#intersex term

[the-intersex-experience]

an anon asked about this and we agreed it'd be fun to see what different people use! these are simply a personal preference with no wrong answers. We personally switch between condition and disability due to it causing pains bad enough to cause hospitalization / affects our daily life.

[minecraft]

Did y'all know that Elon Musk's Twitter recently added LGBTQ terms (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans, Transgender, Queer) to it's "offensive words" list - meaning that links to tweets with words containing them aren't previewed in twitter DMs and are generally de-boosted (shown to less people) by the website? Did you also know there exists a character called the zero-width non joiner that you can copy and paste in-between letters of any keyword so that the keyword visually looks the same but isn't automatically seen by the algorithm as containing a keyword?

[estrogenism]

very very funny how intersex transfems are by far the most vocal haters of tme/tma as binary terms because of the way that perisex people use them to discredit intersex trans people's complex experiences. but sure it's just those horrible afab trans people again!!

[Plaintext: very very funny how intersex transfems are by far the most vocal haters of tme/tma as binary terms because of the way that perisex people use them to discredit intersex trans people's complex experiences. but sure it's just those horrible afab trans people again!! End Plaintext.]

(also do not fucking try to witch hunt these people. i will block you on sight, i cropped out the urls for a reason)

edit: reminder that this post was made first and foremost about intersexism, and while it's okay to discuss other forms of oppression in the tags and reblogs (especially since i tagged them as such), please stop trying to brush off the original point.

[ipso-faculty]

Proposing some intersex gender modality & transition terms

So there are a whole bunch of different ways that intersex people can be/identify as trans. I've been thinking about what names would be useful for articulating these differences and in this post I'll list what I've got so far. 🧑‍🔬

I'm hoping to get feedback on these, so if you have feedback let me know! 💛 I expect to edit this post, to incorporate feedback and further ideas.

CW: mention of IGM and forced HRT

Types of transitions

Distransition: a medical transition forced upon an intersex person, such as through IGM or forced HRT. Dis- to indicate the negative aspect of the transition being coercive, as well as to connote disability since this process is so frequently traumatic and/or disability-causing. In disability studies language it's a form of debility (disability caused through systemic violence).

Mistransition: a distransition (forced transition) that is not in alignment with a person's gender identity. Mis- to indicate the incorrectness of the alignment as well as to maintain a negative connotation because this is a coercive transition.

Entransition: a consensual transition done by an intersex person. Contrast to distransition. En- acts as an opposite to dis- and also to me indicates a level of intent (e.g. envision, enact, enliven). It also serves to indicate that transition is different for intersex bodies than for perisex bodies.

Retransition: an entransition done by an intersex person who previously had been distransitioned. I.e. when an intersex person does a second transition to undo, alter, or improve a forced transition. Re- to indicate a second transition, but also that it's a revision of the first one. EDIT #1: This term is not intersex exclusive, and may also be used by perisex trans people who have transitioned multiple times. EDIT #2: For an intersex-exclusive version, I suggest "re-entransition", combining re- and en-.

Retrotransition: a retransition that is done to undo the effects of forced transition. So an intersex person who, after being forced into a binary gender, then transitions their body towards a best approximation of what their body's natural state would have been without forced transition. Retro- for backwards to indicate undoing that is worth differentiating from detransitioning.

Laterotransition: a retransition done by an intersex person to a gender that is neither the gender externally imposed by a distransition nor what their body's "natural state" would be. For example, an AFAB AIS person who was coercively transitioned female, who then later transitioned male. Latero- as contrast to retro- (latero- is to the side, antero- is forward) as well as to indicate the turn away from the path set forth externally by parents/doctors.

Anterotransition: a retransition done by an intersex person that continues the direction set forth by previous forced transition. So additional transitioning done by somebody whose gender is in alignment with what was externally imposed. While this will probably be somebody's AGAB, it doesn't have to be - some times intersex people are forcibly transitioned to a different gender than their AGAB.

All of these transitions would have an analogous gender modality. So an entransgender person is somebody who has/is undergoing/intends to entransition. And a retrotransgender person likewise has/is undergoing/intends to retrotransition.

