Umbrella Term

People often conflate the terms "transsexual" and "transgender".  As I understand it, I am transsexual, and what differentiates me from a transgender is that I actually live, and have lived, as a woman and have taken hormones and undergone surgery.  A transgender person, meanwhile, is someone who crosses gender norms.  A drag queen or king is an obvious example of that, but as one infographic tells us, most of us are at least a little transgendered.  It's kind of funny to think that, as a transsexual woman, I can also be transgendered (at least, according to society's norms) because I fix my bikes (and, sometimes, other people's) and don't always dress or act in feminine ways.

Anyway, here's the infographic, which originally appeared on Flux:

 

Who Belongs To The "Club"?

Over the years, there have been many definitions of "transgender" and "transsexual", apart from the ones in the textbooks.

According to at least one trans person I know, you become a transsexual when you "go under the knife."  She was talking about SRS/GRS--which, until recently, served as most people's line of demarcation between transsexuals and everyone else. 

A friend of mine is scheduled to undergo that procedure next year.  Yesterday, she sent me a text message announcing that she was in a hotel room, recuperating from facial surgery.

I congratulated and welcomed her.