BDD vs GID/Grab-Bag/It’s Not Personal–It’s Just Shitty/Product

Body Dysmorphic Disorder

Is a real fucking thing, folks.

So is gender dysphoria, but unfortunately

The symptoms of these two conditions

Are often so intertwined

It takes time, experience, and

A lot of self reflection

To be able to know how much

Of either, you’re actually dealing with.

Nobody is saying that trans folks don’t have

Gender dysphoria– however

It is a convenient grab bag disease

To label just about anything–

Kinda like PCOS for fat hairy women.

Doesn’t matter if you also happen to have

Many other serious diseases and complications

The doctors, therapists, friends and family

Will all disregard what you’re experiencing

As the simpler explanation, often just due

To the fact that they haven’t experienced anything

As complex or nuanced as what you’re going through–

It’s not personal– it’s just shitty.

Body Dysmorphic Disorder is a real fucking thing, folks.

Waaaaay more common than GID, for sure.

I worry that perhaps some folks

With advanced stages of BDD

Might find solace and comfort in the trans community, and

Coincidentally–

Be misdiagnosed, and overtreated.

~~

Two things can be true at once, but

It would take a tremendous amount

Of mental strength, for a trans person

To not have a bit of both, I think

~~

Not everyone is transgender

Not a lot of people know what it’s like

To transition socially or medically

To another perceived gender

You have to be honest with yourself

Keep track of the way you feel

And understand that some things are

Gendered– and some things

Are just human flesh

That you would have had.

Nobody chooses what they look like

We are all born naked–

And the rest is consumer culture

Try to make sure you aren’t

Valuing yourself like a fucking product.

Maybe you need to look a certain way

Because it will help you “pass”, it will make you feel

More aligned with who you are, or maybe

That might never happen, considering

How your self-perception

Might be negatively biased.

If you can’t look at yourself without wincing,

That isn’t necessarily because you’re trans, darling.