Notes for the Feminist Activist Forum’s transgender and intersex learning exchan

[Shana A]

Notes for the Feminist Activist Forum's transgender and intersex learning exchange

Helen G.
Saturday 12th July 2008

http://birdofparadox.wordpress.com/2008/07/12/notes-for-faf-workshop/

Hello. I'd just like to say thanks to Sophie, debi, Red and the members of FAF, the Feminist Activist Forum for inviting me to the Lambeth Women's Project today to take part in this transgender and intersex learning exchange.

I'm Helen, and I'm a transsexual woman, or trans woman. I was diagnosed as being transsexual (which is the severe form of gender dysphoria) in 2006, although I first knew that "something wasn't right" for many years before I actually asked for medical help. After my diagnosis, I began the process of transitioning, which is a way for transsexual people to change ourselves and our lives to match our "real" genders. For me, although I'd been born and raised, and lived most of my life as male, I identified as female. The way I think of it is that my brain was expecting my body to have female sex characteristics. This is called gender dissonance and it was - and is - at the heart of my transsexuality.