Post by Ayla on Feb 22, 2016 13:16:07 GMT 8
Tasmanian mum Laura Edwards* recently made a video about her wishes for her 12-year-old daughter, Myra*.
It begins with the hope that "when you're 16, you'll be focussed on learning (and having fun) at school ... not worrying about attending court to get the treatment you need".
Myra, who is a trans girl, is due to start puberty blockers this year, so she will not go through the male puberty she does not want. To continue treatment, she will need to begin cross-hormone therapy by the time she is about 16.
But according to the law, Myra will also need to go to court to access this second stage of treatment - regardless of what she and her mother want or doctors recommend.
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Laura and Myra are among a group of parents and young people in Canberra on Monday to ask MPs to end the requirement for young transgender people to go to the Family Court to get approval for cross-sex hormone therapy before they are 18.
Australia is the only country in the world that requires court approval for what is known as the second stage of treatment, where trans males are given testosterone and trans females are given oestrogen.
Doctors are also gravely concerned about what the court requirement means for young trans people's mental and physical health.
Dr Michelle Telfer from the Royal Children's Hospital Centre for Adolescent Health in Melbourne said the court process is both expensive and time consuming.
Cost estimates vary between $10,000 and $30,000, with young people waiting about a year to get the OK.
"Many parents decide not to go through it and try and persuade young people to wait until they are 18," Dr Telfer said.
This approach has its own problems as young people cannot stay on puberty blockers indefinitely (it ends up harming bone density). There are also social and emotional issues associated with waiting until 18 to undergo puberty.
Citing the high rates of self-harm and suicide among young trans-people, Dr Telfer said there were huge risks in not giving the group access to the treatment they sought, noting they were being forced to undergo a change in their bodies that they did not want.
"Not providing treatment is not neutral," she said.
MPs from the Coalition, Labor and the Greens met the group on Monday.
"Access to hormones is critical to [young trans people's] transition," Greens Senator Janet Rice said.
Senator Rice said that removing the court requirement was a "really straightforward step" and is hopeful the cross-party support will enable the change.
Attorney-General George Brandis had a representative at Monday's meeting. His office has already met with doctors and is understood to be working on the issue.
Georgie, 15, also made the trip to Canberra, having already gone to the Family Court to access the stage two treatment - a process that made her feel "lost and hopeless".
"I'm a normal, cheerful, confident girl and I know who I am. But my exterior doesn't match my interior," she told the group.
"It shouldn't be the court's decision. Only I have the right to decide what goes into my body."
www.theage.com.au/federal-politics/political-news/young-transgender-people-go-to-canberra-to-lobby-for-change-20160221-gmzikd.html#ixzz40s3h4wxZ
It begins with the hope that "when you're 16, you'll be focussed on learning (and having fun) at school ... not worrying about attending court to get the treatment you need".
Myra, who is a trans girl, is due to start puberty blockers this year, so she will not go through the male puberty she does not want. To continue treatment, she will need to begin cross-hormone therapy by the time she is about 16.
But according to the law, Myra will also need to go to court to access this second stage of treatment - regardless of what she and her mother want or doctors recommend.
Advertisement
Laura and Myra are among a group of parents and young people in Canberra on Monday to ask MPs to end the requirement for young transgender people to go to the Family Court to get approval for cross-sex hormone therapy before they are 18.
Australia is the only country in the world that requires court approval for what is known as the second stage of treatment, where trans males are given testosterone and trans females are given oestrogen.
Doctors are also gravely concerned about what the court requirement means for young trans people's mental and physical health.
Dr Michelle Telfer from the Royal Children's Hospital Centre for Adolescent Health in Melbourne said the court process is both expensive and time consuming.
Cost estimates vary between $10,000 and $30,000, with young people waiting about a year to get the OK.
"Many parents decide not to go through it and try and persuade young people to wait until they are 18," Dr Telfer said.
This approach has its own problems as young people cannot stay on puberty blockers indefinitely (it ends up harming bone density). There are also social and emotional issues associated with waiting until 18 to undergo puberty.
Citing the high rates of self-harm and suicide among young trans-people, Dr Telfer said there were huge risks in not giving the group access to the treatment they sought, noting they were being forced to undergo a change in their bodies that they did not want.
"Not providing treatment is not neutral," she said.
MPs from the Coalition, Labor and the Greens met the group on Monday.
"Access to hormones is critical to [young trans people's] transition," Greens Senator Janet Rice said.
Senator Rice said that removing the court requirement was a "really straightforward step" and is hopeful the cross-party support will enable the change.
Attorney-General George Brandis had a representative at Monday's meeting. His office has already met with doctors and is understood to be working on the issue.
Georgie, 15, also made the trip to Canberra, having already gone to the Family Court to access the stage two treatment - a process that made her feel "lost and hopeless".
"I'm a normal, cheerful, confident girl and I know who I am. But my exterior doesn't match my interior," she told the group.
"It shouldn't be the court's decision. Only I have the right to decide what goes into my body."
www.theage.com.au/federal-politics/political-news/young-transgender-people-go-to-canberra-to-lobby-for-change-20160221-gmzikd.html#ixzz40s3h4wxZ