#it's self reports in relation to transgender issues

[sysmedsaresexist]

Hey, you

If your vague post is full of "now, granted" and "but" and "I guess" and other conceding points

Maybe just don't bother making the post??

Like, why waste the time when we're saying the same thing? Literally. The same thing.

What a fucking joke you are, with a raging hate for me that lives rent free in your head

I love it

[evidence-based-activism]

Hi, @peaktransd, you asked a question on this post about "studies about hormones and the placebo effect". I've looked into this and found some relevant information!

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No high quality research on transgender affirming hormone care

The first, important, aspect here is that there is little to no high quality research on the use of hormones for transgender affirming care.

By this point we've all heard of the Cass review [1, emphasis mine] which found:

For puberty blockers: "The review of the evidence looked at nine studies that met the inclusion criteria. A key limitation of all the studies examined was the lack of reliable comparative studies, as well as of clear expected outcomes. All the studies were small uncontrolled observational studies, and all the results were of low certainty. Many did not report statistical significance."

For hormones: "Ten uncontrolled observational studies met the inclusion criteria. Again, the key limitation to identifying the effectiveness and safety of gender-affirming hormones for children and adolescents with gender dysphoria was the lack of reliable comparative studies."

Notably the important point here is that all of the research is uncontrolled observational studies, which do not allow for the examination of the placebo effect. Also, to preempt any objections, the Cass review team has created a website with FAQs [2] to address the mis- and disinformation being spread about the review.

Further, this article [3] argues "that although [gender affirming treatment] for [gender dysphoric] youth lacks a rigorous evidence base, it is undertaken as routine medical treatment in a strongly placebo effect enhancing environment", highlighting why we absolutely need good quality evidence into this topic.

The state of research for adults is similar. There are no comprehensive reviews about adult treatment, and some of this is by design. By this I mean, WPATH (the World Professional Association for Transgender Health) has purposefully suppressed unfavorable evidence.

There's a compounding issue here; in the reviews that do exist they tend to find very little evidence base for supporting hormone use and then make a recommendation in support of hormones anyway. These studies are often used as evidence by proponents who do not read past the abstract of the study.

Some studies on hormones and mood in transgender adults [all emphasis mine]:

This 2016 review [4] indicated: "Hormone therapy interventions to improve the mental health and quality of life in transgender people with gender dysphoria have not been evaluated in controlled trials. Low quality evidence suggests that hormone therapy may lead to improvements in psychological functioning."

This 2016 review [5] claimed a positive conclusion ("gender dysphoria-related mental distress may benefit from hormonal treatment") but proceeds to note that "results mentioned earlier need to be considered in light of certain limitations". These limitations include: single site studies, small sample size, type/dose of hormone restatement usually not reported (and poor consistency when reported), “more than half the studies did not mention/control for psychiatric comorbidity”, and “recruitment/follow-up attrition represented an issue". They also hide this key point: "most importantly, as no study used a blinded randomized controlled trial design, results could have also different explanations because of the study design" in the limitations section. Given the extent of the issue, these limitations should have at least been mentioned in the abstract and the researchers should not have suggested such a definitive conclusion.

This 2018 review [6] indicated that "although the existing body of research supports [gender-affirming hormone therapy] improving mental wellness, many studies used cross-sectional and uncontrolled observational methods relying on self-report." Again, this important caveat was hidden in the conclusion; with the abstract making far bolder claims than supported by evidence.

This 2019 review [7] concluded that "because the certainty of this evidence was very low to low, recommendations for hormone use to improve quality of life, depression and anxiety could not be made."

This 2021 review [8] came to the same conclusion stating "certainty in this conclusion is limited by high risk of bias in study designs, small sample sizes, and confounding with other interventions."

Even for the very few "controlled" studies, they are not randomized control trials. Instead they are before treatment – after treatment comparisons for transgender individuals or cross sectional studies comparing transgender and "cisgender" comparison groups. Notably, neither of these designs allow the researcher to elucidate the origin of observed effects (e.g., is improvement coming from hormone therapy or social affirmation?).

(And as a side note, this Cochrane (the "gold standard" for those unaware) review [9] concluded: "We found insufficient evidence to determine the efficacy or safety of hormonal treatment approaches for transgender women in transition. This lack of studies shows a gap between current clinical practice and clinical research. Robust RCTs and controlled cohort studies are needed".)

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Confounding factors: the effect of hormone therapy on non-transgender individuals

There's a particularly important confounding factor here; we have evidence that hormone therapy is associated with improved mood. As such, improved mood with gender affirming care may simply be the result of this natural physiological effect.

This 2023 systematic review and meta-analysis [10] with "14 eligible randomized controlled trials (RCTs) ... to investigate the effect of exogenous estrogen on depressive mood in women" found "strong evidence that exogenous estrogen exerts its antidepressant effect by stabilizing estrogen levels".

This 2009 systematic review and meta-analysis [11] with "seven studies (N=364) ... that included a placebo-control group in a double-blind design" found "[testosterone] may have an antidepressant effect in depressed [men], especially those with hypogonadism".

This 2014 systematic review and meta-analysis [12] of "sixteen trials with a total of 944 subjects ... showed a significant positive impact of testosterone on mood" and ultimately concluded "Testosterone may be used as a monotherapy in dysthymia and minor depression or as an augmentation therapy in major depression in middle-aged hypogonadal men".

This 2019 systematic review and meta-analysis [13] of "27 randomized placebo-controlled clinical trials involving a total of 1890 men found that testosterone treatment was associated with a significant reduction of depressive symptoms, particularly in participants who received higher-dosage regimens."

Further, the fact that these results were all the strongest in people with lower endogenous hormone levels, lends support to the hypothesis that this effect would be substantial in cross sex supplementation given the naturally low endogenous hormone levels for these individuals. (Please note, however, that this hypothesis has not yet been investigated.)

This isn't a placebo effect, since the randomized controlled trials above indicate that the effect on mood is above and beyond any placebo effect. However, I believe it's a related point.

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Hormones on cognitive function

To address the other point in that post, there really isn't evidence that women would "get smarter" if they take testosterone or men would "get dumber" if they take estrogen. Again, there's no high quality studies on transgender individuals, but there is some adjacent evidence for non-transgender individuals.

There is evidence that the reduction of estrogen levels in older women may be associated with cognitive decline. [14]

This review [15] and this study [16] both link higher endogenous testosterone levels in women (i.e., in women with PCOS) with lower cognitive performance.

That being said, this "randomized, placebo-controlled trial" [17] manipulated the levels of testosterone in women with PCOS and did not record changes in their cognitive function. This may be because the sample size was simply too small (n=29), or there could be a "critical window" in which testosterone effects women's cognitive performance, or any number of other possibilities.

These reviews [18, 19] found low testosterone levels are associated with with cognitive impairment in men although the effects of testosterone substitution are mixed. This appears to support the hypothesis that testosterone suppression may reduce cognitive performance, but in reality "the ability of the body to convert testosterone into estrogen suggests that part of the actions of testosterone could be mediated by estrogen". So, any decrease due to testosterone suppression would likely be offset by estrogen supplementation. In fact this review [20] discusses the evidence for this.

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The stereotype threat

As suggested by @mycodyke, an important factor here is the stereotype threat. This refers to how "behavior can be a consequence of priming effects, ... when a stereotype becomes activated, stereotype-consistent behavior may follow automatically from that activation" [21].

The study she linked [22] goes into this, finding that men performed the same in a cognitive task regardless of priming condition, whereas women performed worse only when primed with female condition. This replicated an earlier study [23] that found "no sex differences were observed" when the task instructions didn't emphasize sex-stereotypes.

Other similar studies:

This study [24] found "sex difference was reliably elicited and eliminated by controlling or manipulating participants’ confidence"

This meta-analysis [25] suggested that "male superiority on spatial ability tasks ... is related to the implementation of time limits".

This study [26] also suggested this, finding that "the magnitude of gender differences was linearly related to the amount of time available for test completion".

All of this indicates that sex differences on this task (and likely in other similar situations) are the result of individual expectations about their performance. This is also commonly brought up for self-fulfilling prophecies; that is, if someone believes they will succeed/fail they are more likely to succeed/fail.

And this has real-world consequences. For example, in this study [27], "in a simulated job interview, [participants] … were confronted with either sexist … or non-sexist … behavior … [and] results indicated that female participants in the sexist condition performed significantly worse on the mathematical test than female participants in the control condition … suggest[ing] an influence of psychological and interpersonal processes on seemingly objective test outcomes."

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Conclusion

I hope this helps! To sum up:

There is little to no high-quality research into the effects, benefits, or harms of hormone therapy for transgender adults or adolescents

There is evidence suggesting that hormone supplementation effects mood in non-transgender adults, indicating an important confounding factor for transgender hormone research

There is no evidence that testosterone makes women smarter or that estrogen makes men dumber; there is, in fact, some limited evidence suggesting the opposite

The belief in the above is likely a result of the stereotype threat; transgender individuals who have started hormone therapy are likely to perform worse/better because they believe they should perform worse/better as a result of ingrained stereotypes

References below the cut:

Cass, H. (2024). Independent review of gender identity services for children and young people.

Final report – FAQs. (n.d.). The Cass Review. https://cass.independent-review.uk/home/publications/final-report/final-report-faqs/

Clayton, A. (2023). Gender-affirming treatment of gender dysphoria in youth: a perfect storm environment for the placebo effect—the implications for research and clinical practice. Archives of Sexual Behavior, 52(2), 483-494.

White Hughto JM, Reisner SL. A Systematic Review of the Effects of Hormone Therapy on Psychological Functioning and Quality of Life in Transgender Individuals. Transgend Health. 2016 Jan;1(1):21-31. doi: 10.1089/trgh.2015.0008. Epub 2016 Jan 13. PMID: 27595141; PMCID: PMC5010234.

Costa, R., & Colizzi, M. (2016). The effect of cross-sex hormonal treatment on gender dysphoria individuals’ mental health: a systematic review. Neuropsychiatric Disease and Treatment, 1953-1966.

Nguyen HB, Chavez AM, Lipner E, Hantsoo L, Kornfield SL, Davies RD, Epperson CN. Gender-Affirming Hormone Use in Transgender Individuals: Impact on Behavioral Health and Cognition. Curr Psychiatry Rep. 2018 Oct 11;20(12):110. doi: 10.1007/s11920-018-0973-0. PMID: 30306351; PMCID: PMC6354936.

Rowniak, S., Bolt, L., & Sharifi, C. (2019). Effect of cross-sex hormones on the quality of life, depression and anxiety of transgender individuals: a quantitative systematic review. JBI Evidence Synthesis, 17(9), 1826-1854.

Baker, K. E., Wilson, L. M., Sharma, R., Dukhanin, V., McArthur, K., & Robinson, K. A. (2021). Hormone therapy, mental health, and quality of life among transgender people: a systematic review. Journal of the Endocrine Society, 5(4), bvab011.

Haupt C, Henke M, Kutschmar A, Hauser B, Baldinger S, Saenz SR, Schreiber G. Antiandrogen or estradiol treatment or both during hormone therapy in transitioning transgender women. Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews 2020, Issue 11. Art. No.: CD013138. DOI: 10.1002/14651858.CD013138.pub2.

Zhang, J., Yin, J., Song, X., Lai, S., Zhong, S., & Jia, Y. (2023). The effect of exogenous estrogen on depressive mood in women: A systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials. Journal of psychiatric research, 162, 21-29.

Zarrouf, F. A., Artz, S., Griffith, J., Sirbu, C., & Kommor, M. (2009). Testosterone and depression: systematic review and meta-analysis. Journal of Psychiatric Practice®, 15(4), 289-305.

