This is why I am so very untrusting of the mental health systems…

[Terfy_McTerf-face]

I am interested in this issue - and looking forward to being a member of this forum! I myself am a licensed counselor and finding myself with no resources whatsoever in relation to my super smart, sensitive and capable daughter who is 17 and now planning to transition with hormones when she is 18. She has voiced this off and on for years and I kept thinking that with her excellent grades, small social network and job in a field she loves, that things were going to be okay. To listen to her adamant plans for hormones and absolute refusal to consider adult life in the body of a woman, recently seemed to break me. I feel as if I'm grieving and have nowhere to turn, because I of all people know how my field views this issue at this time. I am seriously considering creating a private practice so that I can help parents in my situation and they can speak freely. And also working with teens but the threat of losing a license or even legal action is absolutely real and until recently (practicing within a MH agency) I could not risk the backlash. Maybe now I can. I hope to be approved soon to see if there are other threads in the forum in which I can get more information about treatment for my family and my child. I am ready to send my child to an amish community - if it was a disorder viewed like anorexia, I would say 'residential treatment'- but in this case, I feel that 'treatment' would simply be to affirm her ideas and send her on to a pharmacy with her golden ticket, a Rx for "T'.

I'm also a therapist and also feel so alone in my practice. I ended up starting a private practice but also won't touch this issue with a ten foot pole. I'm in Canada and fear criminal consequences. The few therapist I know who agree with us, also won't touch it. Moreover, I'm too close. I don't think I can offer good therapy because of the countertransference issues. I have found my own therapist who is open and active in fighting back and he reminds me all the time that it's okay not to be so vocal right now. I've been traumatized by this whole experience (we had a therapist threaten CAS involvement). As I think my daughter is mostly out of this thing, I hope one day to start to fight back.

[theComet]

I am interested in this issue - and looking forward to being a member of this forum! I myself am a licensed counselor and finding myself with no resources whatsoever in relation to my super smart, sensitive and capable daughter who is 17 and now planning to transition with hormones when she is 18. She has voiced this off and on for years and I kept thinking that with her excellent grades, small social network and job in a field she loves, that things were going to be okay. To listen to her adamant plans for hormones and absolute refusal to consider adult life in the body of a woman, recently seemed to break me. I feel as if I'm grieving and have nowhere to turn, because I of all people know how my field views this issue at this time. I am seriously considering creating a private practice so that I can help parents in my situation and they can speak freely. And also working with teens but the threat of losing a license or even legal action is absolutely real and until recently (practicing within a MH agency) I could not risk the backlash. Maybe now I can. I hope to be approved soon to see if there are other threads in the forum in which I can get more information about treatment for my family and my child. I am ready to send my child to an amish community - if it was a disorder viewed like anorexia, I would say 'residential treatment'- but in this case, I feel that 'treatment' would simply be to affirm her ideas and send her on to a pharmacy with her golden ticket, a Rx for "T'.

I'm also a therapist and also feel so alone in my practice. I ended up starting a private practice but also won't touch this issue with a ten foot pole. I'm in Canada and fear criminal consequences. The few therapist I know who agree with us, also won't touch it. Moreover, I'm too close. I don't think I can offer good therapy because of the countertransference issues. I have found my own therapist who is open and active in fighting back and he reminds me all the time that it's okay not to be so vocal right now. I've been traumatized by this whole experience (we had a therapist threaten CAS involvement). As I think my daughter is mostly out of this thing, I hope one day to start to fight back.

Thank you for your reply! It is so isolating and 100% agree that in this stage of my life I could not provide objective counsel given my own personal situation. And being in Canada, I can't imagine. It just astounds me where parents have been placed on this issue. After all the years in my field of practice, where I saw wonderful, resilient and caring kids in truly dire straights, with whom the goal was always to reunite with parents - sometimes with a heavy heart but knowing how much love is there - and now the most understanding, intelligent and giving parents can be considered criminal and removed from the life of the child, I can't wrap my brain around it. So glad you are seeing hope and I am looking forward to reading success stories and factors that protect and encourage our teens to ride this out and be themselves.

[theComet]

I am interested in this issue - and looking forward to being a member of this forum! I myself am a licensed counselor and finding myself with no resources whatsoever in relation to my super smart, sensitive and capable daughter who is 17 and now planning to transition with hormones when she is 18. She has voiced this off and on for years and I kept thinking that with her excellent grades, small social network and job in a field she loves, that things were going to be okay. To listen to her adamant plans for hormones and absolute refusal to consider adult life in the body of a woman, recently seemed to break me. I feel as if I'm grieving and have nowhere to turn, because I of all people know how my field views this issue at this time. I am seriously considering creating a private practice so that I can help parents in my situation and they can speak freely. And also working with teens but the threat of losing a license or even legal action is absolutely real and until recently (practicing within a MH agency) I could not risk the backlash. Maybe now I can. I hope to be approved soon to see if there are other threads in the forum in which I can get more information about treatment for my family and my child. I am ready to send my child to an amish community - if it was a disorder viewed like anorexia, I would say 'residential treatment'- but in this case, I feel that 'treatment' would simply be to affirm her ideas and send her on to a pharmacy with her golden ticket, a Rx for "T'.

Welcome to the forum. Your account has been acitivated.

I'm so sorry about what you and your daughter are dealing with. We certainly need terapists who are helpful and who understand that affirmation only is a dangerous approach that is ahrming kids ad young people, so your interest in helping is welcome.

Have you heard of the Gender Exploratory Therapy Association (GETA)? You might be interested in chekcing out their website. It looks like they have changed their name to "Therapy First." https://www.therapyfirst.org/

Thank you and yes, I had found that site and I appreciate the endorsement (and new link) here. I admit that I had a little trouble sifting through all the therapists and looking through their bios through the lens of skepticism, a terrible thing to say considering I'm in the field. Reading through again now, and viewing the mission statement that providers adhere to, I feel more reassured.