Open letter to Dr Polly Carmichael from a former GIDS clinician

[umbel]

Former GIDS clinician speaking out, in detail, with her name and face public. Brava!

medium.com/@kirstyentwistle/an-open-letter-to-dr-polly-carmichael-from-a-former-gids-clinician-53c541276b8d

twitter.com/charlesworth102/status/1152103833427947520

I hadn't realised Dr Polly had a cameo role in 'I am Leo'. I never knew about it, probably because BBC children's programming is now in its own isolated channel so I don't watch it any more.

Also, there is another letter on this thread: www.mumsnet.com/Talk/womens_rights/3642045-more-ex-gids-clinician-speaking-out

"I was surprised to read how many of the kids referred to them live in poverty: I supposed I'd imagined they would be the precursors to the blue-haired uni students".

That was my impression also. I imagined pushy, conservative parents who do not want a gay child and are pursuing a wrong body diagnosis so that they can make their child straight by changing their body. Clearly there are some parents like that, but sounds like the majority of the children come from the most deprived backgrounds.

I am very concerned about looked after children identifying as transgender. We've seen a few court cases in the UK where young people in care are identifying as transgender. And the Canadian 'gender expert' who boasted that he has over 500 children in his care who are foster children or orphans.

thefederalist.com/2019/04/01/doctor-advises-threatening-suicide-get-transgender-treatments-kids/#.XKIjnkTZMIM.twitter

R0wan started a thread on Mumsnet about the vulnerabilities of looked after children in this country.

www.mumsnet.com/Talk/womens_rights/3324578-Vunerabilities-of-Looked-After-Children-Social-Work-CP-restricted-by-affirmation-requirement-Trans-Youth-in-Care-Toolkit?msgid=84641246

Tara Hewitt, Inclusion and Engagement Manager of the NHS, and a founder of TELI, talks of the importance of making the time to speak to Looked After Children about their gender identity.

That letter was incredibly distressing to read- especially the part about girls who are not communicating verbally being put on the road to transition. And the risky behaviour, the grinding poverty, unstable homelife and housing...

Up til now I imagined the children accessing the GIDS to be those from privileged backgrounds- with middle class, pushy parents who have swallowed the Mermaid bullshit and want their kids on a medical pathway ASAP. This letter is painting a much more complex picture- in fact there are parents who have been referred who are NOT expecting affirmation their child has gender identity disorder, but the clinicians feel unable to offer them a different model of care. It is absolutely scandalous.

Wonder how the patient profile in Leeds differs from the London clinic.

The Bell report into GIDS at the Tavistock and Portman gave a stronger flavour of pushy parents wanting to trans away the gay, as well as young patients with mental health problems, trauma, and autism of course.

www.transgendertrend.com/current-evidence/

especially the part about girls who are not communicating verbally being put on the road to transition.

Yes I had red flags waving to me there regarding potential asd or abuse or depression.

"I was surprised to read how many of the kids referred to them live in poverty: I supposed I'd imagined they would be the precursors to the blue-haired uni students".

If you want to experiment on children, which children would you see as the most suitable guinea pigs - middle class children with loving parents, or neglected children living in poverty?

If you want to experiment on children, which children would you see as the most suitable guinea pigs - middle class children with loving parents, or neglected children living in poverty?

So true.

I was surprised to read how many of the kids referred to them live in poverty: I supposed I'd imagined they would be the precursors to the blue-haired uni students

This is supported by something Polly Carmichael said earlier in the year that many of the children they see have "complex backgrounds and histories''

I remember a twitter thread by Dr Webberley trying to refute this but it ended up as confirmation when so many of the respondents said things like "nothing unusual about our family, 5 kids, 4 of them autistic and 2 trans"

One thing that jumped out of that letter for me was that any other social problems and concerns were never followed up by social services.

I’m so glad she has spoken out.

Sometimes I worry that I made the wrong choice about refusing a referral to GIDS, that maybe dd’s autism would’ve been picked up sooner. Reading Kirsty’s letter has cemented in my mind I did the right thing.

