If someone you love is currently questioning their gender identity, it is understandable that you too may have lots of questions. These conversations should always be approached with sensitivity and empathy. Everyone is different – some trans people may be happy to talk openly about their feelings, thoughts and experiences, whilst others may have painful, triggering lived experiences that they prefer not to dwell on.
And so to help bridge that gap, the gender experts at Waterside Clinic have answered some of your most frequently asked questions below in the hope that it helps to educate and enlighten people about trans life, and in turn encourage people to foster a more understanding attitude.
What does it mean to be trans?
A transgender person, also commonly referred to as a trans person, is someone whose gender identity is different from the gender they were assigned to at birth. For example, a trans woman may live their life as a woman today, but was assumed to be a male when they were born because of their physical characteristics.
This is in contrast to someone who was assigned female at birth and identifies as a woman today – this person would be described as a cisgender woman.
Is being trans the same as being intersex?
No, it is not the same. Intersex people have sex chromosomes, external genitalia or an internal reproductive system that is classed as not exclusively male or female – they may have a mix of the two, for example. This is usually identified at birth.
Trans people, on the other hand, have a gender identity which does not correlate to the biological reproductive organs they had since birth or the sex they were consequently assigned to.
What is gender dysphoria?
Gender dysphoria is the feeling of distress experienced by a person whose biological sex and gender identity are not aligned, for example they were assigned female at birth, but today they identify as a man.
How does someone know they are transgender?
This is a very personal and individual journey. For some people, they are very aware of a feeling of being “in the wrong body” from a very young age. For others, this realisation comes later in life, and for many it is suppressed due to fear of being judged or discriminated against.
Thankfully, as society’s awareness has increased, more trans people have been able to name, understand and express their true feelings.
Is being trans linked to sexual orientation?
No, gender identity and sexual orientation are two distinctly different things. Being trans relates to your gender identity – whether you identify as a woman, a man or another gender, for example. Whereas sexual orientation relates to who you are attracted to. Just like cisgender people, trans people can be of any sexual orientation.
What does it mean to “transition”?
This is the process a person undertakes to bring their gender expression and/or their body into alignment with their gender identity.
This can take the form of social transition, which involves the person living as their preferred gender, changing the way they present, through clothing choices for example, and changing their name and pronouns.
Or it can be a legal transition, which involves them officially changing their name and gender on legal documents. Or it could be a medical transition which can involve hormone therapy and gender-affirming surgeries.
It is important to note that not all trans people may wish to progress through to a full medical transition.
Supporting trans people every step of the way
If a loved one is struggling with any gender issues, please know that help is available here at Waterside Clinic. Our gender specialists are proud to provide supportive transgender care within a safe, inclusive and welcoming environment. If you would like to find out more about our services, get in touch with our friendly team on 0131 202 5314, or email us on hello@waterside.clinic.