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*"Cass recently started posting videos to YouTube, where there are a growing number of detransitioning confessionals." {{harvnb|Herzog|2017a}}</ref> *"Cass recently started posting videos to YouTube, where there are a growing number of detransitioning confessionals." {{harvnb|Herzog|2017a}}</ref>


A 2008 study of gender dysphoric adolescents found 61% desisted from their transgender identity before reaching the age of 29,<ref>{{harvnb|Stein|2009}}; {{harvnb|Wallien and Cohen-Kettenis|2008}}</ref> and a 2013 study found 63% desisted before age 20.<ref>{{harvnb|Brooks|2018}}; {{harvnb|Herzog|2017a}}; {{harvnb|Steensma et al.|2013}}</ref> A 2019 clinical assessment found that 9.4% of patients with adolescent-emerging gender dysphoria ceased wishing to pursue medical interventions and/or no longer felt that their gender identity was incongruent with their biological sex within an eighteen-month period.<ref>{{harvnb|Churcher Clarke|Spiliadis|2019}}</ref> There have been a number of studies on persistence of gender dysphoria in adolescents through puberty. A 2008 study of gender dysphoric adolescents found 61% did not remain gender dysphoric after puberty.<ref>{{harvnb|Stein|2009}}; {{harvnb|Wallien and Cohen-Kettenis|2008}}</ref> A 2013 study found 63% did not remain gender dysphoric after puberty or did not respond to the follow-up questionnaire.<ref>{{harvnb|Brooks|2018}}; {{harvnb|Herzog|2017a}}; {{harvnb|Steensma et al.|2013}}</ref> This study found that persisting adolescents generally expressed belief that they were the other gender, while desisting adolescents tended to wish that they could fill the opposite gender role.<ref>{{harvnb|Steensma et al.|2013}}</ref> A 2019 clinical assessment found that 9.4% of patients with adolescent-emerging gender dysphoria ceased wishing to pursue medical interventions and/or no longer felt that their gender identity was incongruent with their biological sex within an eighteen-month period.<ref>{{harvnb|Churcher Clarke|Spiliadis|2019}}</ref>


