4 ms·

There’s a lot more to this than meets the eye. Whilst it’s all but a guarantee that there are some kids who are being over treated, the general premise about n

There’s a lot more to this than meets the eye. Whilst it’s all but a guarantee that there are some kids who are being over treated, the general premise about needing to treat kids at a young age is spot on. I wasn’t even much past 3 years old before I knew “something” was wrong. Growing up in the early 1970’s though made any chance of knowing what it was damn near impossible. It’s very true that for transgender people - especially male to females, preventing adolescence can be a lifesaver as they go down their journey. Transitioning once that’s kicked in and done its work makes life very very much harder for the individual. My concern has been the race to the bottom here though - I’ve been very concerned with this desire to accept “self diagnosis” as everything. Even in my 20’s I still wasn’t sure if I was trans, or a cross-dresser. Turns out it was the former, but it took 2 years of intensive therapy to nail it down. So yeah, we stand a chance to misdiagnose, but that’s not a reason to throw everything out either. I know of some trans centers that are far less slack and take the process very seriously - however in life there are sadly people whose agenda means more than the patient - and yes there’s a risk of misdiagnosis as a result. I don’t have an answer - but I do know we can’t NOT treat kids who may be trans. Part of the issue is also societal: even today there’s a major stigma around being trans - brought on mainly by the religious right, or the terfs. I’ve been fully transitioned (inc. surgery) for well over 10 years now and I know I’m more relaxed and happy - but yes, there’s still the odd time where someone ‘reads’ me and attacks me as a result. That’s a fear I will always have to live with - that pathetic small minded people feel they have the moral right to make transgender people “less than”. A child given the correct treatment is less likely to suffer this as an adult. A child misdiagnosed is also going to have problems - true. This isn’t an easy one.

s1artibartfast 4y ago
Yeah, I think part of the problem is that people put too much weight on diagnosis itself. It's not like a blood test that is definitive. Any diagnosis will always be speculative. My thoughts on the matter came to a head after reading this article a couple days ago and my current thinking is that we're putting too much responsibility on the medical profession and policy. At the end of the day, it should be the decision of the patients and parents. It is their responsibility to weigh the information available and make their best decision. It is also their responsibility to live with the consequences of their choices.

s1artibartfast 4y ago

Yeah, I think part of the problem is that people put too much weight on diagnosis itself. It's not like a blood test that is definitive. Any diagnosis will always be speculative. My thoughts on the matter came to a head after reading this article a couple days ago and my current thinking is that we're putting too much responsibility on the medical profession and policy. At the end of the day, it should be the decision of the patients and parents. It is their responsibility to weigh the information available and make their best decision. It is also their responsibility to live with the consequences of their choices.