An Ugly Stereotype That Persists About the Bisexual Community

Orignally posted on the BiSocial Network

“Bisexuals are whores. Oh my God, what a bisexual slut! You’d better stay away from him; he’s bisexual and probably has all kinds of diseases. You’d better stay away from her; she’s bisexual and will run off with a man [or a ] woman.”

Do any of these sound familiar? If you’re an out bisexual, you’ve probably heard all of them at least once. It’s the age old (and more annoying every year) stereotype that bisexuals will and do sleep with anyone, are promiscuous; and have no standards. While this stereotype is promoted less than it used to be, it’s still quite common to come across it today in both the gay and straight communities, especially in the media and/or when a celebrity comes out as bisexual.

We all know the right wing part of the religious community perpetuated for years and still tries to perpetuate the exact same stereotype about gays and lesbians, but now it’s becoming increasingly socially unacceptable to do so, which is a good thing.

However, why haven’t bisexuals been included much in the trend of making this stereotype unacceptable? Why is it still relatively acceptable to apply the term to us? Why do well meaning websites continue to post “how to” guides about how to date us (can anyone imagine one that said “how to date a gay person or a straight person?)”

Everyone knows there is promiscuity in every community, including the ones who pretend that it doesn’t exist. It’s pretty accepted by society at large as normal and ok in the straight community, somewhat accepted as normal and ok in the gay and lesbian communities (just look at shows like the L Word and Queer As Folk), but not too accepted when it comes to the bisexual community.

We often have to go out of our way to prove both to friends and potential partners the “yes we are bi but—we are also monogamous” scenario. Why do bisexuals have to be the ones to try “extra hard,” even though there is promiscuity in both the gay and straight communities, and it’s been proven that overall we’re not more likely to cheat or sleep around then the rest of the population?

One explanation that is mentioned often is that the idea of uncertainty scares most people. Dating someone who is attracted to both genders can make some people feel uncertain, that that person is fully interested in them and won’t “switch the next day.”

I’ve never understood why the opposite gender is a threat, but people don’t seem to think too much about the uncertainty [or the] possibility of a partner cheating with someone of their own gender. In recent years, one of the best things that the gay community has been able to do to combat homophobia is to show society, that in many ways same-sex couples are not that different from opposite-sex ones, when it comes to the issues they face.

This commonality has helped more people see gay people as “people” and not just gay. Yet it’s been harder for the bisexual community to follow this image, largely because the idea of bisexuals being monogamous is still not that widespread.

The bisexual community—just like the gay community, has put considerable effort into dispelling this stereotype, which can be seen all over the Internet and in numerous books. Yet, the stereotype persists. How can we help overcome it?

About the Contributor: Maria M: Maria M. is a political writer in all forms of activism—and has marched in Washington DC for equal rights and landing bisexual interviews in politics and literary news. Maria came out as bi in early 2008. Website: http://bisocialnetwork.com/author/Maria-m/

Inadequate Research On HIV (Gleaner Letter)

The Editor, Sir:

Starting with a 'scientific' denial of global warming, W. West's letter, published September 9, seems to suggest that men who have sex with men (MSM) advocates have similarly 'misled' the UN by misrepresenting the fact that HIV incidence is increasing among MSM even in countries that have decriminalised same sex intimacy.

Once again I find West's letter disingenuous at best, or representative of sloppy research at worse. The fact is, internalised homophobia is a powerful force even in countries with decriminalisation because while laws and policies change, stigmatising attitudes and actions don't.

This leads to unsafe sex and the spread of HIV as found by Drs Theo Sandfort & Vasu Reddy of the Institute for Women's and Gender Studies & The Centre for the Study of AIDS, University of Pretoria, in February 2010.

First step

Decriminalisation is, therefore, only the first step called for by UNAIDS to address the HIV epidemic among MSM. They also call for the removal of stigmatising and discriminatory policies and practices which drive persons underground away from effective HIV prevention, treatment, care and support interventions.

