Narratives of transgender regret have been prevalent in anti-trans media. A recent 90,000 response survey of trans people, however, shows most people are satisfied with transition.
As a scientist and a trans person, I’m so EXHAUSTED from fighting misinformation on this issue. Is the science ENTIRELY “settled”? No, and yet NO part of medical science is entirely settled, as any scientist knows. And we don’t see these people campaigning to end other healthcare like cancer treatments, which also aren’t entirely settled science. Or perhaps a more apt comparison would be banning cancer treatments *for a specific minority*, considering treatments banned for trans people are often still available for cis people. It’s unbelievable.
Claims that trans healthcare is “experimental” are lies — we absolutely have the data to safely recommend GAC to people who need it. As for what we don’t know? The answer is to fund more research, not to ban it, obviously.
These anti-trans disinformation campaigns are a concerted effort to lay cover for trans eradication, and frankly they are winning. Political detransitioner tears are apparently a lot more sexy than data science, to the detriment of us all.
I’m not sure I agree with this kind of eye-for-an-eye retribution. I agree that we need to find a way to get on the front foot, but I don’t think cycling injustice is the answer. Using the government to intentionally reduce health outcomes for a population is something I will NEVER endorse.
I’d much rather “be gay, do crime” for actual justice, like finding a way to serve our community in the ways they need even if that service is illegal.
I’m not saying I have all the answers, but that’s where I’m at right now.
We are in no position to control anything about this government. Make laws? You have to be IN the government to do that, and I bet there's probably .0001% of trans legislators in this country right now. Maybe even less. We're out of time and they're throwing crap at us faster than we can respond. We're on our heals, not able to be pro-active about anything. If folks don't start voting those clowns out of office, we're in big trouble at the end of this year.
This is tough, I feel this would only radicalize them further. But also, if you're fighting an enemy that will do whatever it takes to annihilate you, you have to do whatever it takes to fight them back or you're guaranteed to lose. You can't win against an army that follows no rules if you follow rules they can exploit. The long game is eradicating hatred and conflict completely, but humanity is pretty far from that at this time. I wish we had a solution, but the reality is they have the upper hand with control of the media :/ Perhaps pursuing the media would be the more logical solution? But then freedom of speech comes into play, and it's the biggest double edged sword we deal with in this country.
I'm 65 years old. I transitioned, M to F, in 1993. I lived quite successfully as a woman for 30 years. These days I go by either name, don't try to "pass", and respond to ma'am or sir...as long as I'm being addressed reasonably respectfully.
I have not "detransitioned". My body is not going to change back to the original configuration, nor would I want it to.
I list my gender on fb as nonbinary.
99.% of my fb friends are cisgender lesbians. They know my story.
Due to age, poor health, and simply being rather jaded at this point in my life, I am no longer romantically/sexually active.
I still have fun, in a less physical way, and I'm perfectly content with my life. I have zero regrets.
Maybe I'll start writing again, but I just haven't felt the urge lately.
Thank you, Erin, for your good and much needed work.
I like the term “anecdata” for a collection of anecdotes, which is usually where you start writing a grant and planning out the next couple of years of your research. Alas, some people love leaping to conclusions.
Did you read the methodology, the research approach? If you wanted you could look at the IRB approval. This is a meaningless and uninformed statement about the rigor and approach of this effort, which considering it’s an independent investigation of population status is solid and will, as in previous surveys, be extensively cited and investigated within the scientific literature. Xoxo, an MD with a PhD in epidemiology and biostatistics with more patience than my usual response here which is gtfo with your bs.
This really reminds me of a quote I heard once. "Conservatives live in hypotheticals, liberals live in reality."
Most of the things Republicans hand-wring about are based on hypotheticals and imagined situations. Liberals and progressives tend to look at the world, judge evidence, and try to form their views based on those observations. A conservative says that hypothetically a good guy with a gun stops a bad one. Liberals look at actual statistics and see if that's true. Conservatives bemoan the potential for trans desistance, and write entire laws based on hypothetical situations. Liberals look at the actual numbers and assess accordingly. This is also a reason Republicans are completely blind to historical parallels to their recent attempted genocide. The average rank-and-file Republican would be aghast and instantly dismissive about comparisons between their party and 1930s Germany. But that's because they don't live in reality; they live in the land of assumptions, gut feelings, and hypothetical situations. It's also why when asking about trans bathroom access, Republicans only ask hypothetical questions and completely ignore actual statistics.
To be a modern conservative is to fundamentally have completely surrendered to the sin of Pride. If you are a conservative, you value your own gut feelings and half-reasoned hypotheticals over real-world evidence, actual historical examples, or the opinions of experts. Conservatives claim to worship God, but the only god they worship is themselves. They are the arbiter of truth. If reality disagrees, reality is wrong. They literally choose to live with the attitude of some ancient Greek deity. And that's when they're not just literally worshiping Satan, which they do every time they embrace a message of hatred. It's a sad truth that most Evangelicals worship Satan, not God.
I'd agree, but why aren't the "liberals" coming out in droves for us? They see what's going on and are burying their heads in the sand all over the place. They saw the push when Cheetolini got in office. Things that make you go, "Hmmmmmmm."
