by: Wendi Pierce
Recently I saw a cartoon in Tapestry that took a little while to sink in. The cartoon was a take-off on the drug addiction awareness ads running in many national publications. The original ad went something like this, “This is Crack, this is your brain on crack”. This cartoon substituted “Premarin” for “Crack” and showed the brain image as flowers, rainbows, etc.. At first I thought it amusing and a novel parody but the more I thought about it, the more serious it became.
The mind and what it perceives govern our lives. We as members of the “gender• However gender is far more complicated. It is the complex interrelationship between an individual’s sex (gender biology), one’s internal sense of self as male, female, both or neither (gender identity) as well as one’s outward presentations and behaviours (gender expression) related to that perception, including their gender role. Together, the intersection of these three dimensions produces one’s authentic sense of gender, both in how people experience their own gender as well as how others perceive it.
• Gender is expressed in terms of masculinity and femininity. It is largely culturally determined and is assigned at birth based on the sex of the individual. It affects how people perceive themselves and how they expect others to behave.
• Socially and culturally constructed roles, behaviours, expressions and identities of girls, women, boys, men, and trans people.
community” have decided to explore our minds and likewise our inner desires. In many cases, we are now able to express that inner self publicly. We have allowed our “inner self” to come out into the light of day, to be expressed openly and we are, “on a grow”, as a good friend of mine puts it.
However, we need to be clear headed and rational in our exploration of this inner self. We need to be able to evaluate ourselves clearly and choose the right path at each and every fork in the road, less we wake up some day realizing that where we are now is not the place that we started out heading toward. Worse yet we may have no way to go back.
Everyone knows the physical effects which hormonesChemical substances that control and regulate the activity of certain cells or organs; see also: sex hormones. produce. However, a powerful influence which may not be apparent to some is the effect of hormonesChemical substances that control and regulate the activity of certain cells or organs; see also: sex hormones. on our mind. Most people do not realize that these chemicals have a dramatic effect on our mind as well as our bodies. If you want proof, just ask any “natural” womanA human being who self-identifies as a woman, based on elements of importance to the individual, such as gender roles, behaviour, expression, identity, and/or physiology. how her mood, attitudes, and ability to function varies at times due to her natural cycle. In the case of a person on large doses of hormonesChemical substances that control and regulate the activity of certain cells or organs; see also: sex hormones. being used to cause a gender• However gender is far more complicated. It is the complex interrelationship between an individual’s sex (gender biology), one’s internal sense of self as male, female, both or neither (gender identity) as well as one’s outward presentations and behaviours (gender expression) related to that perception, including their gender role. Together, the intersection of these three dimensions produces one’s authentic sense of gender, both in how people experience their own gender as well as how others perceive it.
• Gender is expressed in terms of masculinity and femininity. It is largely culturally determined and is assigned at birth based on the sex of the individual. It affects how people perceive themselves and how they expect others to behave.
• Socially and culturally constructed roles, behaviours, expressions and identities of girls, women, boys, men, and trans people.
change combined with the natural hormonesChemical substances that control and regulate the activity of certain cells or organs; see also: sex hormones. present of the person’s original gender• However gender is far more complicated. It is the complex interrelationship between an individual’s sex (gender biology), one’s internal sense of self as male, female, both or neither (gender identity) as well as one’s outward presentations and behaviours (gender expression) related to that perception, including their gender role. Together, the intersection of these three dimensions produces one’s authentic sense of gender, both in how people experience their own gender as well as how others perceive it.
• Gender is expressed in terms of masculinity and femininity. It is largely culturally determined and is assigned at birth based on the sex of the individual. It affects how people perceive themselves and how they expect others to behave.
• Socially and culturally constructed roles, behaviours, expressions and identities of girls, women, boys, men, and trans people.
and one may end up with a mental state the equivalent of a bottle of nitroglycerin ready to blow at the slightest jarring.
For those who choose to experiment with hormonesChemical substances that control and regulate the activity of certain cells or organs; see also: sex hormones. in a non-controlled environment, the situation is extremely dangerous. Supervision is the key here. Not just physical supervision which is usually provided by a family doctor or an endocrinologistA medical doctor specially trained in the study of hormones and their actions and disorders in the body. but psychological supervision by a professional trained in “gender• However gender is far more complicated. It is the complex interrelationship between an individual’s sex (gender biology), one’s internal sense of self as male, female, both or neither (gender identity) as well as one’s outward presentations and behaviours (gender expression) related to that perception, including their gender role. Together, the intersection of these three dimensions produces one’s authentic sense of gender, both in how people experience their own gender as well as how others perceive it.
• Gender is expressed in terms of masculinity and femininity. It is largely culturally determined and is assigned at birth based on the sex of the individual. It affects how people perceive themselves and how they expect others to behave.
• Socially and culturally constructed roles, behaviours, expressions and identities of girls, women, boys, men, and trans people.
therapy”. A professional who is keenly aware of the mind altering properties of these drugs and a professional trained to observe subtle attitude shifts. One needs this kind of care to prevent the worst from happening. It would be horrible to wake up one day and realize that during a long sleep we now have mutilated our body, have lost the support of our family, are broke, without a job and on the verge of suicide.
