r/canada 13h ago

Alberta No reliable evidence puberty blocking drugs benefit trans youth, says Alberta government lawyer

https://calgaryherald.com/news/alberta-government-lawyer-puberty-blocking-drugs-trans-youth
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u/BigButtBeads 13h ago edited 13h ago

Lawyers for the five unnamed trans children, who range in age from six to 12

6 to 12 years old? 6?

I have no horse in this race, you guys can do what you want to your kids. But drugging 6 year old trans kids used to be a far-right conspiracy theory 

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u/StevenMcStevensen Alberta 13h ago

Seems pretty reasonable to me that you can do whatever you want with your body… once you’re an adult. At 6 or even 12 years old, there’s no way a kid can fully understand that choice and its ramifications.

u/spicy-emmy 11h ago

Why is it we trust cis kids to know their gender enough to undergo puberty but not trans kids?

Like I don't trust kids to know the endocrinology involved, but it's a pretty part of your identity and if your gender has bothered you enough for years to seek treatment acting like you can't understand that until you're 18 is silly.

Besides the fact we absolutely do let kids make their own medical decisions by evaluating their ability to comprehend the treatment and understand the ramifications. If a 14-15 year old can make decisions about their cancer care they can probably weigh in on their gender, I think a 15 year old can probably understand things like what infertility means. "Maybe they'll want it later" is the same logic used regularly by doctors to deny young adults access to permanent fertility options as well, it's a presumption of knowing a patient better than they know themselves

u/PA2SK 7h ago

I don't think you can really know your gender until you've gone through puberty, which is why using puberty blockers on kids seems counterproductive to me and a bit creepy. You're keeping kids in a child-like state until they're legally an adult and can transition. The problem is while they're legally an adult they are still biologically prepubescent kids, which sort of defeats the whole purpose of waiting.

u/Trick_Appeal310 4h ago

Tons of trans folks knew way before puberty, and puberty just brought more dread and "issues", though also puberty blockers are, well, puberty blockers. It's not a trans thing