so, i was at the farmer's market this morning and i ran into a friend who i used to work with. we discussed my upcoming job change, which ultimately lead to a discussion about her daughter who is intersex. she had been trying to find a network in our area who can help support her daughter. apparently, because she is having a difficult time with puberty and their doctor said that is was necessary for her to take hormones to start development and trigger menstruation. her daughter does not want to develop and having trouble, emotionally, dealing with this "therapy."
though i am no doctor, i find the "need" to start hormones a little wrong. what would happen if this child did not take hormones? what would happen if this child was left to develop naturally into whomever they wanted to be?
why is it that gender binaries are so strict, that we (our society) cannot allow people to become the persons they want to be? is this "need" for hormone therapy supposed to make this child more well adjusted or is this therapy supposed to help society more easily categorize her as female?
i am inclined to say that this child should be allowed the opportunity to develop on hir own. if hir genitalia functions, then what is the problem?
