A Fake Bill of Goods
Detransitioner tells his own story of transition, health regrets, and reflection.
Photo by Ibrahim Boran on Unsplash
Recently, Moms Against the Norm interviewed a detransitioned BC man named Josh. I reached out to him afterwards and he kindly provided an account of how he transitioned, how he came to realize the harms of the movement, and what he thinks about it now. I am always grateful to the individuals who will tell their stories which often reveal pain, shame at feeling tricked, regret over their health, and lost years of their life. The last thing "so-called” advocates are interested in are supporting detransitioners, which shows that they care more about the ideology than about the well-being of individuals and would prefer to ignore the harm it causes. Detransitioners often experience online harassment and ridicule for doing so. Despite that, many become the most outspoken critics and, south of the border, there’s no denying that figures such as Chloe Cole have helped to bring about dramatic legal changes, although there remains much work to be done.
Link to Moms Against the Norm interview here.
Without further ado, Josh’s article, aptly named “A
Fake Bill of Goods”.
I'm a male, and always was, but bought into the delusion a long time ago that I could become a woman. I grew up out East in a medium-sized town in the 1990s and early 2000s. It seems like a different world now. Hard to explain rationally, but something never felt quite right. Being trans was still largely taboo, and I was careful to surround myself with people who were supportive.
Interestingly, the doctors asked questions about abuse, trauma, and social relationships. This kind of screening would probably be illegal today.
Looking back, being in echo chamber was unhelpful.
Back in those days, there was at least some push-back within the medical profession. Having seen a few "specialists", and I use that term lightly, they'd tell me to come back in 3-6 months. It was angering, but in retrospect, they wanted to see if I'd age out of it. Of course, such reluctance would be unheard of in today's world.
I also had the opportunity to meet someone as a 20-year-old through a mutual friend. This was a detransed M2F (male to female) who was once again living as a man. I'd also gotten to hear some of the details about how various surgeries can go wrong. But despite these warning signs, I proceeded anyway.
What you hopefully take away in all of this is that people are being sold a false bill of goods in order to get them to transition. There are countless problems you won't be informed of.
Yes, you will get various medical forms which include waivers. But doctors will tell you that this is a formality, and seriously downplay, or even negate, the real risks. Informed consent means being INFORMED, something that should be obvious.
The cross-sex hormones, particularly the testosterone blockers, are similar to what is used to chemically castrate sex offenders. That is, they were, until the punishment was deemed to be cruel. Still okay to use on children though.
Assuming the hormones actually are what is claimed, and that's a big assumption, it messes with your natural functions. Male and female bodies are meant to have different chemistry, and no amount of playing god can cure that. There are endless mood swings, and after going off for a while, it feels like menopause.
Massive weight gains and losses are common, and unhealthy.
One interesting benefit -- and about the only one -- is that years on hormones have made me look younger. Indeed I can pass for being a very young adult. On the whole, it's not at all worthwhile though.
There's the semi-true talking point that your weight distribution will change until your body more closely resembles the opposite sex. More accurately, you won't really be shaped like either and will just look like an androgenous weirdo.
There are various surgeries available, yes. However, nothing will ever look natural, nor will there be normal function or sensation. Again, this is something that doctors won't have an honest talk with you about. And be prepared to have off-and-on difficulties going to the bathroom for the rest of your life.
Another problem that doctors will never tell you is that there's a "shelf life" during which you will be even somewhat passable (if you ever are). While it's true that many in their teens and twenties can look amazing, that changes around 30 or 35. The reason is that the body keeps developing long after the traditional puberty stages. It's extremely rare to encounter someone older than 40 who can pull it off, unless they've had a lot of surgery done.
This experience has surely taken years off my life.
Having "pulled the plug" in 2021, it's interesting how differently so-called pride groups view me. Being a detranser is fine, as long as it's done privately, and not used to scare off people who still want to do this. The only way this industry can thrive is by lying to people and silencing the truth.
If there is a silver lining in pushing this ideology on children, it's that the whole thing is being exposed to society more broadly. But I reject the idea that this should simply be "age restricted", like cigarettes or alcohol.
The entire practice should be abolished, and people who promote it jailed.
Thank you for reading this.