Online Gender Dysphoria Treatment: Find Gender Dysphoria Recovery Today

What is Gender Dysphoria Disorder?

Gender dysphoria is a feeling of extreme discomfort that occurs when a person has conflict between the sex they were born and the gender with which they identify. 

Gender dysphoria can cause anxiety and depression when a person feels “trapped” inside a body that does not align with the gender they identify with. In addition, a person with gender dysphoria has an increased risk of hurting themselves or suicide.

Gender Dysphoria was created to spell out that being transgender, or identifying as a different gender than their birth sex, is not by itself a psychiatric disorder. This new disorder was created to remove stigma of being transgender and to also shift mental health professionals to help treat the distress and other side effects gender dysphoria may bring.

Who is Affected By Gender Dysphoria?

According to the Diagnosis and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, or DSM-5, gender dysphoria affects both birth sexes. Approximately .005% to .014% of individuals who are male at birth are later diagnosed with gender dysphoria. Among individuals who are female at birth, .0002% to .0003% are later diagnosed with gender dysphoria. The above rates are estimates based on individuals who seek treatment, so the likely number of individuals suffering from gender dysphoria is likely to be higher.

Gender Dysphoria Diagnosis

The DSM-5 provides separate specific criteria for children and for adolescents and adults. 

Children

For diagnosing children with gender dysphoria, a provider will check to see if the child has at least 6 of the following: 

1. A strong desire to be of the other gender or an insistence that one is the other gender
2. A strong preference for wearing clothes typical of the opposite gender
3. A strong preference for cross-gender roles in make-believe play or fantasy play
4. A strong preference for the toys, games or activities stereotypically used or engaged in by the other gender
5. A strong preference for playmates of the other gender
6. A strong rejection of toys, games and activities typical of one’s assigned gender
7. A strong dislike of one’s sexual anatomy
8. A strong desire for the physical sex characteristics that match one’s experienced gender

Gender atypical behavior is common among young children. If your child meets the above criteria for gender dysphoria, they may or may not continue to experience gender dysphoria into adulthood. 

Adolescents and Adults

For diagnosing adolescents and adults, a provider will will check to see if at least 2 of the below symptoms are met lasting at least 6 months:

1. A marked incongruence between one’s experienced/expressed gender and primary and/or secondary sex characteristics
2. A strong desire to be rid of one’s primary and/or secondary sex characteristics
3. A strong desire for the primary and/or secondary sex characteristics of the other gender
4. A strong desire to be of the other gender
5. A strong desire to be treated as the other gender
6. A strong conviction that one has the typical feelings and reactions of the other gender

Gender Dysphoria Symptoms

If you think you or your child has gender dysphoria, the DSM-5 outlines the following symptoms:

Children

• Your child has a preference or desire to play the opposite gender in make-believe or  fantasy play
• Your child strongly dislikes their sexual anatomy
• Your child dresses like the opposite sex
• Your child has at least 6 months of conflict between your child’s expressed gender and the sex they were assigned at birth
• Your child strongly prefers playing with toys, games, or other activities that are stereotypically reserved for the other sex

Adolescents and Adults

If you think that you are suffering from gender dysphoria, the DSM-5 outlines the following symptoms for adolescents and adults:

• You have a strong desire to be the opposite gender or a different gender
• You have a strong feeling or conviction that you may have feelings and reactions like that of another gender
• You have a strong desire to be treated like the opposite or a different gender
• You have a strong desire to remove or rid of the sex characteristics you were born with
• You have conflicts between your expressed gender and primary gender’s sexual organs and other sex characteristics (like breasts, armpit hair) for at least 6 months

Gender Dysphoria Treatment Options

Therapy

Individual and/or family therapy are recommended for children experiencing gender dysphoria, while individual and/or couples therapy is recommended for adolescents or adults suffering from gender dysphoria. 

Puberty Blockers

A young person who is early puberty experiencing gender dysphoria might ask for testosterone or estrogen, which would act as suppressors for physical changes associated with their born sex. 

Hormones

Adults suffering from gender dysphoria may take testosterone or estrogen to help them develop traits found in the sex they identify with. 

