by Lynette Alice

Created on: February 18, 2009   Last Updated: February 26, 2009

Raising any child is difficult, but raising a child dealing with GID (Gender Identity Disorder) presents a unique set of challenges for not just the parents but the entire family. A child with GID (For the purposes of this article "child" refer to someone anywhere from several years old to a young teen) has all the same issues as any other child with the added dilemma of feeling completely at odds with the body they were born into. Simply put, the physically born male child will often feel as though they are in fact a girl, and vise-versa for a physically born girl. When that is added into the mix everyone has something to deal with that Dr. Spock never included in his parenting manuals, there is a full plate. There are ways to deal with the issue and raise a very happy child that can thrive. Like any child it takes plenty of love, support, and understanding.

GID is not a mental illness, nor does it mean that a child is necessarily gay. Even if a child born physically male with GID finds himself attracted to other boys, it does not mean he is gay, to him that is what the world would see as a heterosexual attraction. GID presents diagnostic problems as well as it is the one thing in the DSM IV which is self diagnosed. Only the person born with GID knows the true extent of the depth of it's grip on them. Therapists and psychiatrists are of great help, but they cannot diagnose this, they can simply help the person work through the process of self identification. Finally GID, as has been evidenced by an ongoing Dutch study, is a condition born of an inequitable proportion of hormones being delivered to the developing fetus which causes not only the hypothalamus, but the brain to develop in a manner which is incongruous to the physical body. A male anatomised child therefore had a developmentally female brain.

The first step to raising a child with GID is to realize that even if you think it is a phase, the child takes it very seriously so you should as well. It is never too early to seek professional help for the child. A gender therapist is specifically trained to deal with such issues, and there are family counselors as well which can help the entire unit learn the best way to support and understand the unique challenges faced by a GID child.

To help parents, siblings, and everyone in general understand the needs of children with GID, there are ten key points to consider.

10. Respect the child's feelings about their GID above all else.

9. The child has every good

• 1
• 2
• 3
• Next Page >>