a-trans

[a-trans]

PCOS/Intersex: initial thoughts about (1) recognizing PCOS as a form of intersex and (2) someone with PCOS self identifying as intersex

I am not adding links here, because my intention is to come back to this topic in a few months and update my thinking. When I revisit this topic I’ll add the best links I can find and so on; so if anyone reads this and has questions/comments those will also be addressed.

So, here’s my impressions from a few hours of reading and initial searching:

- PCOS affects hormones/brain/etc extensively enough to be a form of intersex. However, these differences are not expressed until puberty; this seems to be a distinction that is important, but it wasn’t really clear to me yet how important and to whom. There are other forms of intersex that are recognized that aren’t obvious at birth, though.

- PCOS affects a lot of people; I saw numbers from “1 in 10” to “a third” of cis women having PCOS. So there’s also an idea I encountered that recognizing PCOS as intersex would make intersex not rare and that’s alarming to anyone who participates in or benefits from heteronormativity.

- I am not the only person asking this question! A bunch of trans non-binary and/or gender fluid folx have posted around he internet about identifying as intersex because of PCOS.

From my perspective as someone who lives with a mental illness: it’s up to the person with the “condition” to decide how to attach that condition to their identity, and how to structure their medical care. When I think about my own life, it’s so much easier and more empowering and more honest to think of my whole self as a coherent unit. This coherent unit has a bunch of ways of reacting to the world and itself that are not typical or expected; sometimes in very extreme ways that might be alarming to onlookers or cause unneeded or unwanted interventions. I choose how to structure my life to either cope with situations, or minimize them, or whatever, to make space for contentment and love (instead of stress responses, fear, terror, etc).

Rather than the noun (mental illness) describing something I have (and have an adversarial relationship with), I prefer adjectives, describing my state or temperament. I dislike the phrase “I have PCOS” in part because it’s a noun, something outside myself, something to battle. But it’s a major part of my life, even if I don’t want to do any battle with it! The impact of it in my body and mind is significant, and it’s certainly a part of my coherent-unit-self. For that reason alone I would prefer to say, “I am intersex” - it’s an adjective, it’s accurate to a degree, although not very informative, but already intersex means so many things, and it being informative per se is not the major reason people choose to identify with it, it seems.

If I can choose “intersex” as an identity or label because it helps me structure my life, someone else is free to choose “having PCOS” as their framing, so it’s not like 0.1-0.3 of cis women will get a memo telling them they identify as intersex now _or else_. Indeed, thoughts arose from talking to a friend who had PCOS and always referred to it as a “hormone disorder” in a way that was clearly working for her and empowering her in her body. Being surprised by her framing it that way and being happy with it was the reason that I decided to interrogate my own framing.

Regardless, though, PCOS is an ugly acronym, and whatever it is should have a better name. May I propose Orlando (cf the novel) 🤷‍♀️💁‍♂️💅

[a-trans]

My favorite part of being a man is the extensive&decadent skin care routine ✨💅

- 1mo on testosterone, worst acne of my life