Trans and gender identity

Trans is about when your gender identity doesn’t match the gender you were assigned at birth by your doctor. Trans is an umbrella term that covers many different identities, and people who see themselves differently in the word. The opposite of trans is cis, meaning that cis people are people whose gender identity is the same as the gender they were assigned at birth. Gender identity is the experience that people have.

What does gender identity mean?

Gender identity is the gender you feel that you have. Nobody can visually determine your gender, which also means that nobody can see if you’re trans or cis. It’s something that you can feel on the inside.

So as an example, a trans boy/man was wrongly interpreted as a girl when he was born, and a trans girl/woman was wrongly interpreted as a boy when she was born. Non-binary trans people are people whose gender identities are neither man nor woman, or both.

Your gender identity can change over time and it can also take different amounts of time for people to realise that they’re trans. Some know that they’re trans from early childhood, others are already adults when they come out as trans for themselves, others, or both. It all depends on many different things, on the one hand it’s an individual thing, but on the other, it can also depend on whether the person knows which words can be used to describe their emotions.

Gender dysphoria

Lots of trans people experience gender dysphoria, but in different amounts. Some feel it all of the time while others only feel it in certain situations. Gender dysphoria is strong negative emotions about how your body doesn’t match your gender identity. It can be triggered by how other people think that you have a different gender identity than the one you have, or that you feel bad about your body in different situations. The health care you can recieve after a genderdiagnostic evaluation at a hospital is geared towards reducing your gender dysphoria.

Genderdiagnostic evaluation, transition, and gender affirming health care

If you have thoughts about your gender identity, if you think or know that you’re trans, you can go through a genderdiagnostic evaluation. An evaluation means that you meet a social worker, a psychologist, and a doctor to discuss your gender identity. Some people are completely sure that they are trans at the first meeting, then the evaluation is more about what kind of help you can get from the health care system. For others, it’s about testing their thoughts and feelings with the help of a professional. Gender affirming health care, which is what genderdiagnostic evaluations and potential medical interventions can be called, is completely free in Sweden.

It doesn’t matter how young or old you are, you can still start an evaluation. Some interventions have an age limit of 18 years, though, for example surgeries. Other interventions don’t have age limits, for example voice training or packer (prosthetic dick) usage. Not every trans person wants to go through with an evaluation. The reason for many to do an evaluation is that if you’ve gotten your gender dysphoria diagnosed by a doctor, you have the right to different kinds of health care that many want and need to feel well.

Trans people often, but not always, go through a transition. Transitions are different for everyone, everyone doesn’t need or want the same things. You could say that there are three kinds of transitions: social, physical and legal. Social transitions can mean that you tell your family and friends that you are trans, changing your name or pronouns. Pronouns are words that we use to talk about other people, like he, she, they, or it. Physical transitions are done with the help of hormones, surgeries or other ways of changing the body to better match the right gender identity. Legal transitions are when you do things like change your name and personal identity number at Skatteverket.

Feeling better

Just because someone is trans, it doesn’t automatically mean that they feel bad. But you can be severely affected by gender dysphoria, and statistics show that trans people feel worse than cis people in general. Research suggests that having a supportive family or other adults that you can trust, and access to gender affirming health care are the most important things to have if you’re going to feel well. Safe spaces where you come into contact with other people with similar experiences to yours can also feel very important for many trans people. There are many forums for those kinds of connections, both IRL and online.

Text av Jona Mörn, Förenade tjej-, trans- och ungdomsjourer

Translated by Dannie Milve, Förenade tjej-, trans- och ungdomsjourer

Talk to a support group about gender identity