There was an interesting person who came on the Reddit r/biid subreddit who said she did not want her breasts. She talked like people who suffer from BID on how they feel about their bodies; that her breasts should not be there. She did not have a problem being a woman and did not want to transition further but wanted her breasts gone. She did get them removed, which is possible for such a thing but not for people who suffer from BID, and she is very happy now and is now free from the dysphoria.
So I feel this is interesting. Since the ICD-11 talks about people who suffer from BID wanting to be disabled. Maybe that is not the right thing to say. It is truly more about the fact that they feel that their body is wrong. That their mind tells them how their body should be, but how their body is not what it should be. So they should not be talking about wanting to be disabled but about being in the wrong body. Very similar to GD and having the wrong gender. Very interesting, I think.
Interesting. I have encountered similar cases in the past, and I think one interesting line of thought here is discomfort and psychological distress.
For example, imagine a woman with a family history of breast cancer who feels distress about having breasts because of the possibility of developing cancer, even though there is currently no sign of disease. Depending on the circumstances, that psychological distress and perceived risk may still be considered relevant when discussing preventive surgery.
Of course, there may be all types of variables at play in cases like the one you mention, including gender incongruence or gender dysphoria.
I also think that removal of the breasts (just as procedures such as penile inversion vaginoplasty may occur within male-to-female gender-affirming care) is generally viewed as more acceptable than amputating a physiologically healthy limb. A large part of that difference comes from the established medical history and clinical recognition of gender dysphoria/incongruence.
Leandro Loriga, Ph.D.
Medical Anthropology · Bioethics · AI Ethics
Anthropological and bioethical consulting for public institutions, healthcare organisations, and research initiatives.
Philosophical practice and ethical consultation.
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Esse et non esse possunt identificari
An up-and-coming US-based actor/comedian talks openly about her need to remove her breasts due to gender dysphoria. She identifies as a lesbian, not trans, and not non-binary. She is very happy with her decision and very open about her experience. It's nice to know people can truly find happiness. I hope it happens for all of us someday.
https://youtu.be/XXAXQAxFdFI?si=wyEj7R-xn8LstU_Q
