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Continuum of Gender  by Kate Thomas, Ph.D.

That leaves the heterosexual crossdresser somewhere in the middle of this continuum. This is the typical member of Tri-Ess, who has a less persistent crossgender identity than a transsexual and can be satisfied with only partial or periodic crossdressing.

So how do we know where we are on the continuum? There are a few questions we can ask ourselves.

1. How persistent are the feelings? How compulsive?
   
   
2. What do I want to do? What do I want my life to be like?
   
   
3. How often do I need to crossdress? Do I need to go out in public?
   
   
4. What types of clothing do I like?
   
   
5. What do I fanaticize about? Being a woman or being a crossdresser?
   
   
6. Which sex am I pretending to be?
   
   
7. Who do I need to tell?
   
   
8. Does crossdressing need to be part of my sexuality?
   
   
9. What would be the benefits of living full time?
   
   
10. What would be the risks of living full time? What would I lose?
    
    
11. Should I treat the symptoms?
    
    
12. Do I have the desire to change my physical being?

We need to have an open mind about this process. Not everybody is the same, or at the same place on the gender continuum. There are many different intersecting lines that make each of us unique. What we need out of this process is to find our own individual comfort zone. An organization like Chi Epsilon Sigma provides support to people who are learning about themselves and finding their own particular comfort zone on the gender continuum.

This newsletter is a labor of love for of our contributing editrixes. Please join the staff by submitting your own insights into the world of cross-dressing. Send your input to: Rachel Boyd, or R.R. Boyd, P.O. Box 2252, Ashburn, VA 20146-9152.

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Updated: 05/08/04