Amanatkar, H. R., Chibnall, J. T., Seo, B. W., Manepalli, J. N., & Grossberg, G. T. (2014). Impact of exogenous testosterone on mood: a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized placebo-controlled trials. Ann Clin Psychiatry, 26(1), 19-32.

Walther, A., Breidenstein, J., & Miller, R. (2019). Association of testosterone treatment with alleviation of depressive symptoms in men: a systematic review and meta-analysis. JAMA psychiatry, 76(1), 31-40.

Sherwin, B. B. (2003). Estrogen and cognitive functioning in women. Endocrine reviews, 24(2), 133-151.

Perović, M., Wugalter, K., & Einstein, G. (2022). Review of the effects of polycystic ovary syndrome on Cognition: Looking beyond the androgen hypothesis. Frontiers in Neuroendocrinology, 67, 101038.

Sukhapure, M., Eggleston, K., Douglas, K., Fenton, A., Frampton, C., & Porter, R. J. (2022). Free testosterone is related to aspects of cognitive function in women with and without polycystic ovary syndrome. Archives of Women's Mental Health, 25(1), 87-94.

Schattmann, L., & Sherwin, B. B. (2007). Effects of the pharmacologic manipulation of testosterone on cognitive functioning in women with polycystic ovary syndrome: a randomized, placebo-controlled treatment study. Hormones and Behavior, 51(5), 579-586.

Mohamad, N. V., Ima-Nirwana, S., & Chin, K. Y. (2018). A review on the effects of testosterone supplementation in hypogonadal men with cognitive impairment. Current drug targets, 19(8), 898-906.

Zhang, Z., Kang, D., & Li, H. (2021). Testosterone and cognitive impairment or dementia in middle-aged or aging males: causation and intervention, a systematic review and meta-analysis. Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry and Neurology, 34(5), 405-417.

Janowsky, J. S. (2006). The role of androgens in cognition and brain aging in men. Neuroscience, 138(3), 1015-1020.

Spencer, S. J., Logel, C., & Davies, P. G. (2016). Stereotype threat. Annual review of psychology, 67(1), 415-437.

Ortner, T.M., Sieverding, M. Where are the Gender Differences? Male Priming Boosts Spatial Skills in Women. Sex Roles 59, 274–281 (2008). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11199-008-9448-9

Sharps, M. J., Price, J. L., & Williams, J. K. (1994). Spatial cognition and gender instructional and stimulus influences on mental image rotation performance. Psychology of Women Quarterly, 18(3), 413-425.

Estes, Z., Felker, S. Confidence Mediates the Sex Difference in Mental Rotation Performance. Arch Sex Behav 41, 557–570 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10508-011-9875-5

Maeda, Y., Yoon, S.Y. A Meta-Analysis on Gender Differences in Mental Rotation Ability Measured by the Purdue Spatial Visualization Tests: Visualization of Rotations (PSVT:R). Educ Psychol Rev 25, 69–94 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10648-012-9215-x

Voyer, D. Time limits and gender differences on paper-and-pencil tests of mental rotation: a meta-analysis. Psychon Bull Rev 18, 267��277 (2011). https://doi.org/10.3758/s13423-010-0042-0

Koch, S.C., Konigorski, S. & Sieverding, M. Sexist Behavior Undermines Women’s Performance in a Job Application Situation. Sex Roles 70, 79–87 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11199-014-0342-3

[celepom]

For Transgender Day of Remembrance, here’s 10 graphic novels with transgender protagonists, are about gender, or are autobiographies from transgender creators.

Cheer Up: Love and Pompoms by Crystal Frasier & Val Wise

Annie is a smart, antisocial lesbian starting her senior year of high school who’s under pressure to join the cheerleader squad to make friends and round out her college applications. Her former friend BeeBee is a people-pleaser—a trans girl who must keep her parents happy with her grades and social life to keep their support of her transition. Through the rigors of squad training and amped up social pressures (not to mention micro aggressions and other queer youth problems), the two girls rekindle a friendship they thought they’d lost and discover there may be other, sweeter feelings springing up between them.

Blackwater by Jeannette Arroyo & Ren Graham

Tony Price is a popular high school track star and occasional delinquent aching for his dad’s attention and approval. Eli Hirsch is a quiet boy with a chronic autoimmune disorder that has ravaged his health and social life. What happens when these two become unlikely friends (and a whole lot more . . .) in the spooky town of Blackwater, Maine? Werewolf curses, unsavory interactions with the quarterback of the football team, a ghostly fisherman haunting the harbor, and tons of high school drama.

The Bride Was a Boy by Chii

The heartwarming transgender love story, based on true events! Drawn in the style of diary comics with an upbeat, adorable flair, this is a charming tale about Chii, a woman assigned male at birth. Her story starts with her childhood and follows the ups and downs of exploring her sexuality, gender, and transition--as well as falling in love with a man who’s head over heels for her. Now they want to get married, so Chii’s about to embark on a new adventure: becoming a bride!

Love Me for Who I Am by Kata Konayama

Non-Binary Maid Reporting for Duty! Mogumo is a cute but lonely non-binary high school student who just wants a few loving friends. As someone who doesn’t identify as a boy or a girl, however, finding people who really understand can be a big challenge. When fellow student Iwaoka Tetsu invites Mogumo to work at an untraditional maid café, Mogumo is hopeful that things are looking up. Will they finally find friends to call their own―or just more misunderstanding?

Super Late Bloomer: My Early Days in Transition by Julia Kaye

A highly personal collection documenting the early months of artist Julia Kaye’s gender transition. Instead of a traditional written diary, Julia Kaye has always turned to art as a means of self-reflection. So when she began her gender transition in 2016, she decided to use her popular webcomic, Up and Out, to process her journey and help others with similar struggles realize they weren’t alone. Julia’s poignant, relatable comics honestly depict her personal ups and downs while dealing with the various issues involved in transitioning—from struggling with self-acceptance and challenging societal expectations, to moments of self-love and joy. Super Late Bloomer both educates and inspires, as Julia faces her difficulties head-on and commits to being wholly, authentically who she was always meant to be

Magical Boy by The Kao

A breathtakingly imaginative fantasy series starring Max—a high schooler chosen to become the next "Magical Girl." There's just one catch . . . he's a trans boy! Although he was assigned female at birth, Max is your average trans man trying to get through high school as himself. But on top of classes, crushes, and coming out, Max's life is turned upside down when his mom reveals an eons old family secret: he's descended from a long line of Magical Girls tasked with defending humanity from a dark, ancient evil! With a sassy feline sidekick and loyal gang of friends by his side, can Max take on his destiny, save the world, and become the next Magical Boy? A hilarious and heartfelt riff on the magical girl genre made popular by teen manga series, Magical Boy is a one-of-a-kind fantasy series that comic readers of all ages will love.

Welcome to St. Hell: My Trans Teen Misadventure by Lewis Hancox

A groundbreaking memoir about being a trans teen, in the vein of FUN HOME and FLAMER... and at the same time entirely its own. Lewis has a few things to say to his younger teen self. He knows she hates her body. He knows she's confused about who to snog. He knows she's really a he and will ultimately realize this... but she's going to go through a whole lot of mess (some of it funny, some of it not funny at all) to get to that point. Lewis is trying to tell her this... but she's refusing to listen.

X-Gender, Vol. 1 by Asuka Miyazaki

An autobiographical diary/essay manga about finding love in Japan as an X-gender person. At 33 years old, Asuka Miyazaki realizes that they like women! Asuka, however, is neither a woman nor a man--instead, they're X-gender, which is a non-binary identity. Follow Asuka through the pages of this autobiographical manga as they record the ins and outs of their journey to finding love with a woman.

Girl Haven by Lilah Sturges & Meaghan Carter Three years ago, Ash's mom, Kristin, left home and never came back. Now, Ash lives in the house where Kristin grew up. All of her things are there. Her old room, her old clothes, and the shed, where she spent her childhood creating a fantasy world called Koretris. Ash knows all about Koretris: how it's a haven for girls, with no men or boys allowed, and filled with fanciful landscapes and creatures. When Ash's friends decide to try going to Koretris, using one of Kristin's spellbooks, Ash doesn't think anything will happen. But the spell works, and Ash discovers that the world Kristin created is actually a real place, with real inhabitants and very real danger. But if Koretris is real, why is Ash there? Everyone has always called Ash a boy. Ash uses he/him pronouns. Shouldn't the spell have kept Ash out? And what does it mean if it let Ash in?

DeadEndia: The Watcher's Test by Hamish Steel

Barney and his best friend Norma are just trying to get by and keep their jobs, but working at the Dead End theme park also means battling demonic forces, time traveling wizards, and scariest of all--their love lives! Follow the lives of this diverse group of employees of a haunted house, which may or may not also serve as a portal to hell, in this hilarious and moving graphic novel, complete with talking pugs, vengeful ghosts and LBGTQIA love!

[religion-is-a-mental-illness]

By: Bernard Lane

Published: Dec 5, 2023

On the up

A study of young people who on average spent almost five years identifying as transgender has found they experienced better wellbeing and less gender dysphoria after they detransitioned from medical treatment or desisted in their opposite-sex identity.

“Detransition and desistance [giving up a trans identity before any medical treatment] were associated with marked improvements in psychological functioning,” says a new article published by the journal Archives of Sexual Behavior and authored by public health researcher Dr Lisa Littman, psychotherapist Stella O’Malley, detransitioner Helena Kerschner and sexologist Professor J Michael Bailey.

“On several relevant measures—gender dysphoria, flourishing, and self-harm—participants indicated great improvement after they stopped identifying as transgender,” the paper says.

[ Chart: Flourishing, or general wellbeing, rated by detransitioners, with the vertical access showing the number of participants for a given flourishing score, 10 being the highest wellbeing ]

Settling back into birth sex

Among the study group of 71 American females and seven males, aged 18-33, the overwhelming majority said they felt most “authentic” after they detransitioned or desisted.

External pressures—such as anti-trans discrimination, family resistance or religion—were rated as the least important drivers of detransition and desistance.

“The factors most important to relinquishing a transgender identification were internal factors, such as participants’ own thought processes, changes in participants’ personal definitions of male and female, and becoming more comfortable identifying as their natal sex,” the paper says.

Another reported impetus was the feeling that the causes of their gender dysphoria were more complex than they had believed. Looking back, the young people said a key influence in becoming trans was mistaking mental health problems or trauma as gender dysphoria.

“Against official advice I met [in 2021] a young lady called Keira Bell. She was a lesbian who told me the horrific experience that she had at the Tavistock [gender] clinic. It was an eye-opening experience [for me]. I know that [another MP] talked about ‘transing away the gay’ in his speech… We are seeing, I would say, almost an epidemic of young gay children being told that they are trans and being put on the medical pathway for irreversible decisions and they are regretting it… I am making sure that [in future] young people do not find themselves sterilised because they are being exploited by people who do not understand what these issues are…”—speech in the UK parliament, Equalities Minister Kemi Badenoch, 7 December 2023

Suddenly syndrome

Analysis of survey responses suggested that at most, 17 per cent of the group would have met the diagnostic requirements for the classic form of gender dysphoria with onset in early childhood.

Just over half the group (41/78) said they recognised themselves in the new, much more common form known as rapid-onset gender dysphoria (ROGD) with its onset during or after puberty.

Although a hypothesis rather than a formal diagnosis, ROGD seems to describe the post-2010 international explosion in socially influenced clusters of teenagers, chiefly girls, suddenly embracing trans or non-binary identities.

The study by Littman et al found that young people in the group who reported less gender dysphoria in childhood were more likely to say that the term ROGD did apply to their experience.

