How many transitioners are there? Is it commonplace?

[Stevie]

I suspect that queerness does "run in families," irrespective of a genetic disposition.  For instance, almost every person I've met who was raised by a homosexual^* couple has been at least open to the idea of homosexuality or bisexuality in themselves, and the idea that heterosexuality is "rebellious" is fairly common.  I'd guess that the child of a transgendered parent will be aware of the possibility of transgenderness as an option, be quicker to accept it in themselves, and feel safer expressing it.

On the flipside, I suspect that a large proportion of transgendered individuals live their lives in denial, possibly unaware of their own gender, because of how they were raised.  'cause that's what I went through, and it took me 34 years to figure it out.

^* Loathe as I am to juxtapose gender and sexuality like this, deviation from "normal" is the common element here.  Kids raised in an accepting household are more prone to expressing unique personality traits.

   My child told me of their feelings years before I told them about mine. I did raise them to be open and accepting of people unless they proved themselves to jerks by their actions.    They did tell me that some of their friends would ask if I was their mother when I would drop them off at school when they were young, so I don't think they were too surprised when I did tell them. They were the first person I told they just wondered why I took so long to do so, told them things were much different when I was young, its even much different now then when he first came out.

[Cindy Stephens]

to emjay
I am NOT a biologist, but do read discover and any scientific thing I can.  It seems that some drugs and experiences can affect DNA and get passed down from generation to generation according to an article in discover.http://discovermagazine.com/2013/may/13-grandmas-experiences-leave-epigenetic-mark-on-your-genes
I don't know if I copied above reference correctly.   The article describes rats being handled by humans and the rats becoming used to it.  This trait seems to be passed to at least the next generation, even after taking into account the possibility of the parent rat teaching the child.  Absolutely fascinating article.  With all the testing of DES children tending toward transness, you wonder if this will produce a rise in overall numbers.

[Emjay]

to emjay
I am NOT a biologist, but do read discover and any scientific thing I can.  It seems that some drugs and experiences can affect DNA and get passed down from generation to generation according to an article in discover.http://discovermagazine.com/2013/may/13-grandmas-experiences-leave-epigenetic-mark-on-your-genes
I don't know if I copied above reference correctly.   The article describes rats being handled by humans and the rats becoming used to it.  This trait seems to be passed to at least the next generation, even after taking into account the possibility of the parent rat teaching the child.  Absolutely fascinating article.  With all the testing of DES children tending toward transness, you wonder if this will produce a rise in overall numbers.

Interesting article, I hadn't ever thought to look for any information along other lines of research.  I only searched for studies surrounding trans* people directly. 

I was kind of in "Oh my God what have I done?!?!" mode at the time so I wasn't really thinking about every possible line of inquiry. 

It looks like there is quite a bit of DES testing being done on third generation children now so maybe something will come to light.  Now I'm curious if my mother ever took it.  I have no idea how to broach the subject and I'm not entirely sure that I want to.  If she did and finds out about this, she'll feel horribly guilty and dwell on it forever (trust me I know my mom lol.  She'll absolutely do this!).

In the end, I am me and I've come to grips with who I am.  I finally like me.  My son has gone through his journey and has come out the other end of the tunnel a stronger person than when he went in.  We're both OK and we accept who we are, no matter what series of events brought us here. 

[JoanneB]

Interesting article, I hadn't ever thought to look for any information along other lines of research.  I only searched for studies surrounding trans* people directly. 

I was kind of in "Oh my God what have I done?!?!" mode at the time so I wasn't really thinking about every possible line of inquiry. 

It looks like there is quite a bit of DES testing being done on third generation children now so maybe something will come to light.  Now I'm curious if my mother ever took it.  I have no idea how to broach the subject and I'm not entirely sure that I want to.  If she did and finds out about this, she'll feel horribly guilty and dwell on it forever (trust me I know my mom lol.  She'll absolutely do this!).

In the end, I am me and I've come to grips with who I am.  I finally like me.  My son has gone through his journey and has come out the other end of the tunnel a stronger person than when he went in.  We're both OK and we accept who we are, no matter what series of events brought us here. 

I guess I am a fatalist. TBH I don't care about the why or how I am trans. It is what it is. Now, what are you going to do about it?

Around the time I was hatched mom could have been on DES. If you do some digging into it, many women who were, cannot tell you for sure if they were. Back it those days and still today, there is a lot of blind faith when it comes to doctors. And doctors totally hate non-compliant patients, and barely tolerate anyone thinking they may now a little something, perhaps even asking embrassing questions. (Sorry, I digressed. Yes, I have little respect for most. I actually worked with them) If I could turn back a clock to ask her, what would change?

Then there is genetics. My body is the classic Kliefelter's Syndrome image. My wife confessed a few years back that the first time she saw me naked Klienfelters jumped into her head. She also was well aware of my gender issues. Being tested is not going to change anything.

