“I can’t improve my life while I’m constantly having to prove my existence…”

 

This is what a young 17 year old transgender man says about the support he needs to improve his life:

“I can’t improve my life while I’m constantly having to prove my existence – I need help with the present and future rather than the past, so I will seek help from a place more equipped to deal with this than the ‘exploration’ of gender identity. To be perfectly honest, I was disappointed with the service of the Tavistock, from small details like the fact it’s facilitated in a mental health centre, to wording like ‘preferred pronouns’, to the ridiculous misunderstanding that young people can’t know their own minds – attempting to change a person’s mindset rather than accept their identity and support their internal knowledge. As the only NHS centre I could access to help my transition as a young person, the objective should surely be broadened from ‘identity development’ to ‘identity support’ – as a person of 17 years old, I am treated the same as an 8 year old, when I can legally marry, have a child, travel and be expected to chose all of my future paths, yet I am denied the right to be entirely accepted (by a gender identity service) as the person I 100% know I am.”

At GenderGP we follow the WPATH International Standards of Care and believe that young people know their own gender identity. That’s why we offer age-appropriate medical support as part of our multi-disciplinary approach to supporting transgender young people. If you would like to find out more about the services we offer, you can contact us using our Help Centre.

 

We listen to trans people. Find out more about us

 

Photo by adrianna on Unsplash