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Comment by hn_throwaway_99 | Hacker News Reader

> It takes years of dedicated effort to prove to a slew of doctors and therapists that it's the right thing to do.

There are still many publicized cases of puberty blockers being given to young children (i.e. before 12 years of age). At least in some places in the US it most definitely does not require "years of dedicated effort to prove to a slew of doctors" to have these drugs prescribed.

Also, there have been some pretty well publicized stories of young people who underwent gender transitions who came to strongly regret their decision, and they told how they felt, if not necessarily pressured into the decision, that there weren't "speed bumps" along the way saying "maybe we should wait a little longer before you undergo irreversible surgery."

https://www.bbc.com/news/health-51676020

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> There are still many publicized cases of puberty blockers being given to young children (i.e. before 12 years of age).

You know that's the licensed use for these meds, right? To block precocious puberty?

I wasn't referring to the use of these meds for precocious puberty, in which case meds are given to delay puberty and then stopped. I was referring to their use for trans kids where they are continued indefinitely until they are followed by hormone treatment.

Again, my primary concern is the administration of irreversible treatments to children.

Puberty blockers are not irreversible.

They sure are well-publicized. Every individual incident becomes a standard-bearer for a right wing who has zero interest in any of the people whom transitioning has helped.

Your response exactly exemplifies what I wrote in my top-level comment, where there is an unwillingness on both sides to accept a "both of these can be true simultaneously" posture.

Yes, I agree, I have seen many on "the right" take singular examples to demonize the other side with no real concern about the welfare of the individuals involved.

But I have also pretty much never seen those on "the left" empathize with and stand up for the individuals who have regretted their transitions or used it to reexamine some of their views. More often than not I see these individuals demonized as "tools of the right".

I have seen trans-friendly people who empathize with people who regretted their transition. The important thing was that that person was not trying to get gender-affirming medical care restricted.

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