There is also evidence that since the advent of antiretrovirals to treat HIV, more persons (not only MSMs) are once again 'enjoying' unsafe condom-less sex. AIDS is no longer viewed as a death sentence and is seen to be as treatable as gonorrhoea and syphilis.

In fact, heterosexual women are now the largest population of HIV infected individuals (UNAIDS report 2009).

There is also an alarming rise in new infections among older South African heterosexual couples. HIV is no longer a 'gay' disease as it was in the '80s. Following West's reasoning, therefore, governments should label heterosexual sex (like cigarette smoking) dangerous and perhaps criminalise it as it represents a threat to public health!

The relation between human sexuality and HIV is complex. Criminalisation of any adult consensual activity will not stop persons from engaging in it.

I am, etc.,

MAURICE TOMLISON

maurice_tomlinson@yahoo.com

Montego Bay, St James

Low sex drive? It could be a hormone thing

Dr Jacqueline E. Campbell

HORMONE levels may begin to change in your 30s, as you enter perimenopause, the interval in which your body begins its transition into menopause. In the years leading up to menopause, small hormonal imbalances can exist, so by the time menopause begins, you may have already experienced close to 20 years of hormonal imbalance.

Perimenopause and menopause hormone imbalance can be marked by a variety of symptoms — weight gain, hot flashes, night sweats, insomnia, mood swings, anxiety, depression, foggy thinking, memory changes, headaches, menstrual irregularities, vaginal dryness, decreased libido, dry skin, and fatigue.

These symptoms of hormone imbalance are caused primarily by an incorrect relationship between the two main female hormones — progesterone and oestrogen — in the body. They, along with other hormones, DHEA and testosterone, exist in a delicate balance, each performing a unique biological function. Variations in that balance can have a dramatic effect on your health, resulting in symptoms of hormone imbalance. The amounts of these hormones produced by your body can vary depending on factors such as stress, nutrition, exercise and ovulation.

When the balance between oestrogen and progesterone is thrown off in favour of oestrogen, a woman may become "oestrogen dominant". This condition is associated with a number of conditions, including endometriosis, uterine fibroids, polycystic ovaries, and breast cancer. Oestrogen dominance can occur in any woman, but perimenopausal women, who typically experience a more rapid decline in progesterone than in oestrogen, are especially at risk.

Lifestyle changes

Your lifestyle has a direct effect on your hormones. Your health and hormones can be balanced through lifestyle changes such as eating healthily, exercising on a regular basis, getting adequate sleep, reducing stress and when necessary, using hormone replacement therapy.

Nutrition

Food is fuel for your body. If you eat junk, you cannot expect your body to operate normally. As you age, you may notice that you just cannot eat the way you used to without feeling bloated or gaining weight. Excess calories will get stored as fat -- literally "from the lips to the hips and belly". Your diet should include soybeans, nuts, fruits, and vegetables which contain natural phytoestrogens (plant-based oestrogens) , healthy proteins and small amounts of carbohydrates.

Exercise

Exercise is part of the complete and total package for good health. Regular physical exercise increases your metabolic rate, burns calories and improves fitness. Exercise reduces your risk of heart disease, osteoporosis, diabetes, breast cancer, osteoarthritis, and depression.

Sleep

At night during sleep, hormones rebalance. Sleep problems can affect women at different times, but are especially common in the perimenopausal and menopausal periods. Stress, anxiety, depression, medications, and hormone imbalances can cause sleep disturbances.

Stress management

Manage stress. High stress levels increase the production of cortisol -- a stress hormone -- affecting other hormones and throwing them off balance.

Bioidentical hormones

Women should begin to monitor and, if necessary, correct hormone imbalances long before menopause, when there is still time to restore youthful hormone levels. Among younger women, it may be possible to balance oestrogen and progesterone levels with natural hormones, such as phytoestrogens. Menopausal and postmenopausal women who have dramatically reduced levels of hormones, may find it necessary to use specially formulated hormones that are bioidentical and supplied in approximately the same ratio found in the body. These bioidentical hormones are manufactured in a laboratory by using different types of plants and they have the same molecular structure as hormones made by the body. They are often used in conjunction with supplements that have been shown to reduce the side effects of menopause. Any type of hormone replacement therapy needs to be tailored to your needs as what worked for your friend may not work for you.

