tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2472400923228993687.post5914869004375298858..comments2024-03-26T16:19:11.382-07:00Comments on Crossdreamers: Yes, I'm BarbaraSally Molayhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02015510914816971645noreply@blogger.comBlogger3125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2472400923228993687.post-37382057900086081172017-01-20T12:38:29.853-08:002017-01-20T12:38:29.853-08:00There is an interesting article over at The Daily ...There is an <a href="http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2017/01/19/what-science-can-tell-us-about-trans-people-s-brains-and-what-it-cannot.html" rel="nofollow">interesting article over at The Daily Beast</a> that touches upon the phantom body phenomenon and being transgender. <br /><br />The article refers to Dr. Vilayanur <a href="http://www.crossdreamers.com/2012/04/bigender-sex-switchers.html" rel="nofollow">Ramachandran (who I have covered before in this blog)</a>. <br /><br />//In the late 2000s, he and UCSD colleague Dr. Paul McGeoch published two fairly speculative papers examining the parallels between transgender people’s bodily experiences and another one of Ramachandran’s favorite areas: “phantom limb,” the fairly common sensation that a body part is still there after it has been amputated.<br /><br />Interestingly, some transgender people say they experience “phantom limb” sensations about body parts they do not yet possess. On transgender web forums, for example, it’s easy to find transgender men who describe experiencing “phantom penis” sensations. Some transgender women report similar feelings about other body parts...<br /><br />The underlying logic was almost seductively parsimonious: Because there is often a mismatch between transgender people’s internal body images and their own anatomy, the brain wouldn’t exactly miss certain parts if they were to disappear."<br /><br />Ramachandran's theory has not been proven, but these observations tells me that Barbara's experiences are far from unique. The transgender brain will actually produce such "phantom" body parts or bodies under certain circumstances.Jack Molayhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03629363646482611722noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2472400923228993687.post-30528224811980697682017-01-20T00:30:28.227-08:002017-01-20T00:30:28.227-08:00Felix here...
A great description of what I would...Felix here...<br /><br />A great description of what I would see as a transgender awakening. Despite the amount of essays I've written about gender I still haven't shared the details and circumstances of my own awakening...I still have a few stories to tell. <br /><br />As I have mentioned on many occasions, such beautiful experiences for me are bittersweet: you arrive at an essential truth about yourself but soon arrive at a truth of biology: that nature has stacked the odds against you realizing that true self. Hopefully the author was able to find her own path.<br /><br />Personally, though, despite the bittersweet nature of transgender awakening for non-transitioners, I would never change it or want to go back. There seems to be much greater solace and beauty in knowing what I am, rather than the state of ignorance I grew up with.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2472400923228993687.post-44545932371079442282017-01-19T06:25:47.267-08:002017-01-19T06:25:47.267-08:00The phantom body is real. Actually, in my case it ...The phantom body is real. Actually, in my case it was the experience of the phantom body that got me started as a crossdreamer activist, establishing this blog. I guess my experience wasn't as positive as Barbara's, but then again, this was nearly ten years ago, and there was no crossdreamer community to relate to. <br /><br />I must admit the whole experience scared me, but I knew enough about psychology that this experience was born out of my subconscious. It was telling me: This is real, whatever it is that causes it, and you'd better do something about it! <br /><br />In my case: I started writing. Others may do something completely different, but the point is -- I think -- to find some ways of integrating this into your consciousness, make "her" a part of you, whether you ultimately decide to transition or not.Jack Molayhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03629363646482611722noreply@blogger.com