[DanielleA]

I don't know how many there are in my region of the world but in Lismore nearish to were I live. Seeing a transitioning person is quite common. My mum and I maybe see 2 or 3 different ones each time we go there.

[Stella Sophia]

Yeah it really depends on where you live I think. I live out in Northern Idaho which is a very unfriendly place to trans people and I have been living here over 20 years and have never seen a trans person (that I know of) In fact we are so unheard of over where I live that it almost makes you passable because people's minds cannot process transgender people that even I would pass.

I work over the border in Washington state where they are very trans-friendly, and I encounter trans people here but not in large numbers or anything. I personally know just a handful of us.

But I mean if you think about it you only really see the ones that aren't passable, I mean you got have half the population be trans and be in deep stealth and denial who knows?

[SonadoraXVX]

Recent statistics say there are 1 for every 10000 for mtf, I think ftm are even rarer.

Sent from my SM-N920V using Tapatalk

[Emileeeee]

Like a lot of the older transitioners, I've been in the game a couple times. I was very focused on transition the first time and had a lot more courage than I do now, but I didn't have the resources. I feel like some of the things I discussed back then might have helped shape where we are now. Fast forward about 20 years and I'm in full go mode. Now I look back on all those years of secretive support groups where we basically had a code system setup to tell us where the next meeting was for fear of being hurt and think the world really is a different place now.

Still I think we are still at the forefront of the movement. About 10% of my friends said they already knew somebody in transition, but not one person in my family knew anybody but me and I come from a very large family. They all know somebody that's gay though. I think the more of us that come out in those families and communities with no knowledge of it, the better it will be, because right now it's always only those other people. I had also considered being open about being trans, but stealth in the workplace, but that makes little sense. My fear of losing my job is what makes me want to be stealth there, but that's the exact reason why I should not be stealth there. That's one spot where it's most critical that we have visibility, so it can change.

I feel like the more vocal celebrity trans people are sort of serving as a rallying cry to the rest of us, or myself at least, that says now is the time to let the world know we exist.

[HughE]

According to a study carried out by Lynn Conway, it's somewhere in the region of 1 in 500, of which around 1 in 5 are postop:

To calculate a rough lower bound on prevalence of MtF sex reassignment surgeries in the U.S., we simply divide the number of postop women, which is about 32,000, by the number of U. S. males between 18 - 60 (the age range from which most current post-ops originated), which is about 80,000,000:

32,000/80,000,000 = 1/2500.

Anyway, we discover to our amazement that at least one out of every 2500 persons who were originally male in the U. S. has ALREADY undergone SRS to become female! This 1:2,500 estimate is vastly higher than the 1:30,000 estimate so oft-quoted by the medical community. The DSM-IV number is clearly way off, and by at least a factor of 12! However, on closer examination we will find the error is far worse than even that!

http://ai.eecs.umich.edu/people/conway/TS/TSprevalence.html

[CynthiaAnn]

Where you are probably has a lot to do with it. I'm in Seattle, and aside from myself (not yet on hormones, but endo appointment date set) I know at least four transwomen in various stages of transition.

Interesting to read this post today, and the responses. Regarding above, I would just say it's not that hard to spot someone "out" in Seattle...

C -

[herekitten]

Once my childhood friend and I acknowledged we were both in the same situation, we met lots of other girls in our situation as well.  When we went across the border -- holy cow!! So many that they had their own infamous night club which operated 24/7 and it was biiig.  My mom even told me about her friend, Bobbie, who lived across the street in the 50's who was unfortunately, murdered - sadness -.   When I left my part of the world, it was rare to meet another.

[Northern Star Girl]

As far as I know, and I have been told this by my many friends here, that in my small town I am the only transgender person that they have ever met.
 
I have made a point of fitting in and not standing out with wild clothes and wild actions and speech. 
I own and operate my own small business so it is necessary to give the appearance and the first impression that I am a responsible woman (that dresses conservatively and respectfully)....  I am more than certain that none of my financial and tax clients would want it any other way in this very small conservative town.

Danielle

[KimOct]

Interesting that this topic was resurrected now.  As I have mentioned a few times recently I started a new job a couple weeks ago.  I live near Mpls.  The company has appx 300 people.  I have met about 60 to 70 of them.  This is an office setting not nightlife or entertainment or any other 'cool' industry.  I want to maintain a smidgen of privacy since I have already talked about my part time poker gig. 

Anyway - Your typical office. 

Besides me there is a transman I met - I thought I clocked him when we met but I was not positive.  It has since been confirmed by...... a NB assigned female at birth coworker.  COOL.

I thought I would be an oddity - turns out I am at least number 3 and who knows maybe there are more !!!

Also I belong to a trans group that meets twice a month.
One of the members PM'd me here after seeing me there. LOL  Most meetings there are 20+ attendees, I would say that there are about 40 total on and off members.

[CynthiaAnn]

Interesting that this topic was resurrected now.  As I have mentioned a few times recently I started a new job a couple weeks ago.  I live near Mpls.  The company has appx 300 people.  I have met about 60 to 70 of them.  This is an office setting not nightlife or entertainment or any other 'cool' industry. 

