“Rapid Onset Gender Dysphoria (ROGD)”

“Rapid Onset Gender Dysphoria” (ROGD)

(noun)

“ROGD” doesn’t exist. The term is used by TERFs and unsupportive parents of trans youth to describe the process by which children come out as trans. They then use this to gatekeep kids from expressing their genders in ways that are not cisnormative. TERFs describe it as a “social contagion,” similar to the “trans-trender” myth.

Studies disprove the idea that kids are coming out as trans because it is trendy. In reality, the rise in children identifying as trans is due to wider visibility and representation for trans people making it more likely for kids to learn that there are words for how they feel. A similar effect was seen when people stopped getting beaten and shunned for being left-handed– “suddenly”, more left-handed started to exist.

Parents in particular use this phrase to describe their feeling rushed by their child coming out as trans. This is likely due to the fact that most trans people spend a lot of time self-reflecting and doing research on gender before coming out to friends and family. While it may seem rushed from a parent’s perspective, the person has often spent a lot of time already on the process of understanding their gender and thinking about how they want to express their gender.

e.g. Liam stopped reading the article from The Guardian after it referred to “ROGD” in a serious manner.

Further reading to gain expanded context:

Everything You Need to Know About Rapid Onset Gender Dysphoria | Julia Serano on Medium

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