“These kids that are going through gender-affirming care, they become lifelong patients… consumers of pharmaceuticals,” says Dr. Miriam Grossman. She is a child and adolescent psychiatrist and author of “Lost in Trans Nation: A Child Psychiatrist’s Guide Out of the Madness.” In this episode, Dr. Grossman breaks down what’s causing the sharp rise in teenagers saying they’re transgender, what every parent needs to know about so-called “gender-affirming care,” and a series of steps parents can take at home and at school to protect their children. “What you want to do is put the school on notice, even if your child is only entering kindergarten…. …I’m arguing in the book that girls need to be educated about what these organs actually do. There is a purpose for breasts, and they are not simply sex objects that people stare at. They are so much more. Nursing is an incredible experience, both for the mother and the child. There is bonding going on… pheromones that are being shared. Oxytocin, the trust hormone and the bonding hormone, is being released in the mother and the child…. …I received responses from 500 parents in 17 different countries. I have an appendix to the book where I gathered the valuable and touching input that I got from those parents. It’s parent-to-parent advice, because who knows better than the parents who have already gone through it, some of them for many years?
