TRANSGENDER PEOPLE AND FIBROMYALGIA

Transgender people are defined as people with a gender identity different from the one they were assigned at birth and who wish to express their gender in a way that is not consistent with the one they were initially given.

Transgender individuals include people who present themselves in a way that differs from that imposed by mainstream expectations. This diversity concerns sexual orientation, clothing, accessories, cosmetics, body modification, and, of course, self-perception itself. These individuals may be gay, straight, lesbian, bisexual, asexual, transexual, crossdresser, gender varied, or queer. The difference between a transgender person and a transexual person has to do with the anatomical issues of gender (sex reassignment surgery), a person's gender disposition and predisposition, and societal expectations. But above all, self-determination has priority.

Typically, the trans community enjoys the right to universal recognition and equality before the law, access to the right to work - health services - sex reassignment treatments - and insurance coverage. In other words, there is legal recognition of gender identity, at least institutionally.

The ICD of Global Psychiatry defines transgenderism as a mental, behavioral disorder expressed by the individual's desire to live and be accepted as a member of the opposite sex. The American Psychiatric Association's DSM defines transgenderism as a mental disorder in which these individuals feel intense dysphoria about their anatomical sex. Because extreme interpretations do not constitute dialectics, from a more Doric eye (From a distance), there is a generalization in ''behavior disorder'' and ''intense dysphoria''. Not all transgender people experience discomfort, nor do they all have a behavioral disorder to the extent that the diverse behavior does not impact the person's functioning. What is certain is that the lower the self-acceptance and acceptance by others, the greater the behavioral disorder and discomfort of transgender people. The same insufficient internal and external approval occurs in patients with fibromyalgia and chronic pain. Many transgender people experience distress, anxiety, depression, and suicidal ideation. Recent scientific studies have shown a high incidence of fibromyalgia in the trans community. This is due to psychological strain and gender dysphoria. Of course, as expected, transgender women have a higher rate of fibromyalgia. Health professionals dealing with transgender issues need to be alert to the presence of fibromyalgia, chronic pain, and fatigue.

Transgender people and fibromyalgia patients share common elements: feelings of physical discomfort, lack of self-recognition, social anxiety, inability to identify with social roles, and feelings of anger, sadness, isolation, and self-blame.

Conclusion: The cis community has not to be so rigid, and we have to be more flexible.