Every aspect of your lifestyle can affect hormone balance and just as importantly, hormone balance can profoundly influence every aspect of your life. Restoring hormone balance can be the key to feeling your best and alleviating health problems.

Dr Jacqueline E Campbell is a family physician and the author of the book A Patient's Duide to the Treatment of Diabetes Mellitus.

More on Intersexuality ....................

INTERSEX,
is the broad term for numerous conditions in which an individual is born with a reproductive or sexual anatomy that doesn’t seem to fit that average definition of male or female. Not all Intersex conditions are evident at birth; it is not unusual for an individual’s intersexed anatomy to develop much later in life.

There are actually various types, which makes no two Intersex individuals that same.

There are a variety of types of conditions related to Intersexuality.

Here are some of the most common ones:

Klinefelter Syndrome:
occurs in “males” who inherit an extra X chromosome from either their mother or father. These individuals appear to look like boys but after puberty undergo changes, such as lack of body hair, breast development and producing ejaculate without sperm.

Turner Syndrome:
includes individuals with a karyotype of XO. In this condition, female sex characteristics are presented but undeveloped compared to that of a typical female

XXY Syndrome:
a collection of traits caused by the possession, in a male, of an extra Y chromosome

Triple-X Syndrome:
a collection of traits caused by the possession, in a female, of three X chromosomes rather than two.

Gonadal Intersexuality:
the possession of both testicular and ovarian tissue in the same individual

Androgen Insensitivity Syndrome (AIS):
the congenital absence of a functional androgen receptor, making the body unable to respond to androgens; female-looking genitals on a male-appeared body.

Congenital Adrenal Hyperplasia (CAH):
a congenital defect of hormonal metabolism in the adrenal gland, causing the gland to secrete excessive levels of androgen; male-looking genitals on a female-appeared body.

Some birth Statistics of various Intersex types
Klinefelter 1 in every 500 - 1,000 births
Turner 1 in every 2,500 births
Triple-X 1 in every 1,000 births
AIS 1 in every 13,000 births
CAH 1 in every 13,000 births
[These statistics are approximations]

One would note the term 'defect' only applies when referencing a medically diagnosed notion of 'normal' functioning and is not the central theme of the intersex person.

Since more often than not, Intersex individuals have their sex “assigned” to them, questions of morality become increasingly popular. In a society obsessed with normalization, most Intersex individuals struggle to fit into an appointed identity, rather than create their own.

Whether discovered at birth or later in life, intersex conditions can pose a number of challenges for the affected person as well as their families. Often people with intersex conditions feel ashamed, isolated, upset or even depressed. Intersex individuals struggle to coexist in a society that leaves very little room for people outside of what is considered normal. Typically people with intersex conditions spend most of their lives coming to terms with their identities and learning to embrace their differences.

(Photo: Example of Ambiguous Genitalia)

Majority of parents with Intersex children believe that “fixing” the condition earlier in their child’s life is the ultimate solution. Since more often than not Intersex individuals have their sex “assigned” to them, questions of morality become increasingly popular. In a society obsessed with normalization, most Intersex individuals struggle to fit into an appointed identity, rather than create their own.

To surgically configure the genitals of an Intersex baby possesses challenges that may interrupt any biological processes humans needs to live and strive. Even though the surgery may be successful appearance-wise, the functions or sensitivity of their genitals may be absent.

As Intersex babies grow up into childhood and adolescence, their bodies will change just like their peers’. It is the job of the parents to educate their child about their body and teach them that they shouldn’t be shame of their bodies. Communication and acceptance is key!

Surgery on intersex children is generally irreversible and may have a severe impact on the child's emotional & social development, development of healthy body image and their personal rights with regards to having control over their own bodies.

Most surgery suggested in infancy is done so out of 'normalisation' rather than any pending medical emergency. Like other medical 'risks' such as testicular/breast cancer, a preferred methodology may be that of monitoring 'risk' factors and delaying invasive surgery until the individual is at an age where they can direct their own course of medical 'treatment'.

