Anti-trans directives and legislation are fueled (in part) by misconceptions about what gender-affirming care looks like. Let’s talk about what it actually looks like.
The most important gender affirming care that trans youth can receive is support from their parents and caregivers such that they feel free to express themselves in a way that aligns with their gender identity. Most often, gender-affirming medical care is a mix of therapy, and, in some cases, hormone treatments. Surgery is not an option until a person reaches 18. Here is what gender-affirming care often looks like for minors:
- Therapy: As minors, trans youth will first speak with a therapist about their gender dysphoria, which would ideally happen in pre-puberty.
- Hormone blockers: After a year of therapy, youth can begin to discuss medical intervention, which begins with puberty blockers, also known as hormone blockers. This would happen at around 12-14 years of age. Puberty blockers temporarily delay the process of puberty, which provides more time for the young person to postpone the increased gender dysphoria that may accompany a rapidly changing body.
- Hormone replacement therapy: When the youth reaches 16 or 17, they would begin discussing hormone replacement therapy (HRT) with their medical provider. HRT is the use of sex hormones (including estrogen or testosterone) to help usher the individual into puberty in a way that aligns their gender identity, meaning “masculinizing” hormone treatment for trans boys, and “feminizing” treatment for trans girls.
Sources: Insider & Very Well Health
Published Monday, March 7, 2022 by Zeff Llamas