The Dr. Oz Show recently aired this segment about trans kids. Thanks for the link, Mel!
(If you're interested, Part 2 is here.)
I'd never heard of Dr. Oz before this, but the show was surprisingly respectful and well done. I usually watch these programs and wince, for fear that the host will make the trans folks look like a sideshow.
What do you think? Is it okay to delay puberty until the child can make a more educated decision? At what age is a child old enough to start irreversible surgeries?
I can't evn begin to know what's best in these sorts of situations and I wouldn't pretend I could know. If I had a child of ambiguous sex I would have no idea what would be best for them. I'm grateful that I haven't been in a position to make those kinds of choices since it is a very serious thing to me. Have you read Middlesex by Jeffrey Eugenides? It's about a hermaphrodite and it's really an amazing book. I would hate to have been her/his parents. The most interesting thing about the book for me though, was that the girl was so confused she didn't know what to say to her family and doctors and it really compounded a problem where some people actually wanted to do the right thing but had no idea what that was because of her inability to speak up for herself.
ReplyDeleteWe just talked about this topic in my childhood development class. The clip our teacher showed was the harpies on the View fighting over whether or not a little boy can wear a dress in preschool and if it is cause for concern. This would have been a better choice.
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