MicroWaveMar 13, 2024

Trans youth will no longer be prescribed puberty blockers, NHS England says

https://lemmy.world/post/13067428

Trans youth will no longer be prescribed puberty blockers, NHS England says - Lemmy.World

Trans youth will no longer be prescribed puberty blockers at NHS England gender identity clinics in a new “blow” to gender-affirming healthcare. Puberty blockers are a type of medicine that prevent puberty from starting by blocking the hormones – like testosterone and oestrogen – that lead to puberty-related changes in the body. In the case of trans youth, this can delay unwanted physical changes like menstruation, breast growth, voice changes or facial hair growth. On Tuesday (12 March), NHS England confirmed the medicine, which has been described as “life-saving” medical care for trans youth, will only be available to young people as part of clinical research trials. The government described the move as a “landmark decision”, Sky News reported. It believed such a move is in the “best interests of the child”.

Show threadTh4tGuyIIMar 13, 2024

God damn Tories. What do they know about “best interests of the child” that a doctor doesn't already know? Less than nothing is the answer.

If a young person is suffering from gender dysmorphia to the point of considering gender affirmation procedures, then I think it'd be in their best interest to not exacerbate that condition by delaying the onset of puberty via puberty blockers until they're at the age where that can legally consent to such procedures.

Even if they eventually decide not to undergo those procedures, all you habr to do is take them off the blockers and they'd undergo puberty as normal. There's not all that much downside for an awful lot of upside for those in need.

Show threadOneLemmyManMar 13, 2024
seen doctors force sex change to children that lead to the child killing themselves in adulthood. Doctors are just people and people are all the same
Show threadMouselemming

Puberty is a sex change forced on all children by their own hormones. Just because it matches the sex they were assigned at birth doesn’t mean it doesn’t force radical physical changes. It’s stressful even for cis kids, and can lead trans kids towards suicide.

Blocking it postpones the permanent physical changes until the person is old enough to make a rational decision whether to have (less extreme needed) medical intervention to achieve a physical appearance that matches the sex they weren’t assigned at birth, or to stop taking the blockers and allow their assigned sexual characteristics to develop.

Anyone who thinks doctors are pushing trans surgeries should be in favor of puberty blockers.

Mar 13, 2024 at 2:12pmWeb
Show threadfeedum_sneedsonMar 14, 2024
That’s a bit like saying life is forced on you by your conception and birth, though. It’s getting a bit metaphysical at this point.