LGBTQ+

I'm a millennial and also in the "gender is made-up nonsense" camp and I still went through a month period of gender crisis (I still think about gender like constantly a year later, but it at least doesn't keep me up at night). It shouldn't be a big deal, but yet it can be. Especially when you live in places where you worry about discrimination whether it be employment discrimination, social discrimination, or violence (or at least perceive a threat as existing, even if the risk is greatly exaggerated).

It’s not for me personally. I’m a millennial too, and though I’ve never felt strongly aligned to my gender, I find it hard to imagine what gender dysphoria feels like. I was raised mostly by my dad, who is very androgynous, so I was taught from a young age that your assigned gender doesn’t have to dictate anything about you (other than the practical consequences of your biological sex, and those are more of a spectrum than a binary).

But while I’m firmly in the “gender is a social construct” camp, I also know that social constructs are real and powerful. I’m aware that people who inherit bigger burdens of gendered expectations than me are likely to feel the rub more when things don’t match up. And in any case, our world is only getting more gendered, and it’s impossible for anyone to escape socialised gender entirely.

All that’s to say — when people say they’re experiencing gender dysphoria, I think it’s important to take them seriously, and support them, and encourage them to be gentle and kind towards themselves. Like you said, we want people to be happy.