What do you think when you hear the word "transexual?"

[Ellen of Kitten]

This will be a hard topic to cover. I'm looking for real responses from the whole gambit of the Escapist community. But I'm also seeking real answers- that goes for the bad impressions too. I'm a M2F transwoman, and quite successful in my transition. But something a friend of mine and me were talking about last night struck a cord with me.

So now I wonder; what is the first thing (or couple things) that come to mind when you think of transexual people?


I don't want this to turn into a flame war, nor do I want to get people banned- I want discussion without the vitriol of the internet. If you want to speak your mind fully and fear it may get mod wrath, then feel free to PM me your thoughts rather than post.

 

[Rayzi]

A train actually. Then a random person. I don't really think of it often.

 

[JayDub147]

I'm ashamed to admit that often the first thing that pops into my head is an image of a deep-voiced burly woman with a mustache. I think it has something to do with how society has trained me to think of anything other than normal "male" or "female" as weird or creepy. It's seems doubly strange to me that the thought pops up because while I don't personally know any transsexuals, I've seen people who have come out about it, and they're just as handsome and/or pretty as those who are not transsexual.

I don't understand all the problems people have about it, though. To me, societal gender distinctions seem kind of silly,and I think people should be able to identify however they want without being harassed.

Actually, I read a really interesting article on the subject just recently that seems to shed some light on the issues surrounding this topic, if anyone else is interested:
http://bostonglobe.com/metro/2011/12/11/led-child-who-simply-knew/SsH1U9Pn9JKArTiumZdxaL/story.html

 

[Batou667]

My immediate reaction is fairly negative, I'm afraid. I don't think I could ever fully support it as a lifestyle. If it's a sexual thing, why not just be gay?

To jump on the bandwagon, it screams "First World Problem".

 

[JoJo]

To tell the truth, I think of transexuality as being sort of a mental disorder. Don't take this as a bad thing, I myself am living with a quite different mental disorder and I understand what it's like and how wrong it must feel to feel like you're in the body of the wrong sex, so I fully support the choice for you to change your physical sex if it doesn't match up with what your mind is saying. I do think it's something that originates in the mind though, even if it's something that shouldn't be "cured" or given drugs for.

 

[Knight Captain Kerr]

I think of a LGBT meeting for some reason. Personally my gender is unimportant to me and I hate gender roles but people can do whatever (with in reason) makes them happy.

 

[Damien Granz]

This will be a hard topic to cover. I'm looking for real responses from the whole gambit of the Escapist community. But I'm also seeking real answers- that goes for the bad impressions too. I'm a M2F transwoman, and quite successful in my transition. But something a friend of mine and me were talking about last night struck a cord with me.

So now I wonder; what is the first thing (or couple things) that come to mind when you think of transsexual people?


I don't want this to turn into a flame war, nor do I want to get people banned- I want discussion without the vitriol of the internet. If you want to speak your mind fully and fear it may get mod wrath, then feel free to PM me your thoughts rather than post.

As far as how they or you identify yourselves or act regarding your gender identity, I honestly couldn't see why anybody would care. I've had to deal with these things myself and I don't particularly like the idea of having to identify as any gender at all. But honestly, in a way, that seems much easier than actively needing to identify as another gender.

So I guess there's a slight twinge of.. I don't want to say pity as that sounds mean, but I can't think of a better word right now.. of something.. because of the hardships that I know that total conversion transpeople go through because they happen to live in a society that gives a shit about gender roles when it really shouldn't. And trying to be forced as a square peg to fit into a round hole.

I'm curious to know what your friend said about you that started this topic, honestly. And I hope for the best for you through your transition. Not a lot of people have the courage or opportunity to express how they really are, so I'm glad for you. Even if that sounds a bit arrogant.

(Oh, and I guess another thing I think is often curiosity, I guess, but I feel that way typically all the time, especially the less I know about the type of person)

My immediate reaction is fairly negative, I'm afraid. I don't think I could ever fully support it as a lifestyle. If it's a sexual thing, why not just be gay?

To jump on the bandwagon, it screams "First World Problem".

It's not a sexual thing, it's an identity thing. Not all transsexuals M2F are interested in men. Some identify as female, but still like females. Some don't. So you can't just say they're all 'gay men'. And gay men don't automatically identify as female either.

It's two totally different phenomena.

And it seems very rude to dismiss somebody dealing with a very, very large social and mental situation by insinuating they only care about it because they're too entitled or lazy to deal with 'real' problems.

 

[DefunctTheory]

A train actually. Then a random person. I don't really think of it often.

From now on, this is what I will think.

Oh, Thomas the Tank Engine. I'm sorry for what my horrible adult mind has done to you...

 

[Ellen of Kitten]

My immediate reaction is fairly negative, I'm afraid. I don't think I could ever fully support it as a lifestyle. If it's a sexual thing, why not just be gay?

To jump on the bandwagon, it screams "First World Problem".

Transexuality is human wide, not limited to class, wealth, geographical location, etc. Hardly a first world problem. Off the bandwagon you go.

Without getting into what really belongs in another thread altogether, I shall summerize; Sexual identity and gender identity are not the same thing. So transgender is not the same as homosexual.

I'm curious to know what your friend said about you that started this topic, honestly. And I hope for the best for you through your transition. Not a lot of people have the courage or opportunity to express how they really are, so I'm glad for you. Even if that sounds a bit arrogant.

Hmm, I'm not sure I can really do it justice, since it's highly contextual. We were talking about relationships, dating, friends and comfort levels. Don't take this out of context, but a sequence of words forming "Not everyone is comfortable dating a transexual, or being around them." Which got me thinking what people tend to think of when they hear transexual. What clouds their mind and creates the first impressions they tend to react to? I hope I answered your question.

