It happens in the womb. Chemical signals are sent to the body and mind separately to instruct them to begin the process of gender differentiation. Sometimes these signals are mismatched, leading to the brain’s body map being wrong.
this sounds so hella handwavey haha
what chemical signals? why would we need chemical signals to map the body when we have nerves everywhere to tell us what all stuff we’ve got going on? how do genderfluid or genderqueer or other fuzzy people exist?
wait, no, more interesting question
if a baby is born missing a limb and grows into an adult, does that person experience phantom limb?
my scientific buddy wikipedia suggests yes (and also conflicts with itself over whether such a person only experiences pain or only experiences not-pain, but whatever). but then it also says that phantom limb is suspected to result the brain’s remapping the areas used for the missing limb to other parts of the body, now that they aren’t in use any more. and phantom limb syndromes fade with time. that sounds entirely reasonable given how adaptable the brain is. but then why wouldn’t dysphoria fade with time as well?
ALSO, regarding my earlier question, there are people born with phantom limbs that never existed! which is totally fascinating. but given the above i’m no longer sure whether this is related to trans at all.
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lexyeevee posted this
toksyuryel replied to your post:
this sounds so hella handwavey haha
what chemical signals? why would we need chemical signals to map the body when we have nerves everywhere to tell us what all stuff we’ve got going on? how do genderfluid or genderqueer or other fuzzy people exist?
wait, no, more interesting question
if a baby is born missing a limb and grows into an adult, does that person experience phantom limb?
my scientific buddy wikipedia suggests yes (and also conflicts with itself over whether such a person only experiences pain or only experiences not-pain, but whatever). but then it also says that phantom limb is suspected to result the brain’s remapping the areas used for the missing limb to other parts of the body, now that they aren’t in use any more. and phantom limb syndromes fade with time. that sounds entirely reasonable given how adaptable the brain is. but then why wouldn’t dysphoria fade with time as well?
ALSO, regarding my earlier question, there are people born with phantom limbs that never existed! which is totally fascinating. but given the above i’m no longer sure whether this is related to trans at all.
WHY IS ANYTHING ANYTHING