Is what this person says true about being intersexed?

[Shawn Sunshine]

In another forum I was told the following as explaining the intersexed condition, how much is true and did they say anything thats not true.

Intersexism isn't abnormal or a defect. It's considered a normal gender variant. Intersexism generally doesn't cause any health problems. There are literally millions of intersex people in the world and many never even know they are intersex. That's how normal and unproblematic it is.

Intersex people are not hermaphrodites. There is no such thing as a human being born with fully functional sets of male and female genitalia and reproductive organs.

Judaism acknowledges a gender variant known as the tumtum, which is someone with ambiguous genitalia.

Intersex people are often subjected to nontherapeutic surgeries (which are usually damaging) and "treatments" they don't actually need.

Intersex people don't have the legal option to be intersex. They must identify as male or female. For example, a person with complete androgen insensitivity would [probably] legally be female, despite being XY and having testicles.

[madirocks]

Hmmmm...... Well, all that I found true were the bit about there being people who are intersexed, and don't know they are (I just found out and I'm ooooollld). Also, about there not being true hermaphrodites, that's correct.

The majority sounds like they're completely clueless. For example, I know that in one particular country you can have "X" on your passport for intersex.

[ToriJo]

I think what they say is *sometimes* true.  There are many different kinds of intersex conditions.

Some *do* require medical treatment.  Others do not.  I know three different people that are intersexed and I'm close enough to know a bit of their medical history.  One had life-threatening hormonal issues that required removal of gonads, another required surgery for fistulas and to ensure that their urethra functioned, and a third that has no external sex organs and is happy and healthy that way.  There are plenty of intersexed people that never need any treatment (and in fact might not know they are intersexed).

Of the three, two are happily legally identified as "F", the other fights to be seen as intersexed - sometimes succeeding, sometimes failing, in the USA.

I've heard the thing about the Jewish tantum, but I don't know enough about Judiasm to know what basis in truth that has or how universally recognized it is.

[Taka]

the part about non-therapeutic surgeries is also true

once upon a time they believed that gender is a social construct, something children learn as they grow up. the same thought that made them try to treat ->-bleeped-<- and homosexuality with corrective therapy also led to treating intersexed infants with corrective surgery (to avoid social stigma) where all were turned female, since this is easier. and many of them might not know it happened to them, since the parents were instructed to raise the children as girls and never tell the truth, to avoid gender confusion. the girls are probably ok, but many boys have suffered a lot because of this. their therapists and doctors would do all they could to convince them that they were real girls for the sake of their own interests. they couldn't afford failure when they'd already told the world about what a great treatment this was for intersexed individuals