They have become complacent and as a consequence we all have lost reproductive rights 🤷♂️ and saying oh it won’t happen in my state is just turning away from the issue
Right, because guess what? If it could happen in Maine, it can happen in their state. Maine is Blue, but somehow the Reds are swaying Blue politicians. SMFH
I know this isn't unique. I was just being brief because I'm tired of all this. Liberals are a bunch of weenies and don't have a spine. I am a Black elder and have seen this sort of bullshit all of my life. I'm at a heightened sense of awareness and disgusted by the dis-ingenuousness of the Democratic party. I don't play nice with the GOP and never will. We see Dems playing patty cake with them, but it's impossible to guess how these politicians are when we elect them into public office. Our political system(s) are broken & handicapped. They lack transparency.
Absolutely the same for RACISM! In over 400 years, they just keep switching out the issue-of-the-day, but the aim was still the same. Division, division, ultra-division, power, oppression, discrimination, fear and hatred, be it covert or overt.
Hey, *this* trans woman doesn't need surveys, politicians or pundits to tell her she's happy :D The past year has just been magical, in spite of all the bullshit aimed at us, I feel like I get stronger and more confident. I find more and more allies. Just traveled with my partner through Missouri, Oklahoma, Texas and Kansas, out for the first time as my true self... scary but I refuse to be erased. Unfortunately we had to boycott those states and spent no money on food or entertainment, but were happy to support New Mexico which is both trans friendly and a beautiful state. Surprisingly nobody gave us trouble, I feel like a handful of people with an axe to grind are stirring up all this anti-trans sentiment, and it does a disservice to the citizens of those states for politicians to waste so much time and energy targeting our community, instead of working on real problems we all face.
This article confirms what we already knew: that the vast majority of trans people live happy, fulfilled lives free of regrets after their transition. It also shows that, properly administered, gender-affirming care is good, solid medical care that should always be protected and available, and in the domain of patients and doctors only, not politicians. The key with this study is for it to get proper airtime in the media. Already, I’m seeing headlines that say something like “Large survey of trans people reveals some surprising findings” when really a proper headline should read that trans care is overwhelmingly good, regret-free medical care.
As someone that started transitioning during the Trump administration, with all the anti-trans bullshit back then (a fraction of what we're dealing with now), I felt 1000% percent better after starting HRT.
My wife and I had multiple discussions about what it would mean, where the world was heading, and how transitioning would affect our lives. We had no idea how bad it would get with all the anti-trans legislation. I'm lucky to live in a deep blue state with trans protection laws. But even if I lived in a red state...
I regret nothing (and told that survey as much).
My only regret in life is that I waited so fucking long to figure it out and do something about it.
I participated in that study, and I am ALIVE and happier than I have ever been in my life, a life that might have been cut short had I not been able to access care.
Today I saw that there is an exhibit of the AIDS quilt available to view and I remember listening to the elders in my gay community talk about how they felt invisible as everyone around them died and nobody did anything and how they finally made them listen with the help of a visual aid that they COULD NOT IGNORE. We need to do that too.
Yes, but not all trans people are plagued by AIDS. I saw what happened in the 80's/90's with gay men especially. But, please don't make trans men invisible with that talk. Only ones messing around with cis males end up with AIDS, for the most part, and we get sucked into that agenda all the time. I, for one, don't think in order to get assistance from gay men (or trans women), we need to jump on their bandwagons. Most of the time we have to neglect OUR agenda to get funding from them. I have seen so many trans men groups vanish because of that. SMH
I am a trans man (who is often invisible as a trans man in daily life). I am also gay. I have many gay friends who also have HIV/AIDS including my cis male partner of many years (I am negative despite “messing around with cis men”). It’s EXTREMELY offensive for you to perpetuate misinformation and fear about that and I would suggest you educate yourself.
I was saying that the types of protests during the AIDS crisis were deeply inspiring and that we as a community should organize something LIKE that again. Instead of trying to divide the T from LGBT. We are a community and the Republican Nazis are after us all.
How is organizing a community event/protest with lesbians, gays, bisexuals, trans people, queer people and allies taking away from trans issues? You’re missing the point, and getting hung up on an example of something that was personally inspiring to me. That’s fine if it’s not as inspiring for you, but maybe there’s something that is? Somewhere in your 66 years of life experience there has to be a great idea that can help bring the community together. If you just want to be bitter and fight the other letters of the rainbow alphabet then I think that’s a waste of your valuable experience and diminishes us all.
I, too, am a trans man who is 66 years old. I KNOW what happened and see what's happening in our community. I have nothing against gay men, unless we're talking about racism which they vehemently participate in. You are a gay minority in the transman world because many (if not most) of us came from the lesbian world. I've lived all over the country. I'll give you one chance to insult my intelligence again and then will block you.
Trans men who get their organizational funding from gay men are having issues trying to keep up with the demands of AIDS work and also their trans man issues. Up and down the East Coast. THAT IS A FACT! I'm not talking about the Republican Nazis. I'm talking about AIDS. SMFH I am an activist, dude. What are you?
Yes, yes, they scrape the barrel looking for those detransitioners too. They can always find a sour-puss in the bunch, but using it as a weapon against us has been the most disgusting part of what is happening these days.
