A person's physical gender determines how that person will be treated for the rest of their life, but a vast majority of people find themselves excluded because that they are not really a boy but not really a girl either. What if when a child was born, it was not clear what their physical sex was because their reproductive organs indicated a boy, but also a girl? Or even the opposite. According to the book Whipping Girl by Julia Serano, these children are known as "intersex," a term used to describe individuals "born with reproductive or sexual anatomy that does not fit typical definitions of male or female." (25). . By analogy, think of gender as a color spectrum, where one color is "feminine" and another is "masculine." “Intersex” then appeared in any color shade in between. In the past, this condition (also known as hermaphroditism) was a secret condition, and it was common for parents to choose the sex of their baby for them and for doctors to remove the ovaries. of a child who might become a boy, or removing the penis of a baby who showed more signs of being a girl. There are a variety of different problems that can make a child intersex. Some could be an extra X or Y chromosome or a genetic mutation. The problem is that people don't always achieve their assigned gender, whether they are intersex or not. Despite the categories of choice that society has perpetuated regarding gender, intersex children should have a choice in which gender they choose to identify with after puberty – for their own well-being, emotional and physical. Intersex surgery as a child is risky worldwide. in the long term. In a journal written by Haze Glenn Beh and Milton Diamond Ph.D., they analyzed how doctors have long conveyed a sense of medicine... middle of paper ...... have done it or are starting to get started in the hormonal field. therapy. Intersex children should have a choice in what gender they choose to identify with and become after they reach puberty. The possibility of choosing one's sex after puberty will give intersex people time to become well informed and prepare for their future. As a reminder, sex reassignment surgery is a serious decision that should not be taken lightly or hastily, as there are cases where people regret their decision. The time between their birth and puberty will give them ample time to fully learn who they are and what gender they want to be, without any mystery in their medical history, and with a sense of self-validation that they are in control of their body and having the chance to be what they were born to be, even if it all started out a little confusing at first.