First, I'm trans, so I'm going to explain things from the perspective of a trans person who didn't get to transition until they were 28.
Puberty blockers are a -temporary- measure that are used for the child to have some time to figure out which direction they want to go. From what I could find, puberty blockers could be used safely for up to two years with no consequence. Long term use could cause stunted growth, but puberty blockers shouldn't be used for that long anyway. The goal is to pause the puberty, work out what the child's feelings are in therapy, then upgrade to a full transition, or back off and let the child have a "normal" puberty.
As someone who had to go through male puberty at age 28, I wish I could have taken puberty blockers and undergone transition at age 11 instead of 28. Transitioning from female to male (and visa versa) is like going through puberty all over again, because it is. I had mood swings and anger problems, and it was super frustrating having to experience these angry/horny teenage hormones while trying to work at my retail hell job and keeping up with rent.
Not transitioning early meant that I didn't get any of the social experiences with people in my side of the gender spectrum either. I never socialized with boys, and now that I'm a man I'm disconnected from the other men around me because of our lack of shared experiences. I was socialized as a woman for almost three decades, and this fact has caused rifts in my personal, social, and work life that wouldn't be there had I just been raised as a boy from the outset.
My puberty caused me extreme agony as well. The moment I started developing secondary sexual characteristics everything went down hill. Transgender people often have weird, unstable, hormone levels and it was the same for me. At age 11 I was having panic attacks when I saw my body in the mirror. I had horrendous cramps. I felt disgusting and awful all the time. Middle school was so bad for me that my brain blocked most of it out. I would have done anything to put puberty on hold, but it was the 90's, and I had no idea what was going on with me or my body. That and, if I transitioned early, I would have had almost all of the secondary sex characteristics that I dreamed of. The earlier the transition, the better the results.
In my opinion, denying puberty blockers is more about denying the right of trans people to control their own bodies with "think of the children!!!!" slapped on it to work people up. It's just more moral panic.
Thank you for sharing this. My only potential objection to puberty blockers would be if there were serious risks to children. If they can be used safely and allow a child more time to make sense of their identity then it's nothing but cruelty to deny them. This isn't even a complicated issue. Fuck transphobes.
Thanks for the very well explained response and for sharing your personal experience. It does make a lot of sense that putting a pause on puberty could help people have a clearer head and gives time to think about how they feel/what they want without having to wrestle with the affects of hormones at the same time. Seems like a great way to combat the general critique of trans youth not being old enough or having the time to think it over. Thanks again for helping me and likely some others understand the issue better.
First, I'm trans, so I'm going to explain things from the perspective of a trans person who didn't get to transition until they were 28.
Puberty blockers are a -temporary- measure that are used for the child to have some time to figure out which direction they want to go. From what I could find, puberty blockers could be used safely for up to two years with no consequence. Long term use could cause stunted growth, but puberty blockers shouldn't be used for that long anyway. The goal is to pause the puberty, work out what the child's feelings are in therapy, then upgrade to a full transition, or back off and let the child have a "normal" puberty.
As someone who had to go through male puberty at age 28, I wish I could have taken puberty blockers and undergone transition at age 11 instead of 28. Transitioning from female to male (and visa versa) is like going through puberty all over again, because it is. I had mood swings and anger problems, and it was super frustrating having to experience these angry/horny teenage hormones while trying to work at my retail hell job and keeping up with rent.
Not transitioning early meant that I didn't get any of the social experiences with people in my side of the gender spectrum either. I never socialized with boys, and now that I'm a man I'm disconnected from the other men around me because of our lack of shared experiences. I was socialized as a woman for almost three decades, and this fact has caused rifts in my personal, social, and work life that wouldn't be there had I just been raised as a boy from the outset.
My puberty caused me extreme agony as well. The moment I started developing secondary sexual characteristics everything went down hill. Transgender people often have weird, unstable, hormone levels and it was the same for me. At age 11 I was having panic attacks when I saw my body in the mirror. I had horrendous cramps. I felt disgusting and awful all the time. Middle school was so bad for me that my brain blocked most of it out. I would have done anything to put puberty on hold, but it was the 90's, and I had no idea what was going on with me or my body. That and, if I transitioned early, I would have had almost all of the secondary sex characteristics that I dreamed of. The earlier the transition, the better the results.
In my opinion, denying puberty blockers is more about denying the right of trans people to control their own bodies with "think of the children!!!!" slapped on it to work people up. It's just more moral panic.
Thank you for sharing this. My only potential objection to puberty blockers would be if there were serious risks to children. If they can be used safely and allow a child more time to make sense of their identity then it's nothing but cruelty to deny them. This isn't even a complicated issue. Fuck transphobes.
Thanks for the very well explained response and for sharing your personal experience. It does make a lot of sense that putting a pause on puberty could help people have a clearer head and gives time to think about how they feel/what they want without having to wrestle with the affects of hormones at the same time. Seems like a great way to combat the general critique of trans youth not being old enough or having the time to think it over. Thanks again for helping me and likely some others understand the issue better.