Gender Identity Problems Risky for Youths
“Young people who believe they were born into the wrong sex are at risk for abuse, post-traumatic stress, and self-harming behavior, and an American clinic is now offering medical treatment for these individuals, researchers found.
In a study that asked young adults about their gender behavior and beliefs in childhood, 39% of women who had exhibited the highest level of nonconformity experienced some type of abuse, as did 30% of men, according to Andrea L. Roberts, PhD, of Harvard School of Public Health in Boston, and colleagues.
And among children and teens evaluated for medical intervention to suppress puberty or for hormone therapy, 44% had been given a psychiatric diagnosis — most often depression — and 21% reported self-mutilation, reported Norman P. Spack, MD, of Harvard Medical School and Children’s Hospital Boston, and colleagues.”
http://www.medpagetoday.com/Pediatrics/GeneralPediatrics/31268