A 2018 survey of ] surgeons found that approximately 0.3% of patients who underwent transition-related surgery later requested detransition-related surgical care.<ref>{{harvnb|Danker et al.|2018}}</ref> The ] found that 8% of those who had transitioned reported having ever detransitioned, and 62% of that group had later returned to living in a trans identity.<ref>{{harvnb|Boslaugh|2018|p=43}}; {{harvnb|James|Herman|Rankin|Keisling|2016|p=111}}</ref> A 2003 German study found evidence for an increase in the number of demands for detransition, blaming poor practice on the part of "well-meaning but certainly not unproblematic" clinicians who—contrary to international best practices—assumed that transitioning as quickly as possible should be the only correct course of action.<ref>"In jüngster Zeit gibt es jedoch einige Hinweise für die Zunahme von Rückumwandulungsbegehren und es stellen sich zunehmend Patienten vor, bei denen schondie erste diagnostische Exploration Hinweise auf übergreifende Identitätsstörungen, u. U. auch auf transvestitisch-fetischistische Neigungen, auf unrealistische Erwartungen hin-sichtlich eines „völlig neuen Lebens“, jedoch nicht auf eine gelebte und innerlich fixierteGeschlechtsrollentransposition gibt. In Anbetracht derartiger Verläufe besorgt die zwarwohlmeinende, aber keinesfalls unproblematische Einstellung einiger Behandler, die annehmen, dass das möglichst schnelle Bedienen der vehement vorgetragenen Patienten-wünsche die einzig richtige Vorgehensweise wäre,„da man da sowieso nichts anderes machen kann.“ Dies widerspricht eklatant den Erfahrungen internationaler Gender-Zentren" {{harvnb|Bosinski|2003}}</ref> Surgeon ] and psychotherapist James Caspian have reported that demand for surgical reversal of the physical effects of medical transition has been on the rise.<ref> A 2018 survey of ] surgeons found that approximately 0.3% of patients who underwent transition-related surgery later requested detransition-related surgical care.<ref>{{harvnb|Danker et al.|2018}}</ref> The ] found that 8% of those who had transitioned reported having ever detransitioned, and 62% of that group had later returned to living in a trans identity.<ref>{{harvnb|Boslaugh|2018|p=43}}; {{harvnb|James|Herman|Rankin|Keisling|2016|p=111}}</ref> A 2003 German study found evidence for an increase in the number of demands for detransition, blaming poor practice on the part of "well-meaning but certainly not unproblematic" clinicians who—contrary to international best practices—assumed that transitioning as quickly as possible should be the only correct course of action.<ref>"In jüngster Zeit gibt es jedoch einige Hinweise für die Zunahme von Rückumwandulungsbegehren und es stellen sich zunehmend Patienten vor, bei denen schondie erste diagnostische Exploration Hinweise auf übergreifende Identitätsstörungen, u. U. auch auf transvestitisch-fetischistische Neigungen, auf unrealistische Erwartungen hin-sichtlich eines „völlig neuen Lebens“, jedoch nicht auf eine gelebte und innerlich fixierteGeschlechtsrollentransposition gibt. In Anbetracht derartiger Verläufe besorgt die zwarwohlmeinende, aber keinesfalls unproblematische Einstellung einiger Behandler, die annehmen, dass das möglichst schnelle Bedienen der vehement vorgetragenen Patienten-wünsche die einzig richtige Vorgehensweise wäre,„da man da sowieso nichts anderes machen kann.“ Dies widerspricht eklatant den Erfahrungen internationaler Gender-Zentren" {{harvnb|Bosinski|2003}}</ref> Surgeon ] and psychotherapist James Caspian have reported that demand for surgical reversal of the physical effects of medical transition has been on the rise.<ref>

Revision as of 03:25, 20 March 2019

Cessation or reversal of transgender identification or gender transition
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Detransition is the cessation or reversal of a transgender identification or gender transition, whether by social, legal, or medical means.

Direct, formal research of detransition is lacking. Professional interest in the phenomenon has been met with contention. Detransitioners (persons who detransition) have similarly experienced controversy and struggle.

Background and terminology

Transition is the process of a transgender person changing their gender presentation and/or sex characteristics to accord with their internal sense of gender identity. Transition commonly involves social changes (such as clothing, personal name, and pronouns), legal changes (such as legal name and legal gender), and medical changes (such as hormone replacement and surgery).

Detransition (sometimes called retransition) is the process of halting or reverting a transgender identification or gender transition. Like transition, detransition is not a single event. Methods of detransitioning can vary greatly among individuals, and can involve changes to one's gender expression, social identity, legal identity documents, and/or anatomy. Desistance is a general term for any cessation, and it is commonly applied specifically to the cessation of transgender identity or gender dysphoria. Those who undertake detransition are known as detransitioners. Detransition is commonly associated with transition regret, but regret and detransition do not always coincide.

Occurrence

This section needs more reliable medical references for verification or relies too heavily on primary sources. Relevant discussion may be found on the talk page. Please review the contents of the section and add the appropriate references if you can. Unsourced or poorly sourced material may be challenged and removed. Find sources: "Detransition" – news · newspapers · books · scholar · JSTOR (December 2017)

Formal studies of detransition have been few in number, of disputed quality, and politically controversial. Frequency estimates for detransition and desistance vary greatly, with notable differences in terminology and methodology. Detransition is more common in the earlier stages of transition, particularly before surgeries. The number of detransitioners is unknown but growing.

