergoes the operation.\u201d<\/p>\n Whether it\u2019s breast augmentation for a transgender female or a double mastectomy, known as top surgery, for a transgender male, the path a transgender individual takes to alleviate their symptoms of gender dysphoria varies greatly from person to person. While many individuals undergo numerous surgeries and procedures to aid in the alignment of their bodies with their gender, a large percentage of the transgender population choose not to make any type of alterations to their bodies at all.<\/p>\n\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":3153,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[28],"tags":[565,166,2498,564],"class_list":["post-3152","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-sex-reassignment","tag-sex-reassignment-surgery","tag-surgery","tag-testosterone-blocker","tag-transgender"],"yoast_head":"\n