my 7 year old aspie son says he wants to be a girl

Post Reply New Topic

^Bigender...Hmm. I've never heard of that one. Thanks.

I think what she/he meant is that during an autism-related meeting, several people in that meeting discussed a research that was done on people within the autism spectrum which concluded that %10 of the people within the autism spectrum are gender dysphoric (transgender like me ) and that a majority among the %10 are female-to-male transgenders. she/he also says that just because female-to-male transgenders are prevalent in the %10 of autistic spectrum doesn't mean that they are no male-to-female transgenders among them, myself included!

^I think that makes more sense...either that, or my mind is now spaghetti!

Actually, the autistic brain IS a spaghetti!

^Yep! My mind is made of squiggle noodles. Nice avatar! What a Kawaii maid-chan!

It's kind of a general term for anyone who is LGBT. It used to be an insult to gay people, but the LGBT community has reclaimed it.

kp: I think you should accept your child's gender identity, call her "she" and let her wear dresses if that's what she wants. She needs to know that you support her and accept her for the gender she is.

The original meaning of queer was to mean weird, strange and unusual. That is why it got applied to people who were 'different' by way of sexual preference.

Gay used to mean happy and celebratory.

It morphs, changes and hopefully for the better.

Actually, when I started feeling comfortable withe the idea of being a woman, I started Imagining myself as a maid-chan myself, much like Misaki from the anime "Kaichou Wa Maid Sama"

as for kp: Did your child started imagining herself as a girl when she was once considered a boy?

^Great! Now I've got a neat new manga to find online and read!
It's getting hard to stay on topic, isn't it? We could carry on like this over at my thread [We Love Kuraudo777].

He's 7. He may or may not know what he's talking about, at least not in the way you are thinking.

Be sure not to force your influence on him in that "maybe you are this...".

I liked Barbie dolls when I was around 5-6 but I'm in no way interested in "girly" things now.

If he said he wants to be a hot air balloon, I doubt you'd go nuts wondering if he has some identify issue, so don't when he said he wants to be a girl. Let him do his thing and just keep out of it for now if it's doing him no harm.

Kids can know they are transgender from a very young age.

^That's interesting. I never knew that.

They also say weird things sometimes when it's not something you should take seriously.

It's stupid to scream "YOU'RE TRANSGENDER!! !" to a 7 year old if he says he wants to be a girl. (I know no one is going that, but still) Maybe he didn't mean it LITERALLY. Maybe he just gets along better with girls and the boys make fun of him for it, so he thinks being a girl would make it more socially acceptable. There's no telling...

Last edited by Cubey on 17 Feb 2016, 9:25 pm, edited 1 time in total.

Yeah. But a lot of the time the kids really do feel they are the opposite sex and will live a better life if they are supported in that.

He has only existed for 7 years. I doubt he even understands himself fully, much less the world. Let him be who he is within reason of his own safety, but for Godzilla's sake, leave it at. He's only 7 for crying out loud.

I think your child is very lucky to have parents who seem willing to help them express themself.

I am trans (FtM), and I desperately wish I had grown up in an environment where I felt safe and comfortable enough to express myself. It's very encouraging that your child is even sharing these feelings with you openly instead of keeping desperate secrets. People are quick to say that children are too young to know themselves, but I would beg to differ. It's true that some things are a phase, but if it turns out not to be, and you have discouraged their preferred gender expression, it can be very emotionally and mentally damaging in the long run.

Clothing is just cloth to cover our bodies, and the shape and length of that cloth has nothing to do with gender. If a boy wants to wear a skirt or dress, I fail to understand how it is in any way, unacceptable.

For the sake of your child's happiness (coming from a person who has been dealing with similar experiences my entire life) let them know that there is nothing wrong with them. Do your best to call them by the name and pronouns they wish to be called and allow them to express themself freely. The purpose of youth is to figure out one's own identity, so let it be.

And don't be afraid. There are many resources for trans kids and their parents, and the very best thing you can do to ensure a happy and healthy life for your child, if they are indeed trans, is to give them a foundation of love and understanding. That makes such a monumental difference.