Please help remove Transvestic Disorder from DSM-V

[Anonymous]

I have some people comment on this:

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As I recall this petition needed to get 10,000 signatures by some time in March or April. People are still signing it, but it only stands at 3,832. Has the date been extended? Have the signatures already collected had any effect toward the goal? Perhaps someone can let us all know.

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Transvestic fetishism, in my opinion, has nothing to do with crossdressing. It has to do with the inability to experience sexual gratification only through the clothing of the other gender and lacks interaction with others and is usually the only way the individual can gain sexual satisfaction.

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In my opinion, the way this is worded, “transvestic fetishism” is about the inability to achieve sexual gratification, except when wearing the clothing of the opposite gender. I believe this to be an applicable diagnosis in certain circumstances, to specific individuals. In no way does the inclusion of this disorder in the DSM seek to paint all transsexual women with this diagnosis, and if one were to find cases of this disorder being used as such, the proper means of rectifying it is to retrain that specific psychiatrist in the proper diagnosis of this disorder. Abolishing a disorder which clearly does exist isn’t the answer here.

I think there is a degree of mutuality between transvestic fetishism and cross dressing – I am not convinced that they are totally sepaarate – there will be (a few) cases of people with their dress in both camps, although I have no evidence to support that. Putting that aside, if there is behavior with this basis and it causes a person “significant distress or impairment in important areas of functioning”, then it should be kept in the DSM. As for the required signatures and rules as to cut off date, I am not sure. To be frank, I am not overly confident the American Psychiatry Association would change the category because a bunch of people signed a petition anyway. They may look at adjusting the definition or add to the practice manual if any issue raised by a petition warranted merit, I am sure.

[bee]

As this linked website and the term used applies to people residing in the US, I am not sure that votes from people in another country would actually help…. Maybe I am missing something?

[Anonymous]

The reason that I posted this is that even though the APA is American, Australian practitioners do refer to DSM.

Virginia, I agree with your comments. I’ve also had comments from another forum from a person who benefited from finding the definition of their situation in the DSM and then taking that to their doctor.

I know of many people who fulfil the criteria to be diagnosed with Transvestic Fetishism. Luckily most of these people have been lucky enough to have received support and counselling from friends and practitioners who have realised that the distress is what needs to be treated, not the transvestism.

My main concern is with the proposed rewording of Tranvestic Fetishism (which I believe is a valid diagnosis), to Transvestic Disorder. I’m concerned that this may encourage practitioners to treat the transvestism, rather than the distress.