I’m now just so angry at the whole shit show. It’s now 5 years since we first approached CAMHS about an ASD assessment for dd. It was put off for 3 years as all issues were ascribed to gender dysphoria. She’s had an inconclusive ASD assessment as she’s ‘complex’. There’s now an undercurrent of her having been coerced to present as a woman, not a transman. It scared me how clinicians believe so readily someone saying they’re transgender, but will not believe the same person when they say they no longer feel that way.

I would like to know what is written about Mermaids in patient files!

I believe that it is the duty of GIDS to disclose their concerns about Mermaids

This sentence from the letter is very telling. It does not say 'disclose any possible concerns', it is a given that GIDS does have concerns

Article by James Kirkup of The Spectator.

blogs.spectator.co.uk/2019/07/its-time-to-listen-to-the-nhs-gender-clinic-whistleblowers/

"Questions about the GIDS and the treatment of children over gender issues are serious, persistent and growing. The people who should be seeking answers to those questions are the people we employ to represent and reconcile the nation’s diverse interests and opinions, to ensure policy is made and that implemented on the basis of evidence, and to provide the final protection of the vulnerable against administrative failure and misjudgment. It is long past time for MPs to do their jobs and get some answers about children and transgenderism".

Kirkup's getting blunter and blunter. GOOD FOR HIM.

Reading this through I have just thought of another common theme (as well as ASD) in the families I know of. They all have a family member with significant illness or disability.

Maybe there is nothing in it, but it does add another layer of what may already be going on.

Thankyou Orchid and Popchyk

A good letter to read.

It seems the role of GIDS is to generate more work for GIDS, not to treat patients in the most effective way.

Thank you Kirsty for writing and publishing this.

People might be interested in reading this - Katie Alcock developmental psychologist outlined some of her concerns about children identifying as the opposite sex. She explained how children develop a sense of sex constancy, and how young children might think that you change sex if you change clothes. She wrote up the talk she gave at an event organised by For Women Lancashire.

medium.com/@katieja/young-children-reality-sex-and-gender-3421f4f165f1

"I was surprised to read how many of the kids referred to them live in poverty: I supposed I'd imagined they would be the precursors to the blue-haired uni students".

Me too. DD was just a bit too old for Trans, but every girl in her sixth form seemed to be something "pan-" "demi-" "bi-" and so on.

However the two trans-teens that I vaguely know had middle class parents who did their own research and tried their best to ensure "watchful waiting" despite schools, social services and psychologists all pushing affirmation. One apparently even had to employ lawyers to keep SS off their backs. Not a resource easily available to the less well off, and not something that someone not used to questioning authority might even think of.

Thank you for writing that article Kirsty and I hope you read this thread. It must be very hard to be so open with your professional peers but very brave to do it and thank you. But good grief- what a shocking situation- and which sounds like it is storing up a hell of a lot more trouble for patients- some of whom are already in dire straits. How can it be that there is never any situation in which a professional can determine that a child is not trans? I find that really worrying.

I will be writing to my MP to send them the link to your article. It should be required reading for MPs to understand the reality of services and the complex needs of the kids who attend them. Thank you.

I was surprised to read how many of the kids referred to them live in poverty: I supposed I'd imagined they would be the precursors to the blue-haired uni students

The single parent at my DCs' school whose child transitioned age 6 is on NMW. I strongly suspect that the non-resident-parent is extremely socially conservative and of the "no child of mine will dress like that". The child has a unisex name but on transition changed their surname to that of the resident parent.
My take is the NRP said "over my dead body", the RP was allowing the child to dress roughly how they wanted, but social media told the RP that they should allow a 6 year old who wanted to be the other sex, to believe they are the other sex, and a little knowledge (or social media) is a dangerous thing.

Scarily, the RP is now training to work with children full time.

The school has now told the class that the child IS the other sex, and my DCs are being forcefully reminded by me that this child is still their original sex, and no amount of change of clothes or toy preference can make them the other sex.

This letter was discussed on Today on Radio 4 this morning with Paul Jenkins, CEO of the Tavistock.

www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/m0006zwf

Starts at 1h22m.

Thread:
www.mumsnet.com/Talk/womens_rights/3644538-On-BBCR4-now-GIDS-whistleblower-being-discussed