Dear Mr Eggen,
Have you had a chance to read the book by Leonard sax entitled Why Gender Matters? It is well-researched and enlightening on many points. He writes about many elements of gender differences between males and females including gender dysphoria. Here is some of what he has to say.
"In one of the largest such studies, of 139 boys who insisted in childhood that they were really girls trapped in the body of boys, only 12% still felt that way as adolescents or adults."
"I find that it's helpful to stay focused on the best interest of the child. When in doubt, err on the side of normal variation." (Dr Sax explains that left-handedness is a normal variation. It is uncommon but does not require interventions of any kind. He also believes that same-sex attraction falls in the realm of a normal variation.)
"By contrast, if we conclude that this child is transgender, and we allow the child to begin dressing like a girl and to assume a female persona, the child will require hormone shots. (Dr Sax then gives details on the types of hormones, injections and surgeries the child would need; all of them with significant consequences and risks.)"If this child later decides that he is really a boy after all, we have not served this child well by indulging the whim of a five-year-old or an eight-year-old."
"This approach -- erring on the side of normal variation rather than rushing to classify the child as transgender -- seems to me to be common sense best practice if there is any doubt at all regarding the child, particularly if the child is very young -- say, less than 9 years old."
This certainly needs to be considered in policy making. May I suggest that it is not too late to amend some of the resources that already exist. Particularly here I am thinking of the problematic 'Prism Toolkit'.
Sincerely,
Catherine van Kampen
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