Archived Articles Related to Gender Variant Youngsters
Click on the links below to view the related articles and documents.
Like most teenagers Jackie Green couldn’t wait for her special 16th birthday present. But the gift from her mum Susie wasn’t clothes or jewellery – it was a £13,500 sex change operation … I had sex swap op on my 16th birthday – The Sun, October 25, 2011
Cormac O’Dwyer entered Grade 8 in Vancouver as a girl named Amber. All traces of femininity stopped with the name; Amber looked, dressed and acted like a boy … When boys would rather not be boys – macleans.ca, August 12, 2011
Although born identical twins with matching DNA, Tom and Ryan were two immensely different children. As toddlers, Tom entertained himself with toy trucks while Ryan fawned over his girl cousin’s Barbies and Little Mermaid dolls … Children’s gives transgender tween new hope – Thriving, Boston Children’s Hospital’s Pediatric Health Blog, July 21, 2010
Josie Romero loves the colour pink, braiding her hair and having her fingernails painted. But life has not always been easy for this sweet and charming eight-year-old, who was born in the body of a boy … Josie Romero, the eight-year-old ‘sex change girl’ who was born a boy – Daily Mail, October 18, 2009
The average primary may have as many as three transgendered pupils. Avoiding the issue is the worst response, but as Hannah Frankel reports, there is much that schools can do to offer support at a deeply traumatic time … A girl on Friday, a boy by Monday – TES Magazine, October 16, 2009
This is a story that at first glance seems quite unbelievable. It’s about a little girl called Jazz. She’s only eight years old and she was born a boy. She is probably the youngest transgender child in the world … 60 Minutes: My Secret Self – 60 Minutes, September 4, 2009
The procedure – carried out in secret and paid for by the German health service – was authorised after psychologists confirmed that she was “without doubt a girl in a boy’s body”. It is the world’s youngest ever full sex change operation and Kim – born Tim – had been undergoing hormone therapy since the age of 12 … World’s youngest sex-change operation — Daily Telegraph, February 4, 2009
Young teenagers with extreme gender identity disorder should be given drugs to block puberty so that they don’t have to experience distressing changes to their bodies which they perceive to be out of line with their true gender … Delaying puberty could help gender-confused teens – New Scientist, December 5, 2008
Young teenagers with serious gender identity disorders should be given drugs which will block puberty, international experts suggest … Gender-confused teens drug call – BBC News, December 10, 2008
“I have a secret feeling,” the five- year-old boy said on his first visit to Professor Louise Newman. He walked over and whispered into her ear, “I am a girl” … Gender Troubles: pages from Australian Doctor (PDF, 587KB), October 31, 2008
Shortly after school began in the fall of 2004, an eighth grader named Tye Clark delivered a jolting message to her classmates. “I’m the same person I was last year and the year before, but I am transgender and will now come to school as a boy,” Tye told four assemblies at Cedarbrook Middle School in Cheltenham Township. “You may not agree, but I hope you will respect me and my right to get a good education” … Teens in transition – Philly.com, October 20, 2008
Since he could speak, Brandon, now 8, has insisted that he was meant to be a girl. This summer, his parents decided to let him grow up as one. His case, and a rising number of others like it, illuminates a heated scientific debate about the nature of gender—and raises troubling questions about whether the limits of child indulgence have stretched too far … A Boy’s Life – The Atlantic, November 2008
“She was our first child,” recalls Sarah (not her real name), a mother of two who lives in the south of England. “But from age three we knew something was wrong. She was very introverted, isolated. When she started school at four she came home and said she was a freak. It seemed a strange word for a four-year-old to use. She was always quite a sad little person.” My body is wrong – Guardian August 14, 2008
When children are adamant that they are trapped in the wrong body, is it ethical to offer them hormone treatment? A concerned mother and a Dutch psychologist believe the answer is ‘yes’ … Should I help my 12-year-old get a sex change? – The Times July 21, 2008
Puberty can be scary for many children, but doctors say it’s absolutely terrifying for transgender youth. “If they’re not terrified of it, they’re not trans,” said Dr. Norman Spack, clinical director of the endocrine division of Children’s Hospital in Boston. The hospital opened a transgender clinic for children nearly a year ago, the first in the nation like it, according to Spack … Transgender teens: Doctors refine hormone, other therapies – Article in Sunday edition of Foster’s Daily Democrat, Dover, New Hampshire, USA. January 27, 2008
The breast bud popped up about six months ago, and Marty knew something had to be done. It was the slightest of puckers, just on one side, so small you wouldn’t even notice it through a T-shirt. Still, boys don’t get breasts, and this had the unsettling potential to blow his cover big-time … Girl/Boy Interrupted – A new treatment for transgender kids puts puberty on hold so that they won’t develop into their biological sex. – San Francisco Weekly July 11, 2007
As a child, Adrian Daniels wore hockey jerseys. He dreamed of marrying figure-skating champion Katarina Witt. And each night before he went to bed, he prayed that he would wake up the next morning with something he had always wanted: a penis … Agents of Change – Toronto Globe and Mail, May 8, 2007
In the gymnastics studio lobby, my 4-year-old son stood staring mournfully at the rack of hot pink velvet leotards. “I’ll never wear one of those,” Sam whispered. Reluctantly, I asked, “Do you want to?” He answered, slowly and sadly, “Yes. Yes, I do.” I’d said no before, to pink dresses and sparkly lip balm. It would be so easy to say it now: “No, that’s for girls. Look at what the other boys are wearing.” … Let Them Be – San Francisco Chronicle, April 8, 2007
From the moment we’re born, our gender identity is no secret. We’re either a boy or a girl. Gender organizes our world into pink or blue. As we grow up, most of us naturally fit into our gender roles. Girls wear dresses and play with dolls. For boys, it’s pants and trucks. But for some children, what’s between their legs doesn’t match what’s between their ears — they insist they were born into the wrong body. They are transgender children, diagnosed with gender identity disorder, and their parents insist this is not a phase … I’m a Girl: Understanding Transgender Children – ABC NEWS, April 27, 2007
Until recently, many children who did not conform to gender norms in their clothing or behavior and identified intensely with the opposite sex were steered to psychoanalysis or behavior modification. But as advocates gain ground for what they call gender-identity rights, evidenced most recently by New York City’s decision to let people alter the sex listed on their birth certificates, a major change is taking place among schools and families … Supporting Boys or Girls When the Line Isn’t Clear – New York Times, December 2, 2006
Rainbow Health Ontario works to improve the health and well being of LGBTQ people in Ontario, and to increase access to competent and LGBTQ friendly health care services across the province. We do this by providing education and training to providers, advocating for public policy change, sharing information and consulting with service providers and organizations … Caring for Transgender Adolescents in BC: Suggested Guidelines
Transgenderism: Lahey Clinic Journal of Medical Ethics – Norman Spack MD 18th Sept 2005 – Medical Ethics Fall 2005 Vol 12, Issue 3 (PDF, 345KB)
Children have cut themselves. In some cases, 9 or 10-year-old kids have staged suicide attempts. The little boys sob unless they’re allowed to wear dresses. The girls want to be called Luke, Ted, or James. Their parents, desperate to know what is wrong, go online and type “gender disorder” … Interview with Dr Norman Spack – Children’s Hospital Boston, March 30, 2008