Please be advised that puberty blockers are a thing that exists. They are medicines which prevent the onset of puberty. If you take them, you can indefinitely defer the choice of male puberty vs female puberty until you know exactly which you'd prefer. Its also completely reversible: as soon as you stop taking the puberty blockers, your biologically indicated puberty will begin as normal.
As far as figuring out if you're transgender or what, there's a few easy questions to ask yourself:
1. If you found a magical potion would permanently switch you to being biologically female when you drank it, and you accidentally drank it and were permanently transformed (but in a way that nobody would blame you or call you weird over), would you be distressed by this, or look for a cure?
2. Can you imagine yourself in your 40s as a grown woman, living a normal life? What would that life involve?
3. Assume you're
not transgender. Why do you feel the desire to transition, then? Is it something about being biologically male that you dislike, or something about being biologically female that you think you would enjoy? Both, neither?
But, as a general rule cis people don't want to change their sex to a different one on a permanent basis. Its either never considered, or only a "Well, that might be interesting for a day, like in that one movie, but I'd want to switch back." sort of thing. If you find yourself wanting to switch and stay switched, you're probably trans and should probably speak with an endocrinologist.
As far as the actual transitioning process goes, you have basically 3 options:
- Informed Consent: This is what I'm using for myself. In essence, you find a doctor willing to treat you on an informed consent basis and affirm to them that you are of sound mind and body, that you understand the risks and probable results of HRT and that with that knowledge in mind you would like to begin taking hormones. Pros: Doesn't require therapist involvement so you can start right away. Is very safe, as your doctor will supervise your treatment. Cons: You need to be a legal adult and need to know of an informed consent endocrinologist in your area. If you are not yet a legal adult, puberty blockers can delay puberty until you are one, but that may be too long of a wait for you.
- Therapy & Letters: Most endocrinologists are not willing to treat gender identity disorder on an informed consent basis. They will instead insist that you speak with a therapist who will work with you to help resolve any issues and then eventually give you a letter to take back to the endocrinologist saying that HRT is medically necessary and that you should be prescribed hormones as such. Pros: You don't need to be a legal adult, your guardian can initiate this process on your behalf. Is just as safe as Informed Consent. You get therapy to help you with your feelings and emotions before transitioning instead of after or during. Cons: Therapy is expensive and takes a long time, possibly months or years. You may also find it difficult to open up to a therapist who is also the gatekeeper between you and HRT.
- Do It Yourself Hormone Therapy: Basically you order HRT medicines online and take them. This is extremely unwise (you are not a doctor) and probably illegal where you live (again, you are not a doctor). Not only could your self-medication be ineffective, it could actually kill you. Pros: You can start right now without telling anyone or going to a doctor. Cons: It probably won't work right. It's probably illegal. You might die. You might lose a limb, destroy your liver or suffer brain damage from unsupervised use of HRT medication. Never do this unless there is literally no other choice and you've done extensive research.
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Topic: Struggling with Gender Identity??? (Read 8064 times)