 

[Zen Toombs]

I just think of a Male (XY) who is a girl or a Female (XX) who is a boy. For me it's fairly straightforward.

 

[Damien Granz]

I'm curious to know what your friend said about you that started this topic, honestly. And I hope for the best for you through your transition. Not a lot of people have the courage or opportunity to express how they really are, so I'm glad for you. Even if that sounds a bit arrogant.

Hmm, I'm not sure I can really do it justice, since it's highly contextual. We were talking about relationships, dating, friends and comfort levels. Don't take this out of context, but a sequence of words forming "Not everyone is comfortable dating a transsexual, or being around them." Which got me thinking what people tend to think of when they hear transsexual. What clouds their mind and creates the first impressions they tend to react to? I hope I answered your question.

Ah. It's hard for me to, I guess understand why somebody would have a problem being around a transsexual. I know there are some people that have a hard time being around them, but I know people that have a hard time being around people of a different race; to me that's just bigoted, I guess.

As for dating them, even that's a bit alien to me. I'd have no problem dating a woman, or intersexed person, or etc... any more than I do dating a man. Though I guess I could see that if somebody's sexual attraction was to specific parts, that they'd want those specific parts around, I guess? Heterosexuality is a bit as confusing to me as homosexuality is to me, and I suspect either are to each other.

I think I'd honestly have the opposite but equally bad problem if a partner of mine was like "I think I identify as a woman", in that I'd be like "Yeah, OK whatever."; I might not treat it with the seriousness that it might deserve. Like "I'm wearing a dress now" "OK, whatever.".

For me I guess it's only the matter of a different pronoun. Like "Oh man, now I have to use a whole additional letter of 's' from 'he' to 'she'.", or vice versa. Some people change their name, but honestly, that doesn't bother me either, cause like, going from Sam to Sabine or back.. it's like.. sure whatever.

Like if I'm already calling you "Ellen of Kitten", it seems weird that "Ellen" would be the harder thing for me to rationalize, like "Oh my god, when it was Eliot I totally understood everything, but now that it's Ellen, my mind is goddamn blown wide open"..

*shrug*.

I cant remember if trannys are men that dress like women or men that have had their cock cut into a vagina

Neither. Transvestites are people who cross dress, but don't (necessarily) identify entirely as female or vice versa. Transsexuals are people who identify different than their phenotype or genotype sex (or both). (Note: F2M transsexuals exist, but are very difficult to identify as such as socially women dressing as men hasn't been a problem for like a few decades now.)

Neither implies the person has had an operation to change their phenotype sex, or even desires one (though some do).

 

[Fieldy409_v1legacy]

I think about how confusing sexuality discussions can get. There sure are a lot of different terms. Though I'm not even sure if transexual is a sexuality or if it's just about identity. Basically it makes my head hurt.

 

[Vault101]

the main charachter from "transamerica" all dressed up in pink

I find it interesting they got a woman to play that role (when it seems more common to go with a guy) no matter...it helped really blur things up..and she pulled it off very well

 

[Damien Granz]

I think about how confusing sexuality discussions can get. There sure are a lot of different terms. Though I'm not even sure if transsexual is a sexuality or if it's just about identity. Basically it makes my head hurt.

A good rule of thumb is to not assume anything is linked up until that specific person proves otherwise. If they're gay, don't assume that's linked to them being feminine. If they're feminine, don't assume that means they identify as a woman, or are gay. If they identify as female, don't assume that makes them feminine or are into men.

There are lots of times where those things are linked up, where you might get a M2F transwoman who identifies as female, likes men, and is into feminine/girly things. But don't assume it's what you'll always see.

You'll be better off that way, not assuming much.

 

[Fieldy409_v1legacy]

I think about how confusing sexuality discussions can get. There sure are a lot of different terms. Though I'm not even sure if transsexual is a sexuality or if it's just about identity. Basically it makes my head hurt.

A good rule of thumb is to not assume anything is linked up until that specific person proves otherwise. If they're gay, don't assume that's linked to them being feminine. If they're feminine, don't assume that means they identify as a woman, or are gay. If they identify as female, don't assume that makes them feminine or are into men.

There are lots of times where those things are linked up, where you might get a M2F transwoman who identifies as female, likes men, and is into feminine/girly things. But don't assume it's what you'll always see.

You'll be better off that way, not assuming much.

M2F? What's that? Male to female or something?

 

[Damien Granz]

I think about how confusing sexuality discussions can get. There sure are a lot of different terms. Though I'm not even sure if transsexual is a sexuality or if it's just about identity. Basically it makes my head hurt.

A good rule of thumb is to not assume anything is linked up until that specific person proves otherwise. If they're gay, don't assume that's linked to them being feminine. If they're feminine, don't assume that means they identify as a woman, or are gay. If they identify as female, don't assume that makes them feminine or are into men.

There are lots of times where those things are linked up, where you might get a M2F transwoman who identifies as female, likes men, and is into feminine/girly things. But don't assume it's what you'll always see.

You'll be better off that way, not assuming much.

M2F? What's that? Male to female or something?

Oh, er, yes. That's not an official term or nothing, though.

 

[Riobux]

"Change from male to female", which I will admit is a bit simplistic since females change to males too.

 

[GigaHz]

I'm not sure I understand the question.

Am I supposed to think of anything more than what a transexual person is when I think of the word transexual? I had no idea that the word was more complex than it's implied meaning.

When I think of Transexual, I think of a man desiring to have the body of a woman, or vice-versa. I assume it's because they believe they have the mind of the opposite gender and they would rather connect physically with their perceived gender identity.

Then again, I always thought homosexuals had the same identity problem.