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Gender Issues
 My
practice includes doing counseling and
therapy with individuals and couples with
gender issues.
Including but not restricted to,
crossdressing and/or transsexuality. Such
issues can cause serious problems for not
only the individual but for a couple in
which either or both partners have gender
dysphoria.
I have had significant success in helping
people to understand and deal with the
particular problems that inhibit or deter
intimacy with others due to such
considerations. I would welcome consulting
with those who feel they can use help in
this area.
I am also attuned to the differences in how
gender affects the way people communicate
with each other, and have given workshops to
other professionals on the subject.
Transsexuality is more openly talked about
in present-day society but traditionally has
not been dealt with comfortably by many in
the general public including those in the
mental health profession. It has often been
treated dismissively as a “perversion” and
the act of gender re-assignment surgery seen
as a mutilation.
In my practice, I have encountered and
treated quite a few male crossdressers, most
of whom were married and trying to deal with
the impact of their crossdressing on the
marriage. Most crossdressing men do not wish
to change gender. Some do. Most wives of
crossdressing men fear that their husbands
will become more and more public about their
dressing in female attire and ultimately,
want to become and live fulltime as female .
These issues most often benefit from
exploration and a mutual wish to deal with
them without breaking up the marriage.
There is now a significant and growing body
of literature on this subject, for both
people who are gender dysphonic and for
professionals and others who want to know
more about it. There are also many resources
that never existed, including Internet sites
which provide comfort, support and dialogue
for crossdressers and transsexuals and
slowly, there has been movement toward de-pathologizing
people with these particular problems. The
Internet groups are comprised of those with
many different attitudes, opinions and
convictions about gender issues and although
it may take some research, most people
wanting to connect with others like
themselves, eventually find a space online
where they can safely and comfortably
express their personal feelings and
experiences as a cross gendered or
transsexual person, or someone whose
partner, child, friend or parent is dealing
with this issue.
One of the many issues that need addressing
is the reconciliation of gender-dysphonic
behavior with one’s religion, cultural
beliefs, and family values. Another is
dealing with people in one’s workplace
and/or profession. As more and more people
are able to successfully and openly
transition genders in their trades or
professions, it becomes less of a necessary
burden to “live in the closet” and to hide
aspects of oneself that are felt to be
unacceptable in our society.
If you feel that you or someone you care
about might benefit from a consultation
about getting help in dealing with any of
these issues, please give me a call.
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