All except (non-gay conversion) therapy. However counselors shouldn’t just automatically “affirm” without considering that there can be (and often are) other things causing distress in youth that apparent gender dysphoria can be a symptom of rather than the real root cause of, and not rush to affirmation and transition the moment a kid says they think they might be trans.
I mean hell, this seems like common sense to me. Adolescence is a time of raging hormones, confusion, figuring out your identity, etc. And now that transgender people are more prominent than ever, is it really so hard to believe a teen could get fixated on the possibility that they are trans without really being trans? I mean teens are such immature, undeveloped, impulsive, angsty and conflicted messes that we don’t trust them to drink, rent cars (drive at all if under 16), take out loans, get married, or do jobs much more complex than taking McDonald’s orders. Why then should we trust that a teenager “knows” they are trans without question? Let alone perform medical procedures on them based on how they say they feel?
It’s certainly true that many really are dysphoric, I don’t doubt it. But therapists should (and should be allowed to) approach each case with an open mind, not automatically assume the patient’s self-diagnosis is correct. Some research suggests that, especially in the case of teenage girls, many may feel social pressure to transition if others in their friend groups do. I don’t see why this idea is so hard to accept for some people, it seems logical to me and could explain the sudden explosion of these cases. I don’t buy that it’s entirely a natural phenomenon.
As for the other stuff, it’s just not true that puberty blockers and hormones are harmless and fully reversible. The truth is we know little about their long-term effects as they have not been used in this way and on this scale for long enough to do so. We do know hormones risk sterility and other health complications. There’s also an ongoing controversy about the safety of Lupron, a leading drug used to block puberty, and unknown long-term consequences for the disruption of a critical natural biological process at such a young age. I don’t know why everyone just jumps on board with these pretty dramatic and experimental medical treatments as if they are no big deal.
Surgery should be a no-brainer. Kids should NOT be chopping their tits/dicks off. Period. Just insane to even contemplate. It’s a risky procedure with severe lifelong effects even when it goes as planned. It also DEFINITELY causes sterility for “bottom surgery” at least. And if there’s any risk at all kids could regret it, man, what a nightmare it would be to come to that realization with no way to reverse it. Simply not worth it.
me whenever I see an Alben Barkley post on trans issues
Poll
