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Chapter 1 - Circles and Squares

from Section 1 - Ordinary Lives

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  18 November 2022

Lih-Mei Liao
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Summary

This chapter is a fictional account of several people talking about aspects of their lives that are impacted by variations in sex development at a support group meeting. In their exchanges about past, present and future medical encounters, the author draws out both the opportunities and the dilemmas presented by medicine. Through the characterizations, the author also teases out some of the most pertinent psychological themes in the field, such as how to decide about “normalizing” surgery for a child and how to talk about bodily differences in relationships. These themes are centralized in Chapters 9–14 and explored in the literature summaries and practice vignettes therein.

Keywords

IntersexDisorders of Sex DevelopmentDifferences in Sex DevelopmentVariations in Sex CharacteristicsPsychologyPsychotherapyCounselingSex TherapySocial ConstructionismFeminismMedical HumanitiesMedical EthicsMedical TraumaMinoritizationHuman RightsChild RightsSexual DimorphismAmbiguous GenitaliaGender AssignmentGender DysphoriaBody ShameFeminizing GenitoplastyClitorectomyClitoral ReductionClitoral RecessionVaginoplastyDistal HypospadiasProximal HypospadiasPhalloplastyCongenital Adrenal HyperplasiaCAHComplete Gonadal DysgenesisSwyer SyndromeGenderSexualitySex TherapyPsychotherapySelf-DisclosureAssisted Reproductive TechnologySRY GeneWomen’s HealthMen’s HealthPeer SupportTreatment DecisionPsychotherapyCounselingMental Health.
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Variations in Sex Development
Medicine, Culture and Psychological Practice
 , pp. 1 - 9
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2022

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  • Circles and Squares
  • Lih-Mei Liao
  • Book: Variations in Sex Development
  • Online publication: 18 November 2022
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/9781009000345.003
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To save content items to your account, please confirm that you agree to abide by our usage policies. If this is the first time you use this feature, you will be asked to authorise Cambridge Core to connect with your account. Find out more about saving content to Dropbox.

  • Circles and Squares
  • Lih-Mei Liao
  • Book: Variations in Sex Development
  • Online publication: 18 November 2022
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/9781009000345.003
Available formats
×

Save book to Google Drive

To save content items to your account, please confirm that you agree to abide by our usage policies. If this is the first time you use this feature, you will be asked to authorise Cambridge Core to connect with your account. Find out more about saving content to Google Drive.

  • Circles and Squares
  • Lih-Mei Liao
  • Book: Variations in Sex Development
  • Online publication: 18 November 2022
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/9781009000345.003
Available formats
×