Transmissions: What's in a name?

[Shana A]

Transmissions:
What's in a name?

Published 08/09/2012
by Gwendolyn Ann Smith

http://www.ebar.com/news/article.php?sec=news&article=67959

Next May, the fifth edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, or DSM-V, should hit bookshelves. While much has been made about some of the individuals involved with the creation of this update and their history around transgender care, there are some changes coming that could benefit those of us who identify as transgender, with perhaps a caveat.

For one, the term "Gender Identity Disorder," which crept in during the last edition, is going away. Indeed, this is being moved out of sexual disorders and into its own space, with the new title, Gender Dysphoria.

It is worth noting, however, that the term "gender dysphoria" is hardly a new one. It is credited to Dr. Harry Benjamin, who released the book The Transsexual Phenomenon in 1966, and had treated Christine Jorgensen, whose gender transition in 1952 sparked a public fascination with transsexuality during the years of President Eisenhower and beyond. The term "gender dysphoria" is a very common one both within the language of the community as well as in any number of publications for use by psychiatric and other medical professionals.