I have a non-scientific observation that a large percentage of kids within this cohort of gender confusion consider themselves below some line in attractiveness as possibly reinforced by their social interactions with peers and exacerbated with social media, and in a highly-material world that we live in made more so by social media, they crash into a position of such low self-esteem that they grow interested in silver-bullet solutions to "fix" it.
There are a few problems with this. One - most kids as they are starting and going through the bulk of puberty are awkward and unattractive. They are no longer cute kids, and they are not yet adults. It is natural for many people in their teenage years to feel like they don't belong in their body. It is also common to be confused about sex at that age and time. Two - the peer pressure for material attractiveness is massive within K-12 but almost disappears for most people when they escape to their real life after K-12. Three - children don't have wisdom yet to make decisions that are so profoundly life-changing.
For most people, any decision to alter gender should be restricted until at least 18 years old. Frankly, even though people are sexual active before then, I think it is good to consider they should not be until adults. And with respect to gender assignment, if we have a tolerant community that does not judge, for example, a biological female dressing as a male or visa versa, then there should be no urgency for altering gender before the age of 18. And frankly, if community harassment for gender dysphoria is the justification, it does not change, and in fact might get worse, for kids engaged in gender changing procedures.
I dropped in via Zoom on the Sex/Gender Differences The Big Conversation, a conference here in Santa Fe and though I'm not qualified to provide a "take" on the proceedings, my general sense is that both sides of the gender conversation are trying to fashion a path toward non-rancorous communication. "More study is needed" seemed to be a widely shared outlook. I look forward to Colin Wright's description of the event.
I have a non-scientific observation that a large percentage of kids within this cohort of gender confusion consider themselves below some line in attractiveness as possibly reinforced by their social interactions with peers and exacerbated with social media, and in a highly-material world that we live in made more so by social media, they crash into a position of such low self-esteem that they grow interested in silver-bullet solutions to "fix" it.
There are a few problems with this. One - most kids as they are starting and going through the bulk of puberty are awkward and unattractive. They are no longer cute kids, and they are not yet adults. It is natural for many people in their teenage years to feel like they don't belong in their body. It is also common to be confused about sex at that age and time. Two - the peer pressure for material attractiveness is massive within K-12 but almost disappears for most people when they escape to their real life after K-12. Three - children don't have wisdom yet to make decisions that are so profoundly life-changing.
For most people, any decision to alter gender should be restricted until at least 18 years old. Frankly, even though people are sexual active before then, I think it is good to consider they should not be until adults. And with respect to gender assignment, if we have a tolerant community that does not judge, for example, a biological female dressing as a male or visa versa, then there should be no urgency for altering gender before the age of 18. And frankly, if community harassment for gender dysphoria is the justification, it does not change, and in fact might get worse, for kids engaged in gender changing procedures.
I dropped in via Zoom on the Sex/Gender Differences The Big Conversation, a conference here in Santa Fe and though I'm not qualified to provide a "take" on the proceedings, my general sense is that both sides of the gender conversation are trying to fashion a path toward non-rancorous communication. "More study is needed" seemed to be a widely shared outlook. I look forward to Colin Wright's description of the event.