# How attached are you to your gender? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [October 30, 2009, 3:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-attached-are-you-to-your-gender/515692 "2009-10-30T03:17:15Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Incref](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/f17d59/32.png) [@Incref](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Incref)\ **Post date:** [October 30, 2009, 3:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-attached-are-you-to-your-gender/515692/1 "2009-10-30T03:17:15Z")
[This](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=537742) thread got me thinking, I’ve always said that I don’t feel that attached to being a woman. That’s not to say I don’t like being a woman, I love being a woman. Boobs are the bomb! And I can make other human beings should I so choose! It’s just that if I woke up tomorrow as a man I’d be cool with it, I feel like I’d still be me sans boobs and plus dangly bits. I thought this was a common thing but most people I have spoken to say their gender is an integral part of their personality, some said they would make a concerted effort to get back to their born gender. So am I the weird one? ---
**Author:** ![Der\_Trihs](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/der_trihs/32/233_2.png) [@Der\_Trihs](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Der_Trihs)\ **Post date:** [October 30, 2009, 3:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-attached-are-you-to-your-gender/515692/2 "2009-10-30T03:53:45Z")
I’ve never really cared much about being male. My main concern if I woke up female would be the practical issues\*. Give me a choice, and I’d go for "shapeshifter, actually. Something like a T-1000 Terminator or a Founder from Star Trek. Although if I had to pick a single gender, being over 40 I’d go for male because as far as I can tell women are typically better off than men while young, while men have it better as they age. - Presuming that the relevant areas of the brain switched gender too; judging from the experiences of people who have gender dysmorphia ( that is the proper term these days? ) having a brain/body mismatch is no fun at all. But I consider that an unspoken given in discussions like this. ---
**Author:** ![Yumblie](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/76d3ee/32.png) [@Yumblie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Yumblie)\ **Post date:** [October 30, 2009, 4:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-attached-are-you-to-your-gender/515692/3 "2009-10-30T04:06:30Z")
Many people have a personality that is quite attached to their gender, but I always thought I had a rather…androgynous personality. It would be kinda neat to see what it’s like on the other side. The monthly period thing sounds pretty terrifying, but the lack of dangly bits to deal with between the legs would be nice. ---
**Author:** ![panache45](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/panache45/32/64_2.png) [@panache45](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/panache45)\ **Post date:** [October 30, 2009, 5:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-attached-are-you-to-your-gender/515692/4 "2009-10-30T05:48:52Z")
I’m rather attached to my maleness, and also my gayness. But I’d love to have the opportunity to be female for a while . . . provided I could change back. I especially would like to experience sex with my partner (who is “pansexual/omnisexual” as a woman . . . and then have his baby. ---
**Author:** ![BigT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigt/32/12044_2.png) [@BigT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigT)\ **Post date:** [October 30, 2009, 10:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-attached-are-you-to-your-gender/515692/5 "2009-10-30T10:05:27Z")
When I was younger I thought that becoming female wouldn’t matter (as long as I was still attracted to women). But, as I’m getting older, I find I kinda like my masculinity. But I would still go for a temporary change. It’s just the builitin curiosity of my nature. But I’d prefer it to be some sort of mind swap with a female who wants to try out being male. I want to see what masculine traits I keep, and if I’m still attracted to women. ---
**Author:** ![corkboard](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/e9bcb4/32.png) [@corkboard](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/corkboard)\ **Post date:** [October 30, 2009, 12:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-attached-are-you-to-your-gender/515692/6 "2009-10-30T12:49:53Z")
I’ve always identified really well with women, and I’m curious to know what it would be like to live for a while as a woman, but only as an experiment. I’d like to ultimately return to being a man. ---
**Author:** ![norinew](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/eb9ed0/32.png) [@norinew](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/norinew)\ **Post date:** [October 30, 2009, 1:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-attached-are-you-to-your-gender/515692/7 "2009-10-30T13:27:44Z")
I’m very attached to being a woman. I love being a mother. I love being a wife. I love being multi-orgasmic. . . 😉 Nope, wouldn’t want to be a man. ---
**Author:** ![mswas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e99b99/32.png) [@mswas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mswas)\ **Post date:** [October 30, 2009, 1:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-attached-are-you-to-your-gender/515692/8 "2009-10-30T13:30:12Z")
Well my testes still work so they are still attached. So I’d say fully physically attached. Like **Der Trihs** if I could shape shift I’d be ok with it. But I wouldn’t surgically alter myself. ---
**Author:** ![Enderw24](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/ba9def/32.png) [@Enderw24](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Enderw24)\ **Post date:** [October 30, 2009, 2:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-attached-are-you-to-your-gender/515692/9 "2009-10-30T14:04:46Z")
::tugs:: OW! Um…pretty friggin attached. ---
**Author:** ![corvidae](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/898d66/32.png) [@corvidae](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/corvidae)\ **Post date:** [October 30, 2009, 2:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-attached-are-you-to-your-gender/515692/10 "2009-10-30T14:10:37Z")
I’m pretty short, so unless I also got the chance to grow a foot taller, I’d rather stay a woman. ---
**Author:** ![Robot\_Arm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/robot_arm/32/18280_2.png) [@Robot\_Arm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Robot_Arm)\ **Post date:** [October 30, 2009, 2:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-attached-are-you-to-your-gender/515692/11 "2009-10-30T14:12:53Z")
If it was gonna come off it would have happened a long time ago. ---