They are owning our narrative because mainstream media won't find us happy campers and only want to disprove everything. Letting the goonies dominate our media. What is this concerted effort about really? Why are they so afraid of us? I'm a really cool guy and they're not humanizing us. Making us out to be pedophiles and bullshit is the crime of the century.
We're not bothering anybody, but here they all come trying to push an agenda that isn't even ours onto us. Looking like WWII when they pushed us out of Nazi Germany. If you have Netflix, check out the documentary called 'Eldorado' and you will see what these GOP sickos are up to. If they bother me, though, I will take their proverbial heads off one at a time.
I got to do a talk for over 65 doctors/surgeons from all over this country, interested in caring for trans people last August. It was awesome and they loved us. Asked lots of questions and got the training of their lifetime before the 3 of us got there. Started on Friday morning. I think it went on until noon on Sunday. I was so grateful they wanted to know and now these other horrible people are raining on that day.
Oh, I've got other days, because I'm blessed to have a small part in training VA interns about us as well. It's also elective and they come out for us. Got chosen for a talk with a very large corporation that I will leave unnamed. Also got to talk during some training with Emory about trans people. I'm only 1 man with public speaker training and can't get to people fast enough.
Politics is trying to force the medical industry to abandon us. NOT MORAL, NOT RIGHT, UNJUST!
The scientist in me has one little nitpicky point: we can’t conclude anything about detransition from this survey, as the methodology states the survey was only “open to binary and nonbinary transgender people aged 16 and older.”
I agree that it seems telling that detransitioners are hard to find, but that could be for any number of reasons; we simply don’t know.
as a social scientist, I also thought immediately of this point; while at the same time, I haven't seen any one able to find significant numbers of detransitioners. As you say we don't really know why that is, chances are the simplist explanation (there aren't many) is probably the correct one.
I remember seeing people online encouraging people who detransitioned/desisted to fill out the survey, but yes, just reading the methodology section, it would appear that they targeted people who consider themselves trans. So your point is valid.
What we really need is a high quality longitudinal study of people who identify as trans at the beginning of the study, and then track their experience over time. That would more accurately estimate the proportion of people who choose to desist/detransition (and then also ideally drill down into why they chose it — was it in fact a case that they realized they were wrong about their gender identity, or did they experience regret due to social pressure/stigma) But that would take years.
I also think that on the face of it, it is highly suspicious that we don't see many more people who detransition. I am sympathetic to the argument that some of them may feel uncomfortable/embarrassed/ashamed of having made a mistake with respect to their gender identity and decision to transition. Some of them may also be wary of their experience being used to advance an anti-trans agenda (at least some people who detransition that I've encountered online are still sympathetic towards trans people overall, even if they decided it wasn't for them). But there are likely ways to overcome that with a well designed study or survey.
In short, there is a lot we still don't know. The problem is that the media and politicians are taking that "we don't know" and weaponizing it against us. We *do* know gender affirming care works really well for many people, both adults and youth — and that's something that they completely ignore.
I've been in my transition for 8 years now and saw my first one roaming around here, being an ass, last week. It was the missing link for me and living a life complete with my authenticity was the best thing that ever happened to me. I'd have a great life if it wasn't for people politicizing what we're about and scaring the daylights out of too many cisgender people. BTW, people who detransition are eager to whine to reporters, so they seek out reporters and websites that let them do so with impunity.
> Retransitions from non-binary to binary trans are also quite common.
I know some M->NB->F and a F->NB->M personally. People like that definitely do exist. Mine is M->ALL(but F preferred), rather I prefer she//her, but I'll accept any pronoun.
Also, it may be just me, but I am wary of the term "detransitioner". It implies to me that that is something those people do on an ongoing basis, instead of at one point in my life, and defines their whole identity and experience. I don't know, it's hard to put my finger on it, but I would prefer "people who detransition" instead.
This is a good point I never even considered; thanks for that!
I feel like it would depend on the individual? I see my transition as ongoing, hopefully for the rest of my life. It’s not a one and done thing, I’ll always need HRT, etc. Depending on the care a person gets before they detransition, they may or may not need ongoing care for the rest of their life. (I certainly hope the process is quick and easy for them!)
Ultimately, it’s up to the individual to tell us how they identify and for everyone else to respect that. I, personally, don’t want to waist spoons policing the identity of others.
Well, by the same token as I wouldn't want to be a called a "transitioner" (as I've seen some people who detransition and become anti-trans call people like me).
This always astounds me; everyone I know or have heard of who has gotten knee surgery was in incredibly horrible shape before surgery and, assuming they followed through on physical therapy, were in markedly better shape after surgery (i.e., they can walk again without excruciating pain). I can see being disappointed that artificial joints aren’t as good as the real cartilage you had when you were a teenager, but regretting the surgery altogether?
It’s incredibly disappointing that they are overselling the benefits and doing operations before things get bad enough to really justify the procedure.
> In general, 1 in every 100 to 200 patients who undergo a knee replacement die within 90 days of surgery.
Jesus fucking christ. I knew the knee surgery dissatisfaction rates were bad; I didn't know the death rate was that bad.
