By Ben Hunte, BBC News
Young people with gender identity• One’s innermost concept of self as male or female or both or neither – how individuals perceive themselves and what they call themselves. One’s gender identity can be the same or different than the sex assigned at birth. Individuals are conscious of this between the ages 18 months and 3 years. Most people develop a gender identity that matches their biological sex. For some, however, their gender identity is different from their biological or assigned sex. Some of these individuals choose to socially, hormonally and/or surgically change their sex to more fully match their gender identity.
• The gender to which one feels one belongs.
• Internal and psychological sense of oneself as a woman, a man, both, in between, or neither.
issues are suffering “psychological torture” because of how long it is taking to receive specialist NHS help.
Teenage referrals to the Tavistock Centre in London have risen 42% in a year, with 2,016 referrals in 2016-17.
This follows a rise of 104% from 697 referrals in 2014-15, to 1,419 the year after.
Expert Terry Reed said for those already approaching or were in puberty, the fear they experienced was extreme.
Some 90% of people referred to the centre are from outside the city, meaning Londoners are having to wait up to two years for an appointment.
The hospital said it was working hard to hire more clinicians.
Suicide risk
Bernard Reed from the Gender Identity• One’s innermost concept of self as male or female or both or neither – how individuals perceive themselves and what they call themselves. One’s gender identity can be the same or different than the sex assigned at birth. Individuals are conscious of this between the ages 18 months and 3 years. Most people develop a gender identity that matches their biological sex. For some, however, their gender identity is different from their biological or assigned sex. Some of these individuals choose to socially, hormonally and/or surgically change their sex to more fully match their gender identity.
• The gender to which one feels one belongs.
• Internal and psychological sense of oneself as a woman, a man, both, in between, or neither.
Research and Education Society (GIRES) said: “The wait is hugely distressing.
“Every day is an agony as they see themselves being more and more developing into a physical body which is quite foreign to them.”
He added: “We should be very worried about the situation these young people are in. Research indicates that 84% have had suicidal thoughts, 40% may even have attempted suicide – that’s a major, major risk. Waiting for treatment is damaging and dangerous.”
He said more local services were needed outside London.
‘It feels horrible, I was suicidal‘
Alex, a 16-year-old from north London, was told when he was referred there would be a seven month waiting list, but that ended up being two years to receive the help he needed.
“I felt like I was having to put my whole life on hold to wait for this thing I needed, with no idea at the time because it was so unclear how long it would be and how long each assessment took.
“My physical transition• The social, psychological, emotional and economic processes that a trans person undergoes to move from their assigned gender role into their chosen or acquired gender. The time this takes is variable and depends on the individual’s ability to embrace significant change in their life. If requiring genital surgery the individual will have to undergo a so called Real Life Test, i.e. living in their acquired gender role for a minimum of 1 year.
• Refers to the process during which trans people may change their gender expression and/or bodies to reflect their gender, including changes in physical appearance (hairstyle, clothing), behaviour (mannerisms, voice, gender roles), identification (name, pronoun, legal details), and/or medical interventions (hormone therapy, gender-affirming surgery).
felt so far away that I couldn’t really see myself ever getting there.”
He added: “I’m hoping to feel more comfortable in myself and get surgery and testosterone. It’s so frustrating. It’s not fair.”
Helen, Alex’s mother, described the process as “desperate”.
“We were really very frightened and alone, we didn’t know what to do.
“Nobody seemed to be able to advise us. Everyone was saying they didn’t know anything about gender• However gender is far more complicated. It is the complex interrelationship between an individual’s sex (gender biology), one’s internal sense of self as male, female, both or neither (gender identity) as well as one’s outward presentations and behaviours (gender expression) related to that perception, including their gender role. Together, the intersection of these three dimensions produces one’s authentic sense of gender, both in how people experience their own gender as well as how others perceive it.
• Gender is expressed in terms of masculinity and femininity. It is largely culturally determined and is assigned at birth based on the sex of the individual. It affects how people perceive themselves and how they expect others to behave.
• Socially and culturally constructed roles, behaviours, expressions and identities of girls, women, boys, men, and trans people.
issues and it was The Tavistock who would advise on that, but we couldn’t see the Tavistock for months and months.”
Dr Polly Carmichael, director of the Gender Identity• One’s innermost concept of self as male or female or both or neither – how individuals perceive themselves and what they call themselves. One’s gender identity can be the same or different than the sex assigned at birth. Individuals are conscious of this between the ages 18 months and 3 years. Most people develop a gender identity that matches their biological sex. For some, however, their gender identity is different from their biological or assigned sex. Some of these individuals choose to socially, hormonally and/or surgically change their sex to more fully match their gender identity.
• The gender to which one feels one belongs.
• Internal and psychological sense of oneself as a woman, a man, both, in between, or neither.
Development Service, said: “I really appreciate how frustrating and difficult it is, when you’ve finally perhaps plucked up enough courage to tell people about how you feel, then you have to wait, it’s really hard. We’re acutely aware of that.”
She said the centre was working with NHS England to hire more clinicians and to offer groups whereby young people could talk to older people who had been through the service so there was a network of support while they waited for individual appointments.