With a judge’s permission — required for any minor looking to transition — an unidentified teen has become Spain’s youngest-ever transgender surgery patient. With a successful surgery completed three weeks ago, after two years of hormone therapy, the young biological man who, from age five felt like a girl, now has a woman’s body. Spain is among a select few countries, including Australia and the Netherlands, with laws that explicitly allows minors to have gender reassignment surgeries.
16-Year-Old Becomes Spain’s Youngeset Post-Op Transgender Patient
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Dasher
General Franco must be spinning in his grave.
Tina
People don’t call us men until after we transition. Ironic but not funny.
Fitz
Tina, They didn’t. They called her a biological male. She just is.
I think this is great— let this young woman enjoy as much of young adulthood in a body she feels good in. Brava! Does Spain pay for this surgery or did she have wealthy parents? I really hope Spain is covering this… it’s just so much easier to be happy and productive when you like how your body looks.
Erick
Actually, you need to be 18 for a sex change operation, thats why the judges order was needed, along with consent from the parents (which they did); and that is the debate that this case is causing.
For every other medical procedure you only need to be 16, so this case will be precedent for the law to change according to the rest of medical law. Since in Spain this operation is covered by national healthcare, this might get a bit political before minors can do this freely, but it will happen in the end.
Erick
@Fitz: “I think this is great— let this young woman enjoy as much of young adulthood in a body she feels good in.”
That is the basis for the ruling…the younger the better, taking into account the maturity of the patient of course.
Fitz
@Erick: Yea, I am reading a lot about using anabolic blockers to delay puberty in transexual-identified kids too. Makes me -slightly- nervous, because we know so damn little, but the openness/thought behind it is excellent.
mentor guy
I do volunteer work with GBLT youth and many of them are trans. While I always strive to be supportive of them, I do worry about whether they are capable of making such a life changing decision at that age. It’s a serious, permanent alteration. I’ve seen one young person already switch back (from male to female and then back) – with 3 name changes. Adolescence is a time of lots of growth – physically, mentally, etc. – and a time of experimentation and rebellion. Permanently altering one’s body and gender in the midst of that seems dangerous, maybe even irresponsible on the part of that child’s guardians. Of course, no one wants to appear transphobic so we don’t talk about it very openly or honestly, but it’s a legitimate concern I believe.
Prof. O.G. Whataschnozell
God help the parents if he regrets this decision when he gets older. I have been out of the closet more years than many of you are old and do not mean to sound like a bitter old queen but I don’t think it too much to ask that these operations have a minimum age limit of 18.
Nope, can’t say I’m on board with this one but I have change my stance in favor of gay marriage. It took attending a mock ceremony to bring me on-board.
And no, I am not interested in attending a mock or real “chop” operation.
thyl
they only want you when you’re 17, when you’re 21, you’re no fun
Friend of Dorothy
@thyl:
They take a polaroid
and let you go
say they’ll let you know
so come on…
Jadis
Yeah, well the problem is that once puberty hits, the clock’s ticking. That’s why it’s utterly essential to get onto it as soon as possible. Hormone blockers at 12, absolutely. Surgery whenever they’re sure.
I knew I was trans when I was six years old, and the magnitude of grief and misery this would have saved me is impossible to express.