We should take into account the background death rate among people of a typical age to have knee surgery. However, looking into the study where this stat apparently comes from, it only gets worse (albeit these figures are 20 years old now):
> Results: The rate of primary knee replacement was lower in blacks than in whites and in those qualifying for Medicaid supplementation than in those with higher incomes. The complications observed during the ninety days following primary knee replacement included mortality (0.7%), readmission (0.9%), pulmonary embolus (0.8%), wound infection (0.4%), pneumonia (1.4%), and myocardial infarction (0.8%). The complications observed during the ninety days following revision knee replacement were mortality (1.1%), readmission (4.7%), pulmonary embolus (0.5%), wound infection (1.8%), pneumonia (1.4%), and myocardial infarction (1.0%). Blacks had higher rates of mortality, readmission, and wound infection after primary knee replacement than whites did. Patients who qualified for Medicaid supplementation had higher complication rates, particularly after primary knee replacement.
Can you imagine if gender-affirming care had even a tiny fraction of that death rate? It would have been shut down before it got off the ground. (It actually reduces deaths, as is well documented.)
Oh wow I wasn’t even aware of that fact. You’re right, if 1 in 1,000,000 receivers of gender-affirming care died from it, it would be their lead talking point. Of course they could also just start lying about it because what’s one more lie to them…
Simply put, gender affirming care saved my life. It saved the lives of many of my friends. Idk why that is so difficult to accept. Of course people report being happier and satisfaction.
Will the NYT's admit to throwing trans people under the bus to bolster their claim that they aren't always on the "liberal's side" or are they going to argue that they are in fact THAT stupid?
Paul's initial response to Erin suggests they are going with-"squirrel!"
I recently researched the numbers of adolescent girls who have breast augmentation/reduction surgeries during the teen years. No one mentions this. The numbers are pretty astonishing. No one bats an eye at this. Surely they are influenced by the culture that insists on the perfect sized breasts for cisgender teen girls. Are we sure they are old enough to consent to this? Some of them change their minds later on and have the augmented breasts reduced. Shouldn't these children be protected from these horrible surgeries that they might someday regret? Anybody see any irony here?
We need to be pretty careful about this kind of argument. So-called "cosmetic" surgeries in cis people are often gender-affirming care, which cis people have a right to as much as we do.
Of course it's true that we live in a culture that "insists on the perfect size breasts" for women and (creepily) teen girls; I'm not disputing that part. But I think there is only one place to consistently draw the line of who has access to medical procedures, including surgery, and that is to always allow them based on bodily autonomy and informed consent.
This view is partly informed by the fact that I obtained my breast augmentation, which was and is critical to my mental health, by having it treated as cosmetic surgery in Belgium — thus bypassing a bunch of gatekeeping that would have stopped me getting it, as part of a trans pathway or otherwise, in the UK.
But regardless of that, who am I to say that my motivation for seeking that surgery was fundamentally any different from that of a flat-chested cis woman? I don't think it was. Neither of us are uncomplicatedly free of societal influence in terms of what size breasts we want in order to feel happy in our bodies. No desire or need for gender-affirming treatment is free of that influence, and the line of who can get surgery should *not* be drawn based on any kind of gatekeeping of who "really needs it". Because we should well know that such gatekeeping is certain to devolve into who is worthy enough in the eyes of leery cis male doctors.
Nor can any such line be drawn solely based on age. The transphobes' argument about prefrontal cortex development or whatever ageist, ableist pseudoscience they're spouting this week is just that: pseudoscientific bullshit. (Actually there's no evidence that the prefrontal cortex ever stops changing, which is inconvenient for them because their argument would then imply that no-one could consent to any treatment ever.)
The important criterion here, for surgeries and other medical procedures in general, is ability to give informed consent; not age. It is possible to give even young children enough information to make an informed choice about surgery risks: I made such a decision at age ~12. (I refused a correction surgery for pectus excavatum because of insufficient evidence of benefit at the time. I'm very glad that my autonomy was respected on that occasion, rather than trying to pressure me into a procedure that had substantial risks.)
Btw it's fine to need revision surgery for a breast augmentation if the size or other aspects of the breasts don't turn out the way you wanted. It's not ideal, but it's not any kind of disaster. As far as I know it's always made clear that revision surgery might be needed; it certainly was to me.
In summary, it wouldn't help for some portion of cis people (or people perceived to be cis) who need gender-affirming care to be subjected to the same kind of gatekeeping bullshit that trans people are. That doesn't help us. End *all* gatekeeping. Informed consent is the only way.
I recently researched the numbers of adolescent girls who have breast augmentation/reduction surgeries during the teen years. No one mentions this. The numbers are pretty astonishing. No one bats an eye at this. Surely they are influenced by the culture that insists on the perfect sized breasts for cisgender teen girls. Are we sure they are old enough to consent to this? Some of them change their minds later on and have the augmented breasts reduced. Shouldn't these children be protected from these horrible surgeries that they might someday regret? Anybody see any irony here?
As a scientist and a trans person, I’m so EXHAUSTED from fighting misinformation on this issue. Is the science ENTIRELY “settled”? No, and yet NO part of medical science is entirely settled, as any scientist knows. And we don’t see these people campaigning to end other healthcare like cancer treatments, which also aren’t entirely settled science. Or perhaps a more apt comparison would be banning cancer treatments *for a specific minority*, considering treatments banned for trans people are often still available for cis people. It’s unbelievable.
