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Shocking figures reveal half of all transgender teens in America have considered suicide and a third have tried to kill themselves


By Daily Mail Reporter | PUBLISHED: 01:20 EST, 9 July 2012 | UPDATED: 01:23 EST, 9 July 2012


http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2170773/Shocking-figures-reveal-half-transgender-teens-America-considered-suicide-tried-kill-themselves.html?ITO=1490 (http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2170773/Shocking-figures-reveal-half-transgender-teens-America-considered-suicide-tried-kill-themselves.html?ITO=1490)


Children's Hospital in Boston houses the largest clinic in the United States for kids with gender identity problems and since 2007 the average number of new patients has quadrupled to 20 every year.

The hospital cites more information being available to both parents and children, primarily on the internet, for the rise.

Endocrinologist Dr Norman Spack told Dateline that puberty was one of the most traumatic experiences for children who felt they were trapped in the wrong body.

'(There are) fairly significant psychological ramifications,' he told the program, referring to the turmoil young boys living as girls face during growth spurts, growing bodily and facial hair, the deepening of their voice.

He said for girls living as boys, breast development and menstruation were the major stress factors.
Suppressants: Doctors are helping young transgender kids by suppressing puberty with drugs.





Inside DATELINE/MSNBC.com



Transgender children in America encounter new crossroads with medicine


By Tommy Nguyen | Dateline NBC  | Jul 9 | Retrieved from the Internet on July 9, 2012 by SJ


http://insidedateline.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2012/07/08/12625007-transgender-children-in-america-encounter-new-crossroads-with-medicine?lite (http://insidedateline.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2012/07/08/12625007-transgender-children-in-america-encounter-new-crossroads-with-medicine?lite)


(https://www.susans.org/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fmsnbcmedia.msn.com%2Fj%2FMSNBC%2FComponents%2FVideo%2F__NEW%2Fx_30_dtl_tgkids_preview_120.vembedlarge456.jpg&hash=7729526900d27f52fe5132e5c9df64265f33e192)
At age 9, Josie Romero -- born a boy but living as a transgender girl -- sought out a controversial hormone treatment that would begin transitioning her body into the opposite sex.


It's unclear how many children around the world have felt trapped in their own bodies the way 11-year-old Josie Romero has struggled with hers. Born a boy but living socially as a girl since age 6, Josie -- the subject of a Dateline report airing Sunday, July 8th, at 7pm/6c -- is just one of 10,000 children who have significant gender identity problems, according to one popular estimate. Other experts say it's closer to one in 1,000, but nevertheless their relatively small population has generated much controversy and media attention recently.