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[flexibeast]

In recent times, i've had to think about the question of whether the mind or body should have primacy. Specifically, if i 'feel' i'm female, despite my physiology - that is, if my mind has a certain sense of my sex that differs from the sex expressed by my physical appearance - why should we assume that my mind's sex is my 'real' sex? On what basis should i prefer to modify my body's apparent sex to match my mind's sex, rather than the other way around?

My initial thoughts on this are based on the idea that our mind represents our 'self' much more than our body does. If there were somehow a way of separating our mind and our body *waves at Descartes* so that others could only interact with either our mind or our body, my guess is that people would only feel they are actually interacting with us when they interact with our mind, and not with our body. A body without a mind is a body without feelings, personality, beliefs, experiences, knowledge, and so on.

Thoughts, comments, criticisms, anyone?

Comments

[flexibeast.livejournal.com]

Thanks for the background info - unfortunately, i haven't read as much about Benjamin as i should have. *slaps self on wrist*

In terms of the mind's affirmation of sex, though, and playing (as i typically do :-) ) Devil's advocate, we accept that the mind's affirmations can be wrong, e.g. when someone has paranoid delusions (which i have myself experienced in the past). So how can we be sure that the mind's affirmation of sex is not simply a delusion - the mind fooling itself for some reason?

[merrywitch.livejournal.com]

That's why we are forced to endure the "gatekeepers" of the Psychologic and Psychiatric type - not to try and ""cure"" us, but rule out any other psycho-pathology as a possible cause for belief of gender dysphoria. If everything else is eliminated, a true case of transsexualism may then be diagnosed..

Blessings ........... Merry

[flexibeast.livejournal.com]

*nod* That's what i've been saying to people. :-)