Harry Benjamin s first ten cases (1938-1953): a clinical historical note.

Abstract:  The value in studying Dr. Harry Benjamin's first gender dysphoria patients is in learning how they described themselves--without any books to read, without any other source of information, assuming that he or she was alone and unlike anyone else in the world--and before hardly any literature on the subject had been published. Just as today, Benjamin's earliest patients came to him self-diagnosed. Even without the terminology currently available, their early descriptions of this unique phenomenon are identical with cross-gender identity patients who present themselves today: a recognition of the condition very early in their lives; the attempts at cross-dressing; the secrecy; the guilt; the unsuccessful attempts at suppressing desires and feelings; the episodic and continuous purging. These early individuals who suffered from gender conflicts had discovered Benjamin who would try to understand their unusual dilemma and be a barometer and a guide for the changes they would make. Their early individualistic perceptions provided insights that led to the birth of a new discipline. These 10 people must be lauded for their courage in seeking a description and a solution for a phenomenon that had no description and no treatment.