The trailer promised great things. Eddie Redmayne for one. His performance as Lili Elbe (born Einar Wegener) was masterful. Set in 1920s Copenhagen, I wonder how much things have really changed? I felt the film portrayed very accurately the awful cost born by so many of the trans* community as they navigate worlds in which they feel bound to conceal their true selves beneath constructed identities.
As a therapist who specialises in working with gender issues I have the privilege of supporting gender variant, queer and querying clients who do not fit neatly into the boxes so many quarters of society still seek to prescribe.
To speak of the challenges this presents hardly does justice to the daily battles being fought that the cisgender majority are unlikely to ever face. Unless of course, that cis individual is in a relationship with a trans* person...
This was, for me, what the film spoke to most directly observing with devastating intensity the journey taken by the protagonist's partner Gerda (brilliantly played by Alicia Vikander). The hostility the couple faced was, at points, almost unbearable to behold. It is truly appalling to think how accurately the film portrays the experience of so many who turn towards professionals seeking help in 21st century Britain.
Prejudice still prevails. Ignorance still abounds. The deficiency of most medical and therapeutic trainings when it comes to gender and sexuality remains woeful. The consequences are a tragedy of our time.
I have personally heard tell some tales which would, were I to have cause to share them, reduce most sentient beings to tears. I feel like crying when I consider their source - individuals who have fallen prey to so-called professionals who have failed to extend to them even a basic modicum of respect, let alone warmth or empathy.
The unashamed lack of sensitivity within my own and several other related professions is rife and something I feel duty bound to address. I have heard all too often how many doors individuals have been obliged to knock on before they feel safe enough to cross the threshold. Given the very real psychological, emotional and spiritual perils of dysphoria, any delay in accessing help is dangerous. The staggeringly high suicide attempt rate among the trans* population confirms this. Perhaps films like The Danish Girl should be recommended viewing for trainees and practitioners alike?
The 2011 National Transgender Discrimination Survey (NTDS) found that in the U.S., 41 percent of transgender and gender non-conforming people had attempted suicide, compared to a national average of just 4.6 percent.
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