I dont understand these young kids saying they are transgender i think its munchausen by proxey. What do u think?

Total confusion, instigated by the media.

I don't understand any of it either, Otis. Possibly just another fad that fades away in time. I haven't a clue as to why some say that stuff but it's not up to me to judge. Maybe in a few years, there will be transaliens?

I think it has something to do with the "shock factor" as well. Let me explain.....

Any one remember the show "Three's company"? Or the song "Buck Naked" by Hank Williams Jr. Or when rapper "Eminem" first came out? Each one of them tested their limits and gave the public a "shock factor." All of the things I mentioned (and then some) are glorified and accepted in the public's eye now. This is just the newest "shock factor" I believe. When the public gets "use" to it, there will be something new to come about to shock people....... I recently heard a man in Vegas legally married his cell phone! Anyone think their computer or dog is hot????? That is coming next!!! LOL!

I don't understand how a 3-11 yr would be discussing a subject  of Transgender Sex. What would make a child want to talk about this type of sex? 

When me and all my 15 or so cousins and friends were together we were talking about, hide and seek, running, jump rope, jacks and koolaid and cookies.

In my opinion, a lot of it is a fad(?) or fear by the parents.  If a 9 year old boy says, "I want to be a fireman when I grow up"  the parents say " yes dear, we will see" and never think about it again. If that same 9 year old boy says "I want to be a girl" the parents are shocked and start repeating the question, and the kid starts to believe he really does want to be a girl. (I admit some a very few are born in the wrong body)

But so much of it is pushed on them by fearfull parents.  If your kid says something like that, you accept that that is what they want to day, and wait a few years and see if they change their minds again.  Most will forget about it and carry on.

As others have said, the media is very much to blame!!

Someone CAN be diagnosed as having a "gender identity" different from their physical gender.  However, such a diagnosis requires about 6 months of professional therapy.  Since 99.99% of those claiming to have the "wrong" gender identity have never been officially diagnosed - I place as much trust in their self-diagnosis, as I do for anyone else who tries to self-diagnose their own medical or mental condition.

However, the male brain does function differently from the female brain.  I assume such functioning can be mapped.  So why it takes 6 months to diagnose, I'm not sure.  And I wouldn't doubt that a VERY SMALL percentage of people have real "gender identity" issues that are not their choice.  But most of the hue-and-cry is just people looking for a cause to fill their empty lives.

Well I don't think it's just confusion. I think some of them really can tell at a young age, but at the same time, you can't start giving hormones and sex changes to young kids since their minds may change. When I was little I used to sometimes pretend I was a girl--but I was just playing dress-up. I would never do that now and obviously no one assumed I was transgender just because I did that.

But just because you don't understand something doesn't mean it isn't real.

I don't think it is "munchausen by proxy" in as much as it is most likely gender identification.

I try not to Label something as Mental Illness, unless it does harm to the person or others. So I will refrain from associating it in that regard, although I read someone did associate it as such.

I do know, that if you are not wired this way, there is no WAY you can get a good understanding of "Where they are coming from".

I saw something someone wrote that said "This stuff wasn't around when we were kids." . . . Well yes and no. It is more "Out in the Open" now. When I was a kid, mother's didn't hover near your every move and demand texts every 10 minutes to make sure a Child molester hadn't grabbed them . . . But that absolutely doesn't mean there wasn't any child molesters around when I was a kid. Again, I am not drawing a comparison here about "How people are wired" and what constitutes Mental Illness versus gender association.

I had an aunt born with all female parts, yet felt more male then female. She had a lot more testosterone then Estrogen as well . . . When she went into the navy, later on she was gender changed and became my Uncle Scott. He married my Aunt Cathy, and adopted a cute little girl.

I think the media is partially to blame because the glamorize these ways of thinking, and suddenly it is sought out as the "In Thing to do" or just one of those milestones on the way to "Self Discovery".

I don't know how a gay man has sexual feelings for another man, yet I know they are real . . . Gender association is just another interesting facet regarding our minds.

I think it has always been around, in fact I know it has. I do think since it is at the forefront of the media, that there are some who are confused. The teen years brings around all kinds of new emotions and people are mistaking what is sometimes referred to as a "mancrush" or a "girlcrush" for something more. Many teens admire people of the same gender and because of the media they mistake that admiration for a deeper affection. I think when LBGT is more widely accepted and it isn't something in the news every other day, much of the confusion will go away. If we can just get to the point of letting people be who they are and quit worrying about labeling everyone, things will calm down.

I think it's worrying. Children before puberty are not much different to each other as their hormones haven't kicked in. So if a little girl plays with cars or wants to climb trees, does that make her a boy? And if a little boy wants to push a buggy with a doll in it, does this make him a girl? No. 

There are all sorts of factors to consider, psychological growth, this use to be quoted a lot, that there are stages a child has to go through in order to be psychologically balanced to their own gender.  They at some stage identify with their parent who is the same sex, and at some stage the opposite sex parent, and if they don't end up where they should then it could just be a psychological stage thing. 

A young girl or young boy may fear the adult requirements of their own sex, a boy may not want to be manly and have the responsibilities or gender role of the man, and a girl may fear the things of becoming a woman. It may just be a fear of growing up into the adult they will become. 

I think it's extremely dangerous and ludicrous to be thinking about talking about transgender to a young child.  You are introducing an idea and children are vulnerable and easily influenced. Let them become adults and decide things for themselves.