Is this going too far? You decide....

[johnnycakes]

http://www.boston.com/bostonglobe/id..._norman_spack/

After reading this it struck me that 7 or 8 years old is simply too young to be making these types of decisions.

I'd be interested in hearing from some of the ladies as they offer a unique perspective on this.

Here's a quote form the article:

"But in the past few years, some doctors have come to believe that kids should be allowed to have some control over how they grow up. Dr. Norman Spack, 64, argues that transgender kids tend to be much happier - and less likely to harm themselves - when they're able to live in their preferred gender role.
Last year, the pediatric endocrinologist started a new clinic at Children's Hospital Boston; it is one of a few in the world to give children treatments that change their bodies. Working on a model borrowed from Dutch researchers, Spack uses drugs to delay the first stirrings of youngsters' puberty, granting them a few more years before they develop bodies that are decidedly male or female. The effects of these puberty-blocking drugs are reversible; that is, patients can later change their minds. Unfortunately, this is not the case with hormones. Therefore, Spack prescribes estrogen and testosterone to only a few teenagers - after months of consultation with the patient, his or her caregivers, and psychiatrists. When kids take this step, they are rewriting their own future: The hormones have a powerful, pervasive effect, changing their height, breast development, and the pitch of their voices."

[toban]

Sounds like a huge advance to me!

http://www.boston.com/bostonglobe/id..._norman_spack/

After reading this it struck me that 7 or 8 years old is simply too young to be making these types of decisions.

I'd be interested in hearing from some of the ladies as they offer a unique perspective on this.

I am definitely not one of the ladies but if I may, I would like to comment on this topic. After reading this piece I have to agree wholeheartedly with Dr. Spack.

I do not believe that children and parents would be making decisions of such great importance. If it appears early on in the childs development that there is a gender disparity, Dr. Spack prefers to delay the onset of sexual characteristics until later when a more informed decision may be made.

It appears that by early identification of transgenderism, counter hormones can be given to delay the onset of puberty until an age where a child may better be able to make a more informed decision about making such a major committment to alter their identity. Through this process the appearance of normally identifiable gender traits [e.g. beard, musculature, skeletal structure, size, voice, adams apple, genitals, body hair etc] would be delayed pending further verification of the need to proceed or to revert! This means then that their body will develop to suit the gender selected, not that which was genetically decided. There would be less, or perhaps even no very expensive body modification surgeries needed [no breast augmentation, SRS, skeletal modification, voice, etc] if Dr. Spacks belief is correct.

Currently when a transgendered person is finally able, both financially and psychologoically to make the decision to change, they have unfortunately already grown into the wrong body!

Should they decide not to go ahead with the change then they may still safely revert to their former gender status, though they will likely become infertile. This process enables them to have time to make that choice to live in the body shell that is consistent with their image of themsel_ves. The major obstacle seems to be the fertility problem. Today, many naturally infertile males and females live normal and happy lives! I believe that would be be a small price to pay for the comfort otherwise made available through this process.

To grow up and live for perhaps the most important formative years of ones life in the wrong body must be extemely difficult. To have to wait until one has lived a quarter of their life to accomplish this change has to be an unnecessary burden.

Of course my comments are made as an outsider and not as one of the group who are at the heart of this issue, so I too would be interested in hearing how the transgender community would feel about this new approach to the issue. It seems quite sensible to me.

[johnnycakes]

I wouldn't consider infertility a small price to pay. I also think the ramifications go far beyond that. These children will remain looking like children while all their peers follow the natural course of puberty. Even children who are late bloomers exhibit the natural changes that occur with growth. Imagine an already confused 12 year old that has been on hormones and looks like he is 7 in a junior high school gym class....

These changes are real and permanent. A boy that was destined to be 6' tall could well end up at 5'6".

Looking at all the beautiful t-girls in the world now, I'm just not certain that going to this extreme is necessary at such an early age. I'm no expert, but I can't help but wonder if what these kids need is love and support until they are old enough to be certain about their gender identity...rather than hormones/drugs.

[Admin]

Well, I think this is all very presumptuous.

While a child may appear transgendered to the parents and maybe is effeminate compared to other children, this by no means is proof they are transsexual. As a matter of fact there is no proof anyone is a transsexual.

Being a TS is a personal decision that should not be made by the parents. Often this is a problem if parents cannot produce a child of the sex that they desire. Parents can say they think their child is transgendered, but they don't really know.

It does not seem feasible that a child would really identify with being the wrong sex until they hit puberty.
Delaying a natural thing such as puberty seems mean and harmful, mentally and physically. Your body decides when you hit puberty, others should not.
They may do things more like girls or whatever but until their actual sexuality starts to develop, I cannot see really being sure.