Anyway - Your typical office. 

Besides me there is a transman I met - I thought I clocked him when we met but I was not positive.  It has since been confirmed by...... a NB assigned female at birth coworker.  COOL.

I thought I would be an oddity - turns out I am at least number 3 and who knows maybe there are more !!!

Also I belong to a trans group that meets twice a month.
One of the members PM'd me here after seeing me there. LOL  Most meetings there are 20+ attendees, I would say that there are about 40 total on and off members.

@KimOct that's great to hear you've started a new job, congrats and good luck. Our business has HQ in the Twin Cities, every once and while I make it back there for work. A close co worker of mine has a daughter that transitioned from there. I had a nice visit with a sister there at Mall of America about 5 years ago. Always enjoyed going to MSP over the years, nice folks, nice area...

Hugs

Cynthia -

[Miss Clara]

If by 'transitioners' you mean people who have transitioned or are transitioning from living full time as one gender to living full time as the opposite (binary) gender, the numbers appear to be very small.  Of the 1.4 million who identify as transgender (as estimated by the Williams Institute), an analysis of records from the 2010 U.S. census and the U.S. Social Security Administration suggests that less than 10% of transgender people will go on to socially transition their gender.  I refer you to this U.S. Census Bureau Study by Benjamin Cerf Harris:

https://www.census.gov/content/dam/Census/library/working-papers/2015/adrm/carra-wp-2015-03.pdf

The study concludes that in 2010, the number of living individuals who transitioned genders as evidenced by a name and/or sex code change was 89,667.  That's 1 in 3400 people.

Of course, there are trans people who have for various reasons not sought an official name change or gender marker (sex code) change, and many transgender people have come out since 2010 and have or are in the process of transitioning.  But even if the number doubled, that would still put the ratio at less than 0.1% of the population.

[KimOct]

I believe the Williams Institute study is somewhat accurate but I also believe that number will rise as the teens and 20 somethings mature and those of us middle age and older die out.  Younger people are much more likely to self identify.

Regardless if the number is 1.4% 2% or 3% we are still a small percent of the population.  Most estimates place the gay population at 4%.

In 2010 if 89,000 people changed their gender marker at that rate per year it would be about 800,000 over the last 9 years.  Also I would suggest that the rates of transition have increased year over year since 2010. 

If the 89,000 number represents all the people that EVER changed gender I would suggest it is reasonable to assume that number has double or tripled over the last 9 years due to heightened awareness and significantly more people coming out.  Also many people that self identify may not have the desire, knowledge or resources to medically or legally transition.

I want to emphasize that I am not suggesting that we are commonplace.  We are a small minority but we are no longer as rare as a unicorn.

[Miss Clara]

In 2010 if 89,000 people changed their gender marker at that rate per year it would be about 800,000 over the last 9 years.  Also I would suggest that the rates of transition have increased year over year since 2010. 

If the 89,000 number represents all the people that EVER changed gender I would suggest it is reasonable to assume that number has double or tripled over the last 9 years due to heightened awareness and significantly more people coming out.  Also many people that self identify may not have the desire, knowledge or resources to medically or legally transition.

It's the number who have EVER changed their gender (legal name and/or sex code) in the U.S., and alive in 2010.  When the deceased are included, the number from the study is ~135,000.  To assume the number has doubled or tripled over the past 9 years is speculation, reasonable or not.  Unfortunately, the 2020 U.S. census will not include a count of transgender individuals, so a more accurate count of the people who have transitioned to the point of changing their legal name and sex marker will most likely remain unknown for at least another decade. 

[wildwood]

In my kids circles, I would say it's quite commonplace.  Two of my oldest daughter's childhood friends have/ are transitioning, maybe another one based on social media markers.  One of my husband's college friends children is transitioning.  Two kids, probably more, from a former church.  Also, several queer, or NB kids in various circles.  Now that my youngest daughter, I'm still mulling over the odds that I know so many youth/ young people given the odds.

[KimOct]

Another guy I just met at work told me today that one of his best friends is having GCS surgery with Bowers this fall.

What is the actual number of transitioned people?  Know one knows.  At this point it is speculation.  Add in NB people and non  transitioning the number gets fuzzier.  But I keeping meeting many different people that tell me about someone in their life that is trans.

At my part time gig at the poker room (very male dominanted )  I have had 5 coworkers tell me that someone in their life is trans.  A brother, a son, a brother in law, a father, I forgot the other one.

I cannot believe the number is one in 3,400.  I understand that the discussion was about how common it is to transition but that is a narrow scope.  I would be included because my name, birth cert, drivers license, SSA etc etc are all changed but there are so many different ways that people are taking this journey now I really think the only way is self identification.

So back to the Williams study.  If that were dead on the mark it would be over 4,000,000 people just in the US that identify as trans.  Good enough for me.