There have been a number of studies on persistence of gender dysphoria in adolescents through puberty. A 2008 study of gender dysphoric adolescents found 61% did not remain gender dysphoric after puberty. A 2013 study found 63% did not remain gender dysphoric after puberty or did not respond to the follow-up questionnaire. This study found that persisting adolescents generally expressed belief that they were the other gender, while desisting adolescents tended to wish that they could fill the opposite gender role. A 2019 clinical assessment found that 9.4% of patients with adolescent-emerging gender dysphoria ceased wishing to pursue medical interventions and/or no longer felt that their gender identity was incongruent with their biological sex within an eighteen-month period.

A 2018 survey of WPATH (World Professional Association for Transgender Health) surgeons found that approximately 0.3% of patients who underwent transition-related surgery later requested detransition-related surgical care. The 2015 U.S. Transgender Survey found that 8% of those who had transitioned reported having ever detransitioned, and 62% of that group had later returned to living in a trans identity. A 2003 German study found evidence for an increase in the number of demands for detransition, blaming poor practice on the part of "well-meaning but certainly not unproblematic" clinicians who—contrary to international best practices—assumed that transitioning as quickly as possible should be the only correct course of action. Surgeon Miroslav Djordjevic and psychotherapist James Caspian have reported that demand for surgical reversal of the physical effects of medical transition has been on the rise.

Detransitioners have commonly cited trauma, isolation, dissociation, inadequate mental healthcare, and social pressure as motivations for pursuing transition. Informed consent and affirmation of self-diagnosis (both newer but increasingly employed models for transgender healthcare) have been criticized for failing to meet the needs of those who eventually detransition. Among eventual detransitioners, the progression of transition has been found to magnify, rather than remedy, gender dysphoria. Sufferers may fixate on passing (being perceived as their preferred gender), leading them to pursue ever further steps in medical transition.

Motives for detransitioning commonly include financial barriers to transition, social rejection in transition, depression or suicidality due to transition, and discomfort with sexual characteristics developed during transition. Additional motives include concern for lack of data on long-term effects of hormone replacement therapy, concern for loss of fertility, complications from surgery, and changes in gender identity. Some people detransition on a temporary basis, in order to accomplish a particular aim, such as having biologically related children, or until barriers to transition have been resolved or removed. Detransition is also a concern among elderly transgender people. Dementia patients who forget they have transitioned may experience distress regarding their gender presentation and detransition. In addition, concerns about the ability to receive adequate care in later life may lead some people to detransition preemptively.

Individual accounts

In April 2007, Mike Penner, a sportswriter for the Los Angeles Times, publicly announced his transition. He took the name Christine Daniels, and he wrote about his experiences with gender for approximately one year. In October 2008, he resumed his male name and identity. He committed suicide in November 2009.

Since 2011, Walt Heyer has written several books on his experience of regret and detransition.

In 2015, Australia's Sydney Morning Herald and US-based Vocativ (then an online newspaper) profiled Joel Nowak. Nowak identified as a woman for ten years, including a legal change of name, hormone therapy, and surgery, before re-identifying as a man. Nowak described long feeling "closeted" and in denial about his doubts of transition. He described detransition as feeling "liberating", and he expressed hope for topics of gender to move beyond dogmatism.

In September 2017, the Australian 60 Minutes television program featured a 12-year-old boy who had undergone hormone replacement therapy for two years before deciding to stop. Both he and his mother stated they did not regret transition, nor have they regretted detransition.

Also in September 2017, British daily paper The Guardian published an interview with Elan Anthony of Ohio. Anthony lived as a transgender woman for two decades, including undertaking hormones and surgery, before detransitioning. He described a well-intentioned but misguided rush to transition from doctors and allies. In detransition, he lost friends, and he developed a renewed sense of shame. He has since pursued advocacy work for detransitioners, and he has begun work toward a doctorate in psychology.

Female detransitioner Max Robinson was profiled in the July/August 2017 issue of The Atlantic and the October/November 2017 issue of The Economist's 1843 magazine. Robinson began transition at age 15, including hormones and surgery. Three years later, she began to detransition. She has since re-identified as a bisexual woman. She has now blamed her gender dysphoria on her anxiety and depression, and believes her therapist overlooked "the possibility that her mental health problems, far from being symptomatic of gender dysphoria, could actually be the cause of it."

