How connected do you feel to your sex?

I have no idea if this is the right topic for this but here goes!

I had a discussion with a friend about sex/gender stuff and it got me thinking later on that when it comes down to it I don't feel male in any sense of the word. I feel like if I had a woman's body I wouldn't be remotely disconcerted by it, in fact it almost seems kind of more natural in a way.
But I'm not gender dysphoric in any particular way. Although I find my body a bit weird, it doesn't look quite right somehow, I'm not upset to have it instead of a female body. I think it's just curiosity mixed with having no particular gender attachment.

What do the rest of you all think? Do you think it would be strange to you to have a differently sexed body? Why? Do you think feeling 'masculine' and 'feminine' are real things or just definitions we've made up to make it easier to place people into expected behaviour? Any other thoughts?

It really is probably mostly because you were never raised/introduced properly to "manly" activities, (single parents etc) and only "female" ones. Nothing wrong with that but it does shape the way you think/feel

As someone who enjoys largely "male culture" the few 'feminine' things I've truly taken an open minded approach with, I've also learnt to appreciate. For one thing, a lot of 'male activities' are rooted in the need to show/culture external value/dominance e.g. who's stronger, who's faster, who's more handy, who drink more, who is more logical thinker, who is the stronger speaker, who's a better team player etc
While 'female' activities tend to emphasis more directly the inherent enjoyment of the action itself e.g. more artsy stuff, candle making, pottery making etc.

I don't however agree that gender roles are completely "made up", they may be socially constructed, but being socially constructed doesn't make it any more "artificial". Hell for one thing, as someone who follow MBTI closely, there is obvious bias of mbti certain types to certain genders.

I've never felt very masculine or feminine. I don't really think about it much unless I'm thinking about sex. A lot of men assume that I'm gay which is probably common for male INFPs. Oddly enough I seem to be 100 percent straight when it comes to sex, even though I can find men charming sometimes.

Originally Posted by Temur

It really is probably mostly because you were never raised/introduced properly to "manly" activities, (single parents etc) and only "female" ones. Nothing wrong with that but it does shape the way you think/feel

As someone who enjoys largely "male culture" the few 'feminine' things I've truly taken an open minded approach with, I've also learnt to appreciate. For one thing, a lot of 'male activities' are rooted in the need to show/culture external value/dominance e.g. who's stronger, who's faster, who's more handy, who drink more, who is more logical thinker, who is the stronger speaker, who's a better team player etc
While 'female' activities tend to emphasis more directly the inherent enjoyment of the action itself e.g. more artsy stuff, candle making, pottery making etc.

I don't however agree that gender roles are completely "made up", they may be socially constructed, but being socially constructed doesn't make it any more "artificial". Hell for one thing, as someone who follow MBTI closely, there is obvious bias of mbti certain types to certain genders.

The environmental side is a difficult part to pin-down. My parents are still married and raised me together. They're both strong introverts who didn't really push me to be any certain way apart from hoping that I'd achieve intellectually. Basically I found a lot of 'manly' activities weird, particularly the one-upping side. I do get competitive at times but I never like that I get that way. Normally when I realise I'm doing it I feel disappointed in myself for becoming like that. I feel a lot like competing stops us valuing each other which ruins connecting as people.

Them being made up is something that stings me because not everyone accepts that they're not inherent and some people feel 'wrong' for not acting like their gender, which is completely unfair. Everyone should be allowed their own personality and not expect themselves to act in ways that make them unhappy. Believing in gender differences damages the way people of different genders communicate with each other. It's not healthy to just assume you're not going to understand another person because of gender difference. It's so much better to try and understand each other and try to really engage with the ways others see because it makes us feel so much closer to each other.

Originally Posted by Pyroscope

The environmental side is a difficult part to pin-down. My parents are still married and raised me together. They're both strong introverts who didn't really push me to be any certain way apart from hoping that I'd achieve intellectually. Basically I found a lot of 'manly' activities weird, particularly the one-upping side. I do get competitive at times but I never like that I get that way. Normally when I realise I'm doing it I feel disappointed in myself for becoming like that. I feel a lot like competing stops us valuing each other which ruins connecting as people.

