The Gender Dysphoria Fence

It seems to me that with regard to transsexualism, transgender issues, or gender dysphoria (GD), we have a problem with which side of the fence is best to climb down from. I have no doubt that those who experience it truly struggle, and for those who seek sex reassignment surgery, they believe this is the best way to correct a perceived imbalance -- an imbalance between psyche and physique.

In March of 2021 -- significantly recent at only a year ago -- the American Psychological Association (APA) decided that gender dysphoria and non-binary dispositions are not mental illnesses. Previously, GD had been considered a mental disorder based on the debilitating stresses that the incongruence between mind and body causes some people. The change seems to accept a view that the stresses are more or less because of social stigma. I suppose it could be both, but clearly, the feeling that one is not in the right body is a major mental barrier all its own. I still believe it is a mental illness. I think instead that we need to not stigmatize mental illnesses in general... They ought to be treated as any illness and not segregated as matters of human worth. And even if someone believes in sex surgery as a viable solution, we are still addressing a mentally rooted issue. We can redefine it all we want, but at the end of the day, it is a disorder by explicit definition.

The question then is which side of the fence should someone climb down in correcting the disorder? One side sees the issue as bio-chemical, hormonal, and emotionally imbalanced. We treat these things through counseling, support networks, and in some cases -- medicine. On the other hand, there's surgery, which completely alters the physical, is costly, and is quite drastic. Often times it doesn't work to help people feel better or heal, and it can create new issues. Medicine and counseling is also not a guarantee. So which is better or right? 

From my limited understanding, the heart of the problem is in the brain and not the genitals (save hormone production, which interacts with the brain anyway); therefore, I think the appropriate route is the least invasive. I believe counseling and occasional medicines are better warranted. Regardless, I do see people whom God loves truly struggling with this issue. They need love, grace, and encouragement regardless of which yard they jump into. It's a new and strange era, but people are still in need of God's love, even if they make decisions we might not agree with or appreciate. Let's not stigmatize people struggling. Pray for and love them regardless.