Most people live their lives without ever thinking about their gender. They don't bat an eye when they choose to go to the bathroom, when the room is divided by gender, when they enter a store to buy clothes and go to the men's or women's section. However, there are many people who feel like they don't belong in the section they are in. These people, generally referred to as transgender, struggle every day with feeling out of place, feeling confused about which bathroom they should be in. or which section of the store they should shop in. 1 in 30,000 men and 1 in 100,000 women rank high on the Benjamin scale, the scale used to identify people who suffer from gender dysphoria or transsexualism. This number is rapidly increasing. Due to the support offered to transgender people, the exposure of transgender to the general public, and the level of acceptance in today's society, there has been a significant increase in the number of people who identify as transgender. Transgender people suffer from what psychologists call gender identity disorder. Gender identity disorder is characterized by a strong feeling of gender dysphoria. “Gender dysphoria denotes strong and persistent feelings of discomfort with one's assigned sex, the desire to possess the body of the opposite sex, and the desire to be viewed by others as a member of the opposite sex” (Kirk 30). Transgender people usually pursue feelings of gender dysphoria and work to live as the opposite sex. “The acting of transvestism; cross identification; and the active pursuit of hormonal, social, and medical approaches to changing one's appearance are all conducted by these individuals in order to ... middle of paper ...... rch Full. Network. February 23, 2014. Kirk, James and Robert Belovics. “Understanding and Counseling Transgender Clients.” JournalOf Employment Counseling 45.1 (2008): 29-43. Academic research completed. Network. February 23, 2014.Newhouse, Maria R. “Remembering the “T” in the LGBT Community: Recruiting and Supporting Transgender Students.” Journal Of College Admission 220 (2013): 22-27. Academic research completed. Network. February 23, 2014. Schnetzler, Greta W. and Gaylynn Kirn Conant. "Changing genres, changing policies". Chronicle of Higher Education 56.8 (2009): B30-B32. Academic research completed. Network. February 23, 2014.Sokoll, Talya. “Representations of Trans* Youth in Young Adult Literature: A Report and Recommendation.” Library Services for Young Adults 11.4 (2013): 23-26. Academic research completed. Network. February 22, 2014. "Thomas Beatie." Advocate 1022 (2009): 72. Academic research completed. Network. February 22. 2014.