Gender dysphoria
Gender dysphoria (GD) is the distress a person experiences due to a mismatch between their gender identity—their personal sense of their own gender—and their sex assigned at birth. The term replaced the previous diagnostic label of gender identity disorder (GID) in 2013 with the release of the diagnostic manual DSM-5. The condition was renamed to remove the stigma associated with the term disorder.
| Gender dysphoria | |
|---|---|
| Other names | Gender identity disorder |
| Specialty | Psychiatry, psychology |
| Symptoms | Distress related to one's assigned gender, sex, and/or sex characteristics |
| Complications | Eating disorders, suicide, depression, anxiety, social isolation |
| Differential diagnosis | Variance in gender identity or expression that is not distressing |
| Treatment | Transitioning, psychotherapy |
| Medication | Hormones (e.g., androgens, antiandrogens, estrogens) |
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People with gender dysphoria commonly identify as transgender. Gender nonconformity is not the same thing as gender dysphoria and does not always lead to dysphoria or distress.
The causes of gender incongruence are unknown but a gender identity likely reflects genetic, biological, environmental, and cultural factors. Diagnosis can be given at any age, although gender dysphoria in children and adolescents may manifest differently than in adults. Complications may include anxiety, depression, and eating disorders. Treatment for gender dysphoria includes social transitioning and often includes hormone replacement therapy (HRT) and/or gender-affirming surgeries, and psychotherapy.
Some researchers and transgender people argue for the declassification of the condition because they say the diagnosis pathologizes gender variance and reinforces the binary model of gender. However, this declassification could carry implications for healthcare accessibility, as HRT and gender-affirming surgery could be deemed cosmetic by insurance providers, as opposed to medically necessary treatment, thereby affecting coverage.