I see distransition and mistransition as potentially useful for intersex people talking about trauma and structural intersexism. I think entransition might be useful for talking about how being intersex and transitioning is frequently different than for perisex people, especially if it is a retransition. And perhaps distransition and anterotransition may be of use to exparium folks.

Personally: I was distransitioned as an adolescent and have recently started a process of medically retrotransitioning.

Feedback welcome! A list of revisions will go at the bottom of this post. Will make flags for terms once I feel satisfied with them.

Edits

2024-01-16: I've been informed by @chipbutbetter that retrans is already used by some perisex folks with complicated transition patterns, so I have edited to say this term should not be intersex exclusive. Thanks! 🏳️‍⚧️

2024-01-16: thought about an intersex-specific version of retransition and landed on "re-entransition". A little awkward but combines both retransition and entransition! Flexible on whether to include a hyphen (reentransition).

[fortheloveofpiggy]

As an intersex person, stop using the terms AMAB and AFAB to exclude and put down each other. The terms were made by intersex people as criticism against assigned sex vs gender and I find it crazy that now people want to use it to tell people they can or can’t use certain things

Like a period tip described as “a tip for AFAB” just be more specific. “a video for people who have periods” because not just AFAB people have uterus or vagina, and not all AMAB people have a penis. Stop using AMAB or AFAB to only continue the heteronormativity and gender sex stereotypes and use them how they were intended!

You can still say “I am AFAB” or “I am AMAB” but stop using the term to put people down or exclude them

Don’t say things like “only for AFAB” or “AMAB can’t be transmasc!” Stuff like this is harmful to intersex people who the terms were originally made by anyways

Thank you for listening

[ipsogender]

Mesosex

EDIT 2023-11-23: the term has been revised to:

Mesosex: a person who has an intersex variation, but one which does not conform to perisex (non-intersex) ideas of what intersex is. For example, people who have intersex traits that are considered "mild", or who have variations such as PCOS Hyperandrogenism and Poland Syndrome.

Meso- for middle/in between, to refer to the state of being in between what the intersex community accepts as intersex and what the broader public (mistakenly) thinks intersex is.

More info on why the revision has happened: https://www.tumblr.com/ipso-faculty/734822362966540288?source=share

For archival purposes, this was the original post:

Mesosex: somebody who identifies with intersex people but not as intersex, and also feels perisex does not quite apply to them either. Meso- from Greek mesos (middle), to indicate that one feels in between having the intersex experience and the perisex experience. For example, people with reproductive disorders who feel they have common ground with intersex people but not so much common ground as to feel they are intersex.

There are conditions like PCOS and Poland Syndrome that exist on a spectrum from definitely intersex to perisex-ish, and I hope this term gives people on the perisex-ish side of the spectrum more useful word for themselves than the current language of "intersex-adjacent".

I want to be clear that people with conditions like PCOS and Poland Syndrome are completely entitled to call themselves intersex and that there is broad agreement within the intersex community that anybody with these conditions who feels they are intersex is intersex.

In coining this term I am hoping to validate and connect people who would otherwise call themselves perisex yet not feel it is quite accurate for them.

Mesosex people can have any gender, similar to how intersex people can have any gender.

In designing the flag our goal was to give an impression of something in between the intersex flag and cisperinormative gender colours whilst also including nonbinary people. The salmon background is chosen as a colour that is not quite pink, and the periwinkle ring is chosen for being not quite blue, but still reminiscent of the purple ring of the intersex flag. The white centre, put inside the purple-ish ring, is chosen to reflect how the nonbinary flag has white and purple in its middle.

The term and flag were workshopped with @scifimagpie. I had been thinking for a while that it would be useful to have a term for people who feel in between intersex and perisex, and these recent posts by @queercripintersex on identifying with rather than as not only convinced me there is actually an audience for such a term but also inspired me to get this done! PS. If you are questioning if you are intersex, check out this post by @intersex-support with a big list of intersex media, which you can use to get a sense on whether you resonate with intersex experiences. (Also check out their FAQ! And their past posts! They're really great!)

[angel-archivist]

It's so interesting and so exceedingly frustrating how agab is being utilized now within the queer community as a way to isolate and sort nonbinary and genderqueer folks into binary boxes that determine their moral purity levels, and their authority to do and write and exist.

