My Personal Connection to Trans Health and Wellness | Pages 19-21
On a road trip along the West Coast of the United States from May to July 2007, I met a number of trans men, many of whom are now good friends. As a person with a longtime interest in gender and its impacts on peoples’ lives and social interactions, I listened intently as these men shared their stories. One friend spoke of his teenaged years when, on a monthly basis and coinciding with his menstrual cycle,[1] he would “get crazy, get wasted and fuck around.” On reflection he said he could ignore what was in his underwear rather effectively most of the time, but he was unable to cope with the physical manifestations of menstruation. Another friend spoke about the challenges of dating as a queer trans man in a phallocentric gay community. His politics of disclosure were considered radical by many of our friends — he would not reveal being trans until absolutely necessary or not at all — and as a result more than a few of us were concerned for his safety. Yet another recalled the absurd, unsympathetic and often degrading interactions he had endured with healthcare providers as he negotiated the obstacle course of medically‑supported gender transition; sadly these stories are far too commonplace among the many trans people with whom I have spoken since. There were many other stories about the challenges trans men have faced and yet, despite these, they seemed generally well-adjusted and content with their lives.
These stories still echoing through my head, I surveyed the extant literature for research that explored mental health and wellness among trans men. I was operating with the Canadian Mental Health Association’s (n.d.) definition of ‘mental health’ as a measure of life enjoyment, resilience in the face of stress or challenges, balance among different areas of life, self-actualization of our abilities and strengths to reach our full potential, and the flexibility to balance emotions and expectations. While the literature was small, I did find a number of psychiatric articles that presented trans men only as sufferers of mental illness (Cole, O’Boyle, Emory and Meyer, 1997; Lobato, Koff, Manenti, Salvador, da Graça, Petry, et al., 2006), an image that was a stark contrast to that of my friends. Many of the reports linked this so-called ‘illness’ to depression, substance abuse and suicide; here, there was even less resonance to the people I had met. As I looked deeper, I discovered an even smaller collection of articles, books and clinical guidelines, written by trans people and non-transgender allies, that began to resemble the narratives I had heard on my journey (Devor, 1997; Lev, 2004).
Having identified a clear gap in the literature and resources, and concurrently receiving support from friends and professionals working within trans communities, I decided to focus my graduate research on learning more from, and then sharing, the stories of trans men who are contented with their lives despite, and often in appreciation of, the challenges they have experienced in their lives. My intent remains that, by activating a critical lens within this research, I can provide for my professional colleagues and our allies some recommendations for effective and culturally appropriate practice with trans communities. More importantly, I hope that my findings will improve the future experiences of trans men who decide to employ our support and care as they consider, initiate and progress through an important stage in their lives: transition.
[1] Here I use a masculine possessive pronoun in reference to menstruation to honour the affirmed gender of the individual who shared the story, thus creating a conflict of gendered language that often happens when writing about and working with trans people.
Excerpt from:
Transforming Practice: Life Stories of Transgender Men that Change How Health Providers Work | 2013, Ethica Press | 178 pgs | ISBN 978-0-9917989-0-2
These stories still echoing through my head, I surveyed the extant literature for research that explored mental health and wellness among trans men. I was operating with the Canadian Mental Health Association’s (n.d.) definition of ‘mental health’ as a measure of life enjoyment, resilience in the face of stress or challenges, balance among different areas of life, self-actualization of our abilities and strengths to reach our full potential, and the flexibility to balance emotions and expectations. While the literature was small, I did find a number of psychiatric articles that presented trans men only as sufferers of mental illness (Cole, O’Boyle, Emory and Meyer, 1997; Lobato, Koff, Manenti, Salvador, da Graça, Petry, et al., 2006), an image that was a stark contrast to that of my friends. Many of the reports linked this so-called ‘illness’ to depression, substance abuse and suicide; here, there was even less resonance to the people I had met. As I looked deeper, I discovered an even smaller collection of articles, books and clinical guidelines, written by trans people and non-transgender allies, that began to resemble the narratives I had heard on my journey (Devor, 1997; Lev, 2004).
Having identified a clear gap in the literature and resources, and concurrently receiving support from friends and professionals working within trans communities, I decided to focus my graduate research on learning more from, and then sharing, the stories of trans men who are contented with their lives despite, and often in appreciation of, the challenges they have experienced in their lives. My intent remains that, by activating a critical lens within this research, I can provide for my professional colleagues and our allies some recommendations for effective and culturally appropriate practice with trans communities. More importantly, I hope that my findings will improve the future experiences of trans men who decide to employ our support and care as they consider, initiate and progress through an important stage in their lives: transition.
[1] Here I use a masculine possessive pronoun in reference to menstruation to honour the affirmed gender of the individual who shared the story, thus creating a conflict of gendered language that often happens when writing about and working with trans people.
Excerpt from:
Transforming Practice: Life Stories of Transgender Men that Change How Health Providers Work | 2013, Ethica Press | 178 pgs | ISBN 978-0-9917989-0-2