Claims that trans healthcare is “experimental” are lies — we absolutely have the data to safely recommend GAC to people who need it. As for what we don’t know? The answer is to fund more research, not to ban it, obviously.
These anti-trans disinformation campaigns are a concerted effort to lay cover for trans eradication, and frankly they are winning. Political detransitioner tears are apparently a lot more sexy than data science, to the detriment of us all.
I’m not sure I agree with this kind of eye-for-an-eye retribution. I agree that we need to find a way to get on the front foot, but I don’t think cycling injustice is the answer. Using the government to intentionally reduce health outcomes for a population is something I will NEVER endorse.
I’d much rather “be gay, do crime” for actual justice, like finding a way to serve our community in the ways they need even if that service is illegal.
I’m not saying I have all the answers, but that’s where I’m at right now.
We are in no position to control anything about this government. Make laws? You have to be IN the government to do that, and I bet there's probably .0001% of trans legislators in this country right now. Maybe even less. We're out of time and they're throwing crap at us faster than we can respond. We're on our heals, not able to be pro-active about anything. If folks don't start voting those clowns out of office, we're in big trouble at the end of this year.
This is tough, I feel this would only radicalize them further. But also, if you're fighting an enemy that will do whatever it takes to annihilate you, you have to do whatever it takes to fight them back or you're guaranteed to lose. You can't win against an army that follows no rules if you follow rules they can exploit. The long game is eradicating hatred and conflict completely, but humanity is pretty far from that at this time. I wish we had a solution, but the reality is they have the upper hand with control of the media :/ Perhaps pursuing the media would be the more logical solution? But then freedom of speech comes into play, and it's the biggest double edged sword we deal with in this country.
I'm 65 years old. I transitioned, M to F, in 1993. I lived quite successfully as a woman for 30 years. These days I go by either name, don't try to "pass", and respond to ma'am or sir...as long as I'm being addressed reasonably respectfully.
I have not "detransitioned". My body is not going to change back to the original configuration, nor would I want it to.
I list my gender on fb as nonbinary.
99.% of my fb friends are cisgender lesbians. They know my story.
Due to age, poor health, and simply being rather jaded at this point in my life, I am no longer romantically/sexually active.
I still have fun, in a less physical way, and I'm perfectly content with my life. I have zero regrets.
Maybe I'll start writing again, but I just haven't felt the urge lately.
Thank you, Erin, for your good and much needed work.
-weezi-🙏💖🙏💜🙏🌄
100 out of 90,000 is statistically insignificant. That amounts to 0.009%.
More like 0.1%, the 1 repeating -- roughly 12 fold your estimate.
Uh yeah, I am an engineer, why do you ask ? ;^)
The plural of anecdote is not data.
I like the term “anecdata” for a collection of anecdotes, which is usually where you start writing a grant and planning out the next couple of years of your research. Alas, some people love leaping to conclusions.
Did you read the methodology, the research approach? If you wanted you could look at the IRB approval. This is a meaningless and uninformed statement about the rigor and approach of this effort, which considering it’s an independent investigation of population status is solid and will, as in previous surveys, be extensively cited and investigated within the scientific literature. Xoxo, an MD with a PhD in epidemiology and biostatistics with more patience than my usual response here which is gtfo with your bs.
This was a response to Pamela Paul, not to the trans survey.
The trans survey is an enormously detailed, rigorous undertaking with a huge sample size. We can be very confident of its results.
Pamela Paul is using a few isolated stories to support her own prejudice, and it seems that no amount of research will change her mind.
Agreed! Sorry I was confused and acted like a rando internet commenter//my apologies!
This really reminds me of a quote I heard once. "Conservatives live in hypotheticals, liberals live in reality."
Most of the things Republicans hand-wring about are based on hypotheticals and imagined situations. Liberals and progressives tend to look at the world, judge evidence, and try to form their views based on those observations. A conservative says that hypothetically a good guy with a gun stops a bad one. Liberals look at actual statistics and see if that's true. Conservatives bemoan the potential for trans desistance, and write entire laws based on hypothetical situations. Liberals look at the actual numbers and assess accordingly. This is also a reason Republicans are completely blind to historical parallels to their recent attempted genocide. The average rank-and-file Republican would be aghast and instantly dismissive about comparisons between their party and 1930s Germany. But that's because they don't live in reality; they live in the land of assumptions, gut feelings, and hypothetical situations. It's also why when asking about trans bathroom access, Republicans only ask hypothetical questions and completely ignore actual statistics.
To be a modern conservative is to fundamentally have completely surrendered to the sin of Pride. If you are a conservative, you value your own gut feelings and half-reasoned hypotheticals over real-world evidence, actual historical examples, or the opinions of experts. Conservatives claim to worship God, but the only god they worship is themselves. They are the arbiter of truth. If reality disagrees, reality is wrong. They literally choose to live with the attitude of some ancient Greek deity. And that's when they're not just literally worshiping Satan, which they do every time they embrace a message of hatred. It's a sad truth that most Evangelicals worship Satan, not God.
I'd agree, but why aren't the "liberals" coming out in droves for us? They see what's going on and are burying their heads in the sand all over the place. They saw the push when Cheetolini got in office. Things that make you go, "Hmmmmmmm."
