Recommending Transsexual Clients for Gender Transition: A Therapeutic Tool for Assessing Readiness

Losing the Child They Thought They Had: Therapeutic Suggestions for an Ambiguous Loss Perspective with Parents of a Transgender Child

“…Transsexuality, then, is a subcategory under the transgender umbrella. Identifying as transgender does not equate to transsexual reassignment; gender transitioning is just one of any number of life-affirming choices faced by transgender-identified individuals (Coolhart, Provancher, Hager, & Wang, 2008;Malpas, 2006;Piper & Mannino, 2008). to transition from one sex to another in order to live more authentically (Lev, 2004;Malpas, 2006;Raj, 2008).…”

Therapy with Transsexual Youth and Their Families: A Clinical Tool for Assessing Youth’s Readiness for Gender Transition

“…The level of support the transsexual client receives is vital to any clinical assessment in determining readiness for medical intervention for gender transition (Coolhart et al., 2008). Specifically, when working with youth who are transitioning, the level of family support is of utmost importance owing to the high level of dependence youth have on their families.…”

“…The proposed clinical assessment tool builds upon and modifies Coolhart et al.’s (2008) assessment tool for determining adult transsexual client readiness for gender transition treatments. Similarly, it “is intended to provide therapists with an overall picture of clients’ struggles, strengths, and experiences and ultimately serves as a guideline to determine clients’ stability and ability to handle steps toward gender transition (Coolhart et al., 2008, p 306). ” The current clinical assessment tool has been designed for working with transsexual youth, thus providing additional attention to youth‐specific topics, such as parental involvement in the clinical assessment process and school‐related concerns.…”

“…The purpose of this domain is to gather a general sense about what the youth’s life has been like with regard to gender identity. Parallel to Coolhart et al.’s (2008) assessment tool, “this section is very broad in scope, the most lengthy, and provides a backdrop for the rest of the assessment and therapeutic relationship” (p. 308). Information is gathered about the dynamics of family relationships, when the client came out to self as transsexual, and what that process was like for the youth.…”

“…Despite this need for therapeutic services, most therapists lack the training that is necessary to sensitively serve transsexual clients (Coolhart, Provancher, Hager, & Wang, 2008; Lev, 2004). Erich, Boutte‐Queen, Donnelly, and Tittsworth (2007) study found that only 24% of social workers surveyed felt their education prepared them “moderately well” to work with the transgender community, while 35% reported their education did not prepare them well and 33% reported they were not prepared at all to work with the transgender community.…”