Can You Live With Gender Dysphoria LONG TERM?
Dr. Z unpacks whether you can live with gender dysphoria long-term—especially relevant as many older adults in 2025 are asking, "How can I cope with this long-term? I'm not ready for transition, or transition doesn't feel safe right now."
Does gender dysphoria ever completely go away?
In Dr. Z's clinical experience, gender dysphoria stemming from gender identity (especially for those who've experienced it since childhood) does not go away. What happens: dysphoria fluctuates drastically throughout life, from sometimes experiencing it very mildly or almost neutrally, to very severe, causing tremendous distress.
Why is this fluctuation so challenging? It's responsible for adults feeling ongoing gaslighting of what they feel. It's responsible for sinking into denial. When pain goes from barely noticeable for a whole month to completely debilitating the next month, then vanishes again, you reasonably start thinking it's transient, temporary, might go away permanently.
This fluctuation, combined with not wanting transition (understandable once you have realistic expectations of what it entails), creates a position where you grapple with dysphoria long-term, hoping it'll vanish.
The million-dollar question: Can you just manage it for the rest of your life?
In this video, Dr. Z addresses:
Why dysphoria is like a living organism that expands or shrinks unpredictably. How triggering factors are sometimes predictable (gender envy) but often spontaneous and unknown. Why stress in other life areas affects dysphoria intensity (everything is interconnected). Adaptive versus maladaptive coping techniques. Living in a state of constant unknown—and why catastrophizing about future dysphoria actually triggers worse responses.
