Parenting My Transgender Child: From Loss to Acceptance

Thank you for your openness about the experiences Neo and your family went through in the journey to gender affirmation. Too often, those suffering from gender dysphoria are confined to their assigned gender at birth due to family, friend, and/or societal pressures. This has led to higher rates of stress and mental health issues among transgender and non-conforming individuals.1

This semester I am enrolled in a three-hour LGBTQ+ undergraduate course—Sexual Orientation, Gender Identity, and Health2—offered through The Ohio State University’s College of Medicine. The course explores health disparities and complex interactions between society and healthcare delivery in the LGBTQ+ population. By taking this course and reading your personal family narrative, I have gained a deeper understanding of the unique healthcare needs of the LGBTQ+ population. I am now cognizant of the steps needed to successfully navigate and formulate a safe clinical environment for those suffering from gender dysphoria. There are many difficult decisions that arise for families and physicians in terms of when and how to begin necessary medical treatment for gender affirmation. Despite recent advancements in the legality and accessibility of these operations, discrimination in healthcare settings towards transgender individuals is still highly prevalent.3

I hope to one day serve as a pediatrician, and I will strive to take the lessons I’ve gained from my LGBTQ+ undergraduate course and in reflective pieces such as yours to be welcoming and caring for all patients. A major goal in my future practice will be to ease pressures and stress that countless families have endured when seeking to fulfill the health needs of gender-creative children, while providing longitudinal compassionate care over the course of treatment and beyond.

References
1. Valentine SE, Shipherd JC. A systematic review of social stress and mental health
among transgender and gender non-conforming people in the United States. Clin
Psychol Rev. 2018;66:24-38. doi:10.1016/j.cpr.2018.03.003
2. Altneu E, Grieco CA, Verbeck N, Davis JA, Clinchot DM. LGBTQ+ health-a novel course for undergraduate students. Med Sci Educ. 202023;30(2):971-976. doi:10.1007/s40670-020-00958-5.
3. Shumer DE, Nokoff NJ, Spack NP. Advances in the care of transgender children and adolescents. Adv Pediatr. 2016;63(1):79-102. doi:10.1016/j.yapd.2016.04.018