General Transgender Discussion

Transgender advocates seek new diagnostic terms Boston.com Advocates have spent years lobbying the American Psychiatric Association to rewrite or even remove the categories typically used to diagnose transgender people, arguing that terms like Gender Identity Disorder and Transvestic Fetishism promote...

Hey Girls, what's your favorite fragrance? I love Lilly of the valley, it's so sweet and aromatic. Love to hear any of your recommendations. Thanks x

As a Transgender person my Gender identity is female, my physical body is male. For me this does not feel like a disorder or illness. It feels like a natural occurrence, part of the spectrum of the human experience that has occurred over millennium. It is said that change is the only constant in the universe, then transition is a universal characteristic that society would do better to embrace than shun. Although I experience Gender discomfort with varying degrees of disphoria sometimes very intense, what makes it so much harder is the ridged gender binary model I have been conditioned to conform too. If I openly defy this model I become vunrable to Hate speech, Ha…

Josh A. Goodman, 07/13/2012, 11:54 pm "A more common problem is simply not representing transgender data or issues under the umbrella of LGBT. News articles discuss LGBT bullying or LGBT suicide while citing data that only include LGB individuals, obscuring the fact that rates of assault and suicide are higher for transgender youth, and especially trans youth of color. Same-sex marriage is touted as an LGBT issue, despite the fact that many transgender individuals are heterosexual. Many commentators called the repeal of "don't ask, don't tell" a major milestone for LGBT equality, but transgender individuals are still barred from serving openly in the U.S. military." -Go…

Society continues to mislead impressionable girls (and boys) by implying that hair, except that which is on the head, and perhaps a well-groomed strand or two below the belt, does not exist or should not exist on women - only men have body hair. And if a woman finds hair on her body, she must eliminate it or hide it from public view until she can do so in order to avoid judgement and embarassment. Is this commercial teaching people that if a woman has [facial] hair, she's not a woman? Pay attention to the part of the video between 18 to 24 seconds. Besides warping peoples' understanding of what's natural, could this also eventually trickle down to what people think…

Just talked to my Mom today. In talking with her, i told her that she is always invited to come down. Told her it's been many years since she has seen me, so I have changed alot on the outside...and before i could complete my sentence...my Mom said, "but you are still the same on the inside." Nice!! My Mom is also 83 years old so she did'nt know if she could remember how to get to my place. But I have a cousin that visits her often. Told my Mom, find a time you and my cousin can come down. Told her,"You are welcome anytime." Writing this because I am finding my Mom was just waiting for the invitation. That she is had the time to deal with my transition and has j…

Being an ally vs. just telling others how to be an ally LGBT Weekly Most folk who aren't part of the T of the LGBT community aren't aware of the divides between some of those who identify as transsexual, but not as transgender, and those who identify as both transsexual and transgender. To me, the divide seems to be...

I got this book called "Now That You Know- What Every Parent Should Know About Homosexuality" and it's really interesting. I recommend it if you need more information. It has a section on gays and religion, and reading that gave me a lot of hope. And another book is "The Transgender Child", which I haven't purchased that one yet, but hopefully soon. It has a lot of information in it, and it's available on iBooks. I love doing research on this kind of stuff, so I can be more educated on transgenders like me, so if you know of any books or websites that have facts, instead of opinions, let me know. I'll hopefully start transitioning when I get into college or out of …

Self- acceptance is the first step toward self discovery. It is declaring that I accept who I am regardless of what others say or think. The fog clears away and opportunities to express my gender variance without shame or fear. When I accepted that I was a cross dresser, the tension and stress of several weeks of denial dissipated. in due time contentment followed. I felt comfortable in my own skin. I was free to explore and grow as a transgender woman. No one can live our lives for us. Seeking to improve ourselves does not compromise us as individuals, parents, or neighbors. I sometimes cringe when I hear that some one is called selfish because they desire t…

A half a year has come and gone. Pride month is over heree in New York City but then again it's not. The real work begins. Since coming to my church family, I have had a transformation of sorts. Now I need to be visible. I will meet with the assistant minister and bounce a few ideas I have off of him. Where this is leading I don't know. I really desire to reach out to the transgender community.

Rev. Susan Russell, 06/29/2012 7:54 pm "And one of those was my wife. Now, I have a hard-and-fast rule to never blog about my wife, but this blog is going to be the exception that proves the rule. A long-time activist, journalist, documentarian, and media consultant, Louise was convinced that gay, lesbian, and bisexual equality was a hard enough row to hoe without adding the "T" into the mix. "Let's fight one battle at a time" pretty much summed up her position -- that is, until the 2009 General Convention and the powerful witness of the transgender folk who so courageously shared their stories, their experience, their journeys, and their reality with her. She left Anahe…

Hello, I have been on hormones since November 2011. I usually take my one E in the morning with an anti-androgen and then one E in the evening with another anti-androgen. Is it okay to do this, or should I be taking all the E at the same time? Thank you, Emily

Hi I need some advise I'm in my very early stages of transitioning and I'm planning going back out to the Job market and at this point in time I have not legally changed my name nor birth certificate So I was wondering if anyone has any advice on filling out the the Application?? My SS card is still in my male gender and name. :mellow: :mellow: What if i would use TinaLynn Ann as nick name when filling out the Applications and doing the interviews??? And if I could do that how would I go about doing that??

