The Myth of Belgium's ‘Cautious Approach’
A recent Genspect post critiques the gender‑care landscape in Flanders, Belgium, highlighting that seven clinics serve a 6.7 million‑person region, with the Ghent University Hospital’s CSG being the only one offering a dedicated pediatric service. The author, a mother of a gender‑dysphoric teenager, argues that CSG’s claimed "careful approach" is unsupported, citing opaque assessment methods, self‑referral for minors, and a lack of response to safety inquiries. The piece also points to five suicides among young women who underwent hysterectomies, suggesting possible over‑diagnosis and inadequate safeguards. Overall, the article questions the transparency and ethical foundations of Flemish gender‑medicine practices.
Dr Louise Irvine: Setting up a Medical Advisory Network
Dr. Louise Irvine explains how she helped establish CanSG, a multidisciplinary clinical advisory network focused on sex‑related health issues, particularly the controversial use of puberty blockers and gender‑affirming treatments for youth. She outlines the group's origins in the UK, its...
Sex-Affirming Care vs Gender-Affirming Care
Gender‑Affirming Care, promoted by the World Professional Association for Transgender Health, has proliferated without a robust evidence base, prompting growing clinician unease as detransition numbers rise. The article contrasts this model with a proposed Sex‑Affirming Care approach that grounds treatment...
Not Everyone Fits the Narrative
Jessi Harris’s memoir *Down the Rabbit Hole* recounts her three‑decade odyssey from a butch lesbian in the 1960s to a trans man in the 1980s and back to a woman in 2010. The narrative weaves personal trauma, military family instability,...
Is the “Supportive Environment” Driving Gender Medicalization?
The Dutch protocol, the international gold standard for adolescent gender care, requires a supportive social environment before puberty‑suppressing medication can be prescribed. Proponents argue that family and school affirmation reduces distress, yet this prerequisite blurs the line between a safety...
What's Going On Here?
A panel hosted by Genspect on March 12 in Washington, D.C., examined how psychotherapy, psychology, and psychiatry have become entangled with trans‑identity politics. Speakers traced the shift from a psychodynamic, inquiry‑based model in the 1970s to an affirmation‑first approach that...
Sabrina's Story - "I Did One Thousand Things to Get Her Out."
Sabrina’s teenage daughter Katie began identifying as non‑binary during the COVID‑19 lockdown, shortly after her father’s death. Sabrina initially tried using her child’s pronouns but soon set firm boundaries, cycling through therapists, schools, and intensive activities to address what she...
Sophia's Story - We Had to Move Country to Get Her Out
Sophia and her husband moved their family from the UK to the US after their 11‑year‑old daughter began a rapid succession of gender‑identity changes at a costly private school. The school’s inclusion of explicit LGBTQ‑focused material and lack of parental...
The Desistance Series - Jennifer and Steve's Story
Jennifer and Steve spent six years navigating their child Samantha’s gender journey, from an early non‑binary declaration to a brief period of medicalized transition. After encountering aggressive affirmation from a psychiatrist and an SSRI that worsened symptoms, they switched to...
The Dutch Protocol Re-Examined
The Amsterdam University Medical Centre, long regarded as the gold standard for paediatric gender medicine, released a retrospective analysis of 1,470 adolescents referred between 2009 and 2019. The study found that 18% of these youths did not pursue gender‑affirming medical...
The Strange Case of the Disappearing ‘Standards of Care’
A New York court awarded Fox Varian $2 million in a landmark detransition malpractice lawsuit, marking the first successful U.S. case of its kind. The verdict held both her therapist and plastic surgeon jointly liable for a double mastectomy performed when...
Now Is the Time for Detransition Diagnosis Codes
Dr. Kurt Miceli of Do No Harm urged the creation of specific ICD‑10‑CM diagnosis codes for detransition at the Detrans Awareness Day conference. The CDC’s ICD‑10 Coordination and Maintenance Committee has approved a remission code, F64.A, slated for October 2026, and...
Gender and Autism Spectrum Disorder
Recent research highlights a striking overlap between autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and gender dysphoria, with studies reporting 35‑47% of youth in gender clinics also meeting autism criteria. Sensory processing challenges and body‑image discomfort often drive autistic individuals toward clothing and...
The Desistance Series
Erin Friday launched “The Desistance Series,” a collection of 16 video interviews with parents whose children have ceased identifying as transgender before medical transition. The first episode features California mother Lydia, who describes using firm boundaries, consistent love, and resources...