I'm told that paramedics, when transporting an unconscious person, ask family/friends if they have any mental illnesses.
Does gender dysphoria qualify?
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1How does a medic ask an unconscious person anything? Do you mean do they ask of family members? Also, it would help if you could indicate in which country/region/state you are located, as paramedic responses vary by locale.– JohnP ♦Mar 5 '18 at 17:07
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@JohnP I'm talking about family/friends, and I'm English– PiomicronMar 5 '18 at 17:54
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I can't answer for UK paramedics but in the US they would only ask about mental illnesses if they thought it was relevant to the patient's care or their own safety. Gender dysphoria isn't considered a mental illness in any western nation I'm aware of. Gender identification is usually only relevant to them in terms of knowing how to address the patient appropriately.– Carey Gregory ♦Mar 5 '18 at 19:30
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@CareyGregory I think you are correct to a point. What about those who are suffering from anxiety over their dysphoria? Believing you are of a different gender to how your physical appearance makes you is not a mental illness but having problems linked to it makes it a mental health issue. Admittedly it is the anxiety/depression/stress... which needs the help, which may lead to the need for gender reassignment surgery for complete support, maybe not. It's person specific of course– Chris RogersJan 10 at 11:39
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as you noted in comments about England context:
according to NHS UK, one has to pass assessment at one of the gender dysphoria clinics in England
After a detailed assessment to confirm the diagnosis of gender dysphoria and what it means for you, the GDC team will work with you on an agreed treatment plan.
Before that, it's just feeling or symptom from medical point of view.
Same reference from NHS states:
Gender dysphoria is not a mental illness, but some people may develop mental health problems because of gender dysphoria.
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1Welcome to MedicalSciences.SE. You have the beginning of a good answer to the question, but you haven't answered the main part of the question, which is whether or not Gender Dysphoria is considered a mental illness or not and if so, to make a full answer, what makes it so? To me, @Careygregory is correct to a point. If you can find reputable sources to back this up I would upvote your answer. Jan 10 at 11:34
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1@ChrisRogers thank you for welcoming words. I have added missing part to answer main question, the source is the same reference. As I'm in continental Europe, I had been cautious to jump with conclusion how NHS & GPs interpret it in UK. Thank you for cheering me up to finalize.– ayvtillJan 11 at 21:51
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1Note that in the US there's still a DSM-5 class for it, justified as needed for insurance purposes psychiatry.org/File%20Library/Psychiatrists/Practice/DSM/…– FizzJan 12 at 10:03