Implications for parents of androgynous, hermaphroditic or transsexual children

Read Also

  My readings in biopsychology,  among other things, have led me to hate anti-gay and anti-transsexual propaganda.    To me, blanket denunciation of homosexuality or transsexualism and promulgation of social repression of these lifestyles,  whether on the basis of religious motives or otherwise, is like proning punishment of mentally deficient people, redheads,  sick people,  geniuses,  and the like.   On the other hand,  I believe there is another form of hatred and alienation which can also be potentially harmful.   This consists of parental hatred of the biological sex of the progeny.  The typical such scenario is the single mother who has a boy but would have preferred a girl,  and raises the infant and child more in the manner of a girl than a boy.  I believe that such parental behavior would normally not suffice to transsexualize a child,    a biological predetermination toward transsexuality probably being necessary for this to occur.   On the other hand,  such boys,  provided with the usual male-oriented upbringing, could perhaps  in certain cases have evolved toward normal male identities and sexual orientations rather than transsexualism   -thus acceding to a simpler and more balanced and perhaps happier life (this remains to be proven).   In accordance with this,  Hore and colleagues,  and Stoller and Baker separately published case reports in 1973 in the Archives of Sexual Behavior   of two pairs of brothers from two families,  all having undergone sex-change operations after having been raised by single women who were believed to prefer females.  

I am afraid all of the above does not make it very clear what parents should do when they note an androgynous disposition in their young child.   First,  I think, they should consult physicians to explore the possibility of a medical condition or biological explanation.  Second,  they should consult expert sexologists specialized in these issues -at least so as to identify the options available to them regarding the appropriate decisions to make and parental style to adopt.  Third,  they should keep an open mind about sexual identity and sexual orientation,  and maintain unconditional positive regard towards their child.    Finally,   as is now being stated by self-help groups of hermaphrodites,  they should be very hesitant to authorize early surgical operations which remove all chance of orgasm  -before the consolidation of sexual identity and sexual orientation.