The most popular person to date who has been described as such is track and African field athlete Caster Semenya whose gender was and still is being questioned following her victory at the several track meets and finally the 2009 World Championships, her subsequent ordeals with the Track authorities, International Association of Athletes Federation and her re-entry into the sport in June 2010 much to the discomfort of some of her competitors who say she has an advantage due to her masculine physique and supposed high levels of testorone in her system. She won her first race since her temporary absence from the track.

More to come

Here are some posts from the archives on gender, intersexuality and related matters from this blog.

Peace and tolerance.

H

Regional gray matter variation in male-to-female transsexualism. (March 2009)

Laboratory of Neuro Imaging, Department of Neurology, UCLA School of Medicine

Gender identity-one’s sense of being a man or a woman-is a fundamental perception experienced by all individuals that extends beyond biological sex. Yet, what contributes to our sense of gender remains uncertain.

Since individuals who identify as transsexual report strong feelings of being the opposite sex and a belief that their sexual characteristics do not reflect their true gender, they constitute an invaluable model to understand the biological underpinnings of gender identity.

We analyzed MRI data of 24 male-to-female (MTF) transsexuals not yet treated with cross-sex hormones in order to determine whether gray matter volumes in MTF transsexuals more closely resemble people who share their biological sex (30 control men), or people who share their gender identity (30 control women). Results revealed that regional gray matter variation in MTF transsexuals is more similar to the pattern found in men than in women.

However, MTF transsexuals show a significantly larger volume of regional gray matter in the right putamen compared to men. These findings provide new evidence that transsexualism is associated with distinct cerebral pattern, which supports the assumption that brain anatomy plays a role in gender identity.

Source: PubMed

Male-to-female transsexuals have female neuron numbers in a limbic nucleus.

Kruijver FP, Zhou JN, Pool CW, Hofman MA, Gooren LJ, Swaab DF.

Graduate School Neurosciences Amsterdam, The Netherlands Institute for Brain Research. F.Kruijver@nih.knaw.nl

Abstract

Transsexuals experience themselves as being of the opposite sex, despite having the biological characteristics of one sex. A crucial question resulting from a previous brain study in male-to-female transsexuals was whether the reported difference according to gender identity in the central part of the bed nucleus of the stria terminalis (BSTc) was based on a neuronal difference in the BSTc itself or just a reflection of a difference in vasoactive intestinal polypeptide innervation from the amygdala, which was used as a marker.

Therefore, we determined in 42 subjects the number of somatostatin-expressing neurons in the BSTc in relation to sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, and past or present hormonal status. Regardless of sexual orientation, men had almost twice as many somatostatin neurons as women (P <>

The number of neurons in the BSTc of male-to-female transsexuals was similar to that of the females (P = 0.83). In contrast, the neuron number of a female-to-male transsexual was found to be in the male range. Hormone treatment or sex hormone level variations in adulthood did not seem to have influenced BSTc neuron numbers.

The present findings of somatostatin neuronal sex differences in the BSTc and its sex reversal in the transsexual brain clearly support the paradigm that in transsexuals sexual differentiation of the brain and genitals may go into opposite directions and point to a neurobiological basis of gender identity disorder.

Sexual differentiation of the bed nucleus of the stria terminalis in humans may extend into adulthood.

Chung WC, De Vries GJ, Swaab DF.

Netherlands Institute for Brain Research, 1105 AZ Amsterdam, The Netherlands. w.chung@nih.knaw.nl.

Abstract

Gonadal steroids have remarkable developmental effects on sex-dependent brain organization and behavior in animals. Presumably, fetal or neonatal gonadal steroids are also responsible for sexual differentiation of the human brain. A limbic structure of special interest in this regard is the sexually dimorphic central subdivision of the bed nucleus of the stria terminalis (BSTc), because its size has been related to the gender identity disorder transsexuality. To determine at what age the BSTc becomes sexually dimorphic, the BSTc volume in males and females was studied from midgestation into adulthood. Using vasoactive intestinal polypeptide and somatostatin immunocytochemical staining as markers, we found that the BSTc was larger and contains more neurons in men than in women. However, this difference became significant only in adulthood, showing that sexual differentiation of the human brain may extend into the adulthood. The unexpectedly late sexual differentiation of the BSTc is discussed in relation to sex differences in developmental, adolescent, and adult gonadal steroid levels.

