For the last two years, Koen has routinely self-administered weekly testosterone injections without a second thought.
During that time, the trans 17-year-old said his self-image and school and family life has drastically improved. His fear of needles, too, has faded.
“[Transitioning] made me look forward to things more because now I can start paying attention to the better version of myself,” said Koen, who asked to be identified by his first name because of fears for his safety. “It’s something I feel like I’ve needed for a while. I’m able to express myself more fluidly and feel comfortable doing that, which I think is a very big step for me right now.”
At the start of the year, though, a greater worry emerged.
A new law banning gender-affirming care for minors in Louisiana took effect on Jan. 1 prohibiting puberty blockers, hormone treatment, and gender-reaffirming surgery. Now, Koen isn’t sure he could continue his hormone treatment.
Louisiana is one of 22 other states that have enacted laws restricting or banning gender-affirming medical care for minors, disrupting health care needs for trans and nonbinary people.
The court cases striking down these shitty laws really need to get moving. Restricting access to hormone therapy is blatantly unconstitutional, as the existing challenges that have made it through the courts have proved.
People born XXY (Klinefelter’s Syndrome) can get testosterone for treatment, so to say someone who needs testosterone for similar gender affirming care cannot get it is plain discrimination on the basis of gender and sexual orientation.
I wholly agree with you. And I say this next part as an ally living in Louisiana:
I don’t see the courts being able to stop this from happening. Inevitably, it will get challenged and end up at the Supreme Court, which will rule 6-3 “states rights”.
Conservative justices have shown time and again that unless the constitution literally says the words “shall not infringe upon trans care for minors” they will not interpret it as such.
The only thing stopping this law in the last few years was a veto from the democratic governor, and now that that has flipped republican, the only thing that will stop it is enough people turning out to vote in 2027.
I’m not so sure SCOTUS would rule that way. Even Gorsuch ruled in favor of lgbtq rights because it is such obvious discrimination: https://www.npr.org/2020/06/15/863498848/supreme-court-delivers-major-victory-to-lgbtq-employees#:~:text=Gorsuch couched his opinion in,or transgender without discriminating …
But that syndrome is literally about a lack of testosterone production in males, so of course hormone treatment is justified.
There’s an imbalance being fixed.
Gender affirmative care isn’t medically necessary, you’re not curing an imbalance. You’re modifying your body to align with what you want it to be.
In my mind it’s just like plastic surgery. You wouldn’t let a kid get tons of plastic surgery because they don’t like their body image. Why should we start pumping them full of hormones?
I’d bet anything you don’t personally know or love any trans folk. On the off chance you do, please please please never tell them that their diagnosable condition is akin to plastic surgery. This is precisely what people are referring to when they talk about harmful, close minded ideals towards trans people and their identities.
Because they kill themselves. That’s why we give gender affirming care - because at best it just really can mess them up not to have it. And they were killing themselves. A lot.
So we came up with a protocol to do reversible puberty blockers for 4-6 years while they and their parents work with an endocrinologist and therapist to make sure this is the right call.
Only at 16 or 17 they then get the option for hormone therapy, and if they’ve been on puberty blockers then they either grow (or don’t grow) boobs naturally.
And unless they think there’s a high risk of suicide or self-mutilation otherwise (and there’s a process and a panel that needs to approve this) they can’t get bottom surgery until they’re at least 18 - assuming they even want it
We also do allow elective plastic surgery with parental and doctor approval - breast reduction or implants for example - at the age they’re eligible for hormone therapy.
Also, we give gender affirming plastic surgery to cis male teens and preteens who have manboobs, I think it can even be covered by insurance. It’s not unnatural or necessary unless they have a high risk for breast cancer, it’s purely because it makes them insecure
Should we start telling schizophrenics to listen to the voices in their head? I’m sure they’d feel a lot more comfortable in their skin.
The general populace agrees with me, even if they’re not saying it out loud. Trans women have to seek out special dating apps, because no cis men actually want to have a relationship with them. If trans women were really women, and I mean if people really believed that. Why won’t they date trans people?
Typical centrist idiot halting all progress because they think their thoughts are so profound.
Are you a trans person? No? Quit telling them how they should treat themselves, you empathy lacking dumb ass.
It’s none of your fucking business.
I don’t need to be trans to have an opinion.
I’m also on the left. Not everybody who disagrees with you falls into the political category you don’t like
No, just trying to have a conversation.
You guys get to share your opinions and thoughts, even though you aren’t doctors.
If a child is born with a cleft lip would you repair it or tell them that’s the way god made them and they have to live with it?
If a child is neurodivergent and has severe gender dysphoria becasue of it do you force them to remain unhappy and uncomfortable or do you help them make adjustments to make them more comfortable?
If you can’t “fix” the issue isn’t the next best step accommodating for it? If someone is paralyzed and the spine can’t be repaired do you leave them in bed or give them a wheelchair? If I person is deaf do you just leave them in silence or give them hearing aids and/or teach them to sign?
Being trans is very often like being gay, it’s hardwired into the brain, just like being left handed. If it’s just the way a person’s brain is wired isn’t it better to relieve discomfort by adjusting the physical to match the mental if the mental can’t be adjusted to match the physical?
There will be kids who are experimenting with their gender identity and decide that they’re most comfortable as their birth gender and that’s great, any form of self discovery is awesome but there will always be people who are gender dysphoric and the most successful way of alleviating that dysphoria is to transition.
Years and years of therapy come before any form a medical transition for kids and often transition simply means a preferred name change, change of clothes and gender affirming hair style. If a child is comfortable with just those changes then medical transition isn’t necessary. If however they, after therapy and non medical gender affirming care still feel uncomfortable puberty blockers can be used to pause puberty until the child is older. Once they’re older they can decide whether or not transition is the right choice for them.
No one should go into transition without therapy first but gender dysphoria is so uncomfortable. It’s like walking around in shoes that are 3 sizes too big or too small your entire life. You can get by, but it’s painful.
Reconstructive surgery to fix an aesthetic-only deformity isn’t “medically necessary” either, by your definition. So you get upset that people stare at you in public? Ha ha, feelings aren’t real, get over it!
Lots of doctors disagree with you. I think I’ll go with their opinions over those of some uninformed internet rando who decides things based on feelings.
The same doctors that started the opioid epidemic because they were in big pharmas pocket?
I wonder how much the hormone manufacturers are making.