Don’t get me wrong, I’m not negative on hormonesChemical substances that control and regulate the activity of certain cells or organs; see also: sex hormones.. I feel that they can perform nothing short of a miracle to modify one’s physical and mental being thereby correcting what I feel is a major birth effect, but the key is to use these chemicals in a controlled environment.
A good friend of mine related to me how he (she) was on a rocket ship for about six months. At the beginning of the period she began a program of hormone treatment wanting to become more feminineDescribes socially and culturally constructed aspects of gender (e.g. roles, behaviour, expression, identity) typically associated with girls and women. to “see how it felt”. After about four months on a fairly high dosage program (5-7mg/day), she was seriously contemplating a trip to Colorado for reassignment surgery. Within a month after she stopped treatment, she was still positive about being able to express her internal “second self” but surgery was no longer an immediate goal. She may someday have surgery but has decided that for now, the immediate gains would not be worth the price which must be paid, i.e. the loss of her family and career.
For others hormonesChemical substances that control and regulate the activity of certain cells or organs; see also: sex hormones. and the effect on their minds had meant the opposite. The effect seems to have been to allow these people to more clearly see how comfortable they are in their new chosen gender• However gender is far more complicated. It is the complex interrelationship between an individual’s sex (gender biology), one’s internal sense of self as male, female, both or neither (gender identity) as well as one’s outward presentations and behaviours (gender expression) related to that perception, including their gender role. Together, the intersection of these three dimensions produces one’s authentic sense of gender, both in how people experience their own gender as well as how others perceive it.
• Gender is expressed in terms of masculinity and femininity. It is largely culturally determined and is assigned at birth based on the sex of the individual. It affects how people perceive themselves and how they expect others to behave.
• Socially and culturally constructed roles, behaviours, expressions and identities of girls, women, boys, men, and trans people.
. After hormone treatment their path became clear and the internal conflict which had been a life-long strife was resolved.
Hormone therapy can both resolve and create problems and should be administered with this in mind. In most cases, I would advise that the person discontinue use for a period after the initial effects have begun to take hold. This break will allow for the “hormone high” to subside and give the person a time to reevaluate where they want to go. A period of a month or so won’t hurt any long term progress that is desired and it will give the person’s mind a chance to return to their pre-hormone thought patterns. Therapy during this period is very important, and an in depth consultation should precede the continuance of hormone therapy. Questions such as “what am I gaining and what am I giving up should be asked. If the answers are not conclusive, then continuance of hormone therapy should be postponed until some point of resolution of there questions is possible. If hormone therapy is reinstituted at this time, it may conceal the true inner self and the replies may only be those reflecting the person’s “hormone high”.
Successful “gender• However gender is far more complicated. It is the complex interrelationship between an individual’s sex (gender biology), one’s internal sense of self as male, female, both or neither (gender identity) as well as one’s outward presentations and behaviours (gender expression) related to that perception, including their gender role. Together, the intersection of these three dimensions produces one’s authentic sense of gender, both in how people experience their own gender as well as how others perceive it.
• Gender is expressed in terms of masculinity and femininity. It is largely culturally determined and is assigned at birth based on the sex of the individual. It affects how people perceive themselves and how they expect others to behave.
• Socially and culturally constructed roles, behaviours, expressions and identities of girls, women, boys, men, and trans people.
therapy” is the desired result and proper application of the methods and therapy (including hormone therapy) are the tools. These tools should be used under the close supervision of a trained gender• However gender is far more complicated. It is the complex interrelationship between an individual’s sex (gender biology), one’s internal sense of self as male, female, both or neither (gender identity) as well as one’s outward presentations and behaviours (gender expression) related to that perception, including their gender role. Together, the intersection of these three dimensions produces one’s authentic sense of gender, both in how people experience their own gender as well as how others perceive it.
• Gender is expressed in terms of masculinity and femininity. It is largely culturally determined and is assigned at birth based on the sex of the individual. It affects how people perceive themselves and how they expect others to behave.
• Socially and culturally constructed roles, behaviours, expressions and identities of girls, women, boys, men, and trans people.
therapist. If the methodology described here is followed, I feel that the person has a better chance of attaining a true peace and contentment with the true inner self.
- (C) Copyright 1990 by Wendi D. Pierce. All rights reserved.
Permission to reprint this article in publications of the gender• However gender is far more complicated. It is the complex interrelationship between an individual’s sex (gender biology), one’s internal sense of self as male, female, both or neither (gender identity) as well as one’s outward presentations and behaviours (gender expression) related to that perception, including their gender role. Together, the intersection of these three dimensions produces one’s authentic sense of gender, both in how people experience their own gender as well as how others perceive it.
• Gender is expressed in terms of masculinity and femininity. It is largely culturally determined and is assigned at birth based on the sex of the individual. It affects how people perceive themselves and how they expect others to behave.
• Socially and culturally constructed roles, behaviours, expressions and identities of girls, women, boys, men, and trans people.
community is hereby granted provided that this article is published in it’s entirety including this notice and credit is given to the author.