A Psychoanalytic Exploration of Female to Male Transition

Drawing on theory from a range of schools of psychoanalytic thought, this timely book addresses and explores the phenomenon of the increasing number of people who were assigned female at birth and now identify as male, and what might underly the cultural pull to remove femaleness from self and body.

In A Psychoanalytic Exploration of Female to Male Transition, Serena Heller considers how early recognition of the difference between the sexes might evoke a melancholic attitude towards one’s anatomy, as being one sex and not the other. She considers the ramifications of the developing sexual bodies of young women at a time when they are having great difficulty accepting them, addressing the complexity of female sexual development in relation to sexual aim and object, and how manifestations of early bisexuality can resurface during puberty. Focusing solely on the experience of female-to-male transition, rather than making broad assumptions of a universal trans experience, Heller provides a depth of theoretical analysis of biological and psychic aspects of female sexuality, and trans gender identifications.

Empathetic in its approach and thorough in its conceptualisation, this volume is a vital resource for psychodynamic and psychoanalytic psychotherapists working directly with trans patients, and with those experiencing gender dysphoria and issues of sexual identity. The book assumes no prior expertise in analytic thought, and is designed to help mental health practitioners, students and researchers engaged in queer studies, gender studies and the intersection of psychoanalytic thought and gender identity.

Serena Heller is a psychoanalytic psychotherapist in private practice in London, UK. She supervises, teaches and is a training therapist for child, adolescent and adult trainings.