It is nice to see some movement on a subject that has been mired in 1950’s psychology. It is interesting that a such a “disease” that requires such drastic mutilation, has not been researched using post-millennial tools and techniques. When someone is “diagnosed” as transgender where are the CAT scans, MRIs, blood work, DNA work and other diagnostic techniques that would search for biological causation? None.
Where are the psychological diagnostic instruments that would confirm or deny? None.
Where are the trials of antipsychotics, antianxiety agents and psychotherapy to test the contents of the patient’s beliefs? None.
Where is the research about diagnostic decisions trees that include biological paradigms? None.
Instead we are told that the patient makes the diagnosis. Because they have felt like the opposite sex from their DNA since they can remember. Not accounting for the fact that in delusional processes, the past is incorporated in the delusions i.e.: when I treat the secretary who thinks she is the Queen of England, although her delusional onset may be recent (within a matter of months or days, at times) her delusions will include memories of being a child-queen, for acute delusional processes are often seamless.
Parents who arrive at schools and clinics with children dressed and raised as their DNA opposites are hailed as brave instead of studied as classic cases of Munchhausen by Proxy where parents seek attention by making up and believing the child is different, ill or diseased and providing symptoms and evidence to back the parent’s need.
I believe anyone can become “happy”, over time, living with their identity crisis derived from an obsession, but NOT totally and not forever.
We have failed as a society when we are told BY LAW that we are required to be the enablers of the obsession; that pretending as the person with the obsession is doing is “right”. It is not true empathy. True empathy would acknowledge, rapidly and prominently in the child’s life that the obsession was wrong. Yes, there needs to be lots of compassion and empathy in that acknowledgement, but mere throwing up the hands in acceptance is wrong.