TRANSEXUALITY AND CRAZY LAWS TO ENSURE NO ONE WILL STAND IN THE WAY OF A SUICIDAL LIFESTYLE

Several states have passed laws criminalizing psychotherapy for youth wanting to resist same-sex attraction. Now Cincinnati has introduced a bill to criminalize many other forms of sexual change therapy, even for adults:

• City Council Member Chris Seelbach said Thursday that at Monday’s meeting of the council’s law and public safety committee, he will propose an ordinance that would impose a $200-a-day fine on a therapist or counselor practicing the therapy that aims to “change” lesbians, gay men, bisexuals or transgender people from their sexual orientation or gender identity. 

Why prohibit counseling even to those who want it? Is it criminal to seek to live in a more healthy manner? Even if it had been found that one form of therapy is harmful, why then ban all forms of therapy? Oddly, there is no move underfoot to ban sexual reassignment therapy despite the horrific findings.

Walt Heyer had lived as woman for eight years before returning as a male. He laments the fact that no one had warned him about the costs of sex change surgery:

• I suffered through “sex change” surgery and lived as a woman for eight years. The surgery fixed nothing—it only masked and exacerbated deeper psychological problems.

Only later did Heyer discover that there was literature documenting sex-reassignment problems. He writes: https://www.lifesitenews.com/opinion/too-many-end-in-suicide-the-dark-history-of-gender-reassignment

• Dr. Jon Meyer, the chairman of the Hopkins gender clinic… selected fifty subjects from those treated at the Hopkins clinic, both those who had undergone gender reassignment surgery and those who had not had surgery. The results of this study completely refuted Money’s claims about the positive outcomes of sex-change surgery. The objective report showed no medical necessity for surgery.

• On August 10, 1979, Dr. Meyer announced his results: “To say this type of surgery cures psychiatric disturbance is incorrect. We now have objective evidence that there is no real difference in the transsexual’s adjustments to life in terms of job, educational attainment, marital adjustment and social stability.” He later told The New York Times: “My personal feeling is that the surgery is not a proper treatment for a psychiatric disorder, and it’s clear to me these patients have severe psychological problems that don’t go away following surgery.” Less than six months later, the Johns Hopkins gender clinic closed.

• [Dr.] Charles Ihlenfeld… administered sex hormones to 500 transsexuals… announcing that 80 percent of the people who want to change their gender shouldn’t do it. Ihlenfeld said: “There is too much unhappiness among people who have had the surgery…Too many end in suicide.” Ihlenfeld stopped administering hormones to patients experiencing gender dysphoria and switched specialties from endocrinology to psychiatry so he could offer such patients the kind of help he thought they really needed.

• There is no conclusive evidence that sex change operations improve the lives of transsexuals, with many people remaining severely distressed and even suicidal after the operation, according to a medical review conducted exclusively for Guardian Weekend tomorrow.

Heyer’s own research finds support in many other sources:

• The review of more than 100 international medical studies of post-operative transsexuals by the University of Birmingham's aggressive research intelligence facility (Arif) found no robust scientific evidence that gender reassignment surgery is clinically effective. 

A long-term follow-up of transsexual persons undergoing sex reassignment surgery: cohort study in Sweden found: 

• Persons with transsexualism, after sex reassignment, have considerably higher risks for mortality, suicidal behaviour, and psychiatric morbidity than the general population. Our findings suggest that sex reassignment, although alleviating gender dysphoria, may not suffice as treatment for transsexualism, and should inspire improved psychiatric and somatic care after sex reassignment for this patient group.

Madeline Wyndzen, a transgendered psychology professor, writes:

• "50% of transgenders could be struggling with suicide attempts, regret, anger and unhappiness living in a transgender sub-culture rather than being part of the larger world.” 