“The purpose of this research is to learn about the experiences of desisters and detransitioners—specifically, to explore: 1) factors that may or may not be related to the development of and desistance from transgender identification; 2) whether or not individuals experienced changes in their sexual orientation during and after transgender identification; and 3) what kinds of counseling and informed consent were received by those who sought medical care to transition.”—flyer used to recruit participants for the Littman et al study

Inconvenient for gender experts

The authors say their findings are “necessarily tentative” and acknowledge several limitations in the research, which involved a convenience sample of young people being asked to recall their experience before, during and after gender transition.

The study cannot show how common detransition is, nor establish whether these particular young people happened to be bad risks for transition, nor elucidate whether better psychological health is a cause or an outcome of detransition.

Detransition and desistance are understudied and contentious topics. ROGD has awkward implications for the “gender-affirming” treatment approach with its dogma of young people as “experts in their gender identity”.

Activists highlight the paucity of research on ROGD—first described in 2018 by Dr Littman—while seeking to sabotage any more studies and pressuring journals to retract papers exploring this phenomenon.

The Littman et al study just published had to adopt videoconference screening to check that would-be participants were genuine; activists had boasted on social media about taking the online survey and giving fake responses.

“When little is known [about detransition and desistance], imperfect research is often better than no research,” Dr Littman and her colleagues say in their paper. “It can provide provisional answers, better-informed hypotheses, and ideas for future research.”

“Despite the absence of any questions about this topic in the survey, nearly a quarter (23 per cent) of the participants expressed the ‘internalized homophobia and difficulty accepting oneself as lesbian, gay, or bisexual’ narrative by spontaneously describing that these experiences were instrumental to their gender dysphoria, their desire to transition, and their detransition.”—A survey of 100 detransitioners, Dr Lisa Littman, September 2021. (Dr Littman believes there would be little if any overlap in participants between this 2021 group and those surveyed in the current 2023 study.)

[ Video: Corinna Cohn, who transitioned three decades ago when safeguards were stronger, testifies in support of a bill restricting paediatric transition in the American state of Ohio ]

Yes, they were trans

In the 2023 Littman et al study, all the males and most of the females had taken cross-sex hormones, almost a third of the females had undergone mastectomy and a small number had their uterus or ovaries removed. (Only two participants had taken puberty blockers, which Dr Littman attributes to the average age of trans identification being too old at 17 years.)

“Our participants invested a great deal of their lives in their gender transitions—in terms of time, disruption, and serious social and medical steps. Thus, we do not believe that a principled case can be made that participants detransitioned because they were never gender dysphoric,” the Littman et al paper says.

The researchers say that follow-up studies of gender dysphoric youth are “urgently needed”, and that gender clinics have “a particular obligation” to keep track of past patients—“Unfortunately, in North America at least, we see little evidence that this presently occurs.”

“Detransition has become much more visible in recent years. However, it was only recently that the rates of detransition began to be quantified. According to recent UK and US data, 10–30 per cent of recently transitioned individuals detransition a few years after they initiated transition.”—Current concerns about gender-affirming therapy in adolescents, Professor Stephen B Levine and E Abbruzzese, April 2023

Some other key points of the 2023 Littman et al paper—

Only 27 per cent of the young people had told their former gender clinicians they had detransitioned. Most of those who took cross-sex hormones obtained them through the fast-track “informed consent” model. Two-thirds of the group felt they had not been adequately informed about the risks of medical transition. Fewer than one in ten had been told about the lack of long-term outcome studies for females with adolescent-onset dysphoria. Important influences for females becoming trans men included wanting to avoid mistreatment and sexualisation as women. Almost half the females indicated they were exclusively attracted to women. ROGD may be chiefly a female condition, with the possibility that some males taken to be ROGD may actually be manifesting hitherto-suppressed autogynephilia (sexual arousal among males who cross-dress and/or imagine themselves as women). More than a third of the group said most of their offline and online friends became trans-identified and it was common to mock people who were not trans. Among counter-intuitive results, acknowledgment of the ROGD label by participants was not significantly related to the age at which they took on a trans identity. Psychiatric diagnoses before transition were common, including depression (63 per cent); anxiety (60 per cent); attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (24 per cent); eating disorder (23 per cent); obsessive compulsive disorder (18 per cent) post-traumatic stress disorder (15 per cent); bipolar disorder (12 per cent); hair pulling (10 per cent); and autism spectrum disorder (9 per cent). Young people in the study showed relatively high scores on a trauma measure of “adverse childhood experiences” such as abuse inflicted within the family. The participants had generally liberal politics and a clear majority supported gay marriage (67/78) and trans rights 71/78).

==

Coming to terms with the nature of your body, rather than chasing a fantasy and delusion, leads to better mental health. Imagine that.

[ms-hells-bells]

Hannah Barnes, BBC journalist, is publishing a book about Tavistock next week. The telegraph published some of the stats she found in her research. 97.5% of children at Tavistock had autism, depression, or 'other problems that might have explained their unhappiness,' 25% had been in care (0.67% for gen pop), 42% had a parental bereavement and 'Children referred to Gids were ten times more likely than the national average to have a registered sex offender as a parent'

i couldn't find any stats like that in the telegraph article, but if it's true, that's insane. and even with those stats, hannah is being as delicate and 'both sides' as possible, stating that many children CAN be happy transitioning. but the stats don't lie, and i believe the final collapse of at least transition of minors is upon us with this book. at least, for the uk (and multiple other european nations). i believe that the united states, new zealand, and others will follow in the near future.

(i had to freeze and copy this article to avoid the paywall, but i managed, so that everyone can view it)

whenever medical scandals happen, we look back and wonder how well-intentioned people ended up doing bad things. Do No Harm is surely the ethical cornerstone for medics. There will always be cutting-edge procedures or drugs but the trialed patients will be consenting adults. Not children.

This was not the case at the Gender Identity Development Service (GIDS) that became part of the prestigious Tavistock clinic. The “Tavi” was once considered the premier psychodynamic outpatient unit in the country. Many of the greats worked there, from Bion to Bowlby to Laing.

In 1994 GIDS became part of The “Tavi” and by 2009 had a new director, Dr Polly Carmichael. Yet by July 2022, following Dr Hilary Cass’s report, GIDS was deemed neither a safe nor viable option for young people with gender-related stress and it was closed down. 

This NHS service was said to be using “poorly evidenced treatments on some of the most vulnerable people in society”. As shocking as this is, the bigger shock is the number of people who knew about this and did nothing.

Hannah Barnes’s well-researched book delves into how this situation arose. She speaks to over 60 clinicians: psychologists, psychotherapists, nurses, social workers. It is this forensic approach that makes her findings so devastating. Barnes is not coming at this from an ideological viewpoint. Some of her interviewees are happily transitioned. Others are not. They feel that the risks of the medical pathway they were put on were never explained to them or that they were too young to understand the full implications. One girl asked if when given testosterone she would be able to produce sperm.

These patients were all distressed young people, often with complex problems: autism, eating disorders, self-harm, depression. Gender was often only one of their issues, yet somehow at GIDS, it came to override everything else. The clinic’s “affirmative model” meant affirming a child’s belief that they were transgender and giving them “time to think” by referring them for assessment for puberty blockers. The leadership of GIDS were following the “Dutch Protocol”, so-called as the Dutch had used these drugs since the late 80s, though the data was sketchy and did not support their use. There was no reduction in depression or self-harm. 

These drugs are not new; they had been used on male prisoners to chemically castrate them. As to the long-term effects on children, the research is poor. Some studies show they affect bone density, brain development and sexual function. France, Sweden and Finland have all paused their prescription until more longitudinal studies are done.

Dr Anna Hutchinson, one of Barnes’s main interviewees, became increasingly alarmed that children as young as 10 were being referred for blockers, which were spoken of as reversible – though they nearly always lead to the use of cross-sex hormones for life. 

The whole issue of gender dysphoria had by the mid-2000s become highly politicised. Stonewall declared in February 2015 that it was extending its remit to campaign for trans equality alongside lesbian, gay and bisexual (LGB) equality. The previous year GIDs moved to a “stage not age” approach on blockers so kids younger than 12 could be referred with a view to receiving a prescription.

In 2007, 50 kids a year had been referred to GIDS, but by 2020 there were around 5000. As a result, GIDS faced huge waiting lists, with junior shrinks having caseloads of 100, instead of 30 which would be the standard NHS practice. Many clinicians left. 

The workload was increasing so trainee psychiatrists were brought in. The atmosphere was said to be intense but familial, yet the problems presented were complex. If a girl had been sexually abused, for instance, she may have had good reason to hate her female body. Why would blockers be appropriate?

Concerns about autism or parental pressure were allegedly dismissed by Carmichael. Children were turning up identifying as other ethnicities such as Japanese. By 2017, three quarters of their patients were girls, a dramatic shift from the years up to 2010, when the majority were boys. Were they not asking why? 

Some who had come into the profession to do talking therapy did almost none, as patients were referred for drugs sometimes after two sessions. Meanwhile, some of the gay staff were wondering if this all just conversion therapy for gay kids. Some staff felt under surveillance; they had doubts but they were reticent as expressing them could lead to accusations of transphobia. To say that sex itself is immutable was clearly heretical.

Lone voices did speak. Someone darkly referred to the Mid Staffs scandal, where poor care had led to hundreds of deaths. Sonia Appleby whistle-blew. Dr David Bell whistle-blew. The silence began to break. Keira Bell – who was referred for blockers by GIDS at 16 and had a double mastectomy at 20, then regretted transitioning – took the Tavistock to court. The High Court’s judges were damning about the lack of long-term follow-up for patients and the lack of interest in detransitioners.

The court expressed its surprise repeatedly that GIDS could not say how many kids has been referred for blockers between 2011 and 2020 nor their ages. Data had not been collated on numbers of those with an autism diagnosis or those who progressed on to cross-sex hormones. The judges referred to “the experimental nature of this treatment and the profound impact it has”.

Though their judgement was overturned on appeal in 2021, the Tavistock’s image was irreparably damaged. It was almost as if this whole institution had been hijacked by the explosion of a dubious political ideology. Insiders simply described the situation as “mad”.

As someone who knew about this years ago, as people were writing to me asking my former newspaper to investigate it, it would suit my agenda to say this was all down to trans activism. But it’s not that simple.

Barnes illustrates that this was a massive institutional and leadership failure of safeguarding. Junior staff did not confront their blinkered managers. Some of the 10,000 children who went through GIDS were helped, for sure. As for the others? This incredibly important book shows that we still don’t know how many were damaged for life.

I want every institution and every politician who pontificates about gender to read this book and ask what happened to all those lost girls and boys – and why they were complicit.

[justanothersyscourse]

can you do a debunk on these sources? https://at.tumblr.com/debunkingsystemscringe/mind-if-i-can-get-some-pro-endo-research-from-you/yihxbmcgdly4

I've already debunked all of these, but sure, I can do it again, let's see if @debunkingsystemscringe will actually respond this time

So, the carrd

The card is extremely bad, it's misquoting an incredibly important paper by Ross. His was the first to acknowledge that not just abuse caused DID, but trauma. I hate seeing this one used by endos because it was a MASSIVE step for DID systems, and it's being misused and misquoted here.

"These individuals often did not report abuse history and often reported experiencing little psychopathology."

This was one of the first papers to look at functional multiplicity as a treatment path and "smaller" trauma as a cause. It's not meant for endogenics.

"About 2% of people may be natural multiples who do not have dysfunctional posttraumatic MPD. They may simply have a highly dissociative psychic organization’ (Ross, 1991, p. 510)."

