"Exactly how common is transgenderism?" An Attempt to Place Statistics on this Demographic

a reply to: burdman30ott6

It's not cancer, it's not life threatening, it's an area of convenience and should be treated in the same manner the system treats any other elective cosmetic surgery.

Of course it isn't life threatening. But I think equating it to cosmetic surgery doesn't fully encapsulate what is happening with these individuals.

Breast augmentation, or a facelift is an elective cosmetic surgery.

In the case of these people, they are biologically programmed to have the perspective and disposition of the opposite gender, and their body does not match their mental states. They cannot court and marry the gender they are attracted to, and have a normal relationship with their significant other, because they were born with hardware that didn't match their software. They are treated as a person that doesn't match who they are mentally. Whether men and women should be treated as differently as they are now is a different question, but there is no doubt that they are.

That can create severe psychiatric problems down the line. It is a non-trivial issue that goes well beyond the cosmetic. And these issues are every bit as real and significant as bipolar disorder or clinical depression. I don't believe most people would accuse a bipolar person of having a trivial complaint that they need to get over. This fits in the same category, and deserves real care and attention for those affected.

OK, you know what?

You want to know an issue that can be life threatening and is far more common than either autism or transgenderism that is life altering and affects far, far more people than either of those two disorders that most people hear next to nothing about and no one has nice little walks for or anything else?

Migraines.

1 in 10 people suffer from them. They alter the flow of blood in your brain, so any time you have one, you are at increased risk of stroke. If you get the more extreme expressions of the disease (like I have), you can spend more days in bed wishing life, the universe and everything would go take a flying leap than out of it enjoying the world and your existence in it because you are suffering from extreme head pain.

And yet most people still persist in thinking most of us simply have "headaches."

So, nope, not feeling sorry for you.

a reply to: burdman30ott6

Yeah, I mean depression and suicide, no big deal, right? Not life threatening at all. Tell that to my parents and friends who saved me from myself due to these issues.

originally posted by: joeraynor
In the case of these people, they are biologically programmed to have the perspective and disposition of the opposite gender, and their body does not match their mental states.

I assume there's a medical test that scientifically identifies this process as involving more than just the individual's personal thought pattern? I'd be interested to find out if the rates of clinical zoanthropy mirror the rates of transgenderism. Clinical lycanthropy, for example, exhibits different brain wave patterns than what is seen normally...

originally posted by: Puppylove

If you live in a world where people need to fight against your bias to not be considered an asshole, then, most won't bother

thats the plan.
if all goes well, people wont bother with me
thats the goal

originally posted by: Puppylove
a reply to: burdman30ott6

Yeah, I mean depression and suicide, no big deal, right? Not life threatening at all. Tell that to my parents and friends who saved me from myself due to these issues.

That's a secondary reaction, though. People commit suicide because of failed relationships, failed courses in school, loss of a loved one, etc... we do not throw tax payer dollars at those issues just because some kill themselves over it. The condition, itself, is not life threatening... the reaction of the individual, well, that's very much a personal choice issue.

a reply to: ketsuko

Absolutely. I have known a few people in your situation. It is a terrible, terrible thing to live with.

But consider the structure of the argument you used here- your premises and argument are:

----------

-Transgenderism is a condition which is a burden to the individual
-Migraines are a condition which are a much greater burden than transgenderism
____________

Therefore, transgenderism does not matter, and those effected should get over themselves, and not seek treatment

--------

I think most people can see that is a very strange argument, that doesn't make sense in any other situation:

-The flu is a bad disease
-Cancer is a much worse disease than the flu
__________

Therefore, the flu does not matter, and those effected should get over themselves, and not seek treatment

-------

I think most people understand why that doesn't make sense.

a reply to: joeraynor

No, I'm pointing out that if we consider transgenderism to be soooo very horrid, then migraines should be at least as bad, worse even because so many more are impacted by them.

However, NO ONE care about people with migraines. NO ONE.