They have become complacent and as a consequence we all have lost reproductive rights 🤷♂️ and saying oh it won’t happen in my state is just turning away from the issue
Right, because guess what? If it could happen in Maine, it can happen in their state. Maine is Blue, but somehow the Reds are swaying Blue politicians. SMFH
I know this isn't unique. I was just being brief because I'm tired of all this. Liberals are a bunch of weenies and don't have a spine. I am a Black elder and have seen this sort of bullshit all of my life. I'm at a heightened sense of awareness and disgusted by the dis-ingenuousness of the Democratic party. I don't play nice with the GOP and never will. We see Dems playing patty cake with them, but it's impossible to guess how these politicians are when we elect them into public office. Our political system(s) are broken & handicapped. They lack transparency.
Absolutely the same for RACISM! In over 400 years, they just keep switching out the issue-of-the-day, but the aim was still the same. Division, division, ultra-division, power, oppression, discrimination, fear and hatred, be it covert or overt.
Hey, *this* trans woman doesn't need surveys, politicians or pundits to tell her she's happy :D The past year has just been magical, in spite of all the bullshit aimed at us, I feel like I get stronger and more confident. I find more and more allies. Just traveled with my partner through Missouri, Oklahoma, Texas and Kansas, out for the first time as my true self... scary but I refuse to be erased. Unfortunately we had to boycott those states and spent no money on food or entertainment, but were happy to support New Mexico which is both trans friendly and a beautiful state. Surprisingly nobody gave us trouble, I feel like a handful of people with an axe to grind are stirring up all this anti-trans sentiment, and it does a disservice to the citizens of those states for politicians to waste so much time and energy targeting our community, instead of working on real problems we all face.
This article confirms what we already knew: that the vast majority of trans people live happy, fulfilled lives free of regrets after their transition. It also shows that, properly administered, gender-affirming care is good, solid medical care that should always be protected and available, and in the domain of patients and doctors only, not politicians. The key with this study is for it to get proper airtime in the media. Already, I’m seeing headlines that say something like “Large survey of trans people reveals some surprising findings” when really a proper headline should read that trans care is overwhelmingly good, regret-free medical care.
As someone that started transitioning during the Trump administration, with all the anti-trans bullshit back then (a fraction of what we're dealing with now), I felt 1000% percent better after starting HRT.
My wife and I had multiple discussions about what it would mean, where the world was heading, and how transitioning would affect our lives. We had no idea how bad it would get with all the anti-trans legislation. I'm lucky to live in a deep blue state with trans protection laws. But even if I lived in a red state...
I regret nothing (and told that survey as much).
My only regret in life is that I waited so fucking long to figure it out and do something about it.
I participated in that study, and I am ALIVE and happier than I have ever been in my life, a life that might have been cut short had I not been able to access care.
Today I saw that there is an exhibit of the AIDS quilt available to view and I remember listening to the elders in my gay community talk about how they felt invisible as everyone around them died and nobody did anything and how they finally made them listen with the help of a visual aid that they COULD NOT IGNORE. We need to do that too.
Yes, but not all trans people are plagued by AIDS. I saw what happened in the 80's/90's with gay men especially. But, please don't make trans men invisible with that talk. Only ones messing around with cis males end up with AIDS, for the most part, and we get sucked into that agenda all the time. I, for one, don't think in order to get assistance from gay men (or trans women), we need to jump on their bandwagons. Most of the time we have to neglect OUR agenda to get funding from them. I have seen so many trans men groups vanish because of that. SMH
I am a trans man (who is often invisible as a trans man in daily life). I am also gay. I have many gay friends who also have HIV/AIDS including my cis male partner of many years (I am negative despite “messing around with cis men”). It’s EXTREMELY offensive for you to perpetuate misinformation and fear about that and I would suggest you educate yourself.
I was saying that the types of protests during the AIDS crisis were deeply inspiring and that we as a community should organize something LIKE that again. Instead of trying to divide the T from LGBT. We are a community and the Republican Nazis are after us all.
How is organizing a community event/protest with lesbians, gays, bisexuals, trans people, queer people and allies taking away from trans issues? You’re missing the point, and getting hung up on an example of something that was personally inspiring to me. That’s fine if it’s not as inspiring for you, but maybe there’s something that is? Somewhere in your 66 years of life experience there has to be a great idea that can help bring the community together. If you just want to be bitter and fight the other letters of the rainbow alphabet then I think that’s a waste of your valuable experience and diminishes us all.
I, too, am a trans man who is 66 years old. I KNOW what happened and see what's happening in our community. I have nothing against gay men, unless we're talking about racism which they vehemently participate in. You are a gay minority in the transman world because many (if not most) of us came from the lesbian world. I've lived all over the country. I'll give you one chance to insult my intelligence again and then will block you.
Trans men who get their organizational funding from gay men are having issues trying to keep up with the demands of AIDS work and also their trans man issues. Up and down the East Coast. THAT IS A FACT! I'm not talking about the Republican Nazis. I'm talking about AIDS. SMFH I am an activist, dude. What are you?
Yes, yes, they scrape the barrel looking for those detransitioners too. They can always find a sour-puss in the bunch, but using it as a weapon against us has been the most disgusting part of what is happening these days.