The way nonbinary writers are being put under accusation of fetishizing gay men while their AGAB is continually brought up in a way that feels like queer-space-approved misgendering.

The way feminist circles that are supposedly trans-inclusive will use the word AFAB in a way that implicitly but intentionally isolates nonbinary people who aren't AFAB from joining. It's for women*.

The way the language is already flawed and leaves out intersex folks from the conversations while focusing on a binary of sex that isn't truthful.

The constant obsessing over whether someone is AFAB or AMAB and whether or not that gives them the privilege to join, do, write, or be present in certain spaces really really concerns me. How are we supposed to dismantle a binary system of gender if we can't even move past forcibly assigning and focusing on people's genders assigned at birth?

[antiterf]

InterACT made a glossary for a large amount of intersex variants! It's not all of them, as the glossary mentioned that new ones are constantly found, but it's one that's mindful of language and gender while trying not to be overly medical.

[deancaskiss]

it’s pride month in 2022. read some gay fics, have some gay thoughts, go get those gay kisses, and make the month as gay as possible

[magnetothemagnificent]

Happy Pride, if you claim that Judaism recognizes six or eight genders, you are not being an ally to Jews or trans people, you are just misinformed at best and maliciously co-opting the historical reality and labels of intersex and infertile people at worst :)

[cayde6feetunder]

tfw you agree fully with OP but they push the complains about terms like tme/tma as being ~ transmascs complaining they’re being labelled as tme ~ like terms like tme/tma aren’t disgustingly intersexist and while there are some people who do complain because they’re being labeled “tme” (I may not have ever seen this ever but that doesn’t mean there isn’t a possibility it happens) I and many others don’t fuck with it because it’s fucking intersexist and trying to dismiss that as an actual real issue with the terminology is dishonest. Get real.

[night-wyld-system]

Arguing with someone on twitter and seeing them piss themselves because I actually am not TME and do experience transmisogyny as an intersex woman is always fun.

Anyways if you think calling people "theyfab" is okay why don't you just call me a shemale. Come on, do it. I know that's what you want to call me. Because you purposefully will call me something that describes an idea you have of what is allowed to be sexualized and brutalized but somehow get cold feet when it comes to calling me intersexist or transmisogynistic terms. Is it because you know it's wrong?

Anyways yes there is an issue with transandrophobic people calling trans women and women who are also trans* this term in order to get around being openly transmisogynistic. They don't want to accept they're a transphobe who would beat and kill and destroy their own sisters because they want to claim they will only devour their brothers and siblings who have the "evil AGAB" but the truth is they have no love for trans people at all and would rather we all suffer together.

--------------------

* I have a weird situation where idk if I'm allowed to call myself a trans woman because of the whole intersex thing. If I stopped T I could switch to E because I have enough T naturally that I am in the area where I could be on hormones to transition either way. But I chose T because I came to accept I was trans in some way when I was being masculinized both by myself and others. And I actually feel a lot better and healthier now that I've been on T for a while but I'm sure it's possible if I went on E I may have also felt better because I just already had a weird imbalance of hormones. But the main reason I'm sticking to T is because I like facial hair and I like not having periods that remind me of my past with CSA.

[omegai]

Interdynamic : a term for individuals whose secondary sexs characteristics do not match with the typical secondary sex binary.

this term was coined by an intersex person (me) and is exclusive to intersex individuals.

[ipso-faculty]

Compiling some terms/posts useful for people questioning if intersex

Note: If a definition in is in quotes, the source material it is quoted from is linked to by the relevant term.

Highly relevant terms

Extersex - "[A] term for those who do not know whether they are dyadic or intersex. It could be because one feels as though they might be some form of intersex, but are unable to medically confirm it, or cannot confirm what intersex variation it is. It may also be for those who have a variation that may be considered intersex, but are uncertain if they want to identify as intersex." - @themogaidragon

Inter-Questioning - "a term for anyone who is questioning if they’re intersex, for any reason. (Whether it’s due to one’s physical body, familial experiences that imply one is, or possibly simply a mental feeling that one is intersex.)" - @eldorr

Quoisex - "[An] umbrella term for anyone who doesn't quite understand their sex or doesn't want to define their sex." - LGBTQIA+ Wiki Note: I understand this as more general than extersex, and would include people questioning if altersex. See the wiki entry for subtypes (quoigonadal, quoichest, etc)

Altersex - "An umbrella term to describe having or wanting primary or secondary sex traits/characteristics that do not align with the binary sex model that a significant portion of society has adopted. It is primarily used by those who are not intersex and are trans+ and wish to or transition specifically to have a body that does not fit the aforementioned sex model." -@intersex-questions Note: Being altersex does not make somebody intersex. I include it because many people questioning their intersex status realize this is what they're looking for.