**Author:** ![JohnnyMac](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/e9c0ed/32.png) [@JohnnyMac](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JohnnyMac)\ **Post date:** [October 30, 2009, 2:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-attached-are-you-to-your-gender/515692/12 "2009-10-30T14:16:23Z")
I honestly think that if I weren’t transgendered and you asked me this question, I’d have said “not that attached at all”. As it is…it’s very important for me to be in the right-gendered body. Like **Der\_Trihs** said, the mismatch is no fun. Without making me _intellectually hate_ my body, it…completely disconnected me from it. ---
**Author:** ![Jennyrosity](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/2bfe46/32.png) [@Jennyrosity](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jennyrosity)\ **Post date:** [October 30, 2009, 2:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-attached-are-you-to-your-gender/515692/13 "2009-10-30T14:26:56Z")
I look very feminine, but personality-wise I can be quite masculine. I think it’d be easier being a man - for a start, in professional situations I’d be considered confident and assertive instead of arrogant and aggressive! ---
**Author:** ![Grrr](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/grrr/32/146_2.png) [@Grrr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Grrr)\ **Post date:** [October 30, 2009, 2:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-attached-are-you-to-your-gender/515692/14 "2009-10-30T14:40:08Z")
> [@Der\_Trihs](#): > > I’ve never really cared much about being male. My main concern if I woke up female would be the practical issues\*. Give me a choice, and I’d go for "shapeshifter, actually. Something like a T-1000 Terminator or a Founder from Star Trek. Although if I had to pick a single gender, being over 40 I’d go for male because as far as I can tell women are typically better off than men while young, while men have it better as they age. Agreed. Aside from erections not having the “spring” they once had; it’s much better being a man after about age 40. ---
**Author:** ![Serenata67](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/serenata67/32/10646_2.png) [@Serenata67](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Serenata67)\ **Post date:** [October 30, 2009, 3:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-attached-are-you-to-your-gender/515692/15 "2009-10-30T15:42:49Z")
For most of my life, I wasn’t particularly attached to my gender. I mean, I was a very experimental bisexual woman. I wouldn’t have minded being a man. I think, knowing my personality, I would have been a chick magnet. I was always the tomboy and tough, so being a man wouldn’t have been a stretch. Now, I’m getting married and settling down and we’re going to try to have a baby. I’ve connected to my femininity, mostly through my burgeoning maternal desires. That and falling in love with a man will do that, too. At this point, I like being a woman, want to stay a woman. But this change of heart really only came within the past couple years. ---
**Author:** ![BetsQ](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/fbc32d/32.png) [@BetsQ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BetsQ)\ **Post date:** [October 30, 2009, 4:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-attached-are-you-to-your-gender/515692/16 "2009-10-30T16:25:40Z")
I mostly agree with you, **Incref** , although to be honest I’m not a big fan of the boobs. (They were good for breastfeeding, but now that I’m done with that, well, they’re just kind of a pain.) I’d love some aspects of being male - the clothing, for example. Really short hair cuts! No need to ever wear high heels! Peeing in the woods! I might have some trouble figuring out male friendships, but I have trouble figuring out female friendships, too, so I’m not sure that would be a big change. Hmm. Would I have to give up my Diet Coke addiction? I think that might be the worst part! No, now that I think about it, shaving would be the worst part. So, yeah, I don’t feel all that strongly about being female. ---
**Author:** ![Malleus\_Incus\_Stapes](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/malleus_incus_stapes/32/3293_2.png) [@Malleus\_Incus\_Stapes](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Malleus_Incus_Stapes)\ **Post date:** [October 30, 2009, 5:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-attached-are-you-to-your-gender/515692/17 "2009-10-30T17:51:45Z")
My identity is very closely tied to my gender. I think that’s why I’ve been getting all worked up about people thinking I’m a guy. It doesn’t make any practical difference, but me as a male makes about as much (emotional) sense as “me as a three-toed sloth”. It’s not like I’m even girly or anything- I don’t fit into any gender stereotypes. But I’m a gal. ---
**Author:** ![norinew](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/eb9ed0/32.png) [@norinew](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/norinew)\ **Post date:** [October 30, 2009, 7:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-attached-are-you-to-your-gender/515692/18 "2009-10-30T19:00:01Z")
> [@BetsQ](#): > > Would I have to give up my Diet Coke addiction? I think that might be the worst part! Nope. My hubby is about as masculine a guy as you could imagine (you know that Kinsey scale where they rate your sexuality, and if you’re completely, totally hetero you’re something like a 7? Well, his goes to 8), and he is _hooked_ on not _just_ Diet Coke, but Vanilla Coke Zero. Though, to be fair, sometimes on a Friday or Saturday night, he kicks up the masculinity quotient in the Vanilla Coke Zero by adding a shot of Wild Turkey 101! 😉 ---
**Author:** ![HeyHomie](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/heyhomie/32/207_2.png) [@HeyHomie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HeyHomie)\ **Post date:** [October 30, 2009, 7:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-attached-are-you-to-your-gender/515692/19 "2009-10-30T19:50:29Z")
If science figured out a way to put me into the body of a healthy female, just for the day, I’d be all over it in a heartbeat. I’ve _got_ to find out what vaginal sex feels like for the woman before I die! ---
**Author:** ![overlyverbose](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/9dc877/32.png) [@overlyverbose](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/overlyverbose)\ **Post date:** [October 30, 2009, 7:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-attached-are-you-to-your-gender/515692/20 "2009-10-30T19:55:59Z")
I thoroughly enjoy being a woman and don’t think I’d ever want to be a man. I’ve never thought of myself as particularly girly - I can be as assertive and blunt as most men I know - but I like being a mother. I like being a wife. I enjoy the dynamics between men and women. And, much as it pains me to admit it (because I was the anti-girl when I was younger), I like trying to look pretty. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-attached-are-you-to-your-gender/515692.md?page=2)