I’m assuming that most of the health professionals involved in gender treatment provide care based on what they think is the most appropriate treatment.
Unfortunately their hands are tied by the memorandum of understanding.
www.psychotherapy.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2017/10/UKCP-Memorandum-of-Understanding-on-Conversion-Therapy-in-the-UK.pdf
James Caspian was involved in its development:
'I was one of the few people involved who understood transition from a clinical perspective and was not a campaigner, so I had no axe to grind — just concern for the clients and the professionals,' he says.
'When I looked at the ban on conversion therapy, I said, 'If you're not careful, you're going to make people think they can't ever question what somebody coming to them is saying and that's dangerous'.
'Already counsellors have contacted me to say they're worried that if a young client — say a 16-year-old — comes to them with a number of mental health issues or a history of sexual abuse and says, 'I want to transition', that it won't be safe for them to say, 'Well, let's look at this sexual abuse you had. Could that have anything to do with the way you feel about your body?', because that could be construed as conversion therapy.
'One psychotherapist who works with young people called me last night to say she is worried this memorandum could simplify things to a scary degree.
'She said: 'If all I did was affirm my patients were trans without exploring any mental health issues they might have, I don't think I'd be able to help them properly.'
'Equally, people are afraid it might not be safe to work with someone who wants to detransition, i.e. reverse their sex change.
'Let's say a trans female, who is no longer happy in their gender, goes to a counsellor to say they want to go back to living as a man. Could that counsellor be accused of conversion therapy if they help them?
'I kept arguing for specific wording to say, 'We do acknowledge some people do regret their transitions and reverse them, or change their minds.'
But every time I tried to put that wording in it was rejected.
'There are lots of activists within the LGBT community and I sensed that everyone was scared of them.
'One of them said to me on the phone, 'Are you going to block this memorandum?' Of course I didn't want to block it, but I wanted to make it safe for everybody.
'It was a long phone call and quite intimidating. I felt whatever I said was being interpreted as a threat.
I felt this person wasn't prepared to listen to anything I was saying. It literally made the hairs stand up on the back of my neck. That's really powerful that sort of fear.
'The problem is that the activists feel only they have any right to say anything and anyone who disagrees with them walks on eggshells for fear of being accused of being transphobic.
I had sleepless nights over the memorandum. I would wake up at 3am worrying about it.
'At that point, I honestly felt I was the only person in the world who was carrying the interests of people who had transitioned and regretted it. Nobody else involved knew what I knew about how these people were suffering, because I was researching them.'
www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-4979498/James-Caspian-attacked-transgender-children-comments.html