To think a child wanting to transition should be dealt as a mental health matter?

[Wronghere]

I want to start by saying I’m very liberal and believe that people should be able to live as they choose.

However, today on X, I saw a trans influencer state that she doesn’t think that children should be able to medically transition. They should have to wait till of adult age to be prescribed any hormone drugs. I completely agree with this and I was surprised to see the comments, most people were disagreeing with her.

As a mother of two children, if my child was showing signs of wanting to transition to another sex, I would first be getting them psychiatric help before anything and I definitely would not agree to them taking any hormone medication before they are off age. Am I in the minority opinion here ?

On MN you’ll find plenty who agree with you.

Being able to live as you choose is entirely different from thinking you can change biological sex and undergoing medically unnecessary and harmful interventions to try to achieve this.

I'd assume it was a phase.

Do my best to boost their confidence, not make a huge fuss about it, help them to live as they want at home, and leave anything life changing until after they were 18.

On HERE? Dear God no, have you never met Mumsnet before? 😂

For what it's worth I agree with you. If any child of mine was serious about it I would definitely start with looking into their mental health first.

It's illegal to give puberty blockers to vhoein the uk after the Cass Review. No need to fall for conspiracy theories about them being handed out like sweets to small children.

It’s not a conspiracy theory, purely an opinion.

It's a mental health problem and treating it by making permanent physical changes to a healthy body is a terrible idea. I think we'll be aghast when we look back on this period of history.

The trans influencer mentuned in the op is against children transitioning.

Children don't need mental health support, they need adults to stop confusing them and telling them they can change sex. No they can't. If we sorted that mess out first, the children would all be fine.

Gender dysphoria is a real thing that has been an issue for centuries. Just pretending it doesn't exist won't make it go away.

What's wrong with you?

I think the poster is so blinded by their own prejudice that they were unable to comprehend that they might agree with a trans person on this issue.

Children don't need mental health support

I hope you aren't a parent.

No, the poster misread the OP and has asked MN to withdraw it.

I do agree with the influencer in this case, most right minded people don't advocate for child abuse.

I certainly would want them to seek counselling to discuss why they feel this way. Whether it's necessarily an actual MH disorder or not, I would say it's a sign of not feeling comfortable in your own skin which can manifest itself in many ways, gender confusion being one.
I would not condone any hormones or puberty blockers or surgery, so they would need to be whatever the consenting age is for that. I don't know if it's 16, or 18? For medical responsibility?
I have a trans cousin and they transitioned in their early 20s. I think they might have felt that way before but once the person is an adult you have to let them make their own choice.

I consider trans identity in children to be a proof of a huge failure of the society. It means they consider their interpretation of what the society shows them as "men" and "women" unbearable.

So I 'd fully support the opt out from gender norms and expectations and the de-coupling of the concepts of sex, gender and gender identity.
And I would be very angry if anyone in a position of authority suggested anything about transitioning.

Are we taking it too seriously? I'm fairly sure if I had told my mum I wanted to be a boy I'd have got told 'that's nice' and life would have carried on. I doubt there would have been concerns for my mental health .

Surely it's better to let kids express themselves and then make their own choices as adults.

Or am I being naive?

Of course it is. Nobody was born in the wrong body.

I'm the parent of a trans-woman who transitioned in her 20s. Part of the protocol was seeing a WPATH psychiatrist. She also worked with her psychologist who specialises in gender and sexuality. She's decided against surgery but is on hormones. It would have been impossible to find an endo to prescribe without the mental health support where we live.

I'd want at least as much intervention and assessment before my minor child had hormones.

No I don’t think so. In many cases such a relaxed and straightforward approach would help.

One big difference is that when you were a child your mum was probably the most significant influence on your behaviour and actions. Today parents are competing with the internet and social media influence, among others.

The poster is you. Own your hatred. It's disgusting.

I'm aware "the poster" misread the op and saw what they were expecting to rather than what is there.

That's prejudice and bias works. They make it harder to look at situations and people objectively and see them for what they are.

Agree re waiting till adulthood for irreversible medical or hormonal interventions.
But getting the trick cyclists in is a tad extreme! It gives a child a clear message that there is something wrong with them when actually they are exploring their feelings, and need time and a safe place to do this. And home - with their parents - is the best place to do that.

I'm aware of who the poster was. I don't agree with people who advocate for the abuse of vulnerable children and apparently that's disgusting. Sure.

You're perfectly entitled to your opinion - thank you for sharing.