WINNIPEG -- People who have sex changes are not crazy and are simply trying to become happier and more settled, an American psychologist said at a conference on transgender issues.

"This rarity among rarities is so misunderstood," said Dr. Randi Ettner, a psychologist from Illinois. "This is basically a harmless activity that really doesn't threaten anybody and that's not about sex -- it's about people becoming safe and comfortable in the world. These are wonderful people."

Ettner, who is not a transsexual, became interested in the field after being assigned to the gender clinic at Cooks County Hospital in Chicago when she was a medical student in the 1970s.

Gender Loving Care, a two-day conference hosted by Nine Circles Community Health Centre at the University of Winnipeg, was for therapists, counsellors and members of the general public interested in learning more about the topic.