Transgender Mental Health

Societal awareness of transgender and gender-nonconforming (TGNC) individuals
is greater now than at any point in history, owing to the education of policy
makers by advocacy organizations, the education of clinicians by research and
scientific organizations, and the education of the general public by movies,
television, and other media. However, most professional training programs for
mental health professionals provide little to no education regarding gender
diversity.

Transgender Mental Health squarely addresses this deficit. This
guide forgoes clinical jargon in favor of accessible, straightforward language
designed to educate clinicians on how to address the basic needs of the TGNC
community, thus increasing access to mental health care for TGNC individuals,
which has been sorely lacking to this point.

Rich in cases drawn from real
clinical experience, the guide is organized into four sections. The first
section includes a discussion of the gender spectrum and offers a history of the
TGNC experience. This section also covers advocacy, particularly letter writing
for gender marker changes and gender-affirming surgeries. The second section is
dedicated to mental health factors in TGNC care and examines sex and sexuality,
support systems, and transitioning and detransitioning. The third of the
guide's sections addresses general physical health with TGNC individuals,
including masculinizing and feminizing hormones, with an eye toward preparing
practitioners to address the social, psychological, and physical needs of their
patients. The final section discusses all major gender-affirming surgical
procedures, as well as nonsurgical interventions.

Each chapter includes
summarizing key points and review questions at the end that not only test the
reader's comprehension of the material but also provide additional information
on the complicated political, social, and cultural barriers that many TGNC
individuals experience as they attempt to secure adequate care.

Relevant
for a range of mental health professionals, including psychiatrists, psychiatric
nurse practitioners, psychologists, social workers, family therapists, and
school counselors, Transgender Mental Health is a simple yet thorough primer on
the complex topic of gender diversity.