Sexual “reassignment” doesn’t work this was the essence of various Distinguished Service Professor of Psychiatry.
Physically, one cannot “reassign” one’s gender, and psychologically, doing so produces no good results.
As evidenced by clinical research, gender reassignment is not adequate for addressing the psychological difficulties of people who identify as transgender.
Trans people still face negative consequences, even when procedures are technically and cosmetically successful, even in cultures that are relatively “trans-friendly.”
Dr. Paul McHugh, University Distinguished Service Professor of Psychiatry at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, explains:
“Transgender men do not become women, nor do transgender women become men. All (including Bruce Jenner) become feminine men or masculine women, impersonators or impersonators of the gender with which they ‘identify.’ Their problem is the future.
As soon as the ‘tumult and clamor die down,’ it proves that living in false sexual garb is neither easy nor wise.
The most comprehensive study of gender reassigned people over 30 years was conducted in Sweden, where transgender people are strongly supported-documents lifelong psychological distress.
Compared with comparable peers, individuals who had undergone surgical reassignment had a 20 times higher suicide rate ten to fifteen years after surgery.
Often, gender reassignment does not provide long-term fulfillment and happiness because it is physically impossible.
In fact, the best scientific research supports caution and concern.
In its evaluation of health care treatments for the [National Health Service], the Aggressive Research Intelligence Facility concluded that no study provided conclusive evidence that gender reassignment is beneficial.
Most of the research he reviewed was poorly designed, leading to results that favored physically changing sex.
The effectiveness of other treatments, such as long-term counseling, in helping transsexuals or reducing their gender confusion has not been evaluated.
“There’s a lot of uncertainty about whether changing someone’s gender is a good thing or a bad thing,” said Chris Hyde, the facility’s director.
Even if doctors are careful to perform the procedure only on “appropriate patients,” Hyde continued, “there are still many people who undergo surgery and remain traumatized—often to the point of suicide. ”
Of particular concern are those who are “lost” in this study. As The Guardian noted,
“The results of many gender reassignment studies are inaccurate because researchers lost track of more than half of the participants.”
According to Dr Hyde, transsexuals with high dropout rates are often dissatisfied or even suicidal.
In conclusion, while some people benefit from sex reassignment surgery, the available research is not sufficient to determine how many do poorly. So, how bad is it?”
The facility was reviewed in 2004, so maybe things have changed since then.
Multiple studies have not consistently demonstrated significant improvements for most outcomes statistically.
There is a lack of evidence regarding the quality of life and work of males and females in adulthood.
It appears that less comprehensive measures of well-being in adults receiving cross-sex hormone therapy apply directly to [gender dysphoric] patients, but the evidence is sparse and/or inconsistent.
There were weaknesses associated with the study process in general and the study designs did not allow causal inferences.
Hormone therapy might pose long-term safety risks, but none have been proven or conclusively ruled out.
The Obama administration reached a similar conclusion.
Medicare plans should cover sex reassignment surgery, according to a review by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services in 2016.
Despite receiving a request to mandate its coverage, it refused on the grounds that we did not have evidence that it benefited patients.
Although medical science does not answer philosophical questions, every medical professional has a philosophical worldview, whether obvious or not. Some clinicians may consider feelings and beliefs that are disconnected from reality to be part of normal human functioning and not cause for concern unless they cause anxiety.
Other clinicians will consider these feelings and beliefs dysfunctional, even if the patient finds them troubling because they indicate brain dysfunction.
But the assumptions of this or that psychiatrist for the purposes of diagnosis and treatment cannot resolve philosophical questions: Is it good or bad or to harbour feelings and beliefs that contradict reality?
Should we accept them as the final word, or try to understand their causes and correct them, or at least mitigate their consequences?
While the current findings of medical science, as stated above, show poor psychological outcomes for people who have undergone gender reassignment treatment, we should not stop at this conclusion.
We must also seek deeper philosophical wisdom, beginning with some basic truths about human well-being and healthy functioning.
We have to start by realizing that changing gender is physically impossible. Our minds and senses function properly when they reveal reality to us and lead us to know the truth. And when we accept the truth and live by it, we grow as human beings.
A person may find some emotional comfort in accepting a lie, but doing so does not make them objectively better. Living a lie prevents us from fully blossoming, whether it hurts or not. This philosophical view of human well-being is the foundation of sound clinical practice.
Dr Michelle Kritella, president of the American College of Pediatricians—a group of doctors who formed their own professional group in response to the politicization of the American Academy of Pediatricians—stresses that mental health care is a reality. There are principles to be followed, including the reality of the physical self.
“The quality of human development is to align your thoughts with physical reality and to align your gender identity with your biological sex,” she says. To thrive, people need to feel comfortable in their bodies, easily identify with their gender, and believe that they are who they really are.
In children, in particular, normal development and functioning require acceptance of their physical existence and understanding of their embodied self as male or female.
Unfortunately, many professionals now view health care—including mental health care—primarily as a means of fulfilling patients’ wishes, whatever they may be. In the words of Leon Kass, professor emeritus at the University of Chicago, we view today’s physician as nothing more than a “high-rent syringe”:
The implicit (and sometimes implicit) model of the doctor-patient relationship is that of a contract: the doctor—like a highly skilled hired syringe—sells his services on demand, prohibited only by law. (although he may refuse his services if the patient is unwilling or unable to pay his fee).
This is the case: for the patient, autonomy and service; The money for the doctor comes from the pleasure of giving the patient what he wants. If the patient wants to get a nose job or gender change, determine the gender of the unborn child or just take pleasure pills for a kick, the therapist can go to work and go. Will – provided the price is right and the contract is clear. What happens if the customer is not satisfied?
Kass says this modern view of medicine and medical professionals is wrong. Professionals must demonstrate their commitment to the causes and ideals they serve. Teachers should devote themselves to learning, lawyers to righteousness, pastors to divine things, and physicians to “healing the sick, seeking health and welfare.” Healing is “the central focus of medicine,” Kass writes—”healing, wholeness, is the physician’s primary concern.”
In order to provide the best possible care, an understanding of human health and well-being is needed to meet the patient’s medical interests. Mental health care should be guided by a healthy concept of human flourishing. The minimum standard of care should start with the usual standard. Kritella explains how this standard applies to mental health:
One of the main functions of the brain is to understand physical reality. Thoughts that correspond to physical reality are normal. Thoughts that deviate from physical reality are abnormal – as well as potentially harmful to the individual or others. This is true regardless of whether the person with the abnormal thoughts feels pain or not.
Our minds and senses are designed to put us in touch with reality, connecting us to the outside world and the reality of ourselves.
Ideas that hide or distort reality are misleading—and can cause harm. I argue that we need to do a better job of helping people who face these problems.
The community should understand the pains of these people and support them so that they can easily accept their own reality because changing sex is not a solution to their frustration but the beginning of a new fight with themselves.