This was a theory that was debunked with the idea of trauma as a cause, and "highly dissociative psychic organization" doesn't mean "alters". I don't even think that's the correct quote, which is hilarious.

What's funny here, is that they're not actually quoting Ross, because his paper doesn't say that shit. They're quoting a college dissertation by McClure, quoting Ross, because you have to double twist it in order to make it work.

McClure's paper also doesn't imply anything about endogenic systems. Here's my debunk on her and Ross.

Next: Transgender Mental Health

I've talked about this one before, and how it's being touted as more important than it is. It's actually a really good book! I support this book and the stuff in it. But a lot of people are blowing it way out of proportion.

First, it has one chapter on "plurals" and how to treat them for gender related issues. Cool. That's true, it happened. I support the book.

However, it's not supported or endorsed by the APA, it wasn't published by them -- it's an independent book and everything in it is the opinion of the author. Same with the next paper by Isler. Like, it's useless, it means nothing. It doesn't talk about how or why, it says, "these people say they exist and it's going to make treatment harder because of the intricacies." That's it. Still a good book, check it out.

Next: Tulpas and Mental Health (it’s a PDF, be careful opening on phones)

I’m trying to find my full debunk on this. Jacob Isler is a practicing tulpamancer and has done some REALLY shady stuff-- Reddit has basically turned on him and disowned him and all of his work. As soon as I find the sources, I’ll add. Just give me a bit.

Alright, we’re going to have to redo it, here we do.

Jacob Isler has a severe nonresponse bias. Survey sent to 365 people and only 68 got back? That’s too small. Negligible read. The entire paper is about how tulpamancers are mentally ill in other ways, and that creating a tulpa has a positive impact on their mental health. Fine and dandy. It discusses how those mental health issues might play a huge role in the tulpamancy phenomon, but purposefully tries to twist the connection between the two to be unrelated on a pathological level. It also states: “Additionally, self-reported data gathered through online surveys, regardless of the care taken to ensure objectivity and accuracy, is bound to be influenced by biases and misconceptions. And, of course, the observational nature of this study means that causality cannot be proven. The intent of this paper is not to provide definitive assertions on the psychology of tulpamancy. Rather, the purpose is to accentuate outstanding associations and suggest further research into them.“

It’s basically admitting it’s own failure as an unreliable paper and simply calls for more research.

As for reddit disowning Isler: Isler is Fordaplot. Here’s the ban note from the mods

Next: Multiplicity: An Explorative Interview

We all know how much I love this useless article. Here’s my debunk. It’s based on 6 people only, admits it’s limited by not being able to verify their claims of functionality to make the point of the article, and then goes on to claim that online spaces for multiples are harmful, doesn’t discuss how and why, and only discusses the fact that they claim to exist and calls for more research, so. Kind of useless.

As for the cultural exclusion in the DSM and ICD, it’s specifically in regards to religious practices in cultures that someone has been raised in. As per the DSM, the difference between DID and these forms of “non-pathological possession trances” is that the non-pathological possession is short-term and occurs in specific cultural and religious ceremonies-- which is the opposite of what endogenics are experiencing (long-term, occurring continuously and not only in ceremonies (which they are not participating in to begin with)). It’s not excluding these experiences because they’re “endogenic”, it’s excluding them because it’s not plurality as we (endos and DID systems) describe it. Claiming that exception is for endogenics is hugely disrespectful to the clinicians and researchers who put an absurd amount of work into keeping religious experiences out of the DSM.

It’s just not for you.

[mariacallous]

Vyacheslav Volodin, Chairman of the State Duma from the United Russia Party (concluding remarks): Earlier today, our Minister of Labour and Social Protection reported on our state Demography programme’s progress, highlighting the issue of declining birth rates. When we discussed this matter, it revolved around income-related issues, but that’s not the crux of the matter. If there is a cult of the family, if one values and cherishes moral values inherited from grandfathers and great-grandfathers, then there is no doubt that the family will be large. However, if through relentless indoctrination these values morph into self-absorption and the freedom to change one’s sex, we won’t see large families in the future. This may even question the state’s existence. But the most frightening part is the child abuse.

Just look at the current situation in the United States, where these pseudo-values are being propagated. The rate of transgenders is already three times higher among teenagers than it is among mthe adult population, the result of propaganda. The number of children undergoing hormone therapy has more than doubled in five years. They start administering hormones to kids as young as eight, eight. From 2017 to 2021, more than 2,000 sex-change operations were performed on children aged 13 to 17. We don’t want this to occur in our country. Let the U.S. pursue its diabolic policy. We’ll see how it ends.

This won’t yield any positive outcomes. It’s pure satanism.

[pashterlengkap]

Even Black people who don’t support queer rights oppose attacks on LGBTQ+ equality

Approximately 65% of Black Americans identified themselves as “supporters of Black LGBTQ+ people and rights,” including 57% of Black Americans who go to church, according to a new study by the National Black Justice Coalition (NBJC). The Black Facts survey focused on those who identify as passive allies of Black LGBTQ+ people and found that such allies are “moveable by connecting the dots” from issues of racial justice to the support of LGBTQ+ rights. After informing respondents about the societal risks Black LGBTQ+ people face, many individuals felt moved to be more supportive, including those who self-identified as opponents of LGBTQ+ rights. Related Research says that Black queer youth experience widespread discrimination and social rejection Advocates are using this research to create better safe spaces for Black LGBTQ+ youth The study’s key findings emphasized that Black individuals, regardless of sexual orientation or gender identity, share a desire to combat threats against their community. The survey also found that those who know Black LGBTQ+ individuals are more likely to be supportive, and that “compelling messages” about equality can move Black respondents to give more support to queer community members. Stay connected to your community Connect with the issues and events that impact your community at home and beyond by subscribing to our newsletter. Subscribe to our Newsletter today The majority of respondents expressed concern for suicide rates among Black LGBTQ+ children, including 47% of respondents who self-identified as opponents of LGBTQ+ rights. One survey respondent, a Black man from Atlanta, said, “If your family don’t support you and you feel like they’re going to beat the gay out of you or whatever, you’re going to consider the suicide because you know what? You’re going to feel like nobody supports you.” Among those who self-identify as LGBTQ, 86% of respondents felt that they have a shared fate with other Black individuals. However, 51% of non-LGBTQ+ Black individuals said they feel a shared fate with LGBTQ+ Black folks. A lack of interactions with Black LGBTQ+ folk reduced support for the Black queer community, but support increased with the number of ties respondents reported having to LGBTQ+ people. Additionally, the survey found that a lack of support for Black LGBTQ+ individuals by the Black community led to increased feelings of isolation from Black queer respondents since many of the latter reported they also couldn’t trust white LGBTQ+ people to provide a supportive community for them. “From my perspective [white LGBTQ+ support] depends on the day,” one respondent said. “Sometimes they can be your friend, and sometimes they can look the other way if you’re getting ousted by the police or somebody.” The survey also found that the number of respondents who reported knowing a Black transgender or gender non-conforming individual is roughly the same as the average of U.S. residents who know transgender or gender non-conforming person. Reduced acquaintance with trans and non-conforming individuals resulted in lower levels of support for these queer community members. Additionally, the survey found that 89% of Black LGBTQ+ individuals thought that “the Black community should do more to support Black LGBTQ+ people,” while 73% of Black Gen Z respondents felt the same. Additionally, 65% of all respondents felt that there was more work to be done in supporting Black LGBTQ+ individuals. “You see the connection, you see how we are linked… I think more or less we have more in common probably than I would think just on the surface,” said a respondent, a Black woman from Philadelphia. In a press statement about the study, NBJC CEO and Executive Director Dr. David J. Johns said, “This research study highlights the importance of turning down white noise to better appreciate the significance of Black Queer leaders at this particular moment in the maturation of our democracy. We’ve experienced the… http://dlvr.it/T8k7Bz

[nghtruv]

Week 10: Unveiling the Impact of Online Harassment: Impeding Women's Digital Participation and Citizenship

Online harassment is offensive behavior directed at others through technology channels, such as the internet or text messaging, which can cause harm unintentionally or otherwise (Haslop et al., 2021, p. 1420). Female and transgender individuals are more likely to face online harassment than men Haslop et al., 2021, p. 1413). Harassment towards feminists and female public figures often originates from the manosphere, an online network of pickup artists, men's rights activists, anti-feminists, and fringe groups (Marwick & Caplan, 2018). It is often coordinated and organized, rather than just individual actions (Marwick & Caplan, 2018). For example, female journalist Siobhan Fenton was abused online when she appeared in a video of The Independent on X, receiving hundreds of negative comments, and a blogger on Tumblr who was trolled by a male from the manosphere for sharing information about safe abortion.

Figure 1. An anti-abortion comment from the manosphere aimed at a feminist female blogger.

Online harassment is pervasive in digital spaces, leading some young women to tolerate offensive and abusive communications (Smith, 2018). Young women perceive such communications to be relatively acceptable and the 'norm' (Haslop et al., 2021, p. 1413). They often use silencing strategies like blocking, reporting, and limiting participation, self-censorship as  means of protection (Haslop et al., 2021, p. 1413). In the case of Siobhan Fenton, she silently suffered without reporting it to X because she knew this often happened to her colleagues and reporting was ineffective. Online harassment hinders women's online participation and citizenship, leading to gendered digital divides (Vitis & Gilmour, 2016, p. 337). It negatively impacts victims' motivation to use and engage with digitized spaces, leading to women excluding themselves from online spaces (Haslop et al., 2021, p. 1412).

Regarding digital citizenship, which allows internet users to participate without fear (Thompson, 2023), is threatened by online harassment (Vitis & Gilmour, 2016, p. 337). Online harassment also leads to offline violence and contributes to mental health issues, as it makes women feel unsafe in online spaces (Vitis & Gilmour, 2016, p. 337). Kelly Sue DeConnick, a comics writer, criticized sexism in the industry, highlighting the potential harm of online harassment on her family due to anxiety or fear of being blamed for speaking up (Amnesty International, 2018). Therefore, addressing online harassment is crucial for promoting digital citizenship and reducing gender disparities.

Figure 2. Kelly Sue DeConnick.

What can be done? 

In Vietnam, the Law on Cyber Security provides protection against cyberbullying and harmful online content, with ministries responsible for ensuring online safety and removing inappropriate material (Vietnam Law and Legal Forum, 2023). Additionally, some women employ humor and social media platforms as a means of engaging, resisting, and responding to harassment (Vitis & Gilmour, 2016). Projects like Instagranniepants (Figure 3) and Gensler's critical witnessing utilize satire and shame, aiming to give harassers a taste of their own medicine through unflattering portraits (Vitis & Gilmour, 2016).

Figure 3. Instagranniepants project.