In April 2018, Paper magazine published a biography of Brian Belovitch (formerly known as Tish Gervais), a performance artist in New York City. Belovitch undertook medical transition following social pressure to conform his feminine personality to binary gender norms. He lived as trans for fifteen years, until eventually desisting hormones and getting a mastectomy. Belovitch primarily cited his changed views on gender identity (referring to himself now as "genderqueer or gender nonconforming") for his reason to detransition. He noted feeling rejected initially by friends and peers, who saw his decision as a betrayal. He voiced hope for an eventual destigmatization of detransition. He published book on his experience in 2018.

In June 2018, American magazine The Atlantic released a short film entitled "Reversing a Gender Transition", documenting Ohio-resident Carey Callahan's experiences in transition, regret, and detransition. Callahan identified as trans for four years, including a period of nine months on hormones, before detransitioning. She has since become an advocate for detransitioners: writing, vlogging, and presenting public talks. She has expressed concern that WPATH's Standards of Care (SOC) are too loose, while also supporting individuals' pursuit of informed transition.

In March 2019, Jamie Shupe, the first American to be legally recognized as having a non-binary gender, criticized his transition and publicly re-identified as a man.

Cultural and political impact

Individuals who have detransitioned, and some researchers and medical providers, have voiced concern for a lack of legal, medical, and psychological assistance for those seeking detransition. Healthcare professionals add that they perceive an atmosphere of censorship around discussing and researching the phenomenon, while detransitioners express experiences of harassment from activists who view detransition as a political threat to trans rights.

In August 2017, the Mazzoni Center's Philadelphia Trans Health Conference, which is an annual meeting of transgender people, advocates, and healthcare providers, canceled a panel discussion on detransition. The conference organizers said, "When a topic becomes controversial, such as this one has turned on social media, there is a duty to make sure that the debate does not get out of control at the conference itself. After several days of considerations and reviewing feedback, the planning committee voted that the workshops, while valid, cannot be presented at the conference as planned."

In September 2017, Bath Spa University revoked permission for James Caspian, a counselor who specializes in transgender therapy, to research regret of gender-reassignment procedures and pursuit of detransition. Caspian alleged the reason for the university's refusal was that it was "a potentially politically incorrect piece of research, carries a risk to the university. Attacks on social media may not be confined to the researcher, but may involve the university. The posting of unpleasant material on blogs or social media may be detrimental to the reputation of the university."

WPATH's Standards of Care have offered no mention of detransition, though a majority of WPATH surgeons have expressed desire for detransition guidelines to be included, and former WPATH president and longtime chair of WPATH's SOC revision team, Eli Coleman, has listed detransition among the topics he's working to include in the eighth edition.

The rise of detransition has attracted interest from both social conservatives on the political right and radical feminists on the political left. Activists on the right have been accused of utilizing detransitioners' stories to further their work against trans rights. Those on the left see detransitioners' experiences as further proof of patriarchal enforcement of gender roles and medicalized erasure of gays and lesbians. This attention has elicited in detransitioners mixed feelings of both exploitation and support.

