Transsexualism not a mental illness, say campaigners

[Shana A]

 19 October 2012 World
Transsexualism not a mental illness, say campaigners

Pressure grows on the World Health Organisation to change its definition of transsexualism and remove it from its internationally recognised list of mental disorders.

http://www.channel4.com/news/transsexualism-not-a-mental-illness-say-campaigners

More than 35,000 people so far have signed a petition which calls on the World Health Organisation (WHO) to reclassify transsexualism.

The Change.org petition was started by a cast member from the Channel 4 show My Transsexual Summer and the campaign is being a final push ahead of the International Day of Action for Trans Depathologisation on 20 October.

[...]

Sarah Savage, who went through transition last year and took part in My Transsexual Summer, said the current classification was "insulting".

"I'm trans - I'm not mentally ill," she told Channel 4 News. "Quite frankly for the WHO to classify me as mentally ill for a part of my identity, is quite insulting.

"Before I can get to an NHS identity clinic, I have to be certified by a psychiatrist as sane."

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Felicity A Morse

'Transgender People Aren't Mentally Ill': World Health Organsation Urged To Change Classification

Posted: 19/10/2012 08:51 BST Updated: 19/10/2012 13:34 BST

http://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/2012/10/18/transgender_n_1982321.html

Transgender people already navigate a difficult path through life. Some feel their gender doesn't fit with 'male' and 'female' stereotypes at all while others feel they are born into the wrong bodies.

Some decide to undergo invasive painful surgery while others decide on hormone replacement therapy. Even after transitioning, many still experience a lifetime of being seen as something they are not.

This pain is compounded by the World Health Organisation's classification of transsexualism as a mental illness.

This classification fuels discrimination and abuse and makes it difficult for transgender people to get access to the right sort of healthcare according to campaigners.

Comparing its outmoded definition with the once institutionalised belief that being gay was an illness, transgender campaigners are backing a petition to change the system.

[Jayne]

I'll be keeping my fingers crossed for this campaign, this is the first i've heard about it unfortunately, i'd have signed that petition in a heartbeat.

Channel 4 have been working to raise awareness & understanding of gender issues, a big thank you to them all for their work

[Shana A]

Man Petitions World Health Org: 'We Are Trans, Not Sick'

By SUSAN DONALDSON JAMES
Oct. 22, 2012

http://abcnews.go.com/Health/transgender-man-petitions-world-health-organization-sick/story?id=17521353

Maxwell Zachs is on a global crusade to normalize what until now has been considered a mental illness -- being transgender.

Zachs, 25, was born female, but three years ago he transitioned to male. In 2009, he began taking the hormone testosterone and in 2010, he went to Thailand for a double mastectomy and male chest contouring.

"There is nothing wrong with me. I am perfectly healthy, I just happen to be transgender," the Londoner told ABCNews.com in an email.

Now, he has filed a petition with change.org demanding that the World Health Organization (WHO) eliminate the diagnosis "transsexualism" from the mental disorders section of the International Classification of Diseases (ICD). He says the designation only contributes to discrimination.

[Jayne]

I really don't like the wording of the last report, all the talk of people not getting treatment in insurance sounds like scare tactics used by a narrow minded person.
If being trans is re-classified as a birth defect then surely it would make it easier to get insurance coverage?

In my opinion this is some shoddy reporting & an indication of the battle we face.

[suzifrommd]

I really don't like the wording of the last report, all the talk of people not getting treatment in insurance sounds like scare tactics used by a narrow minded person.
If being trans is re-classified as a birth defect then surely it would make it easier to get insurance coverage?

In my opinion this is some shoddy reporting & an indication of the battle we face.

Too true. I mean, what would we say if people who were born with correctable skeletal problems, such as clubfoot (if that's still a PC term) were actually said to suffer from "limb configuration dysphoria" and forced to undergo therapy and mental health screening before it was determined they actually WANTED to have their birth defect corrected.

[Atomic Dunce]

I may have signed this one - I've signed many in the last few months.

Having it's status changed my help - but Insurance is going to be a uphill battle for many, most 'big box' insurers really provide only minimal coverage for things related to being transgender - many provide nothing.

There is a petition for getting coverage under Obamacare, but I don't have a link handy.

[gennee]

The sad thiing is that scientists knew long ago that there are more than two expressions of gender. Instead of revealng ther findings to the public, they chose to keep under wraps. How many men and women were seriusly affected by this gross negligence.

[James]

 Transsexualism is not a mental illness and hope to help shed light on what is really going on with my research that looks at sexual orientation in terms of our two basic perspectives and their effects on behavior. My paper looks at sexual orientation as a whole, but includes references to transsexuality. Charts are simplistic, yet give us a starting point and I include two charts (one for the left brain and one for the right) that help to explain the transsexual experience.  http://thewholebrainpath.com/role.html