A sex difference in the hypothalamic uncinate nucleus: relationship to gender identity

A sex difference in the hypothalamic uncinate nucleus: relationship to gender identity

Garcia-Falgueras A, Swaab DF.

Netherlands Institute for Neuroscience, Amsterdam, The Netherlands.

Transsexuality is an individual’s unshakable conviction of belonging to the opposite sex, resulting in a request for sex-reassignment surgery. We have shown previously that the bed nucleus of the stria terminalis (BSTc) is female in size and neuron number in male-to-female transsexual people. In the present study we investigated the hypothalamic uncinate nucleus, which is composed of two subnuclei, namely interstitial nucleus of the anterior hypothalamus (INAH) 3 and 4. Post-mortem brain material was used from 42 subjects: 14 control males, 11 control females, 11 male-to-female transsexual people, 1 female-to-male transsexual subject and 5 non-transsexual subjects who were castrated because of prostate cancer.

To identify and delineate the nuclei and determine their volume and shape we used three different stainings throughout the nuclei in every 15th section, i.e. thionin, neuropeptide Y and synaptophysin, using an image analysis system.

The most pronounced differences were found in the INAH3 subnucleus. Its volume in thionin sections was 1.9 times larger in control males than in females (P <>

The castrated men had an INAH3 volume and neuron number that was intermediate between males (volume and number of neurons P > 0.117) and females (volume P > 0.245 and number of neurons P > 0.341). There was no difference in INAH3 between pre-and post-menopausal women, either in the volume (P > 0.84) or in the number of neurons (P <>

We propose that the sex reversal of the INAH3 in transsexual people is at least partly a marker of an early atypical sexual differentiation of the brain and that the changes in INAH3 and the BSTc may belong to a complex network that may structurally and functionally be related to gender identity.

Source: PubMed

Transsexualism no longer a disorder in France (Repost)

France has become the first country in the world to remove transsexualism from its list of recognised mental illnesses.

The decision was announced by France’s Minister of Health, Roselyne Bachelot, on the eve of last year’s International Day Against Homophobia, but did not come into effect until last month March 2010.

Bachelot made the announcement parallel to the launch of a campaign petitioning the World Health Organisation to do the same. The campaign was endorsed by some of the country’s leading minds who put their names to a letter published in French newspapers.

In France, hormone treatments and gender reassignment surgery are funded by the state.

However, transsexuals must complete their surgery, effectively sterilising them, before the state will recognise their new gender.

The announcement comes as the American Psychiatric Association (APA) considers proposed changes for the fifth edition of its Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM), scheduled to be published in 2013.

The DSM is the primary manual used for diagnosing mental illnesses in the English-speaking world. In it, transgenderism is currently referred to as ‘gender identity disorder’.

The working group assigned to revising sections covering gender identity disorder have published their proposals for change on the APA website.

They have suggested dropping the word ‘disorder’ and changing the official name for the condition to ‘gender incongruence’ for the entries for “Gender Identity Disorder in Adolescents or Adults” and “Gender Identity Disorder in Children”.

Members of the working group wrote that the proposed name was more appropriate because “[it] is a descriptive term that better reflects the core of the problem: an incongruence between, on the one hand, what identity one experiences and/or expresses and, on the other hand, how one is expected to live based on one’s assigned gender (usually at birth)”.

They also noted that a survey of organisations representing transgendered people carried out by the APA found widespread rejection of the term “because, in their view, it contributes to the stigmatisation of their condition”.

Proposals for a related entry, “Gender Identity Disorder Not Otherwise Specified”, are yet to be published.

