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MYTHS, UNTRUTHS UNPROVEN FALSE ASSUMPTIONS
 

If the ideas that underpin a therapeutic intervention are not true, correct or lack any evidence to support them, then how can we trust the intervention itself? Hence, in this section we touch on the falsehoods and assumptions that underpin Gender Affirming Care or the otherwise called Gender Affirmation Model.
 

A. Falsehoods & Unproven Assumptions of Gender Identity
 

B. Untruths of the Gender Affirmative Care Model.
 

C. The Suicide Myth; children with gender dysphoria will suicide if they do not transition.

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A. FALSEHOODS & UNPROVEN ASSUMPTIONS OF GENDER IDENTITY

 

 Gender Identity is non-existent:
A group of more than 100 clinicians and researchers from around the world have stated that there is no scientific evidence to support the existence of "gender identity," nor is there any laboratory test that can accurately differentiate between a person who identifies as trans and one who does not.

 

Gender Identity is used as the basis for medically transitioning youth.
Despite this lack of evidence, the belief in "gender identity" is used as the basis for medically transitioning many children and adolescents. The Society for Evidence-Based Gender Medicine (SEGM) recently published an article debunking several false and unproven assumptions used to medically transition children, including the notion that "gender identity" has a biological basis. While biology plays a role in gender nonconformity, there is currently no objective test that can distinguish between trans-identified and non-trans-identified individuals. SEGM-affiliated researcher, Endocrinologist J. Cohn identified five myths that are perpetuated by proponents of the affirmation approach to gender identity, which can mislead both clinicians and patients if taken as fact.
 

Cohn’s 5 Unproven Assumptions & Falsehoods are:
1. Unproved Assumption: Gender identity, which underlies gender dysphoria, is a fundamental personal characteristic that is biologically "ingrained."

2. Unproven Assumption: The sharp rise in the number of youth presenting with gender dysphoria does not signal a true increase in cases—it’s merely better detection.

3. Unproven Assumption: Detransition does not represent medical harm and is rare.
 

4. Falsehood: Medical interventions in gender-dysphoric minors have clear eligibility criteria.

5. Falsehood: Medical interventions for gender dysphoric minors have been demonstrated to be safe and effective.
 

Cohn’s article “Some Limitations of “Challenges in the Care of Transgender and Gender-Diverse Youth: An Endocrinologist’s View” critically examines and refutes the assumptions made in an influential “pro-gender affirmation” paper by a prominent pro-gender doctor. Cohn warned that when these myths and inaccuracies are perpetuated, they can be mistaken for “facts” that mislead both clinicians and patients alike.

B. UNTRUTHS OF THE GENDER AFFIRMATIVE CARE MODEL

 

Testimony of Expert Witness; Dr Stephen Levine 

Dr. Stephen Levine on January 21, 2023, gave expert witness to the Florida House of Representatives Health and Human Services Committee in Florida, USA.

Qualifications of Dr Stephen Levine
In way of introduction, Dr. Stephen Levine is Clinical Professor of Psychiatry at Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine

 

In total, he has authored or co-authored over 180 journal articles and book chapters, 20 of which deal with the issue of gender dysphoria. He is an invited member of a Cochrane Collaboration subcommittee that is currently preparing a review of the scientific literature on the effectiveness of puberty blocking hormones and of cross-sex hormones for gender dysphoria for adolescents. Cochrane Reviews are a well-respected cornerstone of evidence-based practice, comprising a systematic review that aims to identify, appraise, and synthesize all the empirical evidence that meets pre-specified eligibility criteria in response to a particular research question.

