165. When asked whether if they had voluntarily sought help from mental health professional or religious authority or forcibly sent to mental health professional or religious authority for their gender identity, gender expression and/or sexual orientation, 19 percent of respondents responded that they had voluntary sought help from mental professional and 18 to religious authority119, while, 15 percent of the respondents were forced to see mental health professional and 9 percent of the respondents were forced to consult religious authority. Table 26: Seeking help from mental healthcare professional and religious authorities (voluntary and forcibly sent) Voluntary sought help Forcibly sent Percentage Percentage 1. Mental Health professional 19/100 15/100 2. Religious authority 18/100 9/100 Item 166. The respondent who voluntary sought help from mental health professional and/or religious authority mentioned the following reasons as why they did so: i. ii. iii. iv. v. vi. vii. To share personal issues To diagnose their gender identity/ gender dysphoria To seek help for hypertension, stress, panic and depression To study religion and to sought advice from a religious man To inquire on their gender non-conformity To seek treatment for being feminine To obtain document for gender identity disorder as supporting document for gender reassignment surgery 167. For individual who were forcibly sent to mental health professional and/or religious authorities by their family member, family friend and state religious authority, some of the respondents shared that they were asked by religious man to perform religious ritual such as wearing of talisman to cure their gender identity. 168. It is worth to note that mental health issues faced by the transgender persons does not only relate to gender identity itself but arose due to the pressures of not conforming to the assigned gender role and other social expectations120. Therefore, the mental health issues faced by trans people are symptomatic of the environment and discrimination that they face. 9 respondents including trans man and trans woman stressed that the mental health issues that they experienced mostly were due to stigma, lack of acceptance by family, discrimination against them which creates an unfriendly environment The table 119 The context of religion authorities in this question is referred to a person with religious knowledges. 120 Sood N. Transgender People’s Access to Sexual Health and Rights: A Study of Law and Policy in 12 Asian Countries. Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia: The Asian-Pacific Resources and Research Centre for Women (ARROW). 2009. P. 30 74 | Report On Transgender Persons In KL And Selangor