“I watched with growing horror as I observed therapists in my local Facebook group trade templates for writing so-called ‘top surgery’ letters, which are for radical breast amputations performed on healthy young women”

The mental health field has been complicit in gender ideology from the very beginning. Started by sexually disturbed men such as John Money, promoted by various male psychologists and sexologists, it now runs largely on the "be kind" energy of self-proclaimed "compassionate" therapists in what is a female-dominated field.

I'll admit that when rising rates of transgenderism first came on my radar, I too thought it was kind to respect preferred pronouns. I initially bought the story that these are people who have suffered a lot, more than the rest of us. I thought Jordan Peterson was a big bad meanie to question who could, or couldn't, be a "they."

Yet pulling on the thread just a tad unraveled the whole thing for me. I watched with growing horror as I observed therapists in my local Facebook group trade templates for writing so-called "top surgery" letters, which are for radical breast amputations performed on healthy young women. Someone would post and say, "does anyone know how to write a top-surgery letter," and a kindly helpful soul would reply with: "I've written several of these, I'll send you my template." No talk of assessment or ethics. Though one wonders what kind of barbaric assessment is needed to ever justify cutting off a woman's breasts and taking away her ability to feed a future child.

I've now been in multiple in-person and virtual gender-focused continuing education events for therapists. I've almost always been the only voice of dissent. I've heard presenters encourage therapists to bring up gender in work with teens and their parents, even when it was not the presenting issue for therapy. I've heard advice to keep a child's name change secret from parents. I've heard a male psychiatrist describe in celebratory terms a trans-identified female patient's development of a "happy trail" after starting a course of testosterone. (Male perversion in the therapy room; there's no other way to describe it.) If I hadn't attended these events myself I might not have believed this was happening.

When it comes to the gender issue, much of the distrust parents have towards therapists is warranted. I'm glad we have more sane voices now, such as the Gender Exploratory Therapy Association (GETA).

For my part, I continue to raise awareness about the harms of gender medicalization for both children and adults. For my troubles I've been removed and blocked from the aforementioned Facebook group. I've repeatedly been accused of being "hateful" and "transphobic" for asserting the reality of biological sex in various forums and listservs. A psychiatrist took it upon herself to email me with the assertion that sex is on a spectrum. (Advice: don't visit a doctor like this for any of your medical or mental health needs.) And my professional license to practice therapy has been threatened more than once by pro-affirmation zealots who get angry at just the idea of exploring gender, like we do everything else in therapy. Adventures in upside-down world continue.

In solidarity, sisters.

- KT

Letters From the Front is a series from WoLF curating stories from women about how “gender identity” ideology has impacted them. We’ll share new letters, submitted anonymously, each week. Write in to share your own story!

WoLF does not necessarily endorse the content of Letters.

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