I just watched a facinating show that began in Samoa where gender was/is determined by the needs of society (which rarely extended beyond a village) for males or females. A family would decide. based on perceived need, to raise a male as a female. Later, the child selected would continue living as a gender female, but differently than a genetic female...yet accepted by society. They would only have sex with heterosexual males. They would only be considered "gay" if they had sex with another (forgot the word) male raised female. The Austailian anthropologists who was interviewed went on to mention that this phenomenon was recorded by early Western European explorers returning from Thailand, India, and America (Native Americans)... Interesting!

The show moved to Trinidad, CO. affectionately known as the "gender reassignment captial of the World". Evidently, Dr. Marcy Boyd (formerly known as Mark Boyd) performs 5-6 gender reassignment surgeries a week. She got her surgery in '98.  They showed the OR during the procedure. I crossed my legs and whinced.

The patient was a 40 year old "woman", married for 12 years, who began exploring transition when her marriage failed. Her current boyfriend, Bill, had just finished having facial feminization surgery 5 weeks prior to her reassignment in preparation for spending the next 6 months as Erin. If the "Erin" experiment failed, he was going to marry (I forgot her name) the woman who just got reassigned in public. If he liked living as a woman, he would just be her friend, but the relationship would be over. She claimed that after hormones, she is only interested in Men.

Ok, book report over... Would you consider the circumstances surrounding WhatsHerName and Bill unusual? Are the physiological/psychological indications so strong that you can't apply some reason? emotions?

I have no idea what it all means, but it was a cool show. Gotta Go. World Series is on!

Wow, that's interesting about the Samoan culture.  Thanks for posting it sweetie.

It's Dr. Marcie Bowers (not boyd).  Marcie is in fact a transgendered woman.  A GYN by training.  She is the protoge of Dr. Biber who was one of the early pioneer SRS surgeons. Dr. Biber did her surgery and she took over his practice a few years ago.  Dr. Biber passed away a couple of years ago.

I have two good friends who have had surgery with her, and if not for the fact that Jessica and I can BOTH have SRS in Thailand (and boob jobs, and a nose job for me) for less than US Dr's charge for one SRS, I'd go to her.

RE: Capndude's question.  Well on the surface it doesn't seem too unusual.  There are TS's in all sorts of circumstances.  Some t-girls like boys, some like girls, and some like money and it doesn't matter what's on the other end of the stick.

Jessica and I know of a couple where the guy is a FtoM and the girl is an MtoF (and I guess they have sex traditional way?).  giggle.

But what bothers me a little is that Bill was going to "experiment" with living as a woman.  That tells me he's probably not transsexual in the clinical sense.  A clinical transsexual usually has an overwhelming desire to live as the female they are inside.  It usually mainfests itself at an early age, though many people by social conditions repress their feelings until adulthood when it often reaches a point of transition or die.

Not always of course.  If we have learned anything  it's that for every transgendered person there is a variable that makes them unique.

As for only liking men because of the hormones.  No.  However... I have heard other transsexuals speak of such feelings so is possible to be hormonal.  But I think is probably more of a manifestation of the female role and body.  A girl needs what a mans got.  

Giggle,
TS Jamie

I stand corrected. I am really lucky I got the "B" part right.

I thought their dilemma was pretty unique. I also think there is more to the story than revealed on the show... like how long has Bill had female urges or what not. The hormone issue I had never heard before.