Tuesday night’s episode of the SBS discussion show asks whether Australia has got the balance right on transgender medical treatment.
The hour‑long program, hosted by Kumi Taguchi, presents a wide range of viewpoints on the issue, speaking to a broad spectrum of people who are transgender, alongside parents, health professionals and advocates.
Sandi, whose child Kyro first expressed a desire to transition as a teenager, shares how she finds it difficult to use the right pronouns now that Kyro identifies as male, and sometimes still uses his “dead name.”
“I’m still saying ‘she’ a lot, and I know I’ve got to change that,” Sandi tells the audience.
“It’s still really weird for me,” she adds, saying it’s going to take some time to get used to.
Insight brings together a group of experts, people with lived experience, advocates and campaigners to discuss a wide range of issues in a studio setting. Host Kumi Taguchi skillfully brings each participant into the conversation.
Kyro shares that it was scary when he approached his mother to discuss how he was feeling about his gender, and while she still struggles with the changes, Sandi also helped him fill out the paperwork to change his name.
The young man was encouraged to wait until he was eighteen before commencing hormone treatment, his parent hoping it was just a phase he was going through. He shares that once his birthday arrived, he was quick to book an appointment with the doctor.
The discussion included the viewpoints of people who have been through the process of taking puberty blockers to pause puberty, followed by cross‑sex hormones to transition to the gender they identify with. There is also testimony from older transgender people who transitioned later in life.
Psychologist Olivia Donaghy, who works with young people experiencing gender dysphoria, says it is difficult to determine how many people in society are transgender because the Australian census has never included questions about gender identity.
Donaghy says puberty blockers give young people more options as they consider their gender identity, and advocates for the gender affirming care model that is used in Australia.
Vanessa Spiller, who is a psychologist in private practice, puts forward a different point of view.
“I see the gender‑affirming approach as it’s put forth by the Australian Psychological Society as being very problematic,” Dr Spiller says, arguing that studies have shown there is not good evidence to support the current approach and she’d prefer to see a range of models being used to treat transgender patients.
The discussion includes many different perspectives from people who are transgender.
Hugo, a transgender man, says gender dysphoria should still be treated as a disorder. He says he has empathy for young people experiencing gender dysphoria and their parents. Hugo underwent a double mastectomy when he was seventeen and says it wasn’t a decision he made lightly.
Michelle puts forward a different parental perspective. Her primary‑school‑aged child had a psychotic episode and self‑harmed, and after speaking to mental health professionals she came out as transgender.
Michelle says mental health professionals in the public health system were disrespectful and not willing to listen to her concerns about her daughter’s claim.
“My daughter will always be my daughter. If she wants to cut her hair short, if she wants to wear boys’ clothes – that’s fine. But for her to think that that means there’s something wrong with her that needs fixing is something I personally feel is damaging to her mental health,” Michelle says.
Michelle says her daughter has also been diagnosed with anorexia, and has experienced psychosis and hallucinations. “All things that are distorted beliefs,” she adds.
Olivia Donaghy estimates that she’s seen around 500 young people experiencing gender dysphoria during her career and says it’s not unusual for people to have multiple mental health challenges, but psychosis is very rare. Eating disorders are more prevalent, as are people who are on the autism spectrum.
The episode does not present two sides to the discussion; it highlights many different viewpoints — different experiences from people who are transgender, from medical professionals, and from parents.
Insight airs at 8.30pm on Tuesday on SBS and is also available on SBS On Demand.
