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Forums - Politics Discussion - California couple decides to start hormone therapy for their children for gender swap

"Ben [father] has always been a private person... Sara [mother] is different. She’s shared her life online for the past few years, using social media as a way to connect with people...  Sara and Ben considered themselves progressive. They would take James shopping for “boy clothes” and to get a “boy haircut.”

One day, the whole class walked to a bulletin board that James [9 year old boy] had helped put together with an LGBT student group at school. ... Finally, though, he just told them. Well, I’m transgender. “I was pretty darn confident,” he said.

Sometimes when Sara and Ben discuss those possibilities, or when they’re sitting with James at the doctor’s office, there’s a noticeable tension. Sara feels confident about moving forward. If anything, she’s more worried about James starting hormone therapy too late."

In the months since reporting this story, Charley, who is 5 now, also has socially transitioned. She’s chosen a new name (Olivia), wears dresses to preschool and is growing her hair out. She’s excited, Sara says, to start kindergarten “as a long-haired girl.”

http://projects.sfchronicle.com/2017/transgender-child/

 

 

Last edited by numberwang - on 29 December 2017

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Some parents should just not be parents.



duduspace11 "Well, since we are estimating costs, Pokemon Red/Blue did cost Nintendo about $50m to make back in 1996"

http://gamrconnect.vgchartz.com/post.php?id=8808363

Mr Puggsly: "Hehe, I said good profit. You said big profit. Frankly, not losing money is what I meant by good. Don't get hung up on semantics"

http://gamrconnect.vgchartz.com/post.php?id=9008994

Azzanation: "PS5 wouldn't sold out at launch without scalpers."

Thats just simply wrong.These decisions, if they really mean to do that, should just be made when they are adult, when they are fully conscious of their decision.As things stands, like Machina said, they are boynd to be very messed up when they grow up.



My (locked) thread about how difficulty should be a decision for the developers, not the gamers.

https://gamrconnect.vgchartz.com/thread.php?id=241866&page=1

Machina said:

Their 4 year old boy coincidentally is also transgender.

No frigging wonder. He looks on, as a 4 year old, sees all of the attention being given to his older sister (soon to be brother), who he looks up to and wants to emulate, and the constant praise and affirmation of his mother, and decides he also happens to have been born in the wrong body. Thus he's set on the road of having his gender changed, via hormone therapy and surgery, from the age of 4.

Just bonkers. Those kids are going to be very messed up individuals when they grow up.

I think it is kind of a matter of things going from one extreame to another before we grow as a society, and stabilize. People have been put into rolls, and expected to be what they are not for so long, and to an extreame, that now to break out, things have to go extreame in the other direction.

There will undoubtably end up being cases as you are suggesting this may be. It is sad, but it is part of growth. There will always be those that struggle when we make progress. It is progress that needs to be made though. 

Hopefully this will end as a happy story, where two people are able to live life as themselves, and not bare the burden of living in a disguise that fits a broken society. They already have the support of their family, and that is huge for anyone.

 It will be nice when this is no longer a news story, and we get past this whole boy vs girl vs transgender, straight vs gay vs bi, long hair vs short hair, dresses vs pants, pink vs blue, trucks vs cars, dolls vs games, and all the other ridiculous things people come up with to say who or what you are, or are supposed to be.



Stop hate, let others live the life they were given. Everyone has their problems, and no one should have to feel ashamed for the way they were born. Be proud of who you are, encourage others to be proud of themselves. Learn, research, absorb everything around you. Nothing is meaningless, a purpose is placed on everything no matter how you perceive it. Discover how to love, and share that love with everything that you encounter. Help make existence a beautiful thing.

Kevyn B Grams
10/03/2010 

KBG29 on PSN&XBL

I know someone probably wants to make a political statement by making "california" and "progressive" tags, but it's just downright bad parenting.



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Machina said:

This isn't an issue about acceptance at all though imo. If they were adults not being recognised by society as male or female after they'd gone through surgery it would be, but they're not and it's not; they're currently young children, not even teenagers, let alone fully grown adults, and they're about to make irrevocable life decisions (the first kid is going to be put on hormone blockers, to prevent her/him going through puberty) and are on the path towards gender surgery. Both of them. 

I am not on the kids are naive bandwagon, and it is importent to get the transition stared before puberty kicks in. The 4 year old doesn't need to do anything, but dress and act as they want to. The 9 year old is getting to the point were deciding to go on blockers is important. 

If they are good parents, they will let the kids be themselves. There is nothing wrong with how a kid dresses once they reach the age that they are capable, or want to dress themselves. They may want to present themselves in many ways, or they may present themselves in one specific way. It is their time to learn.

Once they reach the age of puberty, the parents need to be open and honest with there kids, regaurdless of how they present themselves. If the child has made the decision to present themselves in a way which may not fit their physical attributes, then the parents need to have a serious discussion regaudring the situation. If needed they may get in contact with a professional, as this may be something that niether parent has expereince in.

As they reach their later years of development, then genital re-assignment may be a topic. Not all transgener persons make changes here, and it is not a requirement for them to do so. If they are content with their genitals, then the the hormone blockers are all they need. If they are considering, or fully about getting gential surgery, then more discussions need to happen. 

 

Some transgender people know who they are from the very beggining. There are many transgender people I have talked to, and many that are open in the public, that will tell you they knew from their very earliest memories that they knew something was off with their body. Just like anything, that will not be the case with everyone. Some may be uniformed, some may genuinely unsure, some may discover it later in life.

No one should be told that they don't know who they are though. Children, should not be forced to live in sadness or depression because, people tell them they don't know who they are or what they want. This is not the days of trying to push subjects like this aside, and say its a phase. We don't look at things we don't like or uncomfortable with and say God will fix this, we take it as a serious matter, and try to help. To say, someone has to suffer for 18 years, and then fight an uphill battle to become themself and relearn the world as the person they are supposed to be is extreamly cruel and cold hearted.

 

I know this is a relitivly new issue for many, but real people have been living this since as far back as we know. It will take time to change the ways of society. No ill feelings towards anyone that has different views.



Stop hate, let others live the life they were given. Everyone has their problems, and no one should have to feel ashamed for the way they were born. Be proud of who you are, encourage others to be proud of themselves. Learn, research, absorb everything around you. Nothing is meaningless, a purpose is placed on everything no matter how you perceive it. Discover how to love, and share that love with everything that you encounter. Help make existence a beautiful thing.

Kevyn B Grams
10/03/2010 

KBG29 on PSN&XBL

That Y chromosome is going nowhere.



Gross.



It's great to support your children if they decide they are transgender but would they even be able to know properly at that age? It should always be the children's choice so it's nice to see that they listened instead of just deciding for themselves or something which wouldn't be that good. 

Edit: I'm editing this comment to rewrite what I originally intended to convey but did so poorly at the time.

Last edited by FloatingWaffles - on 13 August 2021

That's child abuse. I don't think any parent should push their kid to be trans or put any kid on hormones before they're 18. Kids are too young make that kind of choice. If the kid wants to become trans, they can when they're grown. Also, hormone treatments destroy a person ability to have kids.