They are owning our narrative because mainstream media won't find us happy campers and only want to disprove everything. Letting the goonies dominate our media. What is this concerted effort about really? Why are they so afraid of us? I'm a really cool guy and they're not humanizing us. Making us out to be pedophiles and bullshit is the crime of the century.
We're not bothering anybody, but here they all come trying to push an agenda that isn't even ours onto us. Looking like WWII when they pushed us out of Nazi Germany. If you have Netflix, check out the documentary called 'Eldorado' and you will see what these GOP sickos are up to. If they bother me, though, I will take their proverbial heads off one at a time.
I got to do a talk for over 65 doctors/surgeons from all over this country, interested in caring for trans people last August. It was awesome and they loved us. Asked lots of questions and got the training of their lifetime before the 3 of us got there. Started on Friday morning. I think it went on until noon on Sunday. I was so grateful they wanted to know and now these other horrible people are raining on that day.
Oh, I've got other days, because I'm blessed to have a small part in training VA interns about us as well. It's also elective and they come out for us. Got chosen for a talk with a very large corporation that I will leave unnamed. Also got to talk during some training with Emory about trans people. I'm only 1 man with public speaker training and can't get to people fast enough.
Politics is trying to force the medical industry to abandon us. NOT MORAL, NOT RIGHT, UNJUST!
Great article Erin, as always!
The scientist in me has one little nitpicky point: we can’t conclude anything about detransition from this survey, as the methodology states the survey was only “open to binary and nonbinary transgender people aged 16 and older.”
I agree that it seems telling that detransitioners are hard to find, but that could be for any number of reasons; we simply don’t know.
as a social scientist, I also thought immediately of this point; while at the same time, I haven't seen any one able to find significant numbers of detransitioners. As you say we don't really know why that is, chances are the simplist explanation (there aren't many) is probably the correct one.
I remember seeing people online encouraging people who detransitioned/desisted to fill out the survey, but yes, just reading the methodology section, it would appear that they targeted people who consider themselves trans. So your point is valid.
What we really need is a high quality longitudinal study of people who identify as trans at the beginning of the study, and then track their experience over time. That would more accurately estimate the proportion of people who choose to desist/detransition (and then also ideally drill down into why they chose it — was it in fact a case that they realized they were wrong about their gender identity, or did they experience regret due to social pressure/stigma) But that would take years.
I also think that on the face of it, it is highly suspicious that we don't see many more people who detransition. I am sympathetic to the argument that some of them may feel uncomfortable/embarrassed/ashamed of having made a mistake with respect to their gender identity and decision to transition. Some of them may also be wary of their experience being used to advance an anti-trans agenda (at least some people who detransition that I've encountered online are still sympathetic towards trans people overall, even if they decided it wasn't for them). But there are likely ways to overcome that with a well designed study or survey.
In short, there is a lot we still don't know. The problem is that the media and politicians are taking that "we don't know" and weaponizing it against us. We *do* know gender affirming care works really well for many people, both adults and youth — and that's something that they completely ignore.
I've been in my transition for 8 years now and saw my first one roaming around here, being an ass, last week. It was the missing link for me and living a life complete with my authenticity was the best thing that ever happened to me. I'd have a great life if it wasn't for people politicizing what we're about and scaring the daylights out of too many cisgender people. BTW, people who detransition are eager to whine to reporters, so they seek out reporters and websites that let them do so with impunity.
Hell, I'm not. My critical thinking cells are alive & well. Honestly, they prey on ignorant people who research nothing!
> Retransitions from non-binary to binary trans are also quite common.
I know some M->NB->F and a F->NB->M personally. People like that definitely do exist. Mine is M->ALL(but F preferred), rather I prefer she//her, but I'll accept any pronoun.
Also, it may be just me, but I am wary of the term "detransitioner". It implies to me that that is something those people do on an ongoing basis, instead of at one point in my life, and defines their whole identity and experience. I don't know, it's hard to put my finger on it, but I would prefer "people who detransition" instead.
This is a good point I never even considered; thanks for that!
I feel like it would depend on the individual? I see my transition as ongoing, hopefully for the rest of my life. It’s not a one and done thing, I’ll always need HRT, etc. Depending on the care a person gets before they detransition, they may or may not need ongoing care for the rest of their life. (I certainly hope the process is quick and easy for them!)
Ultimately, it’s up to the individual to tell us how they identify and for everyone else to respect that. I, personally, don’t want to waist spoons policing the identity of others.
Well, by the same token as I wouldn't want to be a called a "transitioner" (as I've seen some people who detransition and become anti-trans call people like me).
More people regret knee surgery and hip replacements
Facts don’t matter to them
This always astounds me; everyone I know or have heard of who has gotten knee surgery was in incredibly horrible shape before surgery and, assuming they followed through on physical therapy, were in markedly better shape after surgery (i.e., they can walk again without excruciating pain). I can see being disappointed that artificial joints aren’t as good as the real cartilage you had when you were a teenager, but regretting the surgery altogether?
https://www.aarp.org/health/conditions-treatments/info-2018/knee-replacement-surgery-regret.html
Thanks for the data!
It’s incredibly disappointing that they are overselling the benefits and doing operations before things get bad enough to really justify the procedure.