Them being made up is something that stings me because not everyone accepts that they're not inherent and some people feel 'wrong' for not acting like their gender, which is completely unfair. Everyone should be allowed their own personality and not expect themselves to act in ways that make them unhappy. Believing in gender differences damages the way people of different genders communicate with each other. It's not healthy to just assume you're not going to understand another person because of gender difference. It's so much better to try and understand each other and try to really engage with the ways others see because it makes us feel so much closer to each other.

Actually my whole is that; gender roles are not made up.
I do agree with you that everyone should have their own personalities, and quite frankly not everything is gender defined.
Having said that, it is very hard for say a very "masculine" man to become fully close to a very "feminine" man, not because of any active discrimination or what not, while we can share mutual respect/acceptance. The reality is that we reflect obviously very different world views/ upbringings and are unlikely to become close friends by merit of our differences in interests i.e. he might not find my hobbies very fun nor I him.

I feel completely disconnected from what I am (other than the fact that I am attracted to men, but there's often a hint of jealousy thrown in of "I wish I was that"). Being an INTJ female, who's competitive, confident, and enjoys more masculine activities/jobs/etc, and it's pretty much a recipe for disaster as far as social norms go. I spent most of my life unaware of my personality type, and discovering it was a "Eureka!" moment for me - I finally understood why I was the way I am. I've basically got a guys brain stuck in a girl's body.

I get tired of dealing with some of the things that come with being a female - and although I've accepted that's what I am (no intention of any sex changes or anything), I've never in my life embraced it. I've tried, and failed numerous times. Finally accepting that I wasn't going to be content was actually a huge step for me in understanding myself. I relate better with guys, I think like a guy, and I really, really try to keep up with them in nearly every activity I've done, even if they tend to have the physical advantage (for years I tried to convince myself that didn't exist, but eventually I had to).

My mother tried very hard at a young age to make me girly - even as young as 2 years old, I wasn't having any of it (I refused to wear anything with flowers long before I was really old enough to understand the differences between boys and girls). Eventually she let me pursue my choices in activities (with some restrictions), and although she attempted to force the occasional charm course or women's conference on me, it never took. She tried, but I was way to set in what I wanted.

My sister is a typical 20-something girl, my brother is typical manly - I'm the only odd ball in our family as far as that all goes. Even in my extended family, although I'm pretty sure I'm the only INTJ, and I'm for sure the only INTJ female.

Originally Posted by Pyroscope

I have no idea if this is the right topic for this but here goes!

I had a discussion with a friend about sex/gender stuff and it got me thinking later on that when it comes down to it I don't feel male in any sense of the word. I feel like if I had a woman's body I wouldn't be remotely disconcerted by it, in fact it almost seems kind of more natural in a way.
But I'm not gender dysphoric in any particular way. I think it's just curiosity mixed with having no particular gender attachment.

I am prone to feeling this at times when surrounded by males because it actually seems hard to get people to talk about deep thoughts and feelings (yes I know both genders have this issue) when I'd rather talk about something more real than hobbies. In contrast I tend to be drawn to the male way of problem solving i.e. what do I have in front of me or to hand to fix xyz or how can I solve this with the simplest solution.

Yet at the same type I do tend to disconnect from people with low emotional or intellectual interest ranges simply because I don't care why someone's car is green or that they saw a good game last night. I have always desired more from communication based upon 1 liners or degrading banter (good for a few years but not past 21!) when the best ones are spontaneous, not to forget the 'hes hot, shes hot' competition when I'd much rather see past skin level i.e. the eyes or the energy they project.

While at the same being aware that I'd much rather enjoy the conversation of woman than men, alas I don't know many of either gender since graduation.

I don't believe that I am very connected to my biological sex, even when you take into account that due to societal conditioning/expectations and gender roles, being a biological (and assumed cisgender) male allows me to have male privilege, which allows me not to be reminded of my sex all of the time and also allows me to not automatically be a representative of my sex.

I don't see my sex as being an important part of my identity, and I probably would be very much the same person I am right now if I was born as a biological female or biologically intersexed.

I have Gender Dysphoria. That should say it all, really.

I'd feel very weird in a man's body and would not like it one bit.

I feel feminine and have always identified as a female (even if not always stereotypically so). I'm quite attached and connected to my body, hormones, and gender-identity as they currently are and always have been. :)