In other words, we are very selective about the agendas we can push. There are no convenient agendas we can push by promoting compassion and awareness of migraine, but we can promote and push all kinds of convenient social agendas along with awareness of the horrible plight of the poor transgender kids. In other words, they're being used.

a reply to: ketsuko

Well the main difference there would be migraines aren't a social issue. It has nothing to do with equality, ect. It's two completely and totally separate playing fields.

Your competitors are things like aids, cancer, ect, not transgenderism.

Migraines are a pure medical not a social issue with some medical aspects.

The difference is, transgenderism is dealing with both medical needs in addition to social equality needs. While migraines are for the most part purely a medical issue.

Transgenderism gets more attention because it's both.

a reply to: ketsuko

However, NO ONE care about people with migraines. NO ONE.

Not even the doctors?

a reply to: ketsuko

There is no analogy that fits transgenderism, it is in a class by itself. It is a minority group, like any other, and must be entertained as such.

originally posted by: Deaf Alien
a reply to: ketsuko

However, NO ONE care about people with migraines. NO ONE.

Not even the doctors?

To get the type of treatment needed for migraines, you must be diagnosed with Chronic Migraines, which means you have 17 or more days out of each months in which you are suffering. Take a standard headache and imagine you suffered with it every other day for a month... now imagine that headache several times worse with visual and auditory disturbances.

Migraines are seriously under treated in America.

a reply to: burdman30ott6

That's a secondary reaction, though. People commit suicide because of failed relationships, failed courses in school, loss of a loved one, etc... we do not throw tax payer dollars at those issues just because some kill themselves over it.

We should, though. There is nothing wrong with recognizing the root problems that result in those people becoming despondent over life crises. Some people bounce back from those crises. Others don't.

People are all unique, and all in some way or another emotionally fragile. If a person is in ANY WAY suicidal or clinically depressed or unable to function due to their own reaction to the stressor/crisis, their situation (whatever it was that drove them to be suicidal) absolutely needs to be addressed, and heard, and confronted head on.

a reply to: burdman30ott6

I do know about it. I know a few who have it. And yes many people do CARE, including myself. To say that nobody cares about it is false. But I have no idea that it is under treated?

a reply to: EKron

his opinion does not agitate me.
just cause he is a mod he cant be honset?

more special treatment then.....
dont like what he has to say even though everything is within the t and c of this site
nice

a reply to: EKron

his opinion does not agitate me.
just cause he is a mod he cant be honset?

more special treatment then.....
dont like what he has to say even though everything is within the t and c of this site
nice

originally posted by: Deaf Alien
a reply to: burdman30ott6

I do know about it. I know a few who have it. And yes many people do CARE, including myself. To say that nobody cares about it is false. But I have no idea that it is under treated?

Right, I know I for one had no idea there were issues like that up until this thread. It's not that I don't care, but is just not something I ever hear about. My headache issues were from something else when I was younger, I've had debilitating headaches and fixing what was causing it cost me my sense of smell, not the same thing, but I can imagine how terrible it is.

a reply to: burdman30ott6

I assume there's a medical test that scientifically identifies this process as involving more than just the individual's personal thought pattern? I'd be interested to find out if the rates of clinical zoanthropy mirror the rates of transgenderism. Clinical lycanthropy, for example, exhibits different brain wave patterns than what is seen normally...

While I am not a clinician serving the needs of such patients, and therefore not fully informed, I would say this:

There is a part of the brain adjacent to the pituitary gland called the "hypothalamus"; this structure is largely responsible for biological drives like hunger, thirst, sexuality, etc. It is also a major control center for the endocrine system and horomone responses- gender horomones included. It has been observed that the hypothalamus is morphologically distinct in typical men and women. One exception to this is biologically-determined homosexual males, who actually exhibit structure and functioning much more similar to a female hypothalamus.

I would imagine you could identify markers such as these, in other places in a transgendered individual. There are normalized responses to a number of situations that have a characteristic "male" or "female" response. If a battery of these tests could be performed, that indicate a brain response to predominantly the opposite gender's norms, that would be a pretty big flag of a potential transgendered person of biological determination.

Will those who want to discuss migraines please go make a thread about it? It's a pathetic analogy to the proposed topic and has no relevance here.