CROSSDRESSING NORMAL

Bloom, A. (2002) Normal, Random House, New York  

Bloom is a psychotherapist and adjunct at Yale. She takes us with her to see all those on the sexual edge. Some of the territory we have covered before, that includes the yin and yang of gay culture. The experience becomes new when we are given an inside look at the inter sexed. Where gays may dress the part and play the opposite sex, their bodies are generally like all the straight folks.

However, the trans gender world want the genital of the other sex. This is relative new dating back to the 1950's. The easiest change now is moving the body from male to female. The penis is dissected, a clitoris is formed along with the urinal and vaginal canals. The changes can take less  time than heart surgery. Many then have a genetic female and femaleness, but femininity is learned and it isn't easy. However, all the above is doable.

Changing female to male is harder. To create a penis, skin is taken from the buttock area and the dissected clitoris has skin surrounded from the buttock to form a penis.Blood veins are

intermixed so  that the new penis can have an erection. Sex then becomes pleasant, but orgasms

were out of the question at the time of the writing of this book. When complete, the penis can hang down and yet be aroused and can eliminate urine.

Their are some inter sexed that would like to stay as they are. They want to retain a double organ as long as there is the survival value of the elimination of urine. Later in life, they may want to have more surgery. What aggravates this situation is when surgery is forced upon a youngster. Numerous surgeries can cast a dispersion of depression on the young person.

She is least sympathetic to male to female transsexuals. They may switch to the other sex in terms of clothes often bought by their wife or anonymously at second hand stores. However, some can become very demanding and leave the wife with little room for her own femininity

The book is a compendium of case studies and interviews not only with the trans community but with doctors and relatives who work with this group on a daily basis.

The book appears to be an unusual contribution to this field that represents a small percentage of the population.