Transvestia

Dr. Kaplan: "We do not know how often TVism occurs, but it is indeed more common than people think. Most men conceal their desire from those around them fearing exposure, a thing that increases their fear and makes their adjustment to a normal social life difficult."

Scared.

In the organization only the board knows the real names of the members, Susanne Sjo says. Each member has a code number and only a girl's name is used at their parties. Among other activities of the club they try to find shops for the members, ladies' hairdressers and other beauty specialists.

Many are afraid of entering the organization possibly because of the detailed questionnaire which has to be filled out before they can be admitted. These questionnaires are put to the applicants in order to exclude those types of cross-dressers which do not belong to the organization. Only heterosexual male TVs, i.e. men who are sexually directed towards women, can become members.

In the organization all classes of the community are represented, university men, business men, public servants and officials, and workers. Susanne Sjo points out that finding new members is a problem. In Sweden it is possible indirectly and by way of suggestion to advertise in certain newspapers and magazines, but in the rest of Scandinavia this is not possible.

"This is a pity because we are, after all, doing a mentalhygenic type of work. Contact with other people living under the same conditions is a great psychic relief to us. And nothing illegal or offensive is involved. Most of us are socially well adjusted. We discuss our problems and dine together precisely like other people do when meeting at a party. The only difference is, that we are men in feminine dresses, doing so from an inner urge, the causes of which we do not know much about," Susanne says.

Complicated.

How a psychiatrist looks upon this problem you can see in the medical certificate which many of the heterosexual TVs today carry. In Susanne Sjo's certificate you can read: "The possessor of this certificate has a typical transvestic disposition which