Economist article

[AvocadoBathroom]

www.economist.com/international/2020/12/12/an-english-ruling-on-trans-identifying-teens-could-have-global-repercussions

If anyone can share the whole article? Looks like an important one.

That’s a cracking article.

Among many other bits, this bit leapt out at me

The case for puberty blockers is that they can help children with severe gender dysphoria, who feel desperate about developing the “wrong” sex characteristics. That is because the drugs could spare them distress and, potentially, traumatic interventions later: a double mastectomy; a hysterectomy or the shaving of the Adam’s apple

These three things are not remotely comparable! The two worst of the three only affect girls. I always think it can’t get any more obvious how much this stuff shits on women and girls way, way worse than it does on men and boys, then it hits me between the eyes like this again. Getting your Adam’s apple shaved and having a major organ and your fertility and ability to feed a baby removed aren’t even in the same medical ballpark. Jesus.

I thought the coverage was good too. The Economist can be surprisingly thoughtful. When I was going through fertility treatment one of the few sensible, balanced articles I read was in it.

@SophocIestheFox

Among many other bits, this bit leapt out at me

The case for puberty blockers is that they can help children with severe gender dysphoria, who feel desperate about developing the “wrong” sex characteristics. That is because the drugs could spare them distress and, potentially, traumatic interventions later: a double mastectomy; a hysterectomy or the shaving of the Adam’s apple

These three things are not remotely comparable! The two worst of the three only affect girls. I always think it can’t get any more obvious how much this stuff shits on women and girls way, way worse than it does on men and boys, then it hits me between the eyes like this again. Getting your Adam’s apple shaved and having a major organ and your fertility and ability to feed a baby removed aren’t even in the same medical ballpark. Jesus.

My understanding is that the hysterectomy (because of the effects of testosterone) and the double mastectomy (because breast tissue is already present) are almost always done even if the patient has been on puberty blockers, because nearly all PB patients go on to cross sex hormones. So the female patients are almost guaranteed some form of brutal surgery. As well as lifelong meds.