References

Amnesty International. (2018, March 20). Toxic Twitter - The Psychological Harms of Violence and Abuse Against Women Online. Amnesty International. https://www.amnesty.org/en/latest/news/2018/03/online-violence-against-women-chapter-6-6/

Haslop, C., O’Rourke, F., & Southern, R. (2021). #NoSnowflakes: The toleration of harassment and an emergent gender-related digital divide, in a UK student online culture. Convergence: The International Journal of Research into New Media Technologies, 27(5), 1418–1438. https://doi.org/10.1177/1354856521989270

Marwick, A. E., & Caplan, R. (2018). Drinking male tears: language, the manosphere, and networked harassment. Feminist Media Studies, 18(4), 543–559. https://doi.org/10.1080/14680777.2018.1450568

Thompson, J. D. (2023, March 17). New journalism research will help mitigate the harms of online hostility. Freilich Project for the Study of Bigotry. https://freilich.anu.edu.au/news-events/blog/new-journalism-research-will-help-mitigate-harms-online-hostility

Vietnam Law and Legal forum. (2023). Protection of women and juveniles from cyberspace violence in Vietnam today. Vietnamlawmagazine.vn. https://vietnamlawmagazine.vn/protection-of-women-and-juveniles-from-cyberspace-violence-in-vietnam-today-71137.html

Vitis, L., & Gilmour, F. (2016). Dick pics on blast: A woman’s resistance to online sexual harassment using humour, art and Instagram. Crime, Media, Culture: An International Journal, 13(3), 335–355. https://doi.org/10.1177/1741659016652445

[msclaritea]

AstraZeneca under fire after LGBT+ staff group issue training saying 'sex is not binary'

British evolutionary biologist Richard Dawkins photographed at his home in Oxford

AstraZeneca under fire after LGBT+ staff group issue training saying ‘sex is not binary’

Documents claiming ‘biology has a spectrum’ are condemned by Lord Winston and Richard Dawkins as ‘scientifically ignorant’

Patrick Sawer,

SENIOR NEWS REPORTER and

Hayley Dixon,

SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT

1 March 2024 • 4:21pm

The material states that “biology has a spectrum” and that classifying a person’s sex as either male or female “fails to capture even the biological aspect of gender.”

It was distributed by managers and employees on AstraZeneca’s intranet system, as part of gender diversity awareness promotion by the company’s independent LGBT+ staff group.

The Telegraph understands that the training was sent by a manager to at least one employee who raised questions about the use of pronouns and the term “queer”.

One former employee told The Telegraph: “AstraZeneca has been the most extreme company I have worked at in terms of gender identity ideology.”

Lord Robert Winston and Richard Dawkins, two of the country’s most pre-eminent scientists, have criticised the material as “scientifically ignorant” and running counter to the basis of the pharmaceutical and biotechnology firm’s work.

AstraZeneca had denied the material is part of the company’s official training or that it represents the firm’s official policy on gender issues, stating that it was produced and distributed only by AZPride, the staff group for LGBT+ employees.

The biologist Richard Dawkins referred to the AstraZeneca material as a 'ridiculous document'

One of the most controversial documents, titled Sex Spectrum, states: “Many societies view a person’s sex as either male or female, but this binary view fails to capture even the biological aspect of gender.

“While we are often taught that we inherit either XX or XY sex chromosomes, in fact, biology has a spectrum too!”

It adds: “People might have XXY, XYY, X, XXX or other combinations of chromosomes – all of which can result in a variety of sex characteristics.”

That claim appears to contradict established biological science. Having XXY or XYY chromosomes can lead to rare genetic conditions for men, but does not alter a man’s biological sex, while triple X syndrome is a genetic condition found in females only.

Staff at AstraZeneca are encouraged by AZPride to state their pronouns in work-related correspondence and at work events in order to make everyone feel included.

But this is understood to have angered some employees on the basis that it assumes support for the belief that someone’s sex can change from the one they were born with.

Apparent support for chest binding

Another AZPride document appears to support the controversial practice of chest binding, used by biological girls or women who want to present as men.

During a health awareness week run by AZPride, in 2020, staff were given material that stated: “Chest binding can be a vital practice to improve self-esteem and body positivity for many LGBT+ people.

“The material used can sometimes place pressure on the airways and so amid growing concerns around Covid-19 some organisations have provided some tips to looking after your respiratory health for trans and non-binary people.”

Breast binding can restrict breathing, irritate the skin, cause overheating and even bruise or fracture ribs, and its use by children and young women whose bodies are still developing has raised concerns.

Much of the material distributed among AZ staff has been criticised as unscientific by scientists and critics of transgender theory.

Lord Robert Winston, known for his pioneering work in the study of fertility, said: “It’s very disappointing. This sort of material is confused and doesn’t take into account the difference between sex and gender.

“It’s completely unscientific.You inherit your X or Y chromosomes from the moment of conception. You can’t change your sex. Your sex is permanent genetically. They have confused sex with gender and sexuality.”

Richard Dawkins, the evolutionary biologist and award-winning author, said: “As a biologist, I shall comment only on the scientifically ignorant statement that ‘this binary view fails to capture even the biological aspect of gender’. The only definition of sex that works universally is based on gamete size. It’s the one used by biologists, and it leads to the conclusion that the male-female divide is purely binary. Males produce numerous small gametes, females fewer large ones. No other definition works coherently and universally.

“Even sticking to human sex chromosomes, the statement that there’s ‘a spectrum too’ misuses – abuses – the useful word ‘spectrum’. Those much-vaunted ‘intersexes’ are extremely rare. If we represent the number of unequivocal males and unequivocal females by the heights of New York’s twin towers, the number of intersexes would approximate the height of a molehill planted between them. Some spectrum!”

He added: “I don’t know who, in AstraZeneca, dreamed up this ridiculous document. Evidently not a scientist. Let’s hope that AstraZeneca’s research staff are better educated. And capable of at least a modicum of logical thought.”

An AstraZeneca spokesman said: “At AstraZeneca our aim is to cultivate inclusion and belonging by fostering an environment where everyone feels valued, heard and respected.”

AstraZeneca supposedly SCIENTIFIC BASED CORPORATION has been allowing an Aithoritative push of false Gender Ideology within their company.

"Astrazeneca is a British multinational pharmaceutical and biotechnology company with its headquarters at the Cambridge Biomedical Campus in Cambridge, England..."

[rai-zza921]

Breaking and botching the Brandon Teena Story: A Reflective Essay

BLOG #2

Hello, dear readers! My name is Ryza, and I am delighted to welcome you to this thought-provoking blog post titled “Breaking and Botching the Brandon Teena Story: A Reflective Essay.” As an eager writer and passionate advocate for social justice, I am thrilled to embark on this introspective journey with you. 

INTRODUCTION

Throughout history, some tales have had the ability to upend social norms and biases and jolt us to our very core. One such tale that has permanently etched itself into our collective psyche is Brandon Teena’s. Examining the challenges faced by transgender people, the shortcomings of our judicial system, and the complexities of identity have been sparked by Brandon’s life and untimely end. “How I Broke, and Botched, the Brandon Teena Story,” by Donna Minkowitz, is a riveting account of her experience reporting on Brandon Teena’s terrible life and death. Minkowitz investigates the complicated intersections of culture, gender, sex, and law in her introspective work, eventually acknowledging her own inadequacies and the potential harm caused by her initial narrative framing. This analytical article digs into the different topics raised by Minkowitz, evaluating the consequences of her actions and the lessons acquired from her moving story. 

CULTURE:

Culture has a significant impact on our views and biases. Minkowitz attributes her initial comprehension of Brandon Teena’s story to her own background and societal conditioning. She sought to write a fascinating story that would appeal with readers, but unwittingly allowed cultural conventions and stereotypes to poison her portrayal. This error exemplifies the tremendous impact that cultural preconceptions may have on storytelling, frequently perpetuating damaging myths and limiting our ability to comprehend the nuances of lived experiences. 

GENDER:

The investigation of gender identity is one of Minkowitz’s key subjects. Brandon Teena’s struggle with gender dysphoria and the following abuse he endured highlights the cultural barriers that transgender people frequently confront. Minkowitz first presented the story via a cisgender lens, emphasizing the narrative of a “lesbian on the run,” undermining the significance of Brandon’s self-discovery journey and the nuances of his transgender identity. Minkowitz squandered an important opportunity to challenge cultural conventions and prejudices by failing to properly acknowledge and appreciate his gender identity. 

SEX:

The narrative of Brandon Teena is intricately related to sexuality and sexual orientation. Minkowitz admits to her own uneasiness and misunderstanding of transgender people’s experiences, which results in an inaccurate portrayal of Brandon’s sexuality. She incorrectly depicted his connections with women as deceptive and manipulative, contributing to the damaging image of transgender people as deceptive or predatory. Minkowitz’s personal bias hampered her capacity to effectively comprehend and explain the intricacies of Brandon’s sexual orientation, ultimately contributing to his identity deception. 

LAW:

The involvement of the law in the Brandon Teena case exemplifies the structural failings that sustain violence against underprivileged populations. Minkowitz comments on her own ignorance of the legal difficulties of hate crimes and transgender prejudice. Minkowitz squandered an opportunity to bring light on the broader societal issues of systemic violence and prejudice against transgender people by ignoring the significance of the legal setting. This failure weakened the case for legal reform and prolonged the cycle of injustice. 

CONCLUSION

Donna Minkowitz’s reflective article serves as a reminder of the responsibility authors carry when recording marginalized people’s experiences. She investigates the problems in her first narrative framing of the Brandon Teena story through an examination of culture, gender, sex, and law. Minkowitz’s voyage of reflection serves as a cautionary tale, pushing writers to critically assess their biases, challenge cultural standards, and appreciate the complexities of life experiences. Minkowitz encourages us to approach storytelling with empathy, respect, and a commitment to elevating minority voices while avoiding damaging stereotypes and misrepresentations by learning from her mistakes.  

Furthermore, this article serves as a call to remember Brandon Teena and the numerous others whose lives have been impacted by similar difficulties. We can contribute to a more empathetic and nuanced understanding of transgender realities by analyzing earlier portrayals. Through empathy and open discourse, we can work to create a society that values variety, promotes inclusion, and upholds the dignity of all people. 

Thank you for joining me on this contemplative trip as we unravel the many layers of Brandon Teena’s tale. Let us challenge ourselves together to tackle biases, challenge preconceived assumptions, and cultivate a more sympathetic and just society. I am happy to share my thoughts with you, and I hope that this essay generates meaningful dialogues and promotes constructive change. 

(DISCLAIMER: The image above is not mine, credits to the owner)

[religion-is-a-mental-illness]

By: Lucy Bannerman, James Beal, Eleanor Hayward

Published: Apr 10, 2024

The report should be the final nail in the coffin of Gids, the clinic that told thousands of children they were transgender

In 2009 the NHS’s gender identity ­development service (Gids) saw fewer than 50 children a year. Since then ­demand has increased a hundredfold, with more than 5,000 seeking help in 2021-22.

The sudden increase has gone hand in hand with the adoption of a model of “gender-affirming” care, which puts children on a life-altering path of hormone treatment. Services have been left overwhelmed, with vulnerable young people clamouring for medical interventions to help them change gender — despite a lack of evidence over the long-term effects.

It was against this backdrop that Dr Hilary Cass was commissioned in 2020 to examine the state of NHS services for children identifying as trans. Her final report, published on Wednesday, delivers a damning verdict on the medical path thousands of children have been sent down. It marks a turning point in years of bitter debate over how to help this distressed group of young people, confirming a shift towards a holistic model that takes into account the wider social and mental health problems driving the rise in demand.

Gen Z and online porn

The Cass report shines a light on the biggest unanswered question over transgender healthcare: why are so many Gen Z women suddenly wanting to change gender?

Cass paints an alarming picture of an anxious and distressed generation of digitally savvy young women and girls, who not only are more exposed to online pornography and the wider problems of the world than any previous generation but also consume more social media and have lower self-esteem and more body hang-ups than their male peers.

When Gids opened in 1989, it treated fewer than ten people each year, mostly males with a long history of gender ­distress. In 2009 it treated 15 adolescent girls. By 2016 that figure had shot up to 1,071.

Cass concludes that such a sudden rise in such a short time cannot be explained alone by greater acceptance of trans identities, which “does not adequately explain” the switch in patient profiles from predominantly male to female. She also says greater investigation of the “consumption of online pornography and gender dysphoria is needed”, pointing to youngsters’ increasingly early exposure to “frequently violent” online material that can have a harmful impact on their self- esteem and body image.

