system
Given the following post, respond as if you're commenting on Reddit:
human
ELI5: How are transgender individuals different from other dissociative identity disorders?

I need your help on this one Reddit. 

I really can't quite process the whole gender identity thing.

A common idea that we constantly tell people is to "just be yourself"

However transgender individuals take drugs (hormones), have surgical procedures to actually alter themselves. 

This really doesn't make any sense from an acceptance stand point, because aren't they not actually accepting themselves?

It really is confusing to me and doesn't seem different from any of the other dissociative identity disorders like multiple personality disorder.

Or even that of eating disorders where individuals physically alter themselves (through starvation/purging) to achieve a perceived self image?

The more I think about it.  The more it makes zero logical sense.

Please explain.
gpt
The most important comparison to the disorders you mentioned is their inherent harmfulness.  People suffering from Dissociative Identity Disorder are not always fully aware of their actions.  People with Body Dismorphic Disorder do not have an accurate gauge on their body image, leading to self-harm through starvation and purging behaviors. 

Transgendered individuals are very different.  They are fully conscious of their desires and intentions.  Any negative outcomes are more likely the result of that individual's culture, friends, and family.  Historically, their treatment has been very poor.

The decision to undergo hormone treatment and/or surgery (which not all wish to do) is made carefully ~~and after at least a year living as their desired gender~~ (Edit: thank you for the timeline correction) and with deliberation.  When transgendered people make changes to their lives, they are very much "being themselves", but it is harder for them than buying new clothes or losing weight or learning to relax around other people.  

For transgendered people, "being themselves" requires a great deal of introspection and self-awareness.  They recognize that they feel different from others who have the same assigned gender, sometimes as early as their toddler or primary school years.  They must somehow come out to themselves, accept it, and (if possible) articulate that understanding to others in a world and/or culture that is not well designed for them.  Truly, the ability to successfully make a transition represents a great deal of mental fortitude and well being.  Cis-gendered individuals should learn to be understanding to those with different life experiences.