Trans Youth

How Trans Children Became a Political Football

The legislative push to restrict their rights isn’t new, but it’s gained more force in 2021.

It’s okay to let your transgender kid transition — even if they might change their mind in the future

It’s okay to let your transgender kid transition — even if they might change their mind in the future

Opinion on the use of puberty blockers in America is turning

Even members of the World Professional Association for Transgender Health have some concerns.

The War on Trans Kids Is Totally Unconstitutional

States do not have a defensible reason for denying children recommended medical care.

We Need to Change the Terms of the Debate on Trans Kids

Sadjadi, who was a physician before she became an anthropologist, has written that puberty blockers are not as medically inconsequential as they are often portrayed. Although they appear to have no long-term physical effects if they are used for a short time (a year or less), some studies suggest that they can have long-term detrimental effects for the musculoskeletal system if they are used for three or four years.

When Children Say They're Transgender

Hormones? Surgery? The choices are fraught—and there are no easy answers.

‘I feel like it’s quite shaky acceptance’: trans kids and the fight for inclusion

Trans children and their families still often face suspicion and suppression, but attitudes are changing.

How to know if your child is transgender, according to an expert

It's a troubling fact: Anti-transgender parents can damage their children — potentially for life. A lot of research shows that if parents or families reject, mistreat, or otherwise mishandle a child due to the child's gender identity, they can significantly increase the risks of the child acting out, developing mental health issues, and attempting suicide.

'Trans kids are not new': a historian on the long record of youth transitioning in America

What I uncovered in the research is that children and youth have been finding access to trans medicine and transition as long as there has been medical transition – as far back as the 1930s and 40s. But even prior to that, children certainly lived trans lives where they would socially transition in childhood.

Are Parents Rushing to Turn Their Boys Into Girls?

Should a boy who grows out his hair, likes to wear pink, and prefers to jump rope at recess rather than play football be raised as a girl instead of a boy?

For the first time, scientists show that trans kids with family support can be as happy as their peers

Studies consistently find that large numbers of transgender adults suffer from high levels of depression and suicide due to social stigmatization. But a new study shows this may not be the case for children who undergo a gender identity transition with familial support.

For Transgender Youth, Stigma Is Just One Barrier to Health Care

Discrimination, delays and systemic hurdles prevent young trans people from reaching the care they need, a new study finds.

Gender Dysphoria Is Killing Transgender Teens. Why Aren’t We Talking About It?

A 2011 survey of 6,500 transgender people published by the National Center for Transgender Equality revealed that 41 percent of transgender individuals have attempted suicide at least once. Fifty percent of transgender youth will attempt suicide before their 20th birthday.

How England Became an ‘Alarming’ Outlier in Its Treatment of Trans Children

England has become an exception in the West in how it provides medical care for trans children. All young people who experience gender dysphoria in England and Wales face a battle to be prescribed reversible medicine and treatments that are commonplace in most Western countries.

Irresponsible Gender-Transition Treatments on Children

There is little supporting scientific evidence on long-term harms and benefits.

Is Defying Parents the Only Ethical Alternative?

Instead of rigid rules, educators need the freedom to finesse delicate questions about young students’ gender identity.

Puberty blockers: why some young people need help exploring their gender identity

Young trans people face numerous challenges in life. These can include social discrimination, bullying, harassment and family rejection. It’s maybe not surprising then that trans youth are also at much higher risk of self-harm and suicide attempts than their peers.

Raising a Trans Child Is Not Child Abuse

A parent who wants to decrease the likelihood that their child will be forced to partake in sex work, to attempt suicide, or to find themselves homeless and impoverished is not guilty of child abuse. A parent who accepts their transgender child for who they are is a hero.

Raising a Transgender Child

Though many children will experiment and play with a range of gender roles at different points in their life, early data reveals that kids who truly are resolute about their gender identity are unlikely to feel differently as adults.

Starting Hormones, and High School: A Day in the Life of a Trans Teen

Being a transgender teenager in America is not easy. According to the Youth Suicide Prevention Program, more than 50 percent of transgender teens have attempted suicide by their 20th birthday.

The Disturbing History of Research into Transgender Identity

Research into the determinants of gender identity may do more harm than good

The History Of Trans Children In Medicine

NPR's Ari Shapiro talks with historian Jules Gill-Peterson about the history of trans children in medicine and why the current slate of local anti-trans legislation is focused on minors.

The Secret 53-Year-Old British Case That Could Have Legalized Trans Identity

At the center is a biography of Ewan Forbes, a Scot of wealth and lineage born in 1912, assigned female at birth and raised, at least initially, as a girl, and of his struggle to be seen by the state as the man he knew himself to be.

The Transgender Battle Line: Childhood

Psychologists have learned how to treat adults with gender dysphoria, but how about 5-year-olds?

Trans Teens Are Being Denied the Essential Treatment They're Legally Entitled To

Under-16s who have been weeks away from accessing treatment are still facing delay, despite a ruling allowing parents to consent to puberty blocker treatment.

Trans Teens Are Being Denied the Essential Treatment They're Legally Entitled To

Under-16s who have been weeks away from accessing treatment are still facing delay, despite a ruling allowing parents to consent to puberty blocker treatment.

Transgender Childhood Is Not a ‘Trend’

As far back as historians have found evidence of transgender people, they’ve found transgender children.

What Are Puberty Blockers?

Recent conservative legislation has targeted a class of drugs used to treat transgender adolescents. But what do these drugs actually do?

When Children Say They're Trans

Hormones? Surgery? The choices are fraught—and there are no easy answers.

When Teens Question Their Gender, Social Media Can Provide Support—and Pressure

Teens exploring gender and sexual identity often seek safe spaces on platforms such as Discord, but some walk away feeling more confused.

When Your Daughter Defies Biology

The burden of mothers whose children suffer from ‘rapid onset gender dysphoria.’

Young Trans Children Know Who They Are

A new study shows that gender-nonconforming kids who go on to transition already have a strong sense of their true identity—one that differs from their assigned gender.

Youth, Interrupted: The Heartbreaking, Hidden Lives of Transgender Teens

After meeting with transgender teens across America, I saw how anti-transgender "bathroom bills" have tragically disrupted an entire generation.

How My Family Reacted When I Came Out as Trans

Often dealing with unsupportive schools or parents, trans teens are in a race against their own bodies.

The Trevor Project

The Trevor Project’s mission is to end suicide among LGBTQ young people.

Trans Youth Equality Foundation

The Trans Youth Equality Foundation provides education, advocacy and support for transgender and gender non-conforming children and youth and their families. Our mission is to share information about the unique needs of this community, partnering with families, educators and service providers to help foster a healthy, caring, and safe environment for all transgender children.