Agreed, it surprised me too
> In general, 1 in every 100 to 200 patients who undergo a knee replacement die within 90 days of surgery.
Jesus fucking christ. I knew the knee surgery dissatisfaction rates were bad; I didn't know the death rate was that bad.
We should take into account the background death rate among people of a typical age to have knee surgery. However, looking into the study where this stat apparently comes from, it only gets worse (albeit these figures are 20 years old now):
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/15930530/
> Results: The rate of primary knee replacement was lower in blacks than in whites and in those qualifying for Medicaid supplementation than in those with higher incomes. The complications observed during the ninety days following primary knee replacement included mortality (0.7%), readmission (0.9%), pulmonary embolus (0.8%), wound infection (0.4%), pneumonia (1.4%), and myocardial infarction (0.8%). The complications observed during the ninety days following revision knee replacement were mortality (1.1%), readmission (4.7%), pulmonary embolus (0.5%), wound infection (1.8%), pneumonia (1.4%), and myocardial infarction (1.0%). Blacks had higher rates of mortality, readmission, and wound infection after primary knee replacement than whites did. Patients who qualified for Medicaid supplementation had higher complication rates, particularly after primary knee replacement.
Can you imagine if gender-affirming care had even a tiny fraction of that death rate? It would have been shut down before it got off the ground. (It actually reduces deaths, as is well documented.)
Oh wow I wasn’t even aware of that fact. You’re right, if 1 in 1,000,000 receivers of gender-affirming care died from it, it would be their lead talking point. Of course they could also just start lying about it because what’s one more lie to them…
Simply put, gender affirming care saved my life. It saved the lives of many of my friends. Idk why that is so difficult to accept. Of course people report being happier and satisfaction.
Will the NYT's admit to throwing trans people under the bus to bolster their claim that they aren't always on the "liberal's side" or are they going to argue that they are in fact THAT stupid?
Paul's initial response to Erin suggests they are going with-"squirrel!"
I recently researched the numbers of adolescent girls who have breast augmentation/reduction surgeries during the teen years. No one mentions this. The numbers are pretty astonishing. No one bats an eye at this. Surely they are influenced by the culture that insists on the perfect sized breasts for cisgender teen girls. Are we sure they are old enough to consent to this? Some of them change their minds later on and have the augmented breasts reduced. Shouldn't these children be protected from these horrible surgeries that they might someday regret? Anybody see any irony here?
We need to be pretty careful about this kind of argument. So-called "cosmetic" surgeries in cis people are often gender-affirming care, which cis people have a right to as much as we do.
Of course it's true that we live in a culture that "insists on the perfect size breasts" for women and (creepily) teen girls; I'm not disputing that part. But I think there is only one place to consistently draw the line of who has access to medical procedures, including surgery, and that is to always allow them based on bodily autonomy and informed consent.
This view is partly informed by the fact that I obtained my breast augmentation, which was and is critical to my mental health, by having it treated as cosmetic surgery in Belgium — thus bypassing a bunch of gatekeeping that would have stopped me getting it, as part of a trans pathway or otherwise, in the UK.
But regardless of that, who am I to say that my motivation for seeking that surgery was fundamentally any different from that of a flat-chested cis woman? I don't think it was. Neither of us are uncomplicatedly free of societal influence in terms of what size breasts we want in order to feel happy in our bodies. No desire or need for gender-affirming treatment is free of that influence, and the line of who can get surgery should *not* be drawn based on any kind of gatekeeping of who "really needs it". Because we should well know that such gatekeeping is certain to devolve into who is worthy enough in the eyes of leery cis male doctors.
Nor can any such line be drawn solely based on age. The transphobes' argument about prefrontal cortex development or whatever ageist, ableist pseudoscience they're spouting this week is just that: pseudoscientific bullshit. (Actually there's no evidence that the prefrontal cortex ever stops changing, which is inconvenient for them because their argument would then imply that no-one could consent to any treatment ever.)
The important criterion here, for surgeries and other medical procedures in general, is ability to give informed consent; not age. It is possible to give even young children enough information to make an informed choice about surgery risks: I made such a decision at age ~12. (I refused a correction surgery for pectus excavatum because of insufficient evidence of benefit at the time. I'm very glad that my autonomy was respected on that occasion, rather than trying to pressure me into a procedure that had substantial risks.)
Btw it's fine to need revision surgery for a breast augmentation if the size or other aspects of the breasts don't turn out the way you wanted. It's not ideal, but it's not any kind of disaster. As far as I know it's always made clear that revision surgery might be needed; it certainly was to me.
In summary, it wouldn't help for some portion of cis people (or people perceived to be cis) who need gender-affirming care to be subjected to the same kind of gatekeeping bullshit that trans people are. That doesn't help us. End *all* gatekeeping. Informed consent is the only way.
I recently researched the numbers of adolescent girls who have breast augmentation/reduction surgeries during the teen years. No one mentions this. The numbers are pretty astonishing. No one bats an eye at this. Surely they are influenced by the culture that insists on the perfect sized breasts for cisgender teen girls. Are we sure they are old enough to consent to this? Some of them change their minds later on and have the augmented breasts reduced. Shouldn't these children be protected from these horrible surgeries that they might someday regret? Anybody see any irony here?