According to activists, misconceptions about gender identity are prevalent and have a significant impact on transgender and non-binary people’s mental health.
Dupré Latour, a transgender woman who immigrated to Canada five years ago to assert her gender identification, believes that prejudices, myths, and religion help people defend their hatred.
She is depressed by the widespread perception that transgender identity is simply a fad.
“I hear it all the time (that) trans people, there are so many of them,” Latour said.
“But we’ve always been there, it’s just that now, we are in an environment, in a favorable era, but it’s not a trend: these are people who make sacrifices, people who don’t love themselves, who look in the mirror and hate themselves and who have no choice but to go through this to live their lives in the image of what society expects.”
Advocates have for years claimed that misconceptions stifle much of the transgender rights conversation in Canada, particularly among young people. Last month, regulations requiring parental consent for kids 16 and younger to change their names or nouns at school were passed in Saskatchewan and New Brunswick, which raised concerns among critics about the Charter rights movement.
Premier Danielle Smith in Alberta has promised to pass legislation this fall that would put restrictions on gender-affirmation surgeries and hormone treatments for teenagers in addition to parental consent for word and brand changes. In opposition parties and LGBTQ+ organizations, Smith has been accused of using tales about transgender medical treatment and “playing politics” with the proposed legislation.
According to Annie Pullen Sansfaçon, a gender identity scholar at the Université de Montréal for the past 15 years, using preferred pronouns may raise rates of stress, depression, and suicidal thoughts in non-binary and transgender children.
Accessibility to gender diversity goes with learning, but it’s no small work, she said.
GRIS-Montréal, a group business, has been holding seminars and workshops in schools about physical arrangement for 30 years. The firm has even brought up the issues of gender identity since 2017.
Even though it is well known that one cannot control someone else’s orientation or gender identity, Marie Houzeau, the group’s public manager, said, the same biases and legends that existed in relation to sexuality in the past are now transposed to gender identity.
They are the same things that we hear, according to Houzeau, saying that talking about it will confound young people and that young people will develop that trait if we talk about it. We previously said that about sexual orientation, and we still do so today about gender identity.
Her organization meets about 30,000 young people yearly in Greater Montreal. Houzeau believes she could triple the number of workshops held because the demand for gender identity conferences is so high.
She claimed that there is a significant difference between the amount of trustworthy information that is circulating in schools.
According to Houzeau, “we know that young people receive a lot of information through social media, some follow influencers, and that constitutes their main source of information.”
We also know the phenomenon of algorithms and echo chambers, which allow young people to only receive information that is in line with what they already believe. This can cause misinformation for some people if they follow people whose opinions are based on misinformation.
On the other hand, she said, some youth have the pertinent information and can impart it to their peers to help dispel myths about transition and treatment.
One common misconception, according to Pullen Sansfaçon, is that puberty blockers are medications prescribed to adolescents who are beginning a gender transition. She emphasized that these substances are not given to children before puberty begins.
The medication is not permanent; instead, it just shortens the transition to puberty, giving a young person more time to weigh their choices more carefully. If a person stops taking it, puberty resumes its course within a few months, Pullen Sansfaçon said.
Recent research has shown that youth benefit from gender-affirming care in terms of both psychosocial and mental health. During adolescence, hormone blockers reduce the risk of suicidal ideation.
“These are medications that can save a person’s life,” Pullen Sansfaçon said.
Some will eventually choose to receive gender-affirming hormone therapy, which may include taking testosterone or estrogen, depending on the gender, while blockers give youth the opportunity to grow up and make their own decisions in due time.
It’s the same thing for gender-affirming surgeries. According to the Canadian Paediatric Society, age cutoffs for funding such operations vary by province and territory in Canada, but only genital reconstructive surgery is permitted for those who are 18 or older. The general population under the age of 16 and older is only allowed to undergo top surgery to remove or enhance breast tissue.
A follow-up with a psychologist is also required. Sam Lajeunesse, a 43-year-old trans man, can attest to its benefits.
“Before I even realized I was a trans person, I had an issue with my chest,” Lajeunesse said. “I didn’t even know it was possible to have a mastectomy at the time, but I would have done it as a teenager if I had known if I could unpack them, store them in a drawer, and leave them there.”
After a six-month follow-up with a psychologist, he asked for a doctor’s letter supporting his decision to have a mastectomy and hormonal treatment. He has no regrets, despite his concerns about the potential side effects and the speed with which hormonal injections would take effect.
Pullen Sansfaçon said that some effects of hormone therapy can be reversed, sometimes through corrective surgery.
The World Professional Association for Transgender Health has established standards of care for young transgender and non-binary people since 1998, and they have been updated over the years.
According to Pullen Sansfaçon, “the scientific consensus is currently that having access to and supporting young people’s ability to make informed decisions regarding gender-affirming care seems to be the best course of action to improve the mental health of these young people,”
Education is key.
Lajeunesse and Latour refer to gender identity discussions as an ongoing “coming out” event. Some people say hurtful things unintentionally because they aren’t aware, but others do so deliberately. Both said they’re happy to answer questions when asked respectfully.
Lajeunesse said 13 years after transitioning, he no longer has those conversations with close friends or family, but they did come up before.
“They had questions which I sometimes answered, other times I directed people to the appropriate sources of information,” he said.
For Latour, the discussions can be tough.
“Often, people will say, ‘You’re a man,’ but no, I’m not a man, I’m a trans woman,” she said with pride. “And sometimes, it’s heavy to always have to explain that you can’t address me as a man.”
The Canadian Press’s first publication date for this report was March 18, 2024.
Through a partnership with the Canadian Medical Association, the Canadian Press’s coverage of health issues is supported. This content is entirely under CP’s control.
Katrine Desautels, The Canadian Press