Another entry, “Transvestic Fetishism”, also has a name change proposal — to ‘transvestic disorder’ — in order to better distinguish between people with a cross-dressing fetish and those for whom it presents “clinically significant distress or impairment in social, occupational, or other important areas of functioning”

Bisexual, Fluid, Pansexual or Queer-identified?

Identifying as Bisexual, Fluid, Pansexual or Queer simply means that you were born with the capacity to be attracted to people regardless of someone's sexual or gender identity.

It does not define either one's lifestyle or sexual behavior. It does not mean you are promiscuous, a fence-sitter, a slut, a nympho, in the closet, unable to commit, trying to claim heterosexual privileges or whatever. Bisexual and pansexual people can monogamous or abstinent. 
They may have multiple sexual partners or be married/partnered for life. In other words, lives of bisexual/pansexual people are pretty much identical as those who identify as lesbian, straight or gay except that you have the capacity to like people of more than one gender.

Many people are pansexual/bisexual and it cuts across all distinctions of culture, race/ethnicity, gender, age, class, ability, religious affiliation and any other thing you might think of. Over time in life, you might feel equally attracted to people of various genders or to one gender in preference to the other and the strength of these attractions may change over time. 


This attraction can take many forms such as physical, sexual and emotional attraction or all or some of them all mixed up together. But however you find it happening, it is inborn, innate and what is just right for you.

Sadly however, it would be silly not mention that you need to be aware that Bisexual/Pansexual people may still, even in this day and age, suffer discrimination because of misperceptions and prejudice from people who identify as straight, gay or lesbian. 


Most frequently scientists tell us this is becasue the person or persons who are causing the trouble are worried and confused about their own sexual or gender identification. So instead of doing something constructive about (the way you are) they let their confusion and negative emotions overwhelm them and strike out.

This is why organizations work for bisexual rights and to alleviate misperceptions about bisexual people.

Because of ignorance, outdated cultural norms and a lot of harmful misinformation, coming to an understanding of your sexuality can be highly confusing. People often feel a lot of pressure to choose - to define themselves as being gay or straight or lesbian.

But you might feel that you do not fit any of these categories, you may notice that you have sexual and romantic feelings about people of your own and the other genders.

These feelings may indicate you are fluid, pansexual, bisexual or in some ways queer-identified. Keep in mind, however, that you do not have to 'prove' your sexual-identity to anyone, ther will be no End-Of-Semester Final Exam, no Job Performance Evaluation, it is strictly about you and getting to know your own heart.

Being bisexual/pansexual is part of who you are, of what makes you"uniquely you", but it does not dictate that you must then follow the crowd or what some people say about how "people like you" should live your life.

Many pansexual/bisexual people may have one committed relationship that lasts for decades while others may have many different kinds of relationships with different people. Some bisexual/pansexual people have no sexual relationships or they may have relationships with people of only one gender; yet, they still consider themselves to be bisexual/pansexual. On the other hand many people may have relationships with people of their own and the other gender, and yet they self-identify as Gay, Lesbian or Straight.

Also don't worry about not knowing for sure right away. Sexuality and self-knowledge develops over time, and you should feel no pressure to identify in any particular way to please other people. Follow your own heart, it all comes down to what makes you feel most comfortable and what you perceive yourself to be.

Coming to terms with your bisexuality can be difficult. However, lots of people have difficulty learning to like themselves, regardless of their sexual orientation.
Some people also have difficulty understanding bisexuality, and some bisexual people may try to hide their bisexuality. In an effort to numb the effects of societal stigma, people may turn to drugs and alcohol and may even attempt suicide because their situation seems unbearable. However the vast majority of other bisexual people - just like you - lead successful, happy lives and you can too.

It helps to be informed and to know that you aren't alone. Read about bisexuality. Learn what it means to be bisexual. Make an effort to meet other bisexuals - they can be a valuable resource to build your self-confidence.

Just remember that there are lots bisexual people wherever you are. Sooner or later you will meet someone who feels some of the same things you do and has had similar experiences. Realizing that you are not the only bisexual person will make liking yourself a lot easier.

more resources found at BINET USA