Gen Z is defined as those born between 1995 and 2009. Rather than focusing on the issue of gender in isolation, Cass looked at the context in which adolescents today, who have “grown up with unprecedented online access”, are experiencing such a disproportionate crisis over their gender.

“Generation Z is the generation in which the numbers seeking support from the NHS around their gender identity have increased, so it is important to have some understanding of their experiences and influences,” she writes. “In terms of broader context, Generation Z and Generation Alpha (those born since 2010) have grown up through a global recession, concerns about climate change and most recently the Covid-19 pandemic. Global connectivity has meant that as well as the advantages of international peer networks, they are much more exposed to worries about global threats.”

The report also focuses on 2014, when female referrals to Gids accelerated. Although this is not mentioned, 2014 was the year that CBBC, for example, broadcast I Am Leo, a video-diary-style documentary, to an audience of to 6 to 12-year-olds, showing the positive personal journey of a child who transitioned from female to male.

Throughout almost 400 pages, Cass argues that the gender-related issues of young patients should be treated in the same context as the wider mental health issues facing their entire generation. “The striking increase in young people presenting with gender incongruence/dysphoria needs to be considered within the context of poor mental health and emotional distress among the broader adolescent population, particularly given their high rates of co-existing mental health problems and neurodiversity.” Cass calls for more research into the “complex interplay” between these issues and a teenager’s sudden desire to change gender.

Lack of evidence for medical pathway

Rather than affirming children’s gender identity with medical treatment, the report calls for a holistic approach that examines the causes of their distress. It finds that, despite being incorporated into medical guidelines around the world, the use of “gender-affirming” medical treatment such as puberty blockers is based on “wholly inadequate” evidence. Doctors are cautious when adopting new treatments, but Cass says “quite the reverse happened in the field of gender care for children”, with thousands of children put on an unproven medical pathway.

Cass says gender care is “an area of remarkably weak evidence” and that results of studies “are exaggerated or misrepresented by people on all sides of the debate”. She adds: “The reality is that we have no good evidence on the long-term outcomes of interventions to manage gender-related distress.”

The report finds that treatment on the NHS since 2011 has largely been informed by two sets of international guidelines, drawn up by the Endocrine Society and the World Professional Association of Transgender Healthcare (WPATH), but that these lack scientific rigour. The WPATH has been “highly influential in directing international practice, although its guidelines were found by the University of York’s appraisal to lack developmental rigour and transparency”, Cass says.

The report says the NHS must work to improve the evidence base.

Mental health

Mental health issues could be presenting as gender-related distress. Children and young people referred to specialist gender services have higher rates of mental health difficulties than the general population. This includes rates of depression, anxiety and eating dis­orders. Some research studies have suggested transgender people are three to six times more likely to be autistic than the general population, with age and educational attainment taken into account.

Therefore, the report says that the striking increase in young people ­presenting with gender dysphoria needs to be considered within the context of rising levels of poor mental health.

The increase in gender clinic patients “has to some degree paralleled” the deterioration in child and adolescent mental health, it finds. Mental distress, the report says, can present through physical manifestations, such as eating disorders or body dysmorphic disorders. Clinicians were often reluctant to explore or address co-occurring mental health issues in those presenting with gender distress, the report finds. This was because gender dysphoria was not considered to be a mental health ­condition.

The report finds that, compared with the general population, young people referred to gender services had higher rates of neglect; physical, sexual or emotional abuse; parental mental illness or substance abuse; exposure to domestic violence; and loss of a parent through death or abandonment.

Puberty blockers

The report says there was “no evidence” puberty blockers allowed young people “time to think” by delaying the onset of puberty — which was the original rationale for their use. It finds the vast majority of those who start puberty suppression continued on to cross-sex hormones, particularly if they started earlier in puberty.

There was insufficient and inconsistent evidence about the effects of puberty suppression on psychological or psychosocial health, it says, and some young females had a worsening of problems like depression and anxiety.

Cass says there is “some concern” that puberty blockers may actually change “the trajectory of psychosexual and gender identity development”.

Her report warns that blocking the chronological age and sex hormones released during puberty “could have a range of unintended and as yet unidentified consequences”.

It describes adolescence as a time of “identity development, sexual development, sexual fluidity and experimentation”. The report says “blocking” this meant young people had to understand identity and sexuality based only on their discomfort about puberty and an early sense of their gender. Therefore, it adds, there is “no way of knowing” whether the normal trajectory of someone’s sexual and gender identity “may be permanently altered”.

Brain maturation may also be “temporarily or permanently disrupted” by the use of puberty blockers, it says. This could have a significant impact on a young person’s ability to make “complex risk-laden decisions”, as well as possible long-term neuropsychological consequences.

The report highlights the “concern” of young people remaining on puberty blockers into adulthood — sometimes into their mid-twenties. This is partly because some “wish to continue as non-binary” and partly because of ongoing gender indecision, the report says.

Cass adds: “Puberty suppression was never intended to continue for extended periods.”

The report finds young adults who had been discharged from Gids ­“remained on puberty blockers into their early to mid twenties”. A review of audit data suggested 177 patients were discharged while on puberty blockers.

Cass says the review “raised this with NHS England and Gids”, citing the unknown impact of use over an extended period. “The detrimental impact to bone density alone makes this concerning”, the report adds.

A Dutch study originally suggested that puberty blockers might improve psychological wellbeing for a narrow group of children with gender issues.

Following this, the practice “spread at pace to other countries” and in 2011 the UK trialled the use of puberty blockers in an early intervention study.

The results were not formally published until 2020, at which time it showed there was a lack of any positive measurable outcomes. It also found that 98 per cent of people had proceeded to take cross-sex hormones.

Despite this, from 2014 puberty blockers moved from a research-only protocol to being available in routine clinical practice. “The rationale for this is unclear,” the report says.

Puberty blockers were then given to a wider range of adolescents, it says, including patients with no history of gender issues before puberty and those with neurodiversity and complex mental health issues. Clinical practice, Cass found, appeared to have “deviated” from the parameters originally set.

Overall, the report concludes there was a “very narrow ­indication” for the use of puberty blockers in males to stop irreversible ­pubertal changes, while other benefits remained unproven.

It says there were “clearly lessons to be learnt by everyone”.

Social transition

The report concludes it was “possible” that social transition, including the changing of a child’s name and pronouns, may change the trajectory of their gender development. It finds “no clear evidence” social transitioning in childhood has any positive or negative mental health effects, but that children who socially transitioned at an earlier age were more likely to proceed to medical treatment. A more cautious approach to social transition needs to be taken for children than for adolescents, it concludes.

The review also heard concerns from “many parents” about their child being socially transitioned and affirmed in their expressed gender without their involvement. Draft government guidance, published in ­December, stated that schools should not accept all requests for social transition and should involve parents in any decision that is made.

Despite this, there has been evidence of schools ignoring ministers and ­allowing children to change gender ­behind their parents’ backs.

The report makes clear that “parents should be actively involved in decision making” unless there are strong grounds to believe that it may put the child at risk.

It also finds that social debates on trans issues led to fear among doctors and parents, with some concerned about being accused of transphobia.

The interim report, from 2022, had classed social transition as “not a neutral act”. The full report explains that it is an “active intervention”, because it may have significant effects on a young person’s psychological functioning and longer-term outcomes.

In a strong warning to schools, the report describes the need for “clinical involvement” in the decision-making process on social transitioning. It adds: “This is not a role that can be taken by staff without appropriate clinical ­training.”

The report concludes that maintaining flexibility is key among those going down a social transition route and says a “partial transition”, rather than a full one, could help.

In decisions about whether to transition prepubescent children, families should be seen “as early as possible by a clinical professional”.

Rogue private clinics

Long waiting lists for NHS care mean distressed children are turning to private clinics or resorting to “obtaining unregulated and potentially dangerous hormone supplies over the internet”, the report says.

Some NHS GPs have then felt “pressurised to prescribe hormones after these have been initiated by private providers”, and Cass says this should not happen.

The report also urges the Department of Health to consider new legislation to “prevent inappropriate overseas prescribing”. This is intended to tackle a loophole which means that, ­despite the NHS banning the use of ­puberty blockers last month, children can still access them from online clinics such as GenderGP, which is registered in Singapore.

Detransitioning

Cass says some of those who have been through medical transitions “deeply ­regret their earlier decisions”. Her report says the NHS should consider a new specialist service for people who wish to “detransition” and come off hormone treatments. She says people who are detransitioning may be reluctant to return to the service they had previously used.

NHS numbers

The report recommends that the NHS and Department of Health review current practice of issuing new NHS numbers to people who change gender.

Cass suggests that handing out new NHS numbers to trans people means they risk getting lost in the system — making it harder to track their health histories and long-term outcomes.

The review says that this has had “implications for safeguarding and clinical management of these children”, — for example, the type of screening that they are offered.

Toxic debate

Cass has called for an end to the “exceptionally toxic” debates over transgender healthcare after she was vilified online while compiling her review. In a foreword to her 388-page report, the paediatrician said that navigating a culture war over trans rights has made her task over the past four years significantly harder.

She warned that the “stormy social discourse” does little to help young people, who are being let down by a lack of research and evidence. Cass added: “There are few other areas of healthcare where professionals are so afraid to openly discuss their views, where people are vilified on social media, and where name-calling echoes the worst bullying behaviour. This must stop.

“Polarisation and stifling of debate do nothing to help the young people caught in the middle of a stormy social discourse, and in the long run will also hamper the research that is essential to finding the best way of supporting them to thrive.”

Cass said: “Finally, I am aware that this report will generate much discussion and that strongly held views will be expressed. While open and constructive debate is needed, I would urge everybody to remember the children and young people trying to live their lives and the families/ carers and clinicians doing their best to support them. All should be treated with compassion and respect.”

The recommendations

Data collection

Gender identity clinics should offer their data to NHS England for review, and more research should be conducted on the impact of psychosocial intervention — such as therapy — and the use of masculinising and feminising hormones, such as testosterone and oestrogen. Cass recommended that the NHS should also consider data from private clinics.

Puberty blockers and hormone treatment

Cass recommended research to establish the long-term impact of puberty blockers, which is expected to start by December.

Assessment of other conditions

Cass said that children arriving at gender identity services should be screened for conditions such as autism and other neurodevelopmental conditions.

Criteria for medical treatment

When treating children with gender dysphoria, only those who have experienced “longstanding gender incongruence” will be able to get medical treatment. Even then, this will only be available — with “extreme caution” — for over 16s.

A holistic approach

Before any medical intervention, Cass recommends that children should be offered fertility counselling and “preservation” by specialist services. This formed part of a more “holistic” approach to gender identity services. Cass suggested the creation and implementation of a national framework and infrastructure for gender-related care.

Growing into adulthood

The review advised that follow-through services for 17 to 25-year-olds should be established to ensure a continuity of care and support when children grow into adulthood.

Detransitioners

The report proposed that NHS England should “ensure there is provision for people considering detransition”, while recognising that they may not wish to attend services that assisted in their initial gender transition.

[ Via: https://archive.today/7GxDe ]

[sysmedsaresexist]

@guardianssystem I am so disappointed to see you over here from Twitter, you are literally the most manipulative person that has ever existed when it comes to information about DID/OSDD, and I'm ready to start debunking you, you POS

Ready? Let's go.

1. The DSM 5 TR fully states that DID is a trauma based disorder, and so does every doctor that has ever doctored. Sorry you can't read for shit. Inb4 "but PTSD says--" no. That's not how that works. The secret to DID not being trauma based is not hidden under the PTSD entry, that's ridiculous and a blatant misreading of the DSM. If that's what we're doing, the differentials on DPDR prove DID is trauma based. The PTSD differentials only say that point of trauma does not need to be immediately, or even closely preceding the onset of disorder in DID. It's about how difficult it can be to trace a trauma event to DID. It means someone's life doesn't need to be in current turmoil to show symptoms or qualify for a diagnosis.

