Diagnosis

Your health care professional might make a diagnosis of gender dysphoria based on:

• Behavioral health evaluation. Your provider will evaluate you to confirm the incongruence of your gender identity and sex assigned at birth, your history and development of gender dysphoric feelings, the impact of the stigma attached to gender nonconformity on your mental health, and what support you have from family, friends and peers.
• DSM-5. Your mental health professional may use the criteria for gender dysphoria listed in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-5), published by the American Psychiatric Association.

Gender dysphoria is different from simply not conforming to stereotypical gender role behavior. Gender dysphoria involves feelings of distress due to a strong desire to be of another gender than the one assigned and by the extent and pervasiveness of gender-variant activities and interests.

While some adolescents might express their feelings of gender dysphoria to their parents or a doctor, others might instead show symptoms of a mood disorder, anxiety or depression or display social or academic problems.