Do we use the word dysphoria too much?

That's a good question. I've been wondering this too, as I've noticed it can be hard for me to differentiate what emotions are brought on by or related to dysphoria and what ones aren't.

 

I personally don't call anything dysphoria in regards to myself, even things that should be obvious regarding body parts, because I can't know 100% whether it's actually connected or not.

 

This is very interesting. Personally, I just see dysphoria as the kind of thing that makes me gender variant, but its not really its own singular thing. For example, sometimes how I feel about my gender causes me anxiety, sadness, anger, numbness, dissociation, etc. but they're all very different feelings that come on in different ways about different things depending on how I'm feeling and also the situation. But in the end, they all relate to gender.

I think where the term "dysphoria" gets used too much is when people who are trying to discover themselves get told that's whats wrong with them, so then they chalk up all their problems to "the dysphoria" and don't try and think about it anymore or fix it.

For example, lets think about someone who says they experience signs of anxiety and depression but aren't sure if they have diagnoseable anxiety or depression. They might say something like "I feel sad every day and nervous when I'm out in public". Now, if someone's advice is just "oh well that's just depression you'll just have to live with it" that can sometimes leave people kind of optionless and more likely to blame their problems on "something they can't fix". But if you say "maybe you should try getting more exercise, taking vitamins, making a routine for yourself and having a friend to text so you don't get scared in public if you need to calm down or limit yourself to certain situations until you're comfortable" then the person might be less likely to get overwhelmed and take initiative.

So I dunno, but at the end of the day dysphoria literally just translate to distress (about gender). So as long as the person using the term knows what it means and knows how it affects them I think its okay, but I don't think its healthy for people to just chalk up all their complex feelings to one word without being self aware and trying to be proactive in as many ways as possible first and foremost. Especially people who also have other mental health issues that combine with their gender dysphoria; its still important to sort out what feelings are what in order to fix them in the situations they occur, or change the environment accordingly.

 

I do think it gets used too much, that and some people don't have a proper grasp of what it is and/or what role it plays.

 

I agree. Dysphoria really should only be used to talk about moments where you feel disassociated, anxious, or depressed due to things connected to your gender (i.e.: body, pronouns, etc.).

Sometimes, for some people, absolutely the tiniest thing could bring on dysphoria. "It's hot today" can totally equal "you can't wear a binder" and cause anxiety. Saying "I don't like how I look today" but not experiencing any of those(^) things, you might just not like how you look today.

It's the same with a lot of terms. People say "I'm so depressed, midterms are coming", and they are not depressed. "Triggered" is another big one I've seen soooo often lately. Most times, I willing to bet, they aren't triggered; they're upset or uncomfortable or reminded of something bad. Being uncomfortable is not the same as disassociating, having a panic attack, or having a flashback.

Sidenote: this is why I try really hard not to say "I'm starving" when I'm hungry. But that just shows that in one way or another, we are all guilty of misusing and misappropiating terms.

 

Maybe...but when people describe what they're feeling I think it becomes obvious what is or isn't dysphoria.


Saying "I'm starving" is totally legit because an overstatement is more of a stylistic divice. Plus in this case also a figure of speech.

 

That's definitely a good point. The word does seem to be thrown around a lot. The only things I call dysphoria are either body related links directly to bring DFAB or feeling shit due to bring misgendered etc. You can feel shit with it not relating to you being trans and people just need to learn to differentiate or at least question it.

 

Seeing as dysphoria is a medical phenomenon, I wish it wasn't thrown around so much. I think it's really important to identify and assess, so one can make an educated decision on how transitioning will affect them. It's really valuable for determining who you are and how you choose to proceed, so if people don't understand what it is, that's just most stress for them (e.g. all of the people who think dysphoria means hating yourself are likely to actually have dysmorphia or just body image issues, or people with genuine more moderate dysphoria might not realize their problem).

 

I agree. I don't call anything relating dysphoria, because I think pain is a normal part of life, and relationship with everything possible. I'm not genderqueer because I feel bad about XYZ. I'm genderqueer because that's who and what I am, it's like hair or skin colour. Limiting being non-cis to dysphoria and vice versa... Meh. Besides, it's all just words that we use to describe our experiences.