That is 100% of cases. There is no 10% not caused by trauma. Read this, please.

The fact is, the research proving that DID is trauma related is only growing by the day. Arguing with this only hurts all systems.

Also see this post about the ICD 11 boundary with normality.

2. Transgender Mental Health was not written or published by the APA. The book was written by Dr Eric and published through the APAP, a publishing company that publishes most of the work the APA does. This does not mean that his work is supported by the APA, or that he had to go through it, and as such, his book opens with a caution that everything in it is his own opinion and work and not that of the greater medical community. This is a doctor that specializes in transgender mental health, not systems and DDs or plurality. While there is a large intersection in these two communities, he does NOT make any sweeping statements about plurality and offers no research or proof into the phenomena other than self reports, which is fine. His book is actually really good. But this is not what it should be used for. It's not the golden gun of proof like people are holding it up to be-- like you are. Unfortunately, I worry about his research because it seems to have pushed us back in the direction of multiple personalities = transgender, with new research surfacing about dissociation and gender incongruence. I'm not saying this is what's happening, but I would be cautious in optimism about this topic until more comes out and plurality is better acknowledged. Point is, claiming it's published by the APA is a huge misrepresentation of the truth.

2.5. One of the writers of the ToSD lost his license for abusing a patient with DID, please don't refer to them as plural. Beyond that, there were still two other authors, and the ToSD is based on a body of research that spans over a century. It wasn't their idea or concept, trauma related structural dissociation has been around since Janet in the 1800s. They took all the info and put it into a book, the haunted self, which is has become synonymous with ToSD. The theory is still good. Also, don't fucking link did research for this shit, that's nothing, literally nothing. As well, you're clearly behind the times, because the ToSD has been updated since, expanding on the types of parts and different disorders to clear up many of those issues. And, to top it off, we can see the ToSD in action on brain scans. Point is, one man does not make all of this research bad. Stop using it as a gotcha, we can talk about abuse in psychiatry without putting down valuable research.

It can be proven and tested for, and has been, repeatedly, for years.

3. Nothing to add

Second post

THAT'S NOT WHAT THE TOSD SAYS, LMAO, WHERE ARE YOU GETTING THAT FROM

HOLY fuck

These claims are getting more and more wild, it's no wonder all you people are talking pure shit.

One of the other authors doesn't support endogenic plurality, that's a blatant and ridiculous misreading of his work. It's such a huge misrepresentation of what's being said, how do you people sleep at night?

The entire point of the paper you're referencing here is about how to define dissociation and the different types, including that seen in channeling and mediumship, which, according to the authors, shouldn't be included and is highly disputed.

"However, what has remained missing is a precise definition of dissociation in trauma. This article first presents such a definition and elucidates its various components. Next the new definition is compared with several other major definitions of the concept. The strengths of the new formulation are highlighted and discussed."

...

"However, dissociation in mediums is in several regards different from dissociation in DID (CitationMoreira-Almeida, Neto, & Cardeña, 2008). The possible involvement of consciousness and self-consciousness in dissociated controls in hypnosis and in dissociative parts in mediumship needs to be examined in more detail before a conclusive general definition of dissociation can be formulated."

This is about developing a definition of trauma related dissociation, and you're using it as proof that it's the same as... mediumship. Nice. How very... uneducated of you to present this.

But I'm not really surprised, considering some of your other links.

Critiquing the Requirement of Oneness over Multiplicity: An Examination of  Dissociative Identity (Disorder) in Five Clinical Texts - I spoke with the author of this paper and she does not support endogenic systems. Her paper was one of the very first to look at functional multiplicity as a treatment option for DID and she's upset that it's being used this way. It's a very important paper for DID history, and you're shitting on it. Ross' quote from this paper is actually usually altered when it's included. Ross said: "Those without an abuse history," not trauma history. Ross' paper was the first to recognize that not only abuse caused DID. Way to twist that, too.

NORMAL DIMENSIONS OF MULTIPLE PERSONALITY WITHOUT AMNESIA - is about how DID is fake and fantasy play. This shows you're not actually reading the things you're including. Good job.

Multiplicity: An Explorative Interview Study on Personal Experiences of People with Multiple Selves - not a study, it's an interview. Misrepresentation. Again.

Like, what are you doing, you don't need to do this to prove endogenic plurality. You are doing more harm than good with this shit.

Edit: thanks for the tag reminding me, since OPs post was already corrected, I'm not touching that, good on OP for the apology and willingness to learn, I hope everyone else can be that open

did and osdd are not the only ways a system can form. they can also form from neurodivergence or stress. heres a google doc with endogenic resources https://docs.google.com/document/d/1_5iSiTjqlyCjd3krzQwjAMbZOQzKKpbcmRI0NsHfPpA/edit?usp=drivesdk

1). Removing the emphasis of trauma on a disorder cause by trauma is incredibly dangerous.

2). A quick google search told me that Dr. Eric Yarbrough specializes in LGBTQ+ medicine and is a trans med (believes gender dysphoria is a mental illness and is necessary to be trans) and does not specialize in any form of dissociative disorders or treatment.

3). Tulpas are not, and will not ever, be a form of DIDOSDD, they are a cultural soul bond and are extremely sacred to Native American cultures.

4). Cope harder??

[ukrfeminism]

Scottish ministers are facing a massive public backlash over their planned gender recognition reforms, according to a poll.

A Panelbase survey suggests the vast majority of voters in Scotland (71 per cent) oppose their plan to let people officially change gender quickly without providing medical evidence of gender dysphoria. Ministers plan to allow trans people to apply for a gender recognition certificate after declaring that they have lived in their acquired gender for three months, and then wait just three months for the certificate to be granted.

The plan follows complaints that current procedures, which can mean transgender people wait for two years for formal recognition, are bureaucratic, invasive and humiliating. This month the Scottish government announced £2 million of funding for gender identity services to help cut waiting times for trans healthcare.

But the poll, commissioned by the group For Women Scotland, found only 29 per cent of voters support the Scottish government’s “self-ID” plan to let people switch gender without needing to be assessed by medical professionals.

There is also widespread unease over a range of other related issues, ranging from safety in female-only spaces and gender reassignment surgery for children to children switching gender at school without parental consent.

Last weekend The Sunday Times reported that Police Scotland intend to record rapes by offenders with male genitalia as being committed by a woman if the attacker “identifies as a female”. The writer JK Rowling condemned that approach as Orwellian.

The poll finds a high level of concern over the implications of gender recognition reforms for spaces currently confined to those who are biologically female, a concern shared by some of the SNP’s own parliamentarians.

Just over two thirds (67 per cent) believed trans-women should not gain full access to female-only spaces such as changing rooms, hospital wards and women’s refuges if they still have a penis, while a third who expressed an opinion thought they should.

At the same time, 86 per cent believe that women and girls have the right to expect to be able to receive care, including intimate care, from biologically female staff in hospitals, care homes and rape crisis centres while 14 per cent disagree.

New Scottish government guidance for schools states that pupils who want to change their name and sex in school records require parental consent only if they are under 16. But 73 per cent of voters oppose any child being allowed to make such changes without parental approval if they are under 18.

Similarly, 81 per cent are against under-18s being able to access sex reassignment surgery, such as double mastectomies or hormone treatments while 19 per cent approve of the idea. The Scottish government is currently facing a legal challenge over plans for next year’s delayed census to allow respondents to self-identify.

A feminist campaigning and consultancy organisation, Fair Play for Women, has initiated a judicial review, claiming that the census guidance is “unlawful and directly impacts the rights of women and girls”.

Earlier this year the group won a case south of the border, which ruled that people in England and Wales must base their answer on the sex written on their birth certificate or gender recognition certificate.

The SNP MP Joanna Cherry, a vocal critic of aspects of the proposed gender recognition changes, said: “These poll findings are stark and demonstrate very significant public opposition to the government’s current proposals for self-identification of sex.”

She said that Scotland had very good rights-based protections for women and girls and for trans people but warned: “We are at risk of undermining this if we do not seek to address the significant problems with the planned legislation.”

Cherry renewed her call for the issues to be considered in depth by a citizens’ assembly “as a way of moving past the current impasse”.

Marion Calder, co-founder of For Women Scotland, a feminist group, said that ministers were “rushing into legislation with no regard as to the impact on women’s rights, and have completely forgotten as to why we sometimes need to separate spaces by sex”.

She added: “Allowing the teaching in schools of the ideology that it is possible to change sex will have far-reaching and damaging consequences for Scottish children, which the Scottish government will have to address in the not-too-distant future. Unless halted it will be their shameful legacy.”

Maggie Mellon, former vice-chairwoman of the British Association of Social Workers, said the government plans were “very out of step” with most people.

She added: “Already over 50 teenage girls have been referred to England for mastectomies. These and puberty blockers and hormones are life-changing decisions that children should not be allowed to make.

“They have brought in policies like this by stealth and, I think, hoped that they could legislate without any real challenge. This is interference in children’s and families’ lives masquerading as progress.”

The Equality Network did not comment. But Vic Valentine, manager of its Scottish Trans Alliance team, recently described the proposed changes as “a real step forward” and pointed out that 72 per cent of MSPs were elected on manifesto commitments to change the law.

A Scottish government spokesman said: “We recognise concerns raised by some women’s groups. Our proposals to reform the current gender recognition act do not introduce any new rights for trans people or change single-sex exceptions in the equality act.”

He said the government is committed to making changes “to improve and simplify the process by which a trans person can obtain legal recognition”.

He added: “We will do this while ensuring we uphold the rights and protections that women and girls currently have under the equality act.”

[pashterlengkap]

Ron DeSantis takes his drag ban to the U.S. Supreme Court

On Tuesday, the DeSantis administration’s obsession with “lewd exposure” and “prosthetic or imitation genitals or breasts” made it to the U.S. Supreme Court. Florida’s solicitor general filed an emergency request to narrow the scope of a district court ruling that blocked the Republican-led state’s notorious ban on drag performance, formally known as the Protection of Children Act. Related: 200,000 people showed up for Orlando Pride in defiant middle finger to Ron DeSantis An 11-year-old transgender girl was the parade Grand Marshal. Justice Clarence Thomas will hear the request. Get the Daily Brief The news you care about, reported on by the people who care about you: Subscribe to our Newsletter In a 167-page filing defending the legislation, signed into law in May by DeSantis and blocked by the district court in June, Solicitor General Henry Whitaker claimed the state was now “powerless to enforce a law its elected representatives have enacted for the protection of its children.” The ban allows the state Department of Business and Professional Regulation to revoke the business licenses of any venues that allow minors to see drag performances, even if their parents consent, as well as issue $5,000 and $10,000 fines against the business. Anyone who violates the law can be charged with a criminal misdemeanor. Days after DeSantis signed the bill into law, restaurant and bar Hamburger Mary’s in Orlando, well-known for their drag-attired waitstaff, sued over the legislation. In June, U.S. District Judge Gregory Presnell temporarily blocked the ban in anticipation of a trial, writing that the Protection of Children Act posed a threat to constitutionally protected free speech. “The state claims that this statute seeks to protect children generally from obscene live performances. However, as explained [in court filings], Florida already has statutes that provide such protection.” Florida is now asking the Supreme Court to allow it to partially enforce the ban, arguing for the ability to prosecute any business or venue it deems to be in violation of the law, other than Hamburger Mary’s. Two weeks ago, the Atlanta-based 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals upheld the district court ruling and affirmed the injunction would apply to the entire state. The 11th Circuit wrote of the ban, “There is a potential for extraordinary harm and a serious chill upon protected speech” if left in effect. That assertion has been borne out as threats of enforcement in the state led to self-censorship at previously scheduled Pride celebrations and drag events, even as others have marched in drag in defiance.   “No prosecutions have yet been undertaken under the law,” the court wrote, “so none will be disrupted if the injunction stands. Further, if the injunction is upheld, the government in the interim can enforce obscenity laws already on the books.” Yet the DeSantis administration remains determined to prosecute. “Hamburger Mary’s has not alleged, much less proven, that application of the Protection of Children Act to others in the State of Florida will cause actual or imminent injury to Hamburger Mary’s itself,” the state wrote in the emergency appeal. “It was a serious error for the district court nonetheless to enjoin the statute as it may apply to the rest of the world.” DeSantis has signed a slew of anti-LGBTQ+ bills since announcing his run for the Republican nomination for president, including a ban on gender-affirming care for trans youth, an expanded version of his signature “Don’t Say Gay” legislation, and bills that have led Florida schools and libraries to purge LGBTQ+ content from shelves.  http://dlvr.it/SxybS4

[andromedaspark]

According to one study, 35% of people who are autistic would be affected by tinnitus, which is much higher than in the general population.

