Irreparable Damage is the title of a recently published book that explores how adolescent girls are tricked into believing they want to become men and are encouraged to take puberty suppressants, hormones, and double mastectomy.
The title of the book, be it a statement or a question, captures the urgent acuteness of this extremely depressing problem.
At first glance, the debate about transgenderness seems like an adult debate, but children are becoming victims of the pernicious ideology that victims call a cult.
Abigail Schreier's excellent investigative journalism focuses on adolescent girls (most of whom were not gender dysphoric) who begin to believe they are transgender. Behind the glittering façade portrayed in the media, the author meets traumatized children (many of whom are alienated from their families) who are in dire mental health and face the prospect of infertility and medical treatment throughout their lives.
Schreier, author of articles for TheThe Wall Street Journal is not shy about the expression when describing phalloplasty - an operation to create an artificial penis. The complications after such an operation can be truly dire. Schreier cites the story of one nineteen-year-old female patient "for whom phalloplasty turned into gangrene and loss of the penis." On the verge of adulthood, she was deprived of normal genitals, both male and female, and tied to a catheter.
I myself am a transgender, but I made my [transgender] transition as an adult, when I understood all the possible consequences for my body and my relationship with society. Besides, by that time I already had my own children. At the same time, now such vital decisions are imposed on minors, who cannot even get a tattoo without parental consent.
Whether you share Schreier's point of view or not, her book must be read. Schreier conducts a thorough analysis based on dozens of interviews, including with medical experts and parents. She speaks with those directly affected by the issue, from Dr. Kenneth Zucker, one of the leading researchers in the field of "gender dysphoria" [in children], to ordinary families whose children, in their opinion, are victims of this cult.
The facts speak for themselves: teenage girls suddenly start thinking of themselves as boys, and it spreads like a virus. While it is well documented that young feminine boys often express a desire to become girls, never before have girls made up the majority of patients in pediatric gender identity clinics.
The statistics are amazing. For example, in the UK, the number of adolescent girls' visits to such clinics has increased by 4,400% over the past ten years.
Schreier interviewed American physician Lisa Littman, who conducted the study and concluded that nearly 70% of transgender teenagers were in a peer group where at least one friend of theirs also declared transgender. In some groups, most friends made this claim. The manifestation of transgender identity was encouraged by friends on social media and, surprisingly, apparently preceded the very manifestation of gender dysphoria.
Schreier is exploring possible reasons why these girls, often from liberal and progressive families, want to become boys. First, these are social networks in which children fall under the influence of strangers while their parents are unaware of anything. Secondly, the educational system, when adults, who should have a head on their shoulders, succumb to admonitions or threats from advocates of transgender rights. Forgetting science and basic precautions, they begin to blindly believe that we each have our own immutable gender identity, which may or may not be the same as our biological sex.
In some kind of boundless madness, children begin to prepare for the process of transgender transition already in schools, with the help of new names and personal pronouns. And if suddenly their parents do not approve of such things, they are simply not told anything so that the children do not feel at home "in danger." But every parent should be aware that this strange phenomenon is gaining momentum. Forewarned is forearmed.
But none of this could have happened without the assistance of those in charge of policymaking - and not just in the education system. Psychologists (who, in theory, should help children evaluate their thoughts critically) blindly confirm everything that their young patients pick up on the Internet.
Anyone who opposes is blamed and condemned, but, as the psychoanalyst of the Jungian school Lisa Marciano notes, “if a child comes calling himself transgender, and after one, two, three or four sessions we will say:“ Yes, you are transgender. Let me write you a conclusion. "This is not therapy."
And even doctors in this situation leave much to be desired. Prominent sexologist Ray Blanchard said to Schreier: "I cannot imagine a medical field other than cosmetic surgery where the patient would make his own diagnosis and prescribe treatment."
Fanatics who believe that children can change their gender may be in the minority, but silent professionals from education, psychology and medicine are involved in this unfolding scandal.
Schreier acknowledges the conscientious work of parent organizations firmly against this ideology, such as 4thWaveNow and Transgender Trend. They are accused of intolerance and transphobia because they are fulfilling the primary and most ancient duty of parents, protecting children from the children themselves.
The book is provided with a large number of links to sources and is easy to read, which makes it possible to recommend it to a wide range of readers, primarily to parents who are concerned about the well-being of their daughters. But these stories are also useful for educators, psychologists and doctors, some of whom remain silent out of ignorance or fear. Schreier's analysis will be accessible, clear and instructive to the wider public as well. For those with only a vague idea of transgender ideology, it may be tempting to think it simply impossible for girls to take powerful anti-cancer drugs to suppress puberty, and if it does, induce artificial menopause. But this is happening all over the world now, and Schreier is documenting such cases.
It's time for the public to show responsibility. Much has been done on the sly, and it may take a startled bystander a while to figure it out. But the book provides premises, identifies problems, explains the consequences, and offers clear and realistic solutions. It should be read by those who have children, those who work with children, and those who are not indifferent to their fate.
The author's Twitter is @DebbieHayton.
The author's point of view may not coincide with the position of the editorial board.