See also

References

  1. Brown and Rounsley 1996
  2. Marchiano 2017; Graham 2017; Tobia 2018; Herzog 2017a; Clark-Flory 2015; Danker et al. 2018; Turban et al. 2018b
  3. Clark-Flory 2015; Herzog 2017a; Graham 2017; Tobia 2018
  4. Merriam-Webster n.d.; Collins n.d.
  5. Marchiano 2017; Steensma et al. 2013; Wallien and Cohen-Kettenis 2008
  6. Herzog 2017a; Graham 2017; Singal 2018
    • "Not everyone who detransitions regrets transitioning in the first place, and, like transitioning, the process of deciding to detransition is a very individual and personal choice. Detransitioning in itself does not necessarily imply that mistakes were made, although that is a possibility. It means that what was previously right for someone in their life may not be the best choice for them anymore." Yarbrough 2018, p. 130
    • Graham 2017
    • Herzog 2017a
    • "The research on outcomes post-transition is mixed at best." Marchiano 2017
    • "esearch in this field is extremely controversial." Danker et al. 2018
    • "t might cause criticism of the research on social media, and criticism of the research would be criticism of the university, and ... it was better not to offend people." BBC 2017
    • " potentially politically incorrect piece of research carries a risk to the university. Attacks on social media may not be confined to the researcher, but may involve the university. The posting of unpleasant material on blogs or social media may be detrimental to the reputation of the university." Weale 2017
  11. Detransition estimates:
    • "Eight percent of respondents to the 2015 Survey reported detransitioning at some point, that is, returning to living as the gender they were assigned at birth; however, most detransitioned only temporarily, and 62 percent of those who had once detransitioned reported living in their felt gender identity." Boslaugh 2018, p. 43
    • "Detransitioning after surgical interventions ... is exceedingly rare. Research has often put the percentage of regret between 1 and 2% ... Detransitioning is actually far more common in the stages before surgery, when people are still exploring their options. 'There are people who take hormones and then decide to go off hormones,' says Randi Ettner, a therapist who has served on the board of the World Professional Association for Transgender Health. 'That is not uncommon.'" Clark-Flory 2015
    • "A 50-year study out of Sweden found that only 2.2 percent of people who medically transitioned later experienced 'transition regret'" Herzog 2017a
      • "There were 15 (5 and 10 ) regret applications corresponding to a 2.2% regret rate for both sexes. There was a significant decline of regrets over the time period." (Dhejne et al. define "regret" as "application for reversal of the legal gender status among those who were sex reassigned" which "gives the person the right to treatment to reverse the body as much as possible.") Dhejne et al. 2014
  12. Desistance estimates:
    • "There is a wealth of replicated research that tells us that 80–95% of children who experience a cross-sex identification in childhood will eventually desist and come to identify with their natal sex as adults." Marchiano 2017
    • There have, however, been almost a dozen studies looking at the rate of desistance among trans-identified kids James Cantor summarized 'ery few trans kids ... transition by the time they are adults'. The exact rate of desistance varied by study, but overall they concluded that about 80% ... identified as their sex at birth.... he most recent study ... found that two-thirds ultimately identified as the gender they were assigned at birth." Herzog 2017a
    • "For decades, follow-up studies of transgender kids have shown that a substantial majority—anywhere from 65 to 94%—eventually ceased to identify as transgender." Brooks 2018
    • "Only very few trans- kids still want to transition by the time they are adults. Instead, they generally turn out to be regular gay or lesbian folks. The exact number varies by study, but roughly 60–90% of trans- kids turn out no longer to be trans by adulthood." Cantor 2016
  13. Marchiano 2017
    • "Miroslav Djordjevic ... has seen an increase in 'reversal' surgeries among transgender women who want their male genitalia back... Other researchers also report hearing about such regrets." Borreli 2017
    • "He then amassed some preliminary findings that suggested a growing number of young people ... were transitioning their gender and then regretting it." Shute 2017. See also BBC 2017 and Weale 2017.
