Being Born Into the Wrong Gender
Children who are transgender know the struggle of gender identity all too well. As difficult as it can be to worry about how others view you based on stereotypes of your gender, I can’t even imagine how difficult it must be to feel as though you weren’t even born into the correct gender. Something to consider is the age at which a child decides which gender they belong to. This may sound strange to some because many children don’t even think about these things. I can’t say I ever “decided” that I was going to remain a female; however, for some children, their gender is all they think about. This goes to show that identity can be a problem at all stages in life. On my videos page, (http://internetidentity.weebly.com/videos.html), you will find a video titled, “Living a Transgender Childhood.” This is the story of Josie Romero, who was born a boy, named Joey. During grade school, children may not know the extent of gender roles in society, but they definitely start to see significant differences between boys and girls. Growing up, it was clear to see how different the boys acted from the girls. Most children, though, probably don’t know what it means to be transgender and the problems that it can bring later on in life. At such a young and naïve age, it’s hard to envision a life full of judgment and misunderstanding; however, this is the inevitable life for many transgender persons. Fortunately, Josie had very considerate parents who were willing to do everything in their power to make sure their child was content. You don't find |
parents like those everyday and I think that is the most important takeaway from this video. Her parents’ persistence to make sure that Josie was comfortable in her own body, despite all of the complexities that the situation brought to their lives, was truly admirable.
Another touching video from my videos page, (http://internetidentity.weebly.com/videos.html), regarding transgender children is titled, “The Story of Jazz.” In this video, the topic of a transgender child dating is discussed. Entering the age where physical attraction to others begins can be an exciting time; however, for a transgender child, it can also be a very difficult time. It can be hard to find an understanding partner without being transgender, so I can only imagine how difficult it must be to find someone who would be understanding of a situation as complicated as this. The topic of what age is appropriate to give children hormone blockers and administer hormone replacement therapy is one with much controversy. I think that, even as an adult, it’s difficult to know fully what exactly you want out of life. I, wholeheartedly, agree that giving children the option to make this kind of decision can be a very poor choice. Many big decisions in life, such as what you want to major in and where you want to live, can be changed, but the fact that hormone replacement therapy is irreversible is hard to take in. I think it’s unbelievably important for a doctor to wait a significant amount of time before administering hormone replacement therapy, in the case that the child changes his or her mind. |