Do we really know that puberty can be halted at 12, cross sex hormones started (because it’s important to point out that these kids don’t JUST start blockers to halt puberty while they figure things out) and then if they change their mind, stop hormones and blockers and allow “normal” puberty to resume with no ill effects?
That certainly isn’t the case with girls who have been on testosterone for a number of years.
Also, don’t you think a child who embarks upon a path of blockers, hormones, new name, new pronouns etc actually feels able to put the brakes on and switch back to their birth sex? I reckon it must feel like an insurmountable task to make that step.
Suicide is such a commonly used threat to anti-trans discussions (and when I say “anti-trans” in this context I don’t meant anti trans people, I mean anti the transing of children). It’s the Mermaids effect - support your child! It’s better to have a trans child than a dead child! So I’m not surprised to hear that there’s a paper with that same message. But I’m interested in the stats around suicides in trans adults who found that transition and surgery didn’t solve everything? Because I’m sure the numbers are pretty depressing.
I never heard about cross sex hormones at the age of 12, but maybe in some places it occurs. Normally puberty blockers are used just to give the child some time and after they are older they can start hormones. But if they change their mind they can go through puberty. If the suppressors are halted, puberty resumes as if there had been no treatment.
In 2011 the World Professional Association for Transgender Health (WPATH), also issued Standards of Care for the treatment of patients with gender dysphoria, which include puberty suppression.
And puberty blockers have some side effects like every drug, but they also used to treat endometriosis, prostate cancer, and other conditions. Despite early concerns that blocking sex hormones might harm bone development, this study (
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/25427144/) found no evidence of long-term effects on bone mineral density.
I can also give some other articles from medical journals but I don’t think that it will convince anyone
Gender Nonconforming and Transgender children/youth: Family, Community, and Implications for Practice (
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/27031444/)
Endocrine Treatment of Gender-Dysphoric/Gender-Incongruent Persons: An Endocrine Society* Clinical Practice Guideline (
https://academic.oup.com/jcem/article/102/11/3869/4157558)
The Peripubertal Gender-Dysphoric Child: Puberty Suppression and Treatment Paradigms (
https://doi.org/10.3928/00904481-20140522-08)
Step away from the debate for a moment, and just think long and hard about the idea of suppressing puberty - a natural bodily function. Let it sink in. Because it’s ducked up.
Why in every discussion about sexuality, environmentalism, gender roles, carnism and many others
naturalistic fallacy always has to come up.
When someone delays or resigns from going through pregnancy and having a child it’s no problem. It’s their body, their live and they choice so why not in this case (puberty blockers). They’re both natural body functions.