Surgery

The final option a person with gender dysphoria might choose is surgery, called sex-reassignment surgery. In addition, a person may only choose to have procedures to change their look enough to be in line with their chosen gender that they identify with.

Gender Dysphoria Levels of Care

Outside of the primary care setting, there are a few levels of care available to individuals with eating disorders. Let’s review binge eating disorder treatment options:

Outpatient

• Often where the treatment process begins
• Patient lives at home and attends hourly sessions at their providers’ offices
• Appropriate for patients who are medically stable, motivated, self-sufficient, and have adequate support and structure at home

Intensive Outpatient

• Typically occurs in a specialized setting (e.g., a clinic or hospital)
• Patients live at home and attend sessions three to five times a week that last approximately three hours each
• Program may include numerous types of therapy, including, but not limited to, individual, group, and counseling
• Appropriate for patients who are medically stable, self-sufficient, and have adequate support and structure at home, but may need some degree of external structure beyond self-control

Partial Hospitalization (Full-Day Outpatient Care)

• Occurs in a specialized setting and can be connected to a hospital program or a free-standing facility
• Patient requires a high level of supervision and monitoring
• Patient must be able to demonstrate some ability to retain the gains made in treatment without 24-hour monitoring
• Patient must not be a suicide risk or medically compromised to the point of requiring hospitalization
• Patient must have sufficient resources and motivation to attend program
• Patient’s home or living environment must be one that can be supportive of the recovery process
• Wide variety in quality of programming and hours of available treatment across programs, making it critical that patient’s needs and circumstances are appropriate for this level of care
•     Care is typically 5– 12 hours per day, 4– 7 days per week.

Residential Treatment Center

• Highly specialized programs that can be operated independent of hospital setting, but sometimes connected to a hospital setting
• Indicated when patient is not able to retain gains without 24-hour monitoring
• May be indicated when severity of symptoms necessitates constant monitoring in order to initiate and sustain symptom-free behavior and normalized eating
• May be indicated for patients whose activities of daily living are compromised by the disorder May be indicated for the development of a normalized, healthy lifestyle conducive to long-term health and well being
• May include specialized approaches that help the patient develop routines and activities of daily living that create patterns of behavior that are conducive to recovery
• Useful in situations with a high degree of psychiatric comorbidity that require intensified focus during treatment
• Sometimes indicated on the basis of a lack of supportive and safe environment where the patient can be expected be able to make meaningful, retainable progress
• May be appropriate when patient is overwhelmed with symptoms and unable to refrain from reverting to symptoms or other behaviors that compromise their well being when alone
• Appropriate for patients with either lower or higher levels of motivation, but generally patients must enter treatment voluntarily

Inpatient Hospitalization

• Generally used for a period of short-term stabilization proceeding initiation of treatment at lower levels of care
• Indicated in situation where patient is a suicide risk or gravely disabled by symptoms and unable to participate in residential or lower levels of care due to presenting symptoms, which may include depression, poor motivation, poor insight, and/ or other factors that limit ability to meaningfully participate in lower levels of care
• Appropriate in situations where hospital-based medical care is indicated (i.e., IV lines or other more invasive medical treatments are needed)

Get Online Gender Dysphoria Treatment

My name is Wendy Oliver-Pyatt, I am a consultant psychiatrist in Miami, Florida. I believe that compassion, when directed towards self and others, can lead to profound health and healing. If you need online gender dysphoria treatment, I can help! I have created a unique treatment model in which you will have the  opportunity to work with providers who I specifically refer to based on your current experience, diagnosis and needs.  I build this team around you and will coordinate your care with the goal to find meaning in your experience, and free you of your symptoms so that you can feel more at peace, and have greater capacity to adapt to life circumstances, to challenge yourself, to be creative, to develop intimacy and to have a fulfilling lifestyle With more than 20 years of clinical experience and a vast network of clinical partners, I’ve developed a unique treatment approach that delves into the underlying issues that place a person at risk for mental health conditions.  Together we will create a protocol and treatment plan that is well coordinated, and that can guide you on your healing process, toward health and inner peace. Contact me today!