    • "The growing number of detransitioners is a possible indication that there are significant numbers of people who are not satisfied with transition outcomes." Marchiano 2017
    • "Max is one of what appears to be a growing number of people who believe they were failed by the therapists and physicians they went to for help with their gender dysphoria." Singal 2018
    • "Cass recently started posting videos to YouTube, where there are a growing number of detransitioning confessionals." Herzog 2017a
  15. Stein 2009; Wallien and Cohen-Kettenis 2008
  16. Brooks 2018; Herzog 2017a; Steensma et al. 2013
  17. Steensma et al. 2013
  18. Churcher Clarke & Spiliadis 2019
  19. Danker et al. 2018
  20. Boslaugh 2018, p. 43; James et al. 2016, p. 111
  21. "In jüngster Zeit gibt es jedoch einige Hinweise für die Zunahme von Rückumwandulungsbegehren und es stellen sich zunehmend Patienten vor, bei denen schondie erste diagnostische Exploration Hinweise auf übergreifende Identitätsstörungen, u. U. auch auf transvestitisch-fetischistische Neigungen, auf unrealistische Erwartungen hin-sichtlich eines „völlig neuen Lebens“, jedoch nicht auf eine gelebte und innerlich fixierteGeschlechtsrollentransposition gibt. In Anbetracht derartiger Verläufe besorgt die zwarwohlmeinende, aber keinesfalls unproblematische Einstellung einiger Behandler, die annehmen, dass das möglichst schnelle Bedienen der vehement vorgetragenen Patienten-wünsche die einzig richtige Vorgehensweise wäre,„da man da sowieso nichts anderes machen kann.“ Dies widerspricht eklatant den Erfahrungen internationaler Gender-Zentren" Bosinski 2003
    • Borreli 2017
    • Shute 2017
    • "... his preliminary findings that suggested growing numbers of young people, particularly women, were regretting gender reassignment ... e was first alerted to the issue of gender reassignment reversal in 2014, when a Belgrade doctor told him he had been asked to carry out an unprecedented seven reversals that year." Weale 2017
    • "e wanted to study people who had swapped gender and then changed their minds after coming across evidence of a growing number of people who regretted having the surgery and finding no research had been done into the subject ... 'I found it very difficult to get people willing to talk openly about the experience of reversing surgery. They said they felt too traumatised to talk about it ...'" BBC 2017
  23. Marchiano 2017
  24. Graham 2017; Marchiano 2017; Singal 2018
  25. Marchiano 2017
  27. Americo 2018; Kanner 2018
  28. BBC 2018
  29. Witten 2015
  30. Pieper 2015; Friess 2009; Herman 2011
  31. Heyer n.d.; Dumas 2015
  32. Dumas 2015; Clark-Flory 2015
  33. Schipp 2017; Young 2017
  34. McFadden 2017; Seleh 2017
  35. Singal 2018; McCann 2017
  36. Tobia 2018; Belovitch 2018
  37. Pollock 2018; Singal 2018
  38. Showalter 2019; Christian Today 2019; Shupe 2019
  39. Graham 2017
  40. Shute 2017; BBC 2017; Borreli 2017; Stein 2009; Veissière 2018
    • "'The complexity of our viewpoint is pretty inconvenient to people on all sides of the political spectrum,' Carey says in the film. For her, detransitioning has resulted in the most harassment she has ever faced in her life." Pollock 2018
    • "This has ignited a contentious debate both in and outside the trans community, with various sides accusing each other of bigotry, harassment, censorship, and damaging the fight for trans rights. It's such a fraught issue that many people I interviewed requested anonymity. (All the names of detransitioners have been changed.) Others refused to speak on the record, afraid of the potential fallout. But as more people like Jackie come out, the debate is just heating up." Herzog 2017a
    • " were from clinicians and detransitioners, thanking me for presenting a perspective they felt so many were scared to voice." Veissière 2018
    • ""he trans community does our best to pretend that retransitioning never happens ... trans people who have retransitioned are often treated as outcasts, as aberrations or as an embarrassment to our community's goals. They are assumed to be failures, traitors to the cause of trans liberation." Tobia 2018
  42. Rodriguez 2017; Herzog 2017b
  43. Mazzoni 2017
  44. BBC 2017; Weale 2017; Hurst 2017
    • WPATH 2012
    • "There are currently no professional guidelines or resources for providers who encounter patients who experience regret and/or seek detransition." Danker et al. 2018
    • "88% of respondents feel that WPATH SOC 8 should include a chapter on detransition" Danker et al. 2018
  48. Ford 2018; Herzog 2017a; Bowen 2007; Tobia 2018
  49. Herzog 2017a; Bowen 2007
  50. Herzog 2017a; Bowen 2007

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