Social transitioning for gender non-conforming children

Johanna Olson, MD, shares advice for parents about the steps that a gender non-conforming child takes during social transistioning
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Social transitioning for gender non-conforming children

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For the child that is consistent, insistent and persistent about their gender identity being different. Those children would often ask their parents to live full time in their authentic gender role. And that would mean that they are going to present to the world the gender that is authentic or real for them. that might mean changing their clothes, it might mean getting a hair style that is consistent with that. It might mean asking for a name that's consistent, or pronouns Please call me she now, please call me Merry now for example. And we call that social transitioning. And that the first piece that is really important for parents is to asses safety. they want to make sure their kid is for example already is school and they are going to do a traditional transition in that same school. They need to make sure that their child is not going to be at risk for being harmed or even killed. I think they need to work together with either one of the organizations that provides this kind of support like Trans-Youth family Allies or Gender Spectrum, those people actually have professionals that come into the school to talk to principles, talk to teachers and advice them on how to best go about facilitating that transition. If safety is not an issue and it's going to be an embracing community, an embracing school those people are also tremendously helpful because often times even though the hearts are in the right place the details become problematic. We let this child use the bathroom, it conforms their authentic gender or their assigned gender? What do we do about P.E ? What do we about - so there is different things that become details that are important to have help when facilitating this kind of transition.

Johanna Olson, MD, shares advice for parents about the steps that a gender non-conforming child takes during social transistioning

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Johanna Olson, MD

Medical Director, Center for Transyouth Health and Development, Children’s Hospital Los Angeles

Johanna Olson, MD is a pediatrician in the Division of Adolescent Medicine at Children’s Hospital Los Angeles and Medical Director of the hospital’s Center for Transyouth Health and Development.  She specializes in the care of transgender youth, gender variant children, youth with HIV, and chronic pain. Board certified in Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine, Dr. Olson is also an Assistant Professor of Pediatrics in the Keck School of Medicine of the University of Southern California. She has appeared on ABC's 20/20, The Dr. Phil Show, CNN, Dateline NBC and The Doctors to educate audiences about the needs of transgender youth.

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Transcription: 
For the child that is consistent, insistent and persistent about their gender identity being different. Those children would often ask their parents to live full time in their authentic gender role. And that would mean that they are going to present to the world the gender that is authentic or real for them. that might mean changing their clothes, it might mean getting a hair style that is consistent with that. It might mean asking for a name that's consistent, or pronouns Please call me she now, please call me Merry now for example. And we call that social transitioning. And that the first piece that is really important for parents is to asses safety. they want to make sure their kid is for example already is school and they are going to do a traditional transition in that same school. They need to make sure that their child is not going to be at risk for being harmed or even killed. I think they need to work together with either one of the organizations that provides this kind of support like Trans-Youth family Allies or Gender Spectrum, those people actually have professionals that come into the school to talk to principles, talk to teachers and advice them on how to best go about facilitating that transition. If safety is not an issue and it's going to be an embracing community, an embracing school those people are also tremendously helpful because often times even though the hearts are in the right place the details become problematic. We let this child use the bathroom, it conforms their authentic gender or their assigned gender? What do we do about P.E ? What do we about - so there is different things that become details that are important to have help when facilitating this kind of transition.