​

Levine spoke on the “Medical Dangers of Gender Affirmative Therapy” and shared “13 untruths.”
On Medical Dangers of Gender Affirmative Therapy, Doctor Stephen Levine focused on:  “Thirteen untruths of Gender Affirming Care” I have summarised and   linked each point to various papers illustrating his statements:

Levine’s 13 Untruths of the Gender Affirmative Care Model:

The Gender Affirmative Care Model (GAC) and the concept of Gender Identity contain significant falsehoods and unproven assumptions:
 

  1. Immutability of Trans Identity: Contrary to the belief that a trans identity is unchangeable once established, evidence suggests otherwise. [Levine Feb 2022 court witness [i] points 112-126]
     

  2. Biological Origins of Trans Identities: The assumption that trans identities primarily have prenatal biological origins, necessitating corrective treatment, is overly simplistic. Reference Link, xxvii points 91-104]
     

  3. Independence of Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity: The concept that sexual orientation is entirely separate from gender identity is challenged by developmental patterns observed in children and adolescents. [Stats For Gender, Sexuality[ii]]

    [quote]”Sexual orientation is a bias that all of us have for romantic and sexual purposes for members of a class of males or females. And in the standards of care from WPATH it has been asserted that they're entirely separate. But when you watch the child develop from a childhood to puberty to Middle adolescence you often see that the first manifestation of gender dysphoria before gender dysphoria shows up is that “I am attracted to members of the same sex. And you watch the evolution of orientation throughout adolescence, and you quickly see that they are not entirely separate phenomenon like the advocates say they are.” Levine.
     

  4. Normalcy of All Gender Identities: The assertion that no form of gender identity is abnormal, and none is a symptomatic reflection of other issues, is not psychologically tenable. For instance, WPATH’s SOC, 8th Edition, included 'Eunuch' as a new gender identity without convincing evidence, and linked to a site featuring graphic content. xv
     

  5. Gender Dysphoria as a Condition: The paradoxical stance that gender dysphoria is a serious medical condition requiring treatment only if desired by the patient. [Stats for Gender, Medical Transition[iii]]
     

  6. Discrimination as Primary Cause of Emotional Problems: This view overlooks the complex emotional or psychological histories in individuals with gender dysphoria. [Reference Link points 13-18i,]
     

  7. Exclusivity of Affirmative Care: Contrary to the belief that affirmative care is the only effective treatment, alternative psychiatric approaches are documented. [Reference Link points 34-57xxvii]

  8. Psychotherapy as Unethical: The labelling of psychotherapeutic approaches as unethical or akin to conversion therapy, and the movement to outlaw them. [LGB Defence, Modern Conversion Therapy[iv]]
    However, the RANZCP released a position statement recently, indicating a shift away from presenting hormonal and surgical 'gender-affirming' interventions as the preferred treatment for gender dysphoria in youth.[ Position Statement, SEGM[v]]
     

  9. Mental Health Benefits of Affirmative Care: The assertion that affirmative care improves mental health and social function lacks robust, long-term evidential support. [Sex Change Regret, Suicide Myth, Harm[vi] No Benefit ]
     

  10. Suicide Prevention through Affirmative Care: The claim that affirmative care significantly reduces suicidal ideation and prevents suicide is not consistently supported by data. [Reference Link xxxii ]
     

  11. Teen Self-Knowledge: The idea that young teens inherently know what will make them happy in the future, and thus their decisions should be unquestioned. Adolescence is a time of exploration, discovery, and dynamic change.  Furthermore, an adolescent’s capacity for mature decision making is not present. [Adolescent decision making[vii]]

  12. Diagnostic Criteria Predicting Positive Outcomes: The belief that meeting diagnostic criteria for gender dysphoria assures a positive outcome post-affirmative care is not true. [Medical Dangers[viii]]
     

  13. Regret and Detransition Rates: The notion that regret and detransition are rare is increasingly being questioned, with a growing recognition of detransition cases. [Reference Link] xix, xx, xxi

 

 “If ideas that underpin intervention are not true are not correct, how can we trust the intervention itself.” Dr Stephen Levine
 

 

C. THE SUICIDE MYTH; CHILDREN WITH GENDER DYSPHORIA WILL SUICIDE IF THEY DO NOT TRANSITION.


The Suicide Myth
‘Trans children will kill themselves if they do not receive gender affirming care.’

