1/ Gender dysphoria is just one particular way that anxiety, fixation, and fantasy can manifest and obsess a person. GD means imagining one’s “truest self” and being lead by the fantasy of happiness one thinks they’ll attain in that transformed physical state.

2/ Pursuing any extreme fantasy, though, in real practical terms, is a road full of impractical truths: social fallouts, damaged relationships, physical difficulties, financial sacrifices. And none of these guarantee that you won’t end up lonely, hurt, or unhappy in the end.

3/ I truly wish the best for anyone who is pursuing a drastically different life, so none of this is meant as a condemnation.

I just wish we could be more honest, as a culture, about balancing fantasy with reality.

4/ Whether someone is obsessed with the idea of a passionate love affair, buying a luxurious home, finding a miracle drug, fighting a chronic illness, going on a dream vacation, or even conceiving children during an infertility struggle,

5/ quality of life and the grounding force of reality MUST be weighed against the sometimes excruciating pursuit of an imagined “happiness” that always lies just beyond our grasp.

6/ At what point does more and more intervention...

more and more forcing...

actually become an impediment to living a valuable and meaningful life NOW?