Anisohormonal - "Aniso (unequal/uneven) + hormonal (relating to hormones). An individual who has an imbalance of hormones for any number of reasons. Such individuals may or may not also be intersex." - @sproutflags Note: includes non-intersex variations such as diabetes.

Subtypes of intersex people

Note: In my experience most people questioning if they're intersex have a hormonal intersex variation like PCOS, so I'm skewing towards this accordingly.

Dysgonadal - "[having] dysfunctional gonads. This includes agonadal (no gonads) and hypogonadal. Also known as gonadal agenesis/dysgenesis, dyssex and nullogonadal/asexed (null sex or avaginal/aphallia)." - @arco-pluris Note: contrasted with eugonadal - "people with functional gonads (reproductive cells). Includes hypergonadal (hyperfunctional gonads)"

Interhormonal - "Someone who is intersex and anisohormonal and/or feels that being intersex has impacted their identity as anisohormonal in some way and/or that their identity as anisohormonal has impacted their identity as intersex in some way." - @sproutflags

Intermeer - "a term used to describe all intersex variations that are caused by an overproduction of horomones (testosterone, estrogen, or both.)" - LGBTQIA+ Wiki Variations include: AES, FMPP, PCOS. Part of The Autre System for categorizing intersex variations.

Intermindre - "a term used to describe all intersex variations that are caused by a lack of horomones (testosterone, estrogen, or both.)" Note: The wiki lists AIS and EIS as examples although they are not due to a lack of hormones, but rather a lack of sensitivity to them. Part of The Autre System for categorizing intersex variations. See the wiki for more subtypes. Thank you to anon asker who pointed out the AIS/EIS issue.

Mesosex - "[A] person who has an intersex variation, but one which does not conform to perisex (non-intersex) ideas of what intersex is. For example, people who have intersex traits that are considered "mild", or who have variations such as PCOS Hyperandrogenism and Poland Syndrome." - @ipso-faculty

More intersex terminology

Intersex Terminology Masterpost by @intersexfairy

Edits: - 2023-12-13: corrected AIS mischaracterized as lack of hormones, ty to anon for correction - 2023-12-13: added interdynamic - 2023-12-20: added inter-questioning, thank you @fazbears-horror-attraction for sharing it! - 2023-12-21: removed interdynamic. Apparently "secondary sex" means something entirely different in omegaverse. Ty to anon for correction.

[genderstarbucks]

is there an intersex-loving-intersex or intersex 4 intersex identity like there is t4t, that you know of?

Intersex Loving Intersex, also known as I4I, is a term for intersex individuals who prefer or exclusively date (or otherwise any other type of relationship) other intersex individuals. This can be for safety reasons or any other reason.

I actually didn't know if smth like this existed so I was gonna coin one then I just found one on Pinterest LMAO

[doefrilled]

   𓂃 ͜    Ⳋ ✟ 𓏲    ͜ 𓂃    ctf amab / ctm afab

ctf amab

a label for people who, despite bodily being close-to-female, feel as if because of their experiences with being intersex, they are amab in some way or another, no matter what gender they were technically designated with at birth.

ctm afab

a label for people who, despite bodily being close-to-male, feel as if because of their experiences with being intersex, they are afab in some way or another, no matter what gender they were technically designated with at birth.

[ PT: Ctf amab / ctm afab.

Ctf amab: A label for people who, despite bodily being close-to-female, feel as if because of their experiences with being intersex, they are amab in some way or another, no matter what gender they were technically designated with at birth.

Ctm afab: A label for people who, despite bodily being close-to-male, feel as if because of their experiences with being intersex, they are afab in some way or another, no matter what gender they were technically designated with at birth. /end PT ]