This story is from the comments listed below, summarised by AI.
Authenticity Assessment: Not Suspicious
Based on the provided comments, the account does not show clear red flags of being inauthentic.
The user's story is consistent, detailing a long-term, emotionally charged experience as the parent of a trans-identified child. The language is nuanced, emotionally varied (grief, anger, hope), and engages in complex arguments, which is atypical for a simple bot. The passion and specific perspective align with a genuine, albeit very critical, participant in the detransition discussion space.
About me
I watched my son start hormones a few years ago, terrified it was a rushed solution for his deeper mental health struggles. I believe a broken, profit-driven medical system failed him by pushing transition instead of real therapy. The pain of our estrangement is devastating, as I had to stop enabling what I saw as a harmful fantasy. I find hope in detransitioners who embrace their true selves. My only wish is for him to come back to himself so I can have my child again.
My detransition story
My journey isn't my own; it's about my son. This is a summary of my experience watching him transition and the painful path it set our family on.
My son began his transition a few years ago. It felt like it came out of nowhere. I was immediately terrified and heartbroken. I believed, and still believe, that his desire to transition was rooted in social issues and other mental health struggles that were never properly addressed. I felt that a mental health diagnosis and treatment for those underlying issues would have helped him so much more than immediately starting hormone treatment. I begged him to pause and get that kind of help first, but he refused. I felt completely let down by the healthcare industry, which seemed to fast-track him toward medicalization instead of offering real, exploratory therapy.
I became convinced that the system is deeply broken. I believe gender therapists are largely trained to affirm and talk people into transitioning, not to question or explore the reasons behind those feelings. I see it as a money-making industry where therapists, physicians, and pharmaceutical companies are all profiting from a new source, especially after scrutiny on opioids. They are creating a generation of statistics, and the long-term studies on what happens years into transitioning simply haven't been done.
Watching this happen to my son has been the most painful experience of my life. I had to practice tough love. I couldn't feed a fantasy I believed was harmful, so I haven't seen him for many months. The pain of that separation is hopelessly devastating. There are no words to properly describe it. I see other parents being celebrated for accepting their child's transition, and it's isolating. I worry constantly about the future—what happens when the trend fades and he is left permanently sterile, with irreversible damage to his body, and dependent on hormones for life?
I've found a lot of strength in hearing from detransitioners, especially the women who have shared their stories online. To me, they are beautiful because they have embraced their authentic selves and the sex they were born with. Their courage gives me hope.
My thoughts on gender are that this movement is regressive, not progressive. It seems to be wiping out decades of fighting for true gender equality by insisting that to break stereotypes, you must medically change your body. I believe the true trailblazers are the detransitioners and the young people who are learning to live completely free from gender expectations without surgery or hormones.
I have deep regrets about how everything was handled. I regret that my son was influenced so heavily by online communities and that he never received the non-affirming therapy I believe he desperately needed. I regret that profit seemed to be put before his well-being. My only hope is that he will one day detransition, come to terms with who he really is, and that I will get my child back.
Here is a timeline of the key events from my perspective:
| My Age | Year | Event |
|---|---|---|
| 52 | 2019 | My son began hormone treatment. I begged him to stop and seek help for underlying social and mental health issues instead. |
| 52 | 2019 | I became aware of the detransition community and began to understand the lack of long-term studies and the financial incentives behind medical transition. |
| 53 | 2020 | I made the difficult decision to stop enabling my son's transition. We have been estranged for over nine months. |
Top Comments by /u/cnnhahn:
Agree! It's sad that society is becoming more regressive. Honestly, the trailblazers of the future are the detransitioners and those rare youth who have completely untethered themselves from gender expectations. It's maddening that anyone believes getting hormones and surgeries is the ONLY way that they can exist. That is the total opposite of being gender-free.
Good for you. I think this group should be welcoming to anyone who is even thinking about detransitioning. It doesn't matter which path you take to get there. Learning to think for yourself is a great achievement. We should be opening our arms to you. There are very caring people on this site. I hope that never changes.
That is so sad. I haven't seen mine for 9 months. Tough love is hard but I can't feed a fantasy. Some days I completely give up all hope. As much as this awful trend hurts our children, it is hopelessly devastating to parents. There are no words to properly describe the pain we feel.
Follow your heart on this one. If you believe that your daughter has made a mistake, you shouldn't lie about it. There are already too many people feeding the fantasy. Some of us have to be the voices of reason even if we are outnumbered. Who knows when the madness will end. When it does, it all comes down to which side you want to be on. The trans movement is harmful in so many ways but unfortunately, it is trending right now. Parents are afraid to speak up for fear of losing their children. It's a very hard decision to make. If you think it is a harmful trend for your child as well as other children, I don't see any way to justify accepting the craziness. Be warned... it won't be easy and you will question yourself every time you see those other moms getting kudos for accepting their child's transition. What happens when that child realizes that they are permanently sterile, have done irreversible damage to their bodies, and have opted for taking hormones the remainder of their lives and you were behind them the entire time? What happens when the trend fades and you have to pick up the pieces? I believe that honesty is the best policy on this one because they will know if you are just pretending to accept their way of life and you really don't. It will make them happy at the moment but what about the future? What a painful time for parents. Either way, you are losing your child. The only hope is for them to detransition and to accept and come to terms with who they really are. Only then will you have your child back. It is a very sad time in history.
Oh no! Do not see a gender therapist! They are trained to talk you into transitioning. I believe in time that will change, as soon as the law suits start, but until then have no doubt that therapists, physicians, and big pharma have been looking at making $$$ from a new source. Opioid addiction is finally under scrutiny and they are losing a huge money-maker. Most new therapists are chomping at the bit to advertise about their own gender studies. They know very little about the reality of what happens years into transitioning. There haven't been enough studies done. Sadly, this generation will end up being only statistics.
So very true! It is regressive, not progressive. The trans agenda is trying to wipe out years of fighting for gender equality for men and women. It is so sad to see progressives stumbling over each other to be the most woke person in the room. They are doing so much damage and I am liberal enough to say that. I hope someone soon gets it and is the first to speak up.
Or it is the only thing that you really desire. Stop fighting it. If your mind is telling you to detransition, by all means at least try it for awhile. You won't lose anything and you might realize that it is what you wanted all along. It's a no brainer.
I have seen posts on other subs telling people who are questioning not to come here because it is a hate sub and these are all lies. When I voiced my concern that detransitioners need a place to go too, I was attacked and accused of lying. They don't want to listen and they will try to discourage others from coming to this page. That is very troubling to me.
Once the lawsuits start and lawyers know they can make money off of Big Pharma payoffs, it will have a domino effect much like the opioid crisis. Gotta get the ACLU and HRC out if the way first. They are loaded with money from LGBTQ groups and can pay for big lawyers.
Sadly, this all started with money and that is how it will end. No one really cares about the victim. Well, just those who love them.
I too am just going through this. 3 weeks now. I still break into tears at any minute. It came out of nowhere. I want my son to stop hormone treatment and get help with his social issues first. He refuses. I am a wreck and feel very let down by the healthcare industry. In his case, a mental health diagnosis would help him so much more.