Sleep disorders are commonly reported by parents of individuals with ASDs, including late sleep onset, early morning awakening, and poor sleep maintenance; sleep disturbances are present in 53–78% of individuals with ASD. Unlike general pediatric insomnia, which has its roots in behavior, sleep disorders in individuals with ASD are comorbid with other neurobiological, medical, and psychiatric issues. If not addressed, severe sleep disorders can exacerbate ASD behaviors such as self-injury; however, there are no Food and Drug Administration-approved pharmacological treatments for pediatric insomnia at this time. Studies have found abnormalities in the physiology of melatonin and circadian rhythm in people with autism spectrum disorders (ASD). These physiological abnormalities include lower concentrations of melatonin or melatonin metabolites in ASDs compared to controls. Some evidence suggests that melatonin supplements improve sleep patterns in children with autism but robust, high-quality studies are overall lacking.

Unusual responses to sensory stimuli are more common and prominent in individuals with autism, and sensory abnormalities are commonly recognized as diagnostic criteria in autism spectrum disorder (ASD), as reported in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-V); although there is no good evidence that sensory symptoms differentiate autism from other developmental disorders. Sensory processing disorder is comorbid with ASD, with comorbidity rates of 42–88%. With or without meeting the standards of SPD; about 90% of ASD individuals have some type of atypical sensory experiences, described as both hyper- and hypo-reactivity. The prevalence of reported “unusual sensory behaviors” that effect functioning in everyday life is also higher; ranging from 45 to 95% depending on factors such as age, IQ and the control group used. Several studies have reported associated motor problems that include poor muscle tone, poor motor planning, and toe walking; ASD is not associated with severe motor disturbances. Many with ASD often find it uncomfortable to sit or stand in a way which neurotypical people will find ordinary, and may stand in an awkward position, such as with both feet together, supinating, sitting cross-legged or with one foot on top of the other or simply having an awkward gait. However, despite evidently occurring more often in people with ASD, all evidence is anecdotal and unresearched at this point. It has been observed by some psychologists that there is commonality to the way in which these 'awkward' positions may manifest.

Obsessive–compulsive disorder is characterized by recurrent obsessive thoughts or compulsive acts. About 30% of individuals with autism spectrum disorders also have OCD

The role of the immune system and neuroinflammation in the development of autism is controversial. Until recently, there was scant evidence supporting immune hypotheses, but research into the role of immune response and neuroinflammation may have important clinical and therapeutic implications. The exact role of heightened immune response in the central nervous system (CNS) of patients with autism is uncertain, but may be a primary factor in triggering and sustaining many of the comorbid conditions associated with autism. Recent studies indicate the presence of heightened neuroimmune activity in both the brain tissue and the cerebrospinal fluid of patients with autism, supporting the view that heightened immune response may be an essential factor in the onset of autistic symptoms. A 2013 review also found evidence of microglial activation and increased cytokine production in postmortem brain samples from people with autism.

Gender dysphoria is a diagnosis given to transgender people who experience discomfort related to their gender identity. Autistic people are more likely to experience gender dysphoria. Around 20% of gender identity clinic-assessed individuals reported characteristics of ASD.

Fragile X syndrome is the most common inherited form of intellectual disability. It was so named because one part of the X chromosome has a defective piece that appears pinched and fragile when under a microscope. Fragile X syndrome affects about two to five percent of people with ASD. If one child has Fragile X, there is a 50% chance that boys born to the same parents will have Fragile X (see Mendelian genetics). Other members of the family who may be contemplating having a child may also wish to be checked for the syndrome.

Children with ASD may be delayed in acquiring motor skills that require motor dexterity, such as bicycle riding or opening a jar, and may appear awkward or "uncomfortable in their own skin". They may be poorly coordinated, or have an odd or bouncy gait or posture, poor handwriting, other hand/dexterity impairments, or problems with visual-motor integration, visual-perceptual skills, and conceptual learning. They may show problems with proprioception (sensation of body position) on measures of developmental coordination disorder, balance, tandem gait, and finger-thumb apposition.

Major depressive disorder has been shown by several studies to be one of the most common comorbid conditions in those with ASD, and is thought to develop and occur more in high-functioning individuals during adolescence, when the individual develops greater insight into their differences from others. In addition, the presentation of depression in ASDs can depend on the level of cognitive functioning in the individual, with lower functioning children displaying more behavioral issues and higher functioning children displaying more traditional depressive symptoms.

Gastrointestinal symptoms are a common comorbidity in patients with autism spectrum disorders (ASD), even though the underlying mechanisms are largely unknown. The most common gastrointestinal symptoms reported by proprietary tool developed and administered by Mayer, Padua, & Tillisch (2014) are abdominal pain, constipation, diarrhea and bloating, reported in at least 25 percent of participants. Carbohydrate digestion and transport is impaired in individuals with autism spectrum disorder, which is thought to be attributed to functional disturbances that cause increased intestinal permeability, deficient enzyme activity of disaccharides, increased secretin-induced pancreatico-biliary secretion, and abnormal fecal flora Clostridia taxa. Altered gastrointestinal function accompanied by pain may induce feeding issues and increase perceived negative behaviors, including self injury, in individuals with autism.

Brain fog is a constellation of symptoms that include reduced cognition, inability to concentrate and multitask, as well as loss of short and long-term memory. Brain fog can be present in patients with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Its prevalence, however, remains unknown.

Anxiety disorders are common among children and adults with ASD. Symptoms are likely affected by age, level of cognitive functioning, degree of social impairment, and ASD-specific difficulties. Many anxiety disorders, such as social anxiety disorder and generalized anxiety disorder, are not commonly diagnosed in people with ASD because such symptoms are better explained by ASD itself, and it is often difficult to tell whether symptoms such as compulsive checking are part of ASD or a co-occurring anxiety problem. The prevalence of anxiety disorders in children with ASD has been reported to be anywhere between 11% and 84%; the wide range is likely due to differences in the ways the studies were conducted. A systematic review summarized available evidence on interventions to reduce anxiety in school children with autism spectrum disorder. Of the 24 studies reviewed, 22 used a cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) approach. The review found that CBT was moderately to highly effective at reducing anxiety in school children with autism spectrum disorder, but that effects varied depending on whether they were reported by clinicians, parents or self-reported. Treatments involving parents and one-on-one compared to group treatments were more effective.

Vitamin D : Vitamin D deficiency was concerned in a German study 78% of hospitalized autistic population. 52% of the entire ASD group in the study was severely deficient, which is much higher than in the general population. Other studies also show a higher rate of vitamin D deficiencies in ASDs.

Vitamine B12 : The researchers found that, overall, B12 levels in the brain tissue of autistic children were three times lower than those of the brain tissue of children not affected by ASD. This lower-than-normal B12 profile persisted throughout life in the brain tissues of patients with autism. These deficiencies are not visible by conventional blood sampling. As for the classic deficiency of vitamin B12, it would affect up to 40% of the population, its prevalence has not yet been studied in autism spectrum disorders. Vitamin B12 deficiency is one of the most serious.

Vitamin B9 (folic acid) : Studies have been conducted regarding folic acid supplementation in autism in children. "The results showed that folic acid supplementation significantly improved certain symptoms of autism such as sociability, verbal / preverbal cognitive language, receptive language, and emotional expression and communication. In addition, this treatment improved the concentrations of folic acid, homocysteine and redox metabolism of standardized glutathione. "

Vitamin A : Vitamin A can induce mitochondrial dysfunction. According to a non-specific study on ASD: "Vitamin A and its derivatives, retinoids, are micronutrients necessary for the human diet in order to maintain several cellular functions of human development in adulthood as well as during aging (...) Although it is either an essential micronutrient, used in clinical applications, vitamin A has several toxic effects on the redox environment and mitochondrial function. A decline in the quality of life and an increase in the mortality rate among users of vitamin A supplements have been reported. Although the exact mechanism by which vitamin A causes its deleterious effects is not yet clear (...) Vitamin A and its derivatives, retinoids , disrupt mitochondrial function by a mechanism that is not fully understood."

Zinc : Zinc deficiency incidence rates in children aged 0 to 3, 4 to 9 and 10 to 15 years were estimated at 43.5%, 28.1% and 3.3% for boys and at 52.5%, 28.7% and 3.5% among girls.

Magnesium : Incidence rates of magnesium deficiency in children aged 0 to 3, 4 to 9 and 10 to 15 years were estimated at 27%, 17.1% and 4.2% for boys and at 22.9%, 12.7% and 4.3% among girls.

Calcium : Incidence rates of calcium deficiency in children aged 0 to 3, 4 to 9 years and 10 to 15 years were estimated at 10.4%, 6.1% and 0.4% for boys and at 3.4%, 1.7% and 0.9% among girls.

Phobias and other psychopathological disorders have often been described along with ASD but this has not been assessed systematically.

The fraction of autistic individuals who also meet criteria for intellectual disability has been reported as anywhere from 25% to 70%. This wide variation illustrates the difficulty of assessing intelligence in austistic indificiuals. For example, a 2001 British study of 26 autistic children found about 30% with intelligence in the normal range (IQ above 70), 50% with a mild to moderate intellectual disability, and about 20% with a severe to profound intellectual disability (IQ below 35). For ASD other than autism the association is much weaker: the same study reported typical levels of intelligence in about 94% of 53 children with PDD-NOS. Estimates are that 40–69% of individuals with ASD have some degree of an intellectual disability, with females more likely to be in severe range of an intellectual disability. Learning disabilities are also highly comorbid in individuals with an ASD. Approximately 25–75% of individuals with an ASD also have some degree of learning disability, although the types of learning disability vary depending on the specific strengths and weaknesses of the individual. A 2006 review questioned the common assumption that most children with autism have an intellectual disability. It is possible that the association between an intellectual disability and autism is not because they usually have common causes, but because the presence of both makes it more likely that both will be diagnosed.

Previously, the diagnosis manual DSM-IV did not allow the co-diagnosis of ASD and attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). However, following years of clinical research, the most recent publication (DSM-5) in 2013 removed this prohibition of co-morbidity. Thus, individuals with autism spectrum disorder may also have a diagnosis of ADHD, with the modifiers of inattentive, hyperactive, combined-type, or not otherwise specified. Clinically significant symptoms of these two conditions commonly co-occur, and children with both sets of symptoms may respond poorly to standard ADHD treatments. Individuals with autism spectrum disorder may benefit from additional types of medications.

Yall know that Autism and Gender Dysphoria are Comorbid?