Dear Friends From tgguide I have learned so much from being a member here and contributed information to the best of my ability. Over the last 3 years I made an extraordinary effort to compile my diaries and feelings and Publish a book about my life as a transgender person. My publishing of this material was not only to help other people who have the same feelings as myself, but also for families, doctors and psychologists to have a better insight into the transgender mind. It will be a great challenge to get the people to read this book who would probably benefit most. I would very much like to share my life with all of you in this community. I cannot di…

I asked this question on another site. My reason being that maybe I can get some insight into something I have noticed. I don't really want answers from cisgender folk. I am more interested in what y'all think. I noticed that many transsexuals say they felt transsexual from the age of 7 or 8. Not all but very many. Have you ever wondered why that age span? Do you have a theory? The main reason I ask is to try to get some insight because of people I know and meet. Sort of get an idea of what they think so I don't say the wrong thing to them. Thank you.

Sharon Shattuck, 15 Jun 2012 "My dad was super (or, "supor," as it were): He cared for me and my sister every day while my mom was at work, keeping us happily occupied while he juggled his own landscaping business. He encouraged us to be assertive and fearless tree climbers and communicators. And he taught us to be open-minded and accepting of others..." -Shattuck, huffingtonpost.com "Supor Dad"

Laverne Cox, 06/19/2012 4:38 pm "...I was reminded that we do ourselves a disservice when we think of fighting for our civil rights piecemeal. In a patriarchal culture, we can't really fully talk about eradicating sexism without talking about eradicating homophobia, as well. So much systemic male domination has occurred because the patriarch doesn't want to appear "soft," which in the homophobic, sexist imagination means "gay," which, within that oppressive logic, also means "like a woman." Historically, many patriarchal men have oppressed women so as to not seem "gay," which, for the patriarch, means, in part, having his masculinity called into question. The patriarch h…

I attended two memorial services this weekend. On Saturday we celebrated the life of my friend, Bruce Gerig, a man who came into my life shortly after I came out. He made me feel welcome when I first came to the bible studies at the community center. He was generous, bigger than life, knowledgeable about many subjects, and had an infectious laugh that warmed up a room. What I remember most about Bruce was how comfortable he was with himself as a gay man. It helped me to be comfortable with myself as a transgender person. On Sunday I attended a second memorial for a woman affectionately known as “Rookie”. I never met or knew her but I felt that I did. She was helpful…

So my girl friend is mtf. I treat her like my girl friend but when we fight she tells me she's not a girl. I am not sure how to deal. I don't have anyone I can really talk to because she doesn't want to be part of the "culture". I really like her so how do I relate?

Hi I am post op ts looking for some updates about Middle East specially Qatar. please send me a message for details.

I created this a few days ago and hope it gets enough signatures . http://www.change.org/petitions/one-voice-one-nation-one-cause-equality-for-all-glbt?utm_campaign=autopublish&utm_medium=facebook&utm_source=share_petition

Five trans role models you should know about The Guardian (blog) As the National Portrait Gallery's portrait of an unknown woman is revealed as a man, let's celebrate trans people's achievements... 1. James Miranda Barry (c.1790s-1865) 2. Sylvia Rivera (1951-2002) 3. Jayne County (1947-) 4. Leslie Feinberg (1949-) 5. Vladimir Luxuria (1965-)

The Realities of Transgender Aging Philadelphia Magazine (blog) Thanks to Sage (Services and Advocacy for GLBT Elders) and the National Center forTransgender Equality (NCTE), transgender men and women have a new guidebook on what to anticipate as they get older. Improving the Lives of Transgender Older Adults... Read or download the PDF "Improving the Lives of Transgender Older Adults"

Transgender life in Pakistan – CNN Photos By cmccloy Photographer Guy Calaf discovered Pakistan's transgender community, or hijras, while working on an assignment about heroin addiction in Punjab...

Just courious , how many here have that persistant back ground boice within there heads telling them .... Well more like shouting at them that what ever they do nothing will change , they are still a man ( woman ) and no amount of surgery or hormones will change this . Or that your not worthy to transition and you dont desirve to do so .. Why not , why dont I desirve , or why wont I pass , or do I truelly matter at all , whats been eating at your mind . Driving that voice inside to make you doubt or hesitate or question who it is you are . I will share later I just want to get the ball rolling. Hugs Stephani