October Vol.2 Issue 22
News & Views
The Monthly Newsletter of PFLAG Beaumont
Bob’s Blurbs
Parents are abandoning their children
By Dr. Bob Meier PFLAG Beaumont Hospitality Chair
Monthly Book Pick: ‘No Ashes in the Fire’
By Calvin Jorden PFLAG Beaumont Treasurer
I recently heard the author of “No Ashes in The Fire,” Darnell L. Moore, interviewed on KERA’s “Think”. I was struck by his strength, humility and determination. His is a voice I cannot ignore. His story is one we cannot dismiss. Moore subtitled his book “Coming of Age Black & Free in America,” but the title refers to an incident when he was 14 years old and some neighborhood boys doused him with gasoline and attempted to set him on fire because they had determined he was gay. In his memoir, Moore recounts that the wind kept blowing out the matches until his aunt saw what was happening and ran off the assailents. This is a very introspective memoir. Moore writes, “The long collective hatred of blackness, the calculated policing of sexual difference, the intentional ghettoization of urban centers and the lure of the American dollar are just a few of the forces that shaped my sense of self and the way I view oth-
______________Cont. Inside as Book
I am really pissed off today. Parents are abandoning their kids because of a medical condition. I find this unspeakably ignorant, stupid and even sinful. Gender Dysphoria and being Transgender is a medical condition. There is a myriad of treatments. sometimes a haircut, new clothes and a name change are enough, but oftentimes treatment includes medicines, speech therapy, counseling and sometimes surgery — so says the World Professional Association of Transgender Health — the expert medical professionals. To break it down, medicines are relatively simple. Physicians use testosterone for trans men or both estrogen and hormone blockers for trans women. Hormone blockers are needed when increasing estrogen, as testosterone is more powerful than estrogen. Physicians have been prescribing both estrogen and testosterone for more than forty years at UTMB Galveston. This is not rocket science. When trans boys (natal females) take testosterone near or before the time of puberty (natal females at Tanner 2 Stage), the more likely they are to end up with a perceived masculine physique with bulging muscles, hairy chests, deep voices, long legs and an Adam’s Apple — which is what many of them want. When trans girls (natal males) take testosterone blockers and estrogen the sooner they start to develop perceived feminine attributes. This is quite helpful when trying to use the restroom in public spaces. When trans kids take testosterone or estrogen after puberty they will need to go through puberty a second time, which can be a painful experience. The later they start, the less likely the appearance will change as much as they would like. All of this treatment involves bright, compene and educated parents who can read, are willing to read, have some medical savvy and know the outcomes of each and the consequences of starting hormones and the consequences of
waiting to start hormones. This is a difficult choice for some. Sometimes, blockers can delay puberty giving parents a few years to acclimate themselves to the fact that their child is trans and needs treatment. this may take a year or two. Other parents never get it. They stick with their uneducated knowledge. On the other hand, people can change at any age after puberty with additional hormones, even as late in life as Caitlin Jenner did. Now that WPATH has released this information and now that I have read and analyzed it, I have a better understanding of how complicated the process transition really is. Tough choices lay ahead for a all parties concerned, including the adolescent’s parents and their medical providers. However, abandoning a transgender child is still an ignorant, stupid and sinful action. These kids need help and protection, not abandonment.
Find this guide at pflag.org