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Binary and non-binary in the life of… Europe! Psychiatrist Dr. Vasil Urumov to FACTS

"Traditional family" has long been no longer what the films of the 60s and 70s showed, says the physician

Май 27, 2024 13:16 133

Binary and non-binary in the life of… Europe! Psychiatrist Dr. Vasil Urumov to FACTS  - 1

The winner of this year's song contest "Eurovision" ; Nemowas welcomed as a hero in his homeland. The 24-year-old singer is from Switzerland but lives in Berlin. Nemo is the first non-binary winner of the contest - he doesn't define himself as male or female. What is non-binary… In front of FACTS, psychiatrist Dr. Vasil Urumov.

- Dr. Urumov, the word “non-binary“ turned out to be the most in demand after the Swiss artist Nemo became the winner of Eurovision. What is a non-binary person…
- I had to watch the Eurovision final to make this interview happen... First, two words about his nickname: Nemo, from Latin, means "nobody". This was probably chosen on purpose. Before we explain what “non-binary”, let's explain what binary is. This concept is not only applied to sex, but also to many other situations in our daily lives that we don't even realize.

The word comes from Latin, with the root "bi", that is, "two" and from there it is divided into two categories: have/have not; male/female; phase/zero; black and white.

That's the nice and easy thing about the categorical approach, because everything falls into one of two categories.
With more complex concepts, however, the division into just two categories is more difficult. How do you characterize intelligence, height, character? It would be too reductive to describe someone as smart/stupid, tall/short, etc. Not that we don't, but that's how the nuances get lost. How tall? Tall compared to what? How smart or stupid?
Therefore, for the more complex concepts, we use the dimensional approach, where the properties are considered as a spectrum of “Height“ or “Intellect“ or other There are people who are 156 cm tall and people who are 186 cm tall. We would define the former as “short”, and the latter as “tall”. But there are also people who are 206 cm tall. They also fall under “tall“ or even “very high”, but with the categorical model there is no way to describe it adequately. This is the good thing about the dimensional approach, because it takes these differences into account and gives a more accurate picture.

With biological sex, there is an underlying binary - male or female, to which the majority of the population falls.

But since medicine is not an exact science like mathematics, there are also people who are born with biological characteristics where it is impossible to determine whether they are male or female. These are intersex people and are an example of non-binary when we talk about biological sex.

- Humans have a specific set of chromosomes that indicate their gender. What can make a person feel neither man nor woman?
- Here we are already talking about the concept of “social gender”, which is much more complicated than categorization into 1/0 or male/female. It is a subjective perception and feeling of the given individual. For most people, social gender and biological gender coincide, this is the so-called cis-gender: men are perceived as men and women as women. However, we also have a masculine/feminine spectrum here, because there are more feminine men as well as more masculine women. To make things even more complicated, we're not going to get into sexual attraction between the sexes, because there's a spectrum there too. Also, in recent years, various neuroimaging studies have been performed, the results of which show that there are differences in the size/volume of certain brain structures between cis and trans people.

That is, in two words, there are differences at the level of the organ, which accordingly change the function - behavior, perceptions.

It is also very important to mention cultural differences, as different cultures may have different concepts, ideas and traditions that influence the attitude towards the manifestation of gender stereotypes. That is, something that is normal feminine behavior in one culture may be seen as neutral or masculine in another, and vice versa. For example, in some Latin or Scandinavian countries it is quite normal and accepted for boys to cry and express their feelings, but in most Balkan or Arab countries it is not. This kind of chronic suppression and rejection of emotions can lead to various mental and behavioral abnormalities in the long term. plan - emotionally dysregulated behavior; external physical or verbal aggression towards people and objects; internal aggression - self-aggression, suicide attempts, alcohol or drug abuse.

- The loss of the so-called “traditional values“ in Europe is a growing topic. We keep hearing calls for a liberal attitude towards different… Is this normality or a problem of today's modern age?
- Every change has pros and cons, it depends on the point of view. Only time will tell if these changes and decisions have been fruitful in the long run. Our culture and society change with time, social attitudes, even technological and scientific progress. They cannot remain stationary because they will become archaic and rigid. Everywhere in the world we are more or less witnessing a change in society, thinking and attitudes. The influence of religion and the church as an institution is declining, compared to the Middle Ages, simply because people's thinking is changing. Technology and science are developing and can explain many natural phenomena and many people are starting to think critically. Certain phenomena or disasters have a logical explanation, and are not interpreted through magical thinking as “punishments from God because we are sinful”. Of course, religion as a philosophy also has advantages, as it can give peace and comfort in situations of uncertainty, which reduces anxiety and creates a sense of salvation in many people.

“The traditional family” it's long gone from what the movies of the 60s and 70s used to show, where the husband goes to work and the wife stays at home, homemaking and taking care of their two children.

In recent decades, many people don't even get married because they consider it to be something outdated and impractical, but prefer to live together, but without feeling restricted or obligated by the law or the church.

Many people no longer physically go to work because they don't have to, but can work through their computer from anywhere in the world as long as they have access to the Internet. This gives them much more options and freedom. And just as ironically, more and more people feel lonely, despite the constant virtual “connectedness” and access to all types of information and apparent entertainment.

This often happens precisely because there is a lack of real communication and live social contact.

This is one of the most common complaints of patients who come to my office for consultations. And regarding the “different“ - we are all different in one way or another. I'm different too. You too. This is quite natural. Very often those who are different are the object of ridicule, discrimination, attacks and attacks by the majority because they are not like them. We all remember the kid who wore glasses in kindergarten/school or the tall skinny boy or the short plump girl. All of them have at some point been ridiculed for not being like the majority of the rest. This also applies to the other “different” people. They can be insulted, discriminated against, abused, assaulted, even killed. This is unacceptable behavior and no one deserves it. Everyone should have equal rights and be protected from discrimination or aggression, because the more different, the more difficult.

Of course, this does not mean that special treatment or preferences apply. In recent years, many western companies have “quotas“ to start “different“ employees. I call this phenomenon “reverse discrimination”, because they are obliged to appoint a certain number of employees according to age, gender, sexual orientation, skin color, ethnicity or others.

Very often these companies point out similar “variety“ in order to show their young customers and consumers how trendy and cool they are.

I highly doubt that multi-billion dollar corporations are that concerned about human rights and equality. Rather, profit is their driving force, and what better option to attract more consumers than to show how inclusive they are and how much they value equality. This kind of recruitment policy is also not adequate, in my opinion, because there may often be a more suitable choice of employee, with more qualities for the given position, but just because someone falls into a minority category, they are hired instead of the first. There is also the possibility of abuse from this minority position, because the worker may not do his job conscientiously and be “carried” from other people on the team just because he knows he won't get fired for falling within the quota.

Therefore, I approach and treat people according to their merits, qualities and capabilities, not according to their gender, skin color or sexuality. There are many “normal“ people who are worthless, who are "bad material" and also many “abnormal“ people who are good and conscientious citizens, professionals and partners. The key here is to approach each person individually in order to get to know and appreciate them, and not to rely on prejudices and stereotypes.

To be continued…