Trans couple allow 5-y-o son to identify as a girl to be UK's first 2-gen trans family
A family in Scotland is now the first in the U.K. to be a two-generation trans-identified family after the parents decided to allow their 5-year-old son to identify as a girl.
“We haven’t encouraged Jayden to do this, despite what people think and we are hurt at the suggestion,” Greg Rogers, who was born a female but began transitioning at 16, told the news outlet.
“[He] has no idea that I’m transgender,” Greg added. “Having been through this myself, I have conflicting emotions about [him] deciding [that he] doesn’t want to be a boy anymore. It’s not an easy life. People will always judge you and I don’t think there is a single transgender person on the planet who would push that on a child.”
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Jayden, being only 5, is too young for hormone treatment but will receive counseling over the next couple of years.
“Because of [his] young age, Jayden will have counseling for a long time to explore who [he] is,” Rogers said. “The most important thing is ensuring [he] is happy if [he] wants to fully become a girl. We don’t want a child suffering from mental health problems because [he’s] been told [he] can’t be who [he] wants to be. I know what that rejection is like and we don’t want it for [him].”
The family’s announcement comes as health experts have warned about the health implications of medically transitioning children through the use of hormone suppressants and cross-sex hormones.
As the treatments could lead to infertility and various other health problems, critics of the therapy say that gender-confused children are being experimented on.
The U.K. National Health Service began investigating last year why there has been a 4,000 percent increase in children seeking gender transitions in the last 10 years.
As for the Greg and Jpdy Rogers, they say that Jayden insisted on living as a girl about a year ago.
“We’ve had people saying we’re using Jayden for attention and that [he] just wants to be a girl because I changed sex,” Rogers told The Daily Record. “It’s ridiculous. Jayden knows nothing about my past. [He] just knows me as dad.”
The couple met online three years ago. At the time, Jody Rogers was a single mother. She knew going into the relationship that Greg was a biological female who transitioned as a teen.
Although the couple shares the same last name, they are not married.
As Jayden grew older, the couple began to realize that Jayden was not happy as a boy.
Jayden was reportedly born with partial hearing but started talking after recovering from surgery.
“[He] started talking for the first time really. Weeks later, [he] came out and told us [he] hates being a boy and that [he’s] actually a girl,” Jody Rogers told Mail Online. “[He] wanted to wear girl’s clothes so we decided to go with the flow and bought them for [him].”
Jody said she first thought that it was “just a phase which would pass.”
“I was naïve. I didn’t think a child could be transgender and it isn’t until now, after speaking to other parents in our situation, that we realize it is more common than everyone thinks,” Jody Rogers was quoted as saying. “I had a son one moment and a daughter the next. It probably took me six months to start accepting that it was what Jayden really wanted. It’s been like a grieving process for me, though. I do miss having a son and, as a baby, Jayden looked so much like a boy.”
Although children like Jayden might suffer from gender dysphoria at a young age, studies have shown that gender dysphoria in children most of the time does not persist into adulthood.
According to the Rogers, not everyone has accepted Jayden’s situation.
The Rogers said that social services received an anonymous complaint one day after Jayden was playing outside the house in girl’s clothes. The couple was accused by some of forcing their child to transition.
“Social workers can see that Jayden is well looked after and have no concerns other than to suggest we consider moving home because of prejudice from some people in the area,” Greg Rogers said.
The Rogers said they have sought professional help to figure out how to handle Jayden’s situation.
“Health visitors have said we must give Jayden the choice and every morning for almost a year [he’s] chosen girls’ clothing. When [he] started school in August last year, we even spent a small fortune buying two school uniforms — a boy’s and a girl’s — so that [he] had an option. She chose the girl’s.”
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