STOCKTON, CA—Cackling as the steps of the dastardly plan crystallized in her mind, local trans teen Brie Chandler told reporters Tuesday that she had hatched a nefarious plot to undergo years of medical treatments and counseling to win at swimming. “It’s oh, so simple: several years of sweet-talking medical…
Wait I thought people could be trans without medical treatments and counseling because gender identity is a construct and not reliant on one’s secondary or primary sex characteristics but rather reliant on their decision to identify with a gender they were not assigned at birth. Like I get it is the onion, but I thought people who think you have to have gender dysphoria or medically transition are called “transmedicalists,” and much like “terf” I’m fairly sure “transmedicalist” isn’t a compliment.
I’m not trans though so I could be wrong, but this is how it was clearly described to me by a nonbinary individual, a trans man, and a trans woman, all of whom I am friends with and one of whom I was dating at the time, so if I misunderstand so do they, I didn’t make it up myself.
My point of view is that if it was just a decision for someone that’d be alright and should be supported nonetheless. That being said I’ve never met someone who is trans and claims it was a choice.
If it’s ‘just’ a construct then it is a fundamental one that occurs at a very young age and you can’t just simply change that, so it’s not really a choice. Like the trunk of a tree.
Also there are many reasons not to transition medically. There are many risks involved and requires considerable resources. For example getting facial hair removed can take 30 sessions, so even if it’s free it costs you a lot of time.
Imagine you woke up in the wrong body tomorrow. Sure, you want to go back to the right body, but you might be OK with it as long as the people around you just see you for who you are. This can be done with a social transition, some clothing and makeup.