There is no significant risk of self-harm or suicide if puberty blockers, hormone treatment or gender surgery are not given to young people to transition to the appearance of the opposite sex. 
 

Many parents have been told if they do not comply with 'gender affirmation care' their child will commit suicide, the catch phrase is: “Better a live son than a dead daughter” Parents report this as emotional blackmail used to pressure them into compliance with drugs, hormones or surgery by Gender Clinics or Trans lobbies.  However, in effect no parent will end up with a son from a daughter through body modification. Nor will they retain a fully functional daughter. What transition creates is a chemically altered child mimicking old-fashioned ideas of masculinity or femininity. We say this is reckless, children deserve safety and ethical care.
 

This trans rights narrative causes much concern but is not supported by facts. Every suicide is a tragedy, and one suicide is a suicide too many. However, with such a serious issue, accuracy is critical.

​

 Please refer to the following resources:


Suicide Facts and Myths
Stats for Gender -Suicide

Time to put the mythology about suicide risks among trans into the dustbin of unscientific, transgender ideology, by Dr Michael Biggs

Suicide by Adolescents Referred to the World’s Largest Paediatric Gender Clinic

 

​

In particular make note of the three false statistics that are frequently cited in support of high suicide rates:

41% by the National Transgender Discrimination Survey

45% by the Centre for Family Research at the University of Cambridge, commissioned by Stonewall.

48% by the LGBT charity PACE, led by Dr Nuno Nodin from the Royal Holloway University of London

The key takeaways of the resources and articles are:
 

  • There is no high quality evidence to suggest that the overall attempted suicide rate of transgender youth is 41, 45 or 48 percent.

  • People with psychiatric conditions – and sometimes neurodiverse conditions – are much more likely to die by suicide than gender dysphoric people.

  • Suicide rarely has one cause: it is difficult for statistical studies on suicide to extricate gender dysphoria from other factors.

  • Advocacy run research results in biased data.


ENDNOTES

 

[i] ‘Declaration of Stephen B. Levine, MD, United States District Court for the Southern District of West’

Virginia Charleston Division. Feb 23, 2022, https://adfmedialegalfiles.blob.core.windows.net/files/BPJ-LevineDeclaration.pdf/’, points 112-126, 91-104

[ii]  ‘Sexuality’, Genspect, https://statsforgender.org/sexuality/

[iii] ‘Medical Transition’, Genspect, https://statsforgender.org/medical-transition/.

[iv] ‘Gender affirmation transing the gay away’, https://www.lgbdefence.org/post/gender-affirmation-transing-the-gay-away, “It’s time to ban modern conversion therapy”, https://sex-matters.org/posts/updates/modern-conversion/

[v] ‘The role of psychiatrists in working with Trans and Gender Diverse people’, Dec 2023, https://www.ranzcp.org/news-policy/policy-and-advocacy/position-statements/gender-dysphoria/ , ‘First Mental Health Guideline to Explicitly Deviate from Gender Affirmation’, SEGM, Nov, 2021, ‘https://segm.org/first_mental_health_guideline_to_deviate_from_gender_affirmation/,

[vi] ‘Sex Change Regret’, https://sexchangeregret.com/, ‘Suicide Myth’, https://www.aww.org.au/gacmyths#the-suicide-myth, ‘Puberty Blockers are Harmful’, https://www.aww.org.au/puberty-blockers-are-harmful/ “Paediatric gender medicine: Longitudinal studies have not consistently shown improvement in depression or suicidality , https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/apa.17309,

[vii]  'Adolescent decision making: A decade in review', Icenogle and Cauffman, 2021, https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/34820945/

[viii] ‘Dr Michael LaidLaw - "Medical Dangers of Gender Affirmative Therapy’ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0NA2xtmN0zo/

The Suicide Myth
Section A
Section 2
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