A Report of the National Transgender Discrimination Survey says:

• A staggering 41% of transgenders surveyed report they have attempted suicide and that those who have medically transitioned and surgically transitioned have higher rates of attempted suicide than the general population. Transgenders have higher rate of HIV infections. They are more prone to heavy drinking and the use of drugs. They have high rates of homelessness, unemployment and extreme poverty, even more so in the more difficult economic times of the last 5 years. 

Research from the US and Holland suggests:

• That up to a fifth (20%) of patients regret changing sex. 

In a “review of more than 100 studies,” the University of Birmingham found that “no robust scientific evidence that gender reassignment surgery is clinically effective.” (Salvo, Fall 2014, 33)

Dr. Paul McHugh, former psychiatrist-in-chief at Johns Hopkins Hospital reports on two studies which tracked children claiming to have transgender feelings.

• Among children who received no medical or surgical treatment, 70 to 80 percent spontaneously lost those feelings. (32)

An abstract of “Non-suicidal self-injury [NSSI] and suicidality in trans people: A systematic review of the literature” reads:

• “Literature has described high levels of mental health problems among trans people, such as depression, resulting in increased levels of non-suicidal self-injury (NSSI) behaviour and suicidality (suicidal thoughts, suicide attempts and suicide rates). With the aim of systematically reviewing the available literature in this field, this study identifies 31 papers that explore the rates of NSSI and suicidality in trans people. From reviewing the literature, it was revealed that trans people have a higher prevalence of NSSI and suicidality compared to the cisgender (non-trans) population. There appear to be some gender differences within these rates, with trans men at a greater risk for NSSI behaviour. Prevalence rates differ depending on the different stages of transition, but they are still overall greater than the cisgender population. The study concludes that trans individuals are at a greater risk of NSSI behaviour and suicidality than the cisgender population.”

Therefore, many have concluded that transgenderism is a psychological problem and not one to be surgically addressed. Why then the criminalization of those who don’t want to pursue sex change but psychological change? Ironically, we are not in the least sympathetic to someone who claims that they are really white but trapped in a black body and wants to lighten their skin. We understandably conclude that they are suffering from a form of self-contempt. Why then wouldn’t we conclude the same about someone who wants to change more than just their color but also their sex organs?

Chris Seelbach of the Cincinnati Council is clearly motivated by ideology (religion) rather than by an informed concern for those struggling with transgenderism. How then are they able to argue their case to criminalize therapeutic choice? They start a progressive movement and find a poster boy.

Bruce Jenner, former Olympic star and now “Caitlin,” exactly fit the script. But Jenner isn’t enough. They need a tragic story, a suicide of someone denied a sex change.

Josh Alcorn (17), the son of Carla and Don Alcorn, wanted to become a woman at age 14. Understandably, his Christian parents were not thrilled about his request, and brought him to see several Christian psychotherapists. However, Josh rejected their counsel and, subsequently, his own life. This is part of his suicide note:

• After a summer of having almost no friends plus the weight of having to think about college, save money for moving out, keep my grades up, go to church each week and feel like s**t because everyone there is against everything I live for, I have decided I've had enough. I'm never going to transition successfully, even when I move out. I'm never going to be happy with the way I look or sound. I'm never going to have enough friends to satisfy me. I'm never going to have enough love to satisfy me. I'm never going to find a man who loves me. I'm never going to be happy. Either I live the rest of my life as a lonely man who wishes he were a woman or I live my life as a lonelier woman who hates herself. There's no winning. There's no way out. I'm sad enough already, I don't need my life to get any worse. People say 'it gets better' but that isn't true in my case. It gets worse. Each day I get worse. That's the gist of it, that's why I feel like killing myself… Goodbye, (Leelah) Josh Alcorn

Predictably, the media and the crowds have demonized the parents for their lack of approval of Joshua and his choice. Meanwhile, no one in mainstream is demonizing the Cincinnati Council for their attempt to deprive others of their choices. It is truly ironic that those seeking to escape a self-destructive lifestyle are criminalized, while those who pursue it are celebrated.