Page 27 - (DK) Help Your Kids with Growing Up: A No-Nonsense Guide to Puberty and Adolescence

GENDER 25

Breaking down gender stereotypes
Most societies encourage people to behave in a certain way, wear
appropriate clothes, and do particular things, based on conventional
ideas about what it means to be a woman or a man, and to be
feminine or masculine. Unfortunately, people who do not conform
to these expectations may encounter disapproval from society.
Thinking more broadly about gender allows everybody to express
themselves more fully. Gender stereotypes regularly appear in the
media and may lead someone to feel there are things they can’t
or shouldn’t do, but nobody should feel limited by social norms, △ Challenging social norms
regardless of whether they are male, female, neither, or both. Everyone should feel able to achieve their full potential
and make their own choices, free from the constraints
of gender stereotypes.

Gender dysphoria TEEN HINTS P ARENT TIPS
If your teen needs support
For most people, their gender identity If you’re confused
matches their biological sex (cisgender). • Research other people’s experiences • Puberty can be an upsetting time for
However, for some, the sex they were and thoughts on gender; you’re not a person with gender dysphoria, so
assigned at birth may not correspond alone in your questions. it’s important to listen carefully and
with how they identify or express take your teen’s concerns seriously.
themselves. Gender dysphoria refers • Talk to someone you trust – a • Find resources, including books,
to the emotional distress a person close friend, school counsellor,
experiences if their body doesn’t match or support group. websites, and people to help you
learn more.
their gender identity. • If you feel ready to share and think
A person with gender dysphoria your parents will support you, find • Avoid pressuring your teen to behave
may feel very uncomfortable with the a time when you can talk to them differently. Remind them it’s okay to
assumptions society makes about their alone. If you are concerned your act in a way that doesn’t conform
gender identity based on their biological parents will react negatively, don’t to traditional expectations.
sex. To match the way they feel inside, feel pressured to tell them – it’s okay
some people choose to change their to wait.
name, their appearance, or their
anatomy to align with how they feel.

Genderqueer Androgynous
This is someone whose A gender expression
gender identity does not fall that includes
easily into either woman or approximately equal
man; this term covers a aspects of both the
wide range of identities. Gender fluid feminine and the
A person whose masculine.
Questioning gender identity includes
Refers to a person who is a range of male, female,
reluctant to label themselves masculine, and feminine
while they explore their traits. They don’t consider
gender identity. their gender to
be fixed.

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