Gender development and reassignment
Psychiatry, Volume 6, Issue 3, March 2007, Pages 121-124

Richard Greena
aRichard Green MD JD FRCPsych is Professor of Psychiatry, Emeritus, at the University of California, USA, and Professor of Psychological Medicine at Imperial College Faculty of Medicine, London, UK. His medical degree is from Johns Hopkins University, USA, and his law degree is from Yale University, USA. He has been publishing papers on gender identity since 1960. Conflicts of interest: none declared

Available online 6 February 2007.


Abstract
Gender dysphoria is discomfort living as a male or as a female. When sufficiently distressing it leads to the request for 'sex change'. The age range of patients is adolescence to mid-life, and three-quarters are born male. Clinical practice should proceed from reversible steps to the more irreversible. Clothing change and name change precede hormone administration, which may precede surgery. The safest clinical process is the 'Real Life Experience'. This is the trial period, of at least 1 year, of full cross-gender living prior to eligibility for surgical interventions. During this time some patients may revert to the original gender role. For those who complete the sex reassignment process, the reported quality of life is generally superior to that experienced in the pre-transition life period.

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I don't think this is news to us, but its nice to see it recognized by the medical community.

Chaunte

Change of clothes and name change BEFORE HRT....
I think the medical profession likes to torture people...

Quote from: Keira on February 10, 2008, 10:49:31 PM
Change of clothes and name change BEFORE HRT....
I think the medical profession likes to torture people...

I would like the read the full article but somehow I believe psychiatrists don't really want to approve transistions because it challenges their own identity and morality. So the more controlled steps they stick in the way, the more they hope, but express "may", change their mind and become normal-gendered people again. Most of them still haven't gotten the idea it's not a disorder, condition, or worse a disease, but merely another expression of being human. We're as normal as they are except we aren't prejudice about their identity.

There have been no studies of the RLE since it was implemented in the SOC showing it actually helps the patient. It only adds to the trouble of living in between. But they stick with it because it only help them. When in over 95% of post-op women feel comfortable and satisfied with their decision and actions to transistion, it's hard for the professional to say it doesn't. But it's easier to simply stick a bunch roadblocks in the way, not realizing these are only speedbumps to the individual.

Putting pseudo-science on a bad idea doesn't make it scientific or pretty.

Quote from: Chaunte on February 10, 2008, 08:39:06 PM
Clothing change and name change precede hormone administration, which may precede surgery.

That